This coffee filter umbrella craft is a vibrant and imaginative art project perfect for springtime, making it a highlight among spring crafts for kids. Children of all ages can enjoy creating their colorful parasols using simple materials.
This project encourages creativity as kids experiment with blending colors on the filters and creating a beautiful tie-dye effect. This activity is great for developing fine motor skills. It provides a fantastic opportunity for kids to learn about colors and weather patterns, making it ideal for home and school settings.
Preschoolers, kindergarteners, and early elementary school children will enjoy working on this coffee filter umbrella craft. It is a versatile activity for an art center or an engaging component of a weather-themed unit study.
Their young minds will delight in seeing how their color choices blend and create new hues, making each creation a unique exploration of color and creativity.
Why Are Umbrellas Associated With Spring?
Umbrellas become indispensable during spring due to the season’s characteristic rainy weather. Spring is often a transitional period between the cold of winter and the warmth of summer.
This typically results in increased rainfall in many parts of the world. This time of year makes it an ideal time for children to explore and learn more about weather patterns through fun activities.
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Benefits of Making an Umbrella Coffee Filter Craft
This simple art creation provides children with a multidimensional learning experience. It significantly enhances fine motor skills as young artists engage in coloring, cutting, and gluing, which require precision and coordination.
This art process stirs their imagination and creativity, especially when deciding on the colors and patterns for their umbrellas.
It becomes an educational moment where discussions about weather patterns and seasonal changes can be woven into the craft activity, offering an interactive way to comprehend these concepts.
Furthermore, it introduces a practical discussion on appropriate weather attire, making it not just an art project but a comprehensive learning tool that combines creativity, science, and valuable life skills.
Spring Coffee Filter Crafts for Kids
These spring coffee filter crafts for kids promise a unique blend of fun, learning, and creativity. Transforming a plain, white coffee filter into a bright, colorful creation offers immense satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment.
Their absorbent nature makes them ideal for experimenting with various coloring techniques, such as watercolor paints or markers blended with water, creating a magical effect that fascinates children.
- Coffee Filter Butterfly
- Coffee Filter Dragonfly
- Coffee Filter Ladybug
- Coffee Filter Bee Craft
- Coffee Filter Rainbow
Cute Coffee Filter Crafts eBook
Umbrella Coffee Filter Craft Supplies
The supplies needed are commonplace and inexpensive; round coffee filters, washable markers, construction paper, a water spray bottle, scissors, and a glue stick are all you need.
A craft mat isn’t necessary, but I recommend using one to keep the workspace clean, as the color will run while the filters are wet.
These materials are often affordable and readily available in classrooms, ensuring that planning a crafting session for a large group of children is both stress-free and economically viable.
The simplicity of the materials also ensures that children of different ages can participate, making it a versatile activity suitable for a diverse group.
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How to Make a Coffee Filter Umbrella Craft
Begin by laying coffee filter papers flat on a craft mat. With an array of washable markers, they’re encouraged to unleash their creativity, drawing patterns such as lines and polka dots onto the filters.
Next, lightly spray the colored filters with water, or, for a more controlled experience, students can apply water using a pipette, watching as the colors beautifully bleed into one another to create a tie-dye effect.
Set the filters aside to dry completely. Depending on the moisture level, this could take a few hours.
Next, cut them in half or fold them in half before cutting along the flat edge to shape the top of the umbrella. Students can cut the edge straight, make it scalloped, or give it a jagged appearance for different styles of umbrellas.
Glue the umbrellas onto construction paper. Finally, use a marker to draw a handle. Then, complete the scene by drawing raindrops or other decorative elements to bring the rainy day umbrella scene to life.
Ways to Include This Project in Lessons
Integrating this coffee filter umbrella and other April crafts for kids into preschool or kindergarten curriculums can enrich the educational experience creatively. Here are three suggestions to seamlessly include this art project in themed lessons:
Weather and Seasons Unit
During a unit on weather patterns and seasons, educators can use the umbrella craft to initiate discussions about rain’s role in spring.
This includes exploring why rain is vital for plants and how it contributes to the blossoming of flowers during the season. The craft reinforces the lesson, making abstract concepts tangible for young learners.
Color Theory Exploration
This activity can serve as an interactive way to introduce or reinforce lessons on primary and secondary colors.
Teachers can encourage children to predict what new colors will emerge when they blend different hues on their coffee filter umbrellas. This hands-on experiment solidifies their understanding of color theory and sparks creativity and curiosity.
