In Little Naomi, Little Chick, parallel stories run side-by-side, linked by the implicit friendship between the two main characters and brought to life by endearing illustrations. One of the activities Naomi participates in while she’s at preschool is finger painting. Follow the instructions below to make your own nontoxic finger paint — and your young readers will soon be having just as much fun as Little Naomi! Use the activity sheet provided to bring them even closer to the story.
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 1 cup cold water
- Food coloring
- Microwave safe bowl
- Containers for the paint
- Something to stir with
- Printout(s) of the activity sheet or other paper
Step 1: Mix 2 tablespoons of sugar, ¼ cup of cornstarch, and 1 cup cold water in a microwave safe bowl until you do not have any lumps. (If the mixture still has lumps when you start heating it, you will end up with clumpy paint.)
Step 2: Place your pan on the stove and cook it on medium high heat, stirring regularly. As the paint mixture starts to boil, keep stirring until it begins to thicken. As soon as you can tell the mixture is thickening, remove the pan from heat immediately. The mixture should now have a glassy look to it. It will thicken more as it cools. (Note: if you heat the mixture too long,the paint may be too thick.)
Step 3: Once the mixture is cool enough to work with, separate it into the bowls that you will store the paint in.
Step 4: Add food coloring as desired, mixing the colors thoroughly into the mixture.
Step 5: Using a print out of our Little Naomi, Little Chick activity sheet or another piece of paper, make your own hands-on masterpieces with this nontoxic finger paint.
One final note: This activity can get messy, so make sure to have plenty of paper towels handy. Have Fun!