This handprint rainbow painting is fun to make, looks so pretty when you are done, and has an amazing story to teach about it!
This handprint rainbow is super fun to make. Before I tell you how to make it though, I want to share a true story about the meaning of the rainbow.
You can use the rainbow to teach children many different things; colors, and science, but most importantly we should teach what it reminds us of.
The Story Of The Rainbow
The first thing you need to understand is that this ‘story’ is not a story as you would think it. It actually happened and is very much true.
The rainbow has been used to symbolize many different things over the years, but the only real thing it stands for is a promise. A promise that was made many years ago to a man Noah and his family “for perpetual generations” (Genesis 9:12). While Noah and his family are long gone, the promise was given to all generations after Noah, meaning it is still a promise to those of us that are alive today.
God put a rainbow in the clouds as a promise to Noah and his family after they had been on an ark (a boat) for 375 days. During the time Noah and his family were on the ark, it rained for 40 days and nights and the whole earth was flooded, so high that it covered the mountains (Genesis 7:19-20). Some say that the flood never happened, but there is evidence that supports it.
The whole earth was flooded with water because man was wicked and did evil continually (Genesis 6:5). God destroyed all men except Noah who found grace in the eyes of God.
After the flood, God made a covenant (a promise) that he would never destroy the whole earth with a flood again. As a token He put a rainbow in the clouds.
And that is the story of the rainbow that we should be teaching our children. You can read more about Noah in the Bible in Genesis chapters 6-9. Every time we see a rainbow in the sky we should remember that promise God made to us.
What You Need
You will need:
- Washable paint in the colors; Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet
- Paper
- Paper plate
- Paintbrush (optional)
How To Make A Handprint Rainbow
There are two different ways you can make this handprint rainbow. One will probably get you more even lines of the colors. The other one, the one that I show you how to make, is a lot easier with a small toddler.
First, you will need to put lines of paint on a paper plate in the order of the colors of the rainbow. Red on top, then orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and lastly, violet. Make sure that the lines are long enough that your toddler’s whole hand will fit in it.
Next, take a piece of paper and put it in front of your toddler.
If your toddler is old enough to understand how to do it, explain to them to dip their hand in the paint and then put it on the paper.
If they aren’t old enough to understand how to do that, then you will need to help them. Take their hand and guide it to the paint. Explain to them that they need to keep their hand flat. Dip it in the paint and then place it on the paper over and over again in a half-circle shape. You should have enough paint after one dip to do several handprints, but re-dip their hand when it isn’t making as bright of a color.
After you get their handprints around the paper remove the paper and let it dry.
I gave my toddler another piece of paper to paint freely after I helped her with the rainbow.
Optional Way To Make The Rainbow
The other way you can do it is to take a paintbrush and paint each color in lines on their hand to get more uniform lines.
This would be very difficult to do with a young child when they normally put their hands in fists, so I would recommend doing it the other way if you have a young toddler.
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