Fun and Easy Pumpkin Thanksgiving Cards

You may not be able to get together with family or friends this year for Thanksgiving, but you and your children can brighten your days and theirs with these fun and easy pumpkin Thanksgiving cards. They print up quickly, so you can make lots and send them out with encouraging verses.

Supplies

• card stock or heavy-duty construction paper
• 2 or 3 apples, fairly round in shape
• orange tempera paint or red and yellow to make orange
• a plastic container to mix paint
• medium sized brushes
• green and brown markers
• googly eyes or white paper to make eyes
• envelopes

Directions

1. 1. 1. cut apples in half
      2. cut and fold card stock or construction paper to fit the envelopes you have
      3. if you don’t have orange paint, mix yellow and red paint to make orange. Be sure to start with yellow and add just a little red at a time
      4. with the paint brush spread the orange paint on the face of the apple and press straight down on paper to make the print (you may want to practice on some scrap paper first to see how much paint and pressure you need. Encourage children not to move the apple around on the paper, but don’t stress out if they do. The pumpkins will still be cute and lovable because you and your children made them!)

   While the pumpkins dry, Molly wants you to be sure to look at her posing next to a pumpkin in her artist beret at the end!

   1. after the pumpkins are dry, add stems, leaves and tendrils with green and brown markers
   2. add googly eyes (if you don’t have these cut out round or oval pieces of white paper, glue to pumpkins and color in some “dots” with marker)
   3. add a mouth under the eyes

That’s it—Fun and Easy!!

Now open up the card and add encouraging messages, more pumpkins, a picture of your family, a turkey, verses from Scripture.

Here are a few Scripture selections to get you started: all are from the NIV

Psalm 100

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.

²           Worship the Lord with gladness;

come before him with joyful songs.

³           Know that the Lord is God.

It is he who made us, and we are his;

we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

⁴           Enter his gates with thanksgiving

and his courts with praise;

give thanks to him and praise his name.

⁵           For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;

his faithfulness continues through all generations.

his faithfulness continues through all generations.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Be joyful always; ¹⁷ pray continually; ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Chronicles 16:8-12

Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name;

make known among the nations what he has done.

⁹           Sing to him, sing praise to him;

tell of all his wonderful acts.

¹⁰         Glory in his holy name;

let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.

¹¹         Look to the Lord and his strength;

seek his face always.

¹²         Remember the wonders he has done,

his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,

    Chronicles 16:34

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

his love endures forever.

    Psalm 62:5-8

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone;

my hope comes from him.

⁶           He alone is my rock and my salvation;

he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.

⁷           My salvation and my honor depend on God;

he is my mighty rock, my refuge.

⁸           Trust in him at all times, O people;

pour out your hearts to him,

for God is our refuge.

Isaiah 40:31

but those who hope in the Lord

will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;

they will run and not grow weary,

they will walk and not be faint.

Variation:

Use these cards at each person’s place on Thanksgiving day.  Write the person’s name on the outside. Inside write headings such as Blessings, Prayer Requests, Things that have been hard this year, Ways God has helped us this year, etc.

Molly and I hope you enjoy making these Fun and Easy Pumpkin Thanksgiving Cards and sending them with encouraging verses for you and your family and friends.

 

Molly preping for her pictures! She loves dressing up in her
artist beret!

Molly is all set to celebrate Thanksgiving! Her ears are just right for holding the beret in place!

Molly and I also hope to see you back soon for Art to help you celebrate Christmas!

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Create a Colorful Autumn Tree with Contrasting Warm and Cool Colors

Older children will enjoy the challenge of creating an autumn tree with contrasting warm and cool colors. Jasper Cropsey used contrasting warm and cool colors in his painting, Autumn on the Hudson, and this activity extends the learning from that post.  

 In this art activity older children will:

• Learn how to draw a tree
• Practice using a ruler and compass to draw squares and a large circle
• Choose 3-4 colors from the warm group and 3-4 colors from the cool group to color in the squares
• Experiment with several different mediums to decide which best fits their vision for their project
• Learn about 2 Principles of Design—focal point, and repetition

This art activity can help your children in these other areas of learning:

• Measuring with a ruler and using a compass will help improve math skills.
• Opportunities to make choices with color and different mediums enhances problem-solving skills.
• Discussing their choices as they work aids in vocabulary and conversational skills.

Supplies

• heavyweight white drawing paper or construction paper, 9” X 12” size is best, making it easy to measure and divide into 3” squares
• pencils, ruler, compass (If you don’t have a compass, trace around a medium-size plate or bowl)
• colored pencils, markers, crayons, and watercolor paints
• brushes of various sizes
• scrap paper to experiment with colors and mediums
• small containers for water

Directions

1. Using the ruler, divide the paper into 3” squares
2. Using the compass or a plate, draw a centered circle where the tree’s leaves would be
3. Starting at the bottom of your paper draw the trunk of a tree that extends up into the circle
4. Draw branches that extend only to the edge of the circle
5. You will paint or color the squares within the circle with warm colors. Warm colors are red, orange, yellow, and mixtures of these. These colors remind us of the sun, fire, and autumn leaves.
6. You will paint or color the squares outside the circle with be cool colors. Cool colors are blue, green, purple, and mixtures of these. They remind us of the sky, water, and faraway mountains.
7. Decide whether you want to use watercolor, marker, colored pencil, crayon, or a mixture of these.  To decide, draw some squares on scrap paper and try the different mediums to see which you like best. Watercolor and colored pencils can give softer color. Markers are brighter, and crayons can give more texture. Left to right in the photo are watercolor, colored pencil, crayon, and marker. (I chose watercolor, but outlined each square in a matching crayon color, making it easier to keep the watercolor within the square)
8. Once you have made your choice, choose 3 or 4 warm colors and 3 or 4 cool colors
9. Scatter each color around the boxes so that boxes of the same color are not next to each other
10. Use whatever medium you would like to add color and texture to your tree. I wanted give an idea of both, so tried different techniques on another paper.

Then I drew pencil lines so it would be easier to fill in the various colors.

Now you have a colorful autumn tree with contrasting cool and warm colors that will look great on any fridge!

 2 Principles of Design children can learn from this art activity:

• Focal Point or Emphasis: Most paintings have a focal point or the place they want you to focus on. In this painting the warm colors, the interesting patterns of the tree’s branches, and the almost central position of the circle, make it the focal point. (often artists use red to indicate a focal point)
• Repetition:  At the same time, by scattering and repeating your colors around the painting you’re helping to keep a viewer’s eyes moving around to notice other sections of your work.

Helpful Hints:

If possible, before starting this project, go outside and look closely at some trees to observe the following:

• All the colors and textures in the bark, especially before deciding what way to add color and texture to the tree.
• How the branches get thinner as they get farther from the trunk
• How leaves may have mixtures of greens and yellows or reds, as the chlorophyll is no longer being produced.

Molly hopes you’ll hang your Colorful Autumn Tree with Contrasting Warm and Cool Colors on your fridge or in your room to remind you of all the beautiful colors God has given us!

We’d love to hear what your favorite part of this project was!

Join Molly and me in just 2 weeks for a Thanksgiving Art Project for Everyone!!

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