Christmas painting with candy canes and pinecones

I’ll admit that sometimes I dread pulling out the paint.

I feel like I spend more time cleaning up than my kids actually spend painting. Nonetheless, I value what kids learn from engaging in the arts so I do make sure we paint from time to time.

Today I’m sharing a Christmas activity we did that involved painting with candy canes and pine cones.

I find it fun to change up an activity by adding a thematic or seasonal element to it.

In this case, a regular painting activity became more interesting by using candy canes and pine cones as painting tools.

Note: For more Christmas activities your kids will love, see my Christmas Activities for Kids page.

I prepared this activity by laying out several trays with paint, a pine cone, a scented tree object (sadly, I have no idea what it is called), and a candy cane.

I limited the kids to four colors of paint: green, white, red, and black.

My son started by using his candy cane to paint his paper.

My daughter started by using her candy cane to paint her little scented object.

It was fun to watch them discover how each material created a different pattern on the paper. Such a fun way to explore textures!

The kids also enjoyed trying out different colors and even mixing them on their papers.

What Christmas objects would you like to paint with?

More Christmas resources

More Christmas posts from Gift of Curiosity:

• Grow a Christmas tree sponge
• Christmas Montessori activities
• Q-tip painted Christmas tree
• Paper plate reindeer craft
• Christmas sensory bin
• Candy cane experiment
• Christmas game: What’s in the bag?
• Christmas Printables Pack
• Christmas Bingo
• Christmas do-a-dot printables

For more Christmas activities your kids will love, see my Christmas Activities for Kids page and my Christmas Activities for Kids Pinterest board.