Giraffe & Lion Painting with Lions at Lunchtime

There are so many great themes in the Magic Tree House books! I love that you cover a wide range of them so that kids don’t get bored.

You can in the old west and then suddenly you are in Africa with safari animals! It is always fun to read the book and explore the theme.

We have a really fun painting activity for kids to do with giraffes and lions! It is loads of fun to paint and create new things.

The Giraffe & Lion Painting is a great addition to the zoo crafts, Magic Tree House Activities, and Lions at Lunchtime (Magic Tree House, No. 11). I love all the animals you get to explore in book.

I also look for fun ways to expand on what we read. It is a great way to have some fun after the book is read.

We decided to do a painting activity to go with this book. I love changing up something we love with new things. We mixed watercolors with paints to make a great painting.

What you need for the Giraffe & Lion Painting

• watercolor paper
• watercolors (not shown in picture)
• Safari Animal Cookie Cutters
• Washable paints
• q-tip
• larger brush
• paint tray

How to make the Giraffe & Lion Painting

You will see all the steps we used to make the painting.

Watercolor Paint the Background

We painted the background first.

We started with the sky. We have to decide just where the sky met the ground on our paper. We draw a line to mark where we were painting too.

Then we used a mix of brown and yellows to make the grasslands for the painting. We sometimes use a larger brush to spread the watercolor around. You can add water to the paint to spread it.

Added Scenery to the Painting

After we let the watercolors dry for a few minutes we talked about the book.

Then we decorated the area. We added some grass sticking up, bushes and a tree in the background. I always let my daughter do what she wants with the paintings.

Painting the Giraffe & Lion With Cookie Cutters

We then did our cookie cutters painting of the animals. I love using cookie cutters because it let them make the shape and work on fine motor skills while holding and painting. We use the q-tip to paint inside the cookie cutter.

Then we used paint and q-tips to finish out paintings. We added extra decoration to the giraffe with spots and colors the lion’s mane.

Here is a lot at our final Giraffe & Lion Painting

Check out these other animal activities:

• Animal Walking Themed Gross Motor Dice
• 15+ Zoo Printables & Activities
• Paper Plate Lion

Be sure to check out all the Magic Tree House Activities.

Cassie – 3Dinosaurs.com