Alphabet and Literacy Connection
Utilize the umbrella craft for a “Letter U” lesson to help children associate the letter with a tangible object.
After completing their umbrellas, students can practice writing uppercase and lowercase “U” around their craft or on a separate piece of paper, effectively integrating arts into literacy development.
This method encourages the development of fine motor skills while reinforcing letter recognition and phonetic sounds.
Engaging Weather Activities for Kids
Engaging weather-themed activities for kids makes learning about the atmosphere fun and helps children understand the complex processes contributing to our climate.
From creating tornadoes in bottles to creating their own barometers (seriously, this balloon air pressure experiment is so cool!), these activities offer practical and interactive ways to explore concepts such as precipitation, wind patterns, and temperature changes.
They are fantastic supplements to theoretical learning, providing hands-on experiences that will likely stay with the young learners long after completing the activities.
Books About Weather for Kids
Reading and crafting are perfect rainy day activities for kids, combining literature with the creativity of hands-on projects.
Weather-related books beautifully complement this art project, offering an immersive learning experience. As children craft their colorful umbrellas, they can listen to stories that bring the concepts of rain, clouds, and storms to life.
This dual approach entertains and educates, making the most of indoor time by weaving together stories and art that reflect the world outside their windows.
Here are four weather-themed picture books that would perfectly accompany the umbrella craft activity:
“The Big Umbrella” by Amy June Bates and Juniper Bates is a heartwarming story about kindness and inclusion, symbolized by a big, welcoming umbrella. It is perfect for sparking conversations about compassion and the importance of community during rainy weather.
“Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs” by Judi Barrett is an imaginative tale that transports readers to the town of Chewandswallow, where the weather comes three times a day in the form of food at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. This whimsical story pairs wonderfully with discussions about different types of weather and the art of creativity.
The Big Umbrella
Cloudy With a Chance of MeatballsTap Tap Boom BoomRain! Board Book
“Tap Tap Boom Boom” by Elizabeth Bluemle in this rhythmic, onomatopoeic picture book captures the excitement and camaraderie of a sudden rainstorm in the city, making it a dynamic companion to the coffee filter umbrella craft as children explore the sounds and sights of stormy weather.
“Rain!” by Linda Ashman is a tale with engaging illustrations about how a rainy day affects various community members differently, encouraging empathy and understanding. It’s an excellent way to discuss the impact of weather on mood and daily life, aligning perfectly with the hands-on exploration of rain through crafting.
Fun Spring Craft Ideas for Kids
Crafting in spring encourages kids to express their creativity and connects them with the natural world, teaching them about life cycles and the changing seasons.
From blooming flowers to baby animals, each craft is designed to ignite curiosity and excitement in young minds, helping them to enjoy this colorful and vibrant season fully.
- Chick Fork Painting
- Shape Flower Craft
- Frog Face Craft
- Spring Bird Craft
- Soda Bottle Flower Print Blossoms
We hope you find inspiration in this coffee filter umbrella craft and try these activity ideas with your children, using them as a catalyst for discussions about nature, science, and art.
Such activities deepen children’s comprehension of the world around them—exploring weather patterns, seasons, and color theory—and foster the development of fine motor skills and literacy through engaging hands-on projects.
Coffee Filter Umbrella Craft
Discover how to make a delightful coffee filter umbrella craft with your kids. This colorful art project combines creativity with learning about weather and seasons.
Materials
- Round Coffee Filters
- Washable Markers
- Construction Paper
Tools
- Water Spray Bottle
- Scissors
- Glue Stick
- Craft Mat (optional)
Instructions
- Lay the coffee filter papers on a craft mat and color with washable markers in various colors and designs. We made lines and polka dots.
- Lightly spray the colored filters with water. Alternatively, children can drip water on their artwork using a pipette.
- Allow time to dry completely. Depending on the amount of water used, drying can take a couple of hours or more.
- When they are no longer wet to the touch, either cut the circle in half or fold it in half, then cut along the flat edge. You can make a scalloped edge or cut it more pointy and jagged.
- Glue onto a piece of construction paper. Use a marker to draw a handle coming out of the umbrella. Decorate the scene around it by adding raindrops or other items.
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Darcy is the founder of “Life With Darcy and Brian,” where she combines her love for education, board games, and crafting to create engaging learning experiences for kids. Her creative projects and writing have been featured in outlets like The Toy Insider, CafeMom, Mom.com, Parents.com, Country Living, and The Pioneer Woman.