When Everything Old Is New Again

What if dinosaurs came back? Use your imagination to paint a futuristic habitat for dinosaurs!

• 1.

  On a large sheet of watercolor paper or heavy drawing paper, sketch an imaginary dinosaur in its futuristic habitat with Crayola® Colored Pencils.

• 2.

  Experiment first with different techniques to make texture, such as these: <li><i>Texture painting</i>: Apply Crayola Washable Paint or Tempera Paint with interesting objects such as sponges, cotton swabs, or fan brushes. <li><i>Dry brush</i>: Use a brush with most of the paint already brushed out to create hairy effects. <li><i>Spatter paint</i>: On wet paper, pull a craft stick over a stiff, paint-loaded brush. Try using two colors, one on each side of the bristles, for variety.

• 3.

  Apply paint to the colored pencil drawing, using selected techniques to create texture.

Benefits

• Students imagine what it would be like if today's animals became dinosaurs, or the ancient creatures reappeared to roam the earth.
• Young artists invent a dinosaur of the future. What might a futuristic triceratops look like? What would the earth be like?
• Students learn how to make textures using a variety of painting techniques.

Adaptations

• Dinosaurs are perennial favorites. Help children grasp their variety of sizes and types. Visit museums or archeological digs. Follow the news about the latest finds.
• Older students can research theories about why the dinosaurs disappeared. What would be necessary to bring them back?
• Write stories from the viewpoints of dinosaurs, old and new. How has the world changed? What challenges no longer exist? What new ones have arisen?