Sunflower Still Life - Preschool Fall Art

Celebrate Fall with a sunflower still life art activity for preschoolers! A simple and engaging way to introduce kids to nature-inspired creativity.

A child-drawn sunflower lays on a table with a real sunflower to the right of it and a cup of yellow liquid watercolors above it.

Sunflower still life makes for perfect preschool Fall art

One of our preschool families came in with several long stems of sunflowers from their garden. You know how homemade cookies taste better than store-bought cookies? I always think the same of flowers – a homegrown flower is better than store-bought.

And, I’m already obsessed with fresh flowers, so this made the surprise extra touching.

Because we were gifted what felt like an acres’ worth of flowers, we could do so many things.

Sunflowers in the water table! Sunflowers in the science center! Sunflower still life drawings!

🌻 Related: Don’t miss our collection of the BEST Fall sensory bins for kids!

Two large sunflowers lay beside one another on a table

Sunflower still life art is GORGEOUS

If you’re not an art nerd like myself, the term “still life” may be new to you, but there’s a 117% chance it will make you look extra fancy when using it with coworkers and families.

“Oh, those drawings? Those are just our still life pieces.” *cue hair flip*

But while it sounds fancy, it’s not hard to do. Still life art refers to art, often drawings or paintings, of things that are…are you ready…dun dun dun dun…still. Unmoving. Inanimate.

A drawing of a bowl of fruit? Still life.

A painting of a jar filled with apples? Still life.

A precious little preschool drawing of fresh sunflowers? Still life!

🌻 Other fun Fall activities to try:

The supplies needed for this fall activity for preschoolers: fresh sunflowers, four cups of liquid watercolors - each with one green paintbrush inside, pieces of white paper, and black Sharpie markers.

Materials

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Sunflowers
Black, permanent markers
Watercolors
Paintbrushes
Paper – we used watercolor paper here, but use the thickest paper that you can when using watercolor paints

While not required, we often like chopping up our art paper into smaller pieces so that it feels a little less intimidating for the kids.

Sometimes, mini art > regular art.

A child engaged in this fall activity for preschoolers uses a black Sharpie to draw the outline of a sunflower.

How to make sunflower still life art

Investigate: Set your sunflowers around the table and invite your child to examine the flower closely. What colors do they see? What shapes are the petals? How does the flower smell and feel?

Draw: Invite your child to use the black, permanent marker to draw the flower. We use phrases like:
- What shape is the center of the flower?” 👉🏼 kids name and draw circles
- What is around the center of the flower?” 👉🏼 kids name and draw petals

Paint: Add the color to the drawings! We use black, permanent markers because they don’t smudge, smear, or bleed when the kids paint it over.

A child engaged in this fall activity for preschoolers uses yellow watercolors to paint in the petals of their sunflower outline.

Yes, we use Sharpies with preschoolers. Here’s why…

Sharpies make AMAZING art. You can paint over them, they don’t run, and the colors never fade.

I started using Sharpies in the classroom in 2011 after observing a brilliant teacher friend use them with her preschoolers, and a lightbulb went off. How had I not used them before with kids?! I haven’t looked back and now couldn’t imagine my classroom without them.

Yes, they are permanent, so we set some boundaries. We remind the kids that these markers are not for drawing all over their skin and tables…but those are the same rules for the other markers in our class.

We also have the Sharpies set at adult height in the classroom just in case a younger sibling wanders into the room, but Sharpies have caused problems with our 3-6 year-olds precisely 0 times.

Seriously, once you go Sharpie, you don’t go back!

A child-drawn sunflower is painted in with yellow and brown watercolors and lays on a table in front of a real sunflower.

After drawing a sunflower still life, try these, too

We are using sunflowers here, but you can easily swap those out for any other still, inanimate objects, such as:

Pumpkins
Daisies
Apples
Jars
Bread
Peaches

While it’s still life whether or not you’re using real sunflowers or fake ones, if given a choice, we always choose fresh.

You’re going to love sunflower still life art

My Fall-loving heart loves making sunflower still life with kids, but now I am itching to do a pumpkin version, too. Our local pumpkin patch has a wide variety of pumpkins and gourds that would be beautiful for this process.

Whether using sunflowers, pumpkins, or anything in between, your little artists will love still life art!

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do we draw still life?

Because there is so much beauty around us that we often overlook. A mug is just a mug, but when you sit down to draw and paint it? You notice It suddenly becomes incredible. The same thing happens with sunflowers, books, pears, stuffed animals, etc.

What age is this recommended for?

Whatever age enjoys drawing and painting and can safely use the materials.

Can I use washable markers instead of permanent?

Yes! If you choose to paint over, the colors will bleed, but you could easily skip the painting part and just enjoy drawing.