How to Create Colorful Collage Art for Kids Inspired by Alma Thomas

Time needed: 2 days.

INSTRUCTIONS
Note: This is a two part project.

1. Treasure hunt for colors

   Start your time by taking a look at photos of Alma Thomas’ work to get inspired! We discuss the patterns and colors seen in the images.
   
   Then I ask the children to go on a treasure hunt to find colorful objects from around the house, we identify the colors and group into warm colors (red, orange and yellow) or cold colors (blue, some purple and some green). This is a great way for kids to get up and move around a little! 

2. Identify warm colors

   Next, kids can look through their art materials and identify the pencils, crayons, markers and paints that have warm color tones.
   
   

3. Color paper with warm & cool colors

   Start to cover a sheet of paper in warm colors. Begin to color first with lines and patterns, then fill in the negative spaces with paint. Discuss different types of marks that different art materials make. You can use any art materials that you have at home, and it’s also a great opportunity to explore new materials to see what they can do.
   
   
   
   It’s fun to stop once in a while and point out interesting things in each other’s artwork. This helps to build community and confidence among children, siblings, etc.
   
   Once the paper is covered in warm colors, it’s time to do the same with cool colors on a separate piece of paper. You will end up with one paper filled with warm tones and a second with cool tones. This is a good stopping point if you’d like to come back to this project later.
   
   

4. Assemble collage

   Start to cut paper first into strips and then into smaller shapes. Use a combination of the warm and cold papers to create a collage inspired by Alma Thomas. It’s useful to take another look at Alma’s work at this point for extra inspiration!