A Free Printable Kids Art Challenge
Amanda Eldridge
Kickstart your children’s creativity with our exciting and educational DIY printable art challenge! As part of our mission to inspire and ignite artistic exploration, we’ve created a set of free printable art badges that double as your personal toolkit for this creative journey.
This unique challenge not only invites children to delve into a plethora of new supplies and processes but also rewards their curiosity and bravery in venturing into different art mediums.
A few years ago I made a set of printable art badges that we had so much fun turning into wearable awards for achievement in art. This year, with so many kids learning at home, I revisited the original idea, making a few changes to turn our old set of badges into everything you need to create your own easy, printable mixed media art challenge!
Use the links below to jump straight to a specific topic of interest in this article…
Our updated art challenge printable set includes stickers for nine different art mediums and templates you can fill in with a supply of your choice! All of our art supply challenge stickers are formatted as circles you can easily cut out with a 2.5-inch round punch, OR can print right onto an Avery label sticker sheet – it couldn’t possibly get simpler than that!
This DIY printable challenge encourages kids to explore a variety of new supplies and processes, with custom-designed, ready-to-print badges for achievement in exploring…
- Paper or cardboard
- Paint or watercolors
- Clay or dough
- Yarn or fabric
- Recycled supplies
- Chalk, pastels, or charcoal
- Nature materials
- Printmaking or stamps
- Wood or sticks
- Supplies of your choice (design your own!)
Add an EXTRA element of fun and excitement to this challenge by using our random art supply generator – give the wheel a spin and let loose with the art material it chooses for you. OR make your own DIY art prompt spinners!
To make your own printable kids’ art challenge, you’ll need:
Note: We prefer to shop locally or use what we have at home, but this list contains Woodpeckers Crafts, Etsy, Blick Art Materials, Bookshop.org and/or Amazon affiliate links for reference. As affiliates (and Amazon Associates), we make a small commission on qualifying purchases.*
BASIC SUPPLIES:
- 1-3 sheets of 8.5 x 11 heavy cardstock or Avery 2.5-inch diameter printable round sticker labels
- Our free printable mixed media art challenge set
OPTIONAL SUPPLIES:
- Scissors or a 2.5-inch circle punch (like this)
- Art and craft supplies for coloring or extra decoration (crayons, cardboard, feathers, ribbon, etc.)
- 2.5-inch DIY buttons, pinbacks, or tie tacks
DIY Printable Mixed Media Kids Art Challenge Instructions
Follow these simple steps to use our free printable art challenge for fun invitations that encourage children to explore different art mediums.
Download and print our art supply challenge stickers and collection sheet.
Print the desired sticker pages on heavy cardstock or onto Avery 2.5-inch printable round sticker labels. The art challenge collection sheet can be printed on heavy cardstock.
Cut out if necessary.
Cut out your art supply challenge stickers/badges using scissors or a circle punch.
Color, decorate, and add embellishments (optional!).
If using the black and white pages, you can color and decorate using fun supplies or craft embellishments like watercolors, feathers, felt, beads, etc.
Note: If decorating your own set of art badges, you may want to do the coloring first, then cut out. It sometimes proves easier for little hands to color on a large sheet rather than trying to hold onto the smaller individual art badges while coloring.
Gather art projects for a challenge.
You can create a daily, weekly, or monthly art challenge by picking a project to accomplish for each supply OR by presenting each supply as an invitation along with a small selection of basic arts and craft materials – let your child lead and explore.
For inspiration, visit our collection of over 50 art projects to help kids explore new mediums.
Use the art challenge collection sheet to keep track of progress.
Our art challenge sticker collection sheet can be used for goal-setting and progress tracking.
Gather ideas to build your very own art challenge by using our list of 50+ projects to help kids explore new art mediums or grab some of these artist-inspired ideas from the Whitney Museum of American Art, then print out your own set of stickers and art challenge sheets to keep track of your daily or weekly art exploration!
With black & white DIY versions, you can use these little stickers as an art project of their own or turn them into buttons or pins with a couple of basic additions I’ve listed above.
Tips and FAQs for Organizing a Kids Art Challenge
How can I organize my own kids’ art challenge?
Start by determining the rules, themes, and duration of the challenge.
Promote the challenge through various channels such as social media, school newsletters, or community groups. Provide clear instructions, deadlines, and any necessary materials or guidelines for participation.
What age group is suitable for a children’s art challenge?
Art challenges can be tailored to different age groups, depending on their skill levels and interests. It’s best to specify the age range for participation, such as preschoolers, elementary school children, or middle schoolers, to ensure the challenge is age-appropriate.
What are some popular themes or topics for a kids’ art challenge?
Popular themes or topics for children’s art challenges include animals, nature, seasons, fantasy, superheroes, outer space, underwater worlds, self-portraits, famous artworks, or favorite books/movies.
