CHILDCARE WORKERS

FREE ART MATERIALS


FREE ART MATERIALS As child care providers, you know how important (and how much fun!) art/creative activities are for children.  However, the materials needed for these activities can be very expensive.  The following is a list of items you can get for free: 

Ask other staff or parents to bring in the following items:

1.  Paper towel/toilet paper/Wrapping paper tubes

  •   Place at an angle and put marbles/small car toys through

2.  Egg cartons

  • Caterpillar

  • Sorting Container

3.  Milk jug/pop bottle caps

  • Use for a sorting game

4.  The metal ends of canned juice

  • Stickers can be placed on one side and they can be used to make a game of memory

5.  Magnets

  • These are fun on their own (don't need to make anything out of them)

6.  Newspapers

  • Can be used to do paper mache

7.  Magazines

  • Can be used for collage projects

8.  Used paper

  • Other side can still be used for coloring, etc.

9.  Circles left over from hole punches

  • Many art projects: can be glued on paper to represent snow

10.  Partially used/old: markers, crayons, paints, notebooks, glue sticks, paint brushes, stickers, spray bottles, coloring books, etc.

  • Crayons can be melted down and reshaped, other partially used items are still be usable

11.  Lace

  • Can be used when making a kite (glue the lace from the top point to the bottom and from the left to the right)

12.  Fabric

  • Can be sewn into dress up clothes/hats for kids or sewn into doll clothes.  Also can be cut and glued onto a variety of projects

13.  Buttons

  • Can be used when teaching children shapes, for a sorting game, to decorate a Valentine's Day Box, etc.

14. Yarn

  • Can be used for a horse's/zebra's tail or mane

15.  Boxes

  • Can be used to store stuff or covered and used for Valentine's Day Boxes, or if large enough, to play in

16.  Sherbet/Margarins/ Whip Cream containers and lids

  • Can be used to store art supplies