Painting with stencils is a fun way to engage kids in a creative art process while supporting fine motor and play. You can easily make a heart shape stencil for a Valentine painting activity with preschoolers. 

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Valentine's Day is one of our favorite times of year for crafting. The colors and textures of craft materials are so bright and colorful.

They provide a ready invitation for kids and grownups to engage in art projects. 

A painting activity with heart shape stencils is a perfect go-to activity for a Valentine theme. 

Kids will love discovering the picture that appears when they lift the stencil off the paper!

Share homemade cards with family and friends, or make decorations for the home or classroom, to celebrate this special day.

Painting with stencils

Stencils provide a ready-made pattern for transferring heart shapes to paper.

They're are easy to make, and fun to use. 

How to make stencils

Here's what you need for this activity.

Cardstock                               Red Paint                  Scissors                  Paint Brush          

Instructions

Fold a piece of cardstock in half.

Cut out half a heart shape on the fold.

Cut out the center of the template, leaving up to a 1 inch (2.5 cm) border.

If kids are cutting out the stencil, draw the shape before hand with a marker or crayon.

Unfold the template to reveal a stencil.

Roll small pieces of tape to place under the heart stencil, to secure it to a sheet of paper. 

Paint inside the stencil - and outside if preferred.

Carefully lift the stencil to reveal the beautiful heart shape!

Make a Valentine collage with various sizes of stencils.

Shake a bit of glitter over the design before the paint dries to make the hearts sparkle.

Hang up your paintings to decorate for Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day Pinterest board.

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