These themes can inspire children and allow for creative interpretations.
How long does an art challenge typically last?
The duration of a kids’ art challenge can vary depending on factors like the complexity of the themes and the age group involved.
It’s best to keep the challenge timeframe reasonable, such as one to two weeks, to allow participants enough time to create their artwork without losing interest.
How can I encourage creativity and originality in a kids’ art challenge?
To foster creativity and originality in an art challenge, you can encourage participants to think outside the box and express their unique ideas.
Emphasize that there are no right or wrong answers and that each artwork is a reflection of the child’s imagination.
Encourage experimentation with different techniques and materials to explore various artistic possibilities.
Are there any prizes or rewards for participating in a kids’ art challenge?
Depending on the nature of the kids’ art challenge, you may consider offering prizes or rewards to participants.
These could include certificates of participation, art supplies, small gifts, or recognition through an exhibition or online showcase.
How can I showcase and share the artwork created during the kids’ art challenge?
To showcase and share the artwork created during an art challenge, you can create a dedicated gallery or display area where the work can be exhibited.
Additionally, you can share the artwork online through social media platforms, a dedicated website or blog, or even through a local art exhibition or community event.
Kids Art Challenge Project Ideas
As you might have guessed, you’ll be able to find project inspiration for every medium in the art challenge among our ever-growing collection of activities. Kick your art challenge off with these nine original b&b ideas…
Paper or Cardboard Kids Art Challenge Projects
- Use basic geometric shapes to explore motion in art with our fun kinetic shapes paper art project.
- Use cut paper rainbows for this beautiful paper rainbow roads project!
- We have so many ways to help you earn a badge for cardboard, but our cardboard box city neighborhood is an instant hit with any kid.
- Our cardboard foldout secret garden or cardboard play pet tank both provide ways to score a few art challenge stickers at once!
Paint or Watercolor Projects for a Kids Art Challenge
- Find new ways to paint with unexpected tools with our name-in-the-stars constellation art or bubble wrap-painted chameleons.
- Give your watercolors a workout while you investigate gradients in nature (and on paper!) with these modern mini flower collages.
Chalk, Pastel, or Charcoal Kids Art Challenge Projects
- Try some scribble art!
- Use pastels in a unique way with our unicorn scratch art project or chalk pastel rainbow softies.
Clay or Dough Projects for a Kids Art Challenge
- Grab some clay and create a set of creative and colorful air-dry clay sea slugs.
- Experiment with mixing your own art supply for these salt dough starfish!
- Our paper straw and play dough fairy forests are a creative, sensory-packed art invitation perfect for younger sculptors.
Nature Supply Kids Art Challenge Projects
- Our hammered nature process art is a SMASHING good time.
- For those of you who experience multi-colored foliage, these gradient leaf banners are a lovely color project.
- Recycle a jar to make your own DIY terrarium.
Stamping or Printmaking Kids Art Challenge Projects
- Get your stamp on with vegetable-stamped market totes.
- Make scrap stamp shape collages with scrap paper and homemade stamps.
Wood or Stick
- Use up some fallen sticks with our tissue paper and twig spring flowers or this simple stick hanger for cards and collections.
- Future woodworkers can try our scrap wood art sculpture project or build and decorate a set of handmade toy cars.
- Make our thingamaboard – a SUPER simple wood project for kids and parents to make together and use for all sorts of creative play!
Yarn or Fabric Projects for a Kids Art Challenge
- Explore drawing with fabric using our scrap fabric adventure map art project tutorial.
- Investigate using yarn in different ways to create hauntingly cool spiderweb mobiles inspired by artist Eva Hesse.
- We have many softie ideas, but this cute little DIY crab softie is my very favorite (and made from an old shirt!).
Recycled Supply Projects for a Kids Art Challenge
- Recycled supplies are the stars of our cardboard paper roll art assemblages and DIY flameless camp lantern!
- These melted crayon butterflies are a great way to recycle old crayons.
Pick Your Own Supply!
- Get creative and come up with your very own art medium! For a couple of inspirational places to find unique supply ideas, visit our Plains-inspired bison art or process art play tiles.
*A note about affiliate links: We strive to use simple, earth-friendly supplies that can be purchased locally whenever we can, but sometimes we find the best universally available options, a rare eco-friendly find, or a niche product only available on Blick Art Materials, Amazon, Etsy, or Woodpeckers Crafts. When included in our supply list, these products are affiliate links, and if you click through to make a purchase we receive a small commission that helps us re-order these supplies!
GETTING READY TO TRY this?
I love seeing all the ways people make these ideas their own! If you're sharing the results of one of our projects, mention or tag me with @barleyandbirch, or share it in the comments of one of our Pinterest project pins.
