Welcome to Atlantis!

Imagine you've found the lost underwater city-nation of Atlantis as you use Crayola® Tempera Paint, Markers, and Colored Pencils to draw your discovery.

• 1.

  Research the legend of the lost city of Atlantis using library and computer resources. Use Crayola® Colored Pencils to take notes and make sketches of your ideas about Atlantis.

• 2.

  Spread recycled newspaper over your work area. Make a background, watery-looking wash on a large sheet of dampened watercolor paper. Use Crayola Watercolors, Washable Markers, Tempera Paint, and Paint Brushes for the wash. Older children might try Crayola Portfolio Series Acrylic Paint thinned with water.

• 3.

  Experiment with the painting techniques described here on a sheet of white paper. Then add the appropriate effects to the background. <li><i>Sponge paint</i>: Using a natural sponge, press paint onto paper. <li><i>Spatter paint</i>: On wet paper, pull a craft stick over a stiff, paint-loaded brush. <li><i>Texture</i>: Lay plastic wrap on top of a wet tempera or acrylic wash. Let the paint dry. Remove the wrap to reveal rock-like textures.

• 4.

  Paint foreground objects on the dry background with tempera. Add details with markers or Crayola Colored Pencils.

• 5.

  For even more texture, use Crayola School Glue to attach colored tissue paper to the surface.

Benefits

• Children imagine they have discovered the ruins of the spectacular lost city-nation of Atlantis during a submarine voyage. They merge legend and facts that they uncover in books and videos. Their research provides ideas about Atlantis and the underwater environment where it lies.
• Children experiment with art techniques to create various effects.
• Young artists use mixed media-acrylics, tempera, marker, tempera, watercolor, and colored pencils-to depict details about an actual undersea environment and imaginary ruins of Atlantis.

Adaptations

• Conduct a major study of Atlantis and the theories about its disappearance. Write an imaginative story to accompany the collage.
• Visit an archeological dig. Talk with archeologists about their findings. How deep are they digging? Who lived in the area 200 or 300 years ago? A thousand years ago? Are there any submerged ruins locally, such as sunken ships or volcanoes? Find out more.
• Younger children, or those with limited motor skills, might focus only on mastering sponge and spatter painting techniques. They delight in creating underwater scenes in the style of Leo Lionni in <i>Swimmy</i>.