Painting as sensory play

How many people think of painting as something that tickles the senses?

We tried painting with cubes of ice a short while ago, and the littles sure noticed something was different about this painting exercise!

One of the first things they noticed (of course) was that I brought out cubes of ice to paint with. Keeping in mind that they had also helped me make these painting cubes, they were still fascinated by them after they had frozen.
The children took delight in how the ice was so cold, and at how it melted in their hands. .

They took turns using the different colours and saw how they spread out on the page and the different colour combinations they could make using the frozen paint cubes.

There are many other ways that painting delights the senses. The smell, feel and sight of paints can bring different feelings in all of us.

As long as the children are having fun (and mommy isn't going too insane about the MESS!) I love letting the children explore different ways to play with the paints.