Celebrating World Art Day with Julia

Here at Glo Pals we couldn't be more excited to be celebrating World Art Day with our newest Pal, Julia from Sesame Street! World Art Day is being held on April 15th this year and is a celebration of fine arts hosted by the International Association of Art (IAA). The aim of this special day is to celebrate creative activity worldwide, and it lends itself so well to Sesame Street's commitment to See  Amazing in All Children. Julia is a 4-year old muppet with autism in the show. Through her inclusion there are many opportunities to promote the understanding that children are different and it is great to celebrate these differences as the heart of what makes us all individuals.

The most magical thing about art is that it allows for anyone to have the freedom to create! There is no right or wrong, just the opportunity to be expressive and share your ideas in different ways. Our friend Julia is passionate about art and we really wanted to share this passion too. What better way to celebrate creativity than to enjoy a color mixing tape resist art project inspired by Julia's love of arts and crafts!

What you need:

- white paper or cardstock

- painter's tape

- red and yellow paint

- paintbrushes

- paint palette or mixing tray

The Set-up:

To prepare your piece of paper or card simply use the painter's tape to make a large 'J' for Julia in the middle of your page. Place some red and yellow paint in the paint palette and put out some brushes and water. And of course don't forget to include Julia in the set up too!

How It Works:

It's always a nice idea to embrace the open-endedness of art by giving your child the freedom to explore the invitation to create however they wish. It can be tempting to give them specific instructions but to make the most of the opportunity try to simply invite them to paint.

As you can see it wasn't long before our little artist decided that red and yellow paints weren't enough, so she mixed them together to make orange paint. She loved exploring how she could mix the colors both in the palette and on the page. She carefully experimented with using lots of red and a little bit of yellow, and vice-versa. The whole time she was expressing her creativity and making beautiful art!

If your child is old enough it's a great idea to allow them to handle the paint themselves. This is why using paint squirt bottles can be really helpful. Instead of worrying about a big mess, you can simply guide your child on what is a sensible amount to use and the paint comes out gradually. This helps them to have a sense of ownership over their work and encourages pride and engagement.

This little artist kept painting and mixing colors until the whole page was full. We let the paint dry and then carefully peeled off the painter's tape. It left a bold 'J' in the middle of the page. This is a really fun activity to do with your child to help them share Julia's passion and to open the doors for a discussion about how children can be different and might do things differently, but at the same time they will also have similar interests and talents as well. Art can be a great way to create links and for children to gain a better understanding of how there are different ways to communicate and be expressive. All children have unique talents and outlooks on life which is why we are excited to be able to highlight how Julia and children with autism make the world a richer place.