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Play idea

Mud painting

A mud play idea: paint with mud on a fence, paper or cardboard using brushes, sticks and hands. What you need, how to set it up and what children learn.

By The Mud Kitchens editorial team Published 13 November 2026 Ages 18 months–8

You’ll need

  • Runny mud in a few bowls (soil with different colours if you have them)
  • Brushes, big and small; sticks; feathers; sponges
  • A surface: a paling fence, a sheet of cardboard, butcher’s paper taped to a wall, or a path
  • A hose for clean-up

Set it up

  1. Mix mud in two or three bowls. Different soils give browns, reds and greys.
  2. Set out tools and let children experiment.
  3. Encourage big movements on a fence or path, and finer work on paper.
  4. Hose the fence down at the end, or let paper dry and keep it.

What children learn

Big sweeping strokes on a fence build shoulder and arm strength, which underpins later fine-motor work. Comparing how a stick, a feather and a brush make marks is exploration. And it’s art: talk about what they’ve made.

Try

Collect soils from different places (garden bed, under a tree, the beach) and compare colours. Add sand for texture.