Splat painting is a joyful, high-energy way to make preschool art with rubber mallets, bright paint blobs, and tons of messy fun. Try this playful take on splat painting for a fast setup, big learning, and unforgettable color-splats!
Splat painting is a 10/10
The night before these perfect angels came over for an art day, I texted their dad and asked, “Can I please borrow a plastic mallet for tomorrow?”
Without hesitation, he sent a photo of the one he had on hand and I knew it would be perfect.
I have done this type of art a dozen times with preschoolers + big kids and it’s always a…smash.
When the girls walked in with the mallet and asked, “What are we doing with this?!” and I replied, “Painting!” their eyes were as big as saucers.
Exactly zero kids had any hesitation or reluctance jumping in with this project. It’s perfect.
✨ Check out our ultimate collection of the best process art projects for kids!
I actually had a different vision for this splat painting project
Originally, I had envisioned us doing this project, letting it dry, and then adding eye stickers to make monsters à la this blow monster art project that we made last year.
Everything was going perfectly, but in the moment, I realized the kids loved these splats as it.
They were so excited to see, share, and talk about the colors that they made, and they didn’t need to add anything else to them to get 100% joy from the activity.
Might we try these again one day and turn them into monsters that time? We sure might! But for this day, these wild splats were perfect just as they were.
☀️ While you’re outside, try some of these other fun activities, too:
Materials
Friends Art Lab is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Read more about these links in my disclosure policy.
- Kids’ paint
- Thick paper or posterboard
- Rubber mallet (soft, kid-friendly head)
How to make splat painting art
- Add small blobs of paint to your paper.
- Model the safe move: hold the mallet above the blob and drop straight down.
- Invite kids to try soft and medium drops to compare patterns.
- Add new blobs and repeat.
- Move finished art to a drying spot and start a new sheet for round two.
Splat painting across the seasons
We were going to make these monsters by adding on some eye stickers, but decided to just keep them as it.
But, you can certainly make these themed throughout the year.
- Spring flowers: splat bright circles, then draw simple stems/leaves once dry.
- Ocean jellyfish: splat a dome, then drag lines downward for wiggly tentacles.
- Fourth of July fireworks: layer red, white, and blue splats in clusters.
- Thanksgiving turkeys: brown/orange splat body, thumbprint “feathers” around the edge.
What kids are learning with splat painting
This is hands-on preschool process art, so the learning lives in the doing and not necessarily the final product.
Kids practice graded force (soft tap, medium tap, big thunk) and see immediate cause and effect in the size and shape of each splat.
They build hand-eye coordination by aiming for the paint blob’s center and strengthen core and bilateral control by lifting and dropping the mallet.
There’s rich science talk, too: predicting color mixes, comparing “rings” and “rays,” measuring which splat traveled farthest.
Painting without brushes: Why kids love it (and what they learn)
Paint normally goes with paintbrushes, right? Well, it certainly doesn’t have to every time.
When you swap out paintbrushes for other tools, kids discover that tools change the and begin to compare textures, lines, and shapes like tiny printmakers.
Try this! Set out paint and paper, and instead of paintbrushes, provide kids with:
- Rolling pins
- Cooking cutters
- Bubble wrap
- Potato mashers
- Measuring cups
- Legos
- Plastic animal figurines
Every tool above will make a different mark, and the possibilities of what you can use is truly limitless.
Frequently Asked Questions
Start with nickel-sized blobs…but exploring smaller and bigger blobs is where the magic really comes from.
I can’t think of any age that wouldn’t love this.
Well……..I wouldn’t. 😂
LEAVE A COMMENT