Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Storytime Craft: Muddy Pigs

Muddy pigs?!!??!!! 



But...

Aren't they MESSY?

Why, yes. 
Yes, they are! 
And that is one reason toddlers and preschoolers will love this craft!

This is a simple craft that is as fun to play with as it is to make. :o) It can be a messy process or it can be a relatively clean process (despite the mention of mud) depending on your choice of art supplies.

For my pigs, I chose the same pig design that I used in my Big Red Barn Spinning Wheel project:


And also in the Mrs. Wishy Washy storytelling project:


If you would like to use the same pig, just pop me an email at storytimeabcs(at)gmail(dot)com and I will email you the template. Or you can choose any pig shape that you and your child like. There are plenty of coloring pages to choose from when you do a Google search.

First, cut your pig out of pig construction paper and then add any details you want with crayons, markers, etc.

I wanted my pigs to be reversible so I made mirror images of them and glued them together before going to the muddy step.


And here it is! 
The step you have been waiting for! 

Let's add the MUD

YAY!

Lay your pig onto newspaper or a plastic tablecloth for easy clean-up later. ;o)

Here comes the mess!

Let your little one paint some "mud" onto the pig(s) with:

***Brown paint using their fingers 
VERY MESSY!

**Brown paint using a sponge
Not quite so MESSY!

*Brown markers
Hardly any mess at all!

Brown crayons
No mess at all!
Why did you even bother to get out the newspaper? 
LOL!

I chose to use the second messiest method because I always make a mess anyway so why not choose one of the messy methods, right? :o) 

I took a kitchen sponge and cut out a small piece:


Then I dipped the sponge in the brown paint and dabbed it on the plate to remove any excess paint before sponging it onto the pig shape(s). 

I also cut a mud puddle shape out of brown construction paper and sponged brown paint onto it. 
This picture is from the making of the Mrs Wishy Washy set but it shows the mud puddle.


Be careful because sponging the "mud" is very addicting! 

You might need to have extra scrap paper or newspaper around so that your little one(s) can have fun sponging for awhile. You never know, you just might want to join in, too! LOL!

My final product was 5 reversible pigs ~ clean on one side and muddy on the other ~ and a nice big mud puddle for them to "jump" and "roll" in!


***Special Note: If you want to make reversible pigs with your child(ren), do not glue the mirror images together until the mud is painted on and has had time to dry ~ otherwise, both sides of your reversible pigs might have mud on them. ;o) I personally learned that from my experiences with a group of lively 3 year olds! Ha ha!

Now that you have a muddy pig ~ or two ~ or five. Why not enjoy a piggy book or two? Here are a few suggestions books and a song to share:

The Piggy in the Puddle
written by Charlotte Pomerantz
“Mud is squishy, mud is squashy,
mud is oh so squishy-squashy.
What you need is lots of soap.”
But the piggy answered,
“Squishy-squashy, squishy-squashy-NOPE!”
Hogwash
written by Karma Wilson
A muddy pig book by one of my favorite children's authors.
We're in a Book!
written by Mo Willems
No mud but there is lots of fun in this series of books!


The following song is a piggy version of "Five Green and Speckled Frogs"


 I found the piggy version of the song here along with the awesome idea to make reversible pigs. Thank you, Melissa, for the inspiration!


Five Pigs So Squeaky Clean!
Sing it to “Five Green and Speckled Frogs”

Five pink pigs so squeaky clean
Cleanest you’ve ever seen
Wanted to go outside and play
Oink! Oink!
One jumped into the mud
Landed with a great big thud
Then there were four clean squeaky pigs. 

Continue until all the pigs have joined in the muddy fun:
And now there are NO clean squeaky pigs!
Oink! Oink!
  (This is spoken, not sung.)
But there are five muddy pigs!
Let's count them.
1-2-3-4-5.

I hope you have lots of muddy fun as you make your own pig(s) with your little one(s). Sometimes it is good to remember the process can be just as important or more important than the product. But with this particular craft, you get both!

Enjoy! And, as always,
HAPPY READING TOGETHER!


Check out the Weekly Blog Hops and Linky Parties that I like to visit each week by clicking here.

7 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Thank you, Alyx! I appreciate the visit and the comment. Hope you will visit again soon. :o)

      Have a lovely weekend!
      K

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  2. What an awesome craft!! I'm a new follower from the blog hop! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi, Lady Unemployed! Thanks for the visit, the nice comment, and the follow! :O)

      Hope you are enjoying your day!
      K

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  3. kids would definitely love this!! fun!

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  4. Hi Annmarie! Thank you for the sweet comment. We did all had lots of muddy fun together! ;O)

    Hope you have a wonderful weekend!
    K

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  5. Hi Annmarie!

    This is a really cute and FUN project for young children. I like that it is more than just a craft but involves reading too.

    thanks for sharing at my Bunny Hop Party!

    xoxo Bunny Jean

    ReplyDelete