Fun Littles

Fun and easy kids activities

Eggshell Mosaic Painting

Mar 10, 201315,435 views
Crafts
Ages2–5 yrs
Prep20 min
Activity30 min
Leveleasy
MessMedium
Works for1:1 · Small group · Class

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.

⚠️ Safety first

  • 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 the kids arrive

  • 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.from the author
  • The first step, cracking the shells with a hammer, was the best part for the kids. Expect squeals of 'Can you believe it?'from the author
  • 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.from the author
  • My 4-year-old did all the gluing and painting by herself. The toddler needed a bit of help.from the author
  • You can let the shells dry for 10 minutes before painting, or paint right away like my kids did.from the author

Make it your own

  • Cut out the finished eggs and string them together for a cute Easter mantle display.

The story behind it

By TurkeyMom · March 2013
egg break easter craft
I placed a few egg shells in front of them along with a toy hammer. Since we failed at painting eggs with my toddler, we let her smash her eggs first.
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Eggshell Mosaic Painting: the original post

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”!

egg break easter craft 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>

stick egg shells with glue You can either let the egg shell bits dry for 10 minutes or continue to paint like my kids did.

egg shell gluing mosaic 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.

easter craft egg shell painting 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.

paint shells for easter craft

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.

toddler craft for easter After our color recognition exercise, we set our eggs to dry. Here are our completed mosaics.

Easter Craft I’d cut them out and string the eggs and turn the Easter Craft into a cute mantle display.

Easter craft with toddlers What Easter craft are you into lately? Share!

Thanks for reading

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easter craft paper weaving Thanks for stopping by our little space here. We encourage you to stick around and take a look at couple of our popular posts.




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