Finger Painting
with Iris Scott

Activity Overview

Finger painting is often associated with infant and toddler artwork and can be relegated only to sensory exploration and experience. Yes, it is that, but when we look at the work of Iris Scott, an American finger painting artist, we can see that finger painting is also an expressive legitimate form of visual storytelling. Finger painting on a large space can provide a space to strengthen our fine motor muscles, and create beautiful and detailed works that express movement and feeling.

This project will be messy.

While students are painting, it is important for them to feel as though they can fully engage their hands and bodies in their work without constraint. Encourage physically moving around the canvas, manipulating different parts of their bodies as painting instruments, and other approaches to painting will help students take advantage of their gross motor understanding while performing a task we often associate with fine motor skills.

What You Need

• Iris Scott Website

• Iris Scott painting video

• Tarp, dropcloth or towels to place under the work space while the student is painting

• Tempera paint

• Paper plates

• Canvas, poster board or watercolor paper: these are optimal choices as they are thicker and can support the paint without ruining the work.

• Gloves if your student is sensitive to sensory materials

• Hand towels

Steps

1. Get your student’s space set up. The floor is the best place to do this work but alternatively you can do this at a table. Lay towels or other protective material down on the floor, and place your student’s paper or canvas on the top.

2. Start with three colors, each on it’s own paper plate, and place them on the protective surface next to the work.

3. Show your student the Iris Scott painting video, and have her website on hand for reference. Use the guided questions below to find out what they are interested in painting. Ask them to plan what they want to paint first.

4. Once your student has an idea of what they would like to do, have them dive in and explore finger painting!

5. This activity can be done multiple times, focusing on different subject matter if your student seems interested in this type of painting.

Guiding Questions

• What do you notice about Iris Scott’s art?

• What would you like to paint? An animal? A person? A landscape? The ocean? Rain?

• What colors do you want to use?

• How can you move your fingers to create your work?

• How can we show movement in our painting?

• How does the paint feel on your hands?

• How does it feel to use your hands as paint brushes?

Extensions

• Can you paint on a really large scale? Or a really tiny scale?