Tissue Paper Stained Glass for Spring – Done 2 Ways

Welcome to the first installment of Spring Play Days!  I’m partnering up with the lovely ladies of Fantastic Fun and Learning, Nothing if Not Intentional, Buggy and Buddy, and Twodaloo to share spring-themed activities for the kiddos.  We’ll each be sharing three spring posts this week, for a total of 15 spring play ideas for kids.

Recently, my preschoolers created spring tissue paper stained glass art for our windows.  They used two different techniques to create the art, and I think the colorful “stained glass” brightens up the classroom!

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Materials
Tissue paper in various spring colors
Wax paper
Liquid starch
Paintbrushes
Contact paper

Set Up
Using the school’s paper cutter, I cut squares out of the tissue paper.  I also made some tissue paper flowers using our die-cut machine.  Both the squares and the flowers could have been cut out by hand, as well.  I placed the squares in one basket, with the flowers in a second basket.  This way, the kiddos could pick and choose which shapes to use.

A Quick Field Trip
I currently work at a church preschool, so I was able to take the children to the church’s sanctuary.  We kept the lights off and observed the various stained glass windows in the sanctuary.  We talked about the colors and textures of the windows, as well as the basic process behind creating them.

Technique 1
I taped a large piece of wax paper to one of our tables, poured liquid starch into bowls, and laid out paintbrushes. The children, as always, wanted to see what I was doing!  Some of them sat down and joined in right away, while others popped by later.  To create tissue paper stained glass art this way, the kids painted liquid starch onto the wax paper.  Then they added the tissue paper shapes and painted more liquid starch on top.

Many of the students enjoyed this process art activity.  A few of them were VERY focused on arranging the colors and shapes the way they wanted.  Some did become a bit frustrated when the tissue paper tore or crinkled. It led to some good conversations about why the paper broke and whether or not the art still looked nice.  In the end, it wasn’t really a problem.

Technique 2
We went a different route for our next piece of tissue paper stained glass art.  For this piece, I taped a large piece of contact paper to a table, with the sticky side facing up.  I set the baskets of tissue paper squares and flowers out nearby and let the children create.  Since the paper was already sticky, the children just used their fingers to place the tissue paper onto it.

Once again, most of the kiddos enjoyed this process art.  Some stayed longer than others, and a few just weren’t interested.  I enjoyed watching the children carefully apply each piece of tissue paper to the contact paper.  It seemed that pressing the tissue paper down with their fingers had a kind of cathartic effect.

Displaying the Art
I placed both pieces of art in different windows in the classroom, using blue painter’s tape to secure the edges.  When I asked the children which piece they liked looking at the best, most chose the sticky paper one.  When I asked which they preferred doing, the vote was split down the middle.  Almost all of the kiddos want to make more tissue paper stained glass windows for the room, and I plan on taking them up on it!

Have you ever created stained glass art using tissue paper?  Which of our techniques did you like the best?

More Play Days
Be sure to check back on Tuesday and Thursday for more spring-themed activities!  In the meantime, hop on over to see what my co-hosts are up to today:

Flower Petal Sensory Play {Fantastic Fun and Learning}

Butterfly Pancakes – Fun and Healthy! {Nothing if Not Intentional}

Outdoor Color Matching with Toddlers {Twodaloo}

Spring Activities for Kids: Invitation to Explore Flowers {Buggy and Buddy}

If you’re looking for more seasonal ideas for the kiddos, be sure to check out Fall Invitations to Play and Winter Play Days!