Painted Rock Christmas Tree

I liked longitudinal projects that each year students could build on,  sometimes elaborating and sometimes going in a new direction.  This wooden tree with rock ornaments would be one of those types of project where each year students could play with what was already made and then think of their own types of baubles to create and add!

Materials

• Wooden tree (You could alternatively use cardboard or felt)
• Acrylic paint
• Corrugated paper (We recycled coffee sleeves instead)
• Pencil
• Tape
• Glue gun/glue sticks
• Paintbrushes
• Rocks
• Scissors

We always find these items helpful too:

• Smock
• Craft tray

Directions

• Go outside with an adult and collect rocks in the shape that you want to make your Christmas ornaments.  Wash your rocks and allow then to dry overnight.  This removes any dust and allows the paint to better adhere.

• Have an adult cut a scrap piece of wood into a isosceles triangle.  You could also use cardboard or felt and alter the shape of the tree as you like. We left our wood with a natural finish, but if you wanted you could make it green!

• Don your smock.  Paint your coffee filters in a colour of your choice.  You could use a thicker type of paper such as cardstock if you would like a less textured look.  Allow them to drew overnight.

• Paint your rocks.  Keep in mind that these baubles are quite simple- you certainly could “make them your own” with elaborate designs and or different shapes etc. (If you do this a go, please give us a tag on Instagram so we can see it!)  One trick for the painting is to create an outline and then paint inside of it.  This creates a dam of sorts, particularly if you allow the edge to start drying slightly/getting tacky which may prevent your paint from spilling over!  Depending on the colours of paint you use and the porousness of the rock, you may need to apply a few coats, allowing them to dry in between.  All your painted rocks to dry overnight.

• Cut some ornament caps out of your painted sleeves and add a loop of twine for your hanger with your glue.

• Glue your caps onto your rock ornaments.

• For our star, we taped the back of several sleeves together, sketched our shape, cut it out and then glued it to a rock as well.

• Now for the best part- decorate your tree and play away!  What new rock baubles will you add each year?!

*IF YOU MAKE YOUR OWN ROCK TREE, WE’D LOVE TO SHARE IT! (With a link back to you.) 

PLEASE SEND US A PHOTO! *

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Purpose

• Getting out into nature.
• Painting on different surfaces.
• Recognizing symbols of various celebrations.

Safety Notes

• We suggest that you wear a smock and use a craft tray to protect your clothing and surfaces.
• Use scissors with care and adult supervision.
• Cord, yarn etc. can be a strangulation hazard, therefore be sure to use with direct supervision and for its intended purpose.
• Beads can be a choking hazard, therefore be sure to keep them out of the reach of children ages 0-3 years of age or those that tend to put things into their mouths.