# Eggshell Mosaic Painting > Kids smash eggshells with a toy hammer, glue the bits inside a hand-drawn egg outline, then paint the shells with acrylic colors to make an Easter eggshell mosaic. It's an easy way to 'paint an egg' with toddlers. - URL: https://www.funlittles.com/easter-craft-with-a-toddler/ - Ages: 2–5 yrs · Difficulty: easy · Mess: medium - Time: prep 20 min, activity 30 min - Works for: one-on-one, small group, whole class - Skills: fine-motor, color-recognition, process-art - Cautions: egg, ingestion-risk ## Materials (one batch) - Eggshells (saved from used eggs) (household) - 1 sheet White paper (household) - 1 piece Black marker (household) - White school glue - 1 piece Toy hammer - Acrylic paint in assorted colors - 1 piece Paintbrushes - 1 piece Paint palette or tray (household) - 1 piece Scissors (optional) (household) - String or twine (optional) (household) ## Substitutions - Instead of marker: Printed egg outline (The author suggests printing a smaller egg to keep toddlers interested.) ## Safety - Use a toy hammer only, never a real one, and keep fingers clear while kids smash the shells. - Broken eggshell has sharp edges and makes small pieces. Supervise closely so toddlers don't mouth or swallow bits. - Shells from raw eggs can carry germs. Rinse the shells and let them dry before use, and have everyone wash hands after the activity. - Kids with egg allergies may react to egg residue on the shells. - Acrylic paint is not taste-safe and can stain clothes. Cover clothes and the table, and supervise toddlers. ## Before you start - Save and collect eggshells over a week or two. Rinse them and let them dry. - Draw a rough egg outline on white paper for each child, using about half a sheet for toddlers. ## Steps 1. Set a few eggshells and a toy hammer in front of each child. 2. Smash the eggshells into small bits with the toy hammer, then collect the bits. 3. Spread glue generously inside the egg outline. 4. Stick the eggshell bits onto the glue. 5. Let the shells dry for about 10 minutes, or go straight on to painting. 6. Paint the shells with acrylic colors, naming each color as you go. 7. Keep painting and mixing until the whole egg is colorful. 8. Set the eggs aside to dry completely. ## Tips - Given a toddler's attention span, do a much smaller egg outline (half a white sheet). We went overzealous with the size and my toddler needed help to finish. - The first step, cracking the shells with a hammer, was the best part for the kids. Expect squeals of 'Can you believe it?' - It's a great chance to reinforce color recognition. Letting my toddler run wild with paint and explore colors is what finally helped her recognize her basic colors. - My 4-year-old did all the gluing and painting by herself. The toddler needed a bit of help. - You can let the shells dry for 10 minutes before painting, or paint right away like my kids did. ## The original post by TurkeyMom (2013) Have you tried painting an egg with a toddler? I have and it was not that easy, at least for us. Today's Easter craft is a fun and easy one, even for toddlers. In our household the simplest way to paint an egg with a toddler is by creating an eggshell mosaic. We have a blown egg Easter craft coming up, but for today the kids created beautiful mosaics. The first step in this Easter craft was the best part for them. I have been collecting a few eggs shells over a period of 2 weeks. I placed a few eggs shells in front of them along with a toy hammer. Their eyes sparkled with the question " really mom?" and it ended with a " thank you thank you mom" . The 4 year old squealed to her sister" Can you believe it ? We can crack the eggs with our hammer"! Since we failed at painting eggs with my toddler, we let our toddler smash her eggs first and we collected the bits. I just roughly hand drew a supposedly egg shape on a white sheet of paper and the kids generously applied glue on the sheets. **Note: Given a toddler's attention span I would do a much smaller egg outline ( half a white sheet )** Later they stuck the egg shell bits to the paper. - <**fine motor skills alter>** You can either let the egg shell bits dry for 10 minutes or continue to paint like my kids did. We used acrylic colors and painted on the shells. My older one completed the gluing and painting all by herself. In the last month or so she has become very interested in art projects. My toddler needed a bit of help to complete her and I guess it was because I went over zealous with the size of the egg outline. Take care to print out a smaller egg to keep the initial interest in the art activity. It was once again a great opportunity to reinforce color recognition. I'd like to state that my toddler now can recognize her basic color and she is able to do this only (stress only) because of painting and crayons. Even the book of colors did not do any good for her. Just letting her run wild with paint and allowing her to mix and explore the colors has only finally led her to recognizer her basic colors. She is so much different from her older sister. After our color recognition exercise, we set our eggs to dry. Here are our completed mosaics. I'd cut them out and string the eggs and turn the Easter Craft into a cute mantle display. What Easter craft are you into lately? Share! Thanks for reading Please take a moment to comment Recently we have shared a few Easter and Spring Crafts. Click on the images below for full posts. For more ideas for a great Easter craft, visit our **Easter Craft Board** . We also have a **Spring Activities Board.** [](https://www.funlittles.com/spring-art-egg-carton-sheep/) [](https://www.funlittles.com/spring-craft-color-matching-garden/) [](https://www.funlittles.com/spring-craft-abc-garden/) [](https://www.funlittles.com/easter-activities-for-intentional-learning/) [](https://www.funlittles.com/easter-craft-paper-weaving-basket/) Thanks for stopping by our little space here. We encourage you to stick around and take a look at [**couple of**](https://www.funlittles.com/paint-with-spaghetti-brooms/) our [**popular posts.**](https://www.funlittles.com/animal-resist-painting/) --- --- ---