Straw-Blown Painted Fireworks

I asked my oldest son, “What do we celebrate on the fourth of July?”

“President’s Day?” he answered unsure.

“Uh-oh,” I thought. My son didn’t have the context behind why we celebrate Independence Day. I took some time to explain to him that on July 4, 1776, the U.S. adopted the Declaration of Independence, declaring its freedom from Great Britain.

“Oooooohhhh,” he said. I could almost hear it click.

Now I had him write down how he would celebrate Independence Day this year (apparently, we’re not just going to a parade and watching fireworks, we’re playing Wii!). When he was done writing, we got out our set of watercolor paints.

He dabbed some drops on the paper and with a drinking straw, blew air across the paint, pushing it out from the center droplet to make a fireworks shape. 

Download a PDF of the writing paper I made here.

I remember doing this little art project as a girl and how much I enjoyed it. My son liked it too.