Fun rainbow art and crafts activity for kids

3D Rainbows from ActivityBox

Chase away the rainy day blues with a fun rainbow art and crafts activity for kids this weekend

When your kids are home on the weekend and the weather is not cooperating there is nothing worse than hearing the dreaded “I’m bored”!

Unfortunately, that means you actually have to come up with ideas for something to do!

Not to worry, we have you covered! There are so many fun art and craft activities you can do with your child to encourage their curiosity and creativity.

How about fun with Rainbows?

Rainbows are beautiful and magical. And are sufficiently rare to cause both kids and adults to shout “look a rainbow”!

Rainbows are also a fun way to explore and learn about colours. The colours in the rainbow are red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. A fun way to remember the colours is to use an anagram. “Can I introduce you to Roy G. Biv“.

There is a lot of science behind how rainbows are formed, but an easy way to keep it simple and fun for kids is to get hands-on and work with paint.

When you mix red and yellow you get orange. Mix yellow and blue to get green. What colour do you get when you mix red to blue? (Purple is close enough!) This is how we get all of the colours of a rainbow!

Do you need any more encouragement? I think not!

A rainbow art and crafts activity for kids is on!

Let’s get started.

What you need:

  • A5 art card
  • Cotton wool balls
  • Red, yellow and blue paint, optional colours: orange, green, purple

  • Paintbrushes
  • White glue or glue stick
  • Pencil, eraser and ruler

Step 1: Take out your supplies

  • Prepare your work area
  • Take out your paints and paint tray
  • Lay down some newspaper and have a damp cloth handy for easy clean-up!


Step 2: Mix your paint

  • If you have all the colours in a rainbow you are ready!
  • If you only have red, yellow and blue, then let’s mix!
  • Red + yellow = orange. Yellow + blue = green. Red + blue = purple.

(Need paint or other art supplies? Check out our guide Guide to art and craft supplies in Hong Kong)

Step 3: Let’s paint our rainbow!

  • Let’s make a rainbow! First divide the paper into 6 sections using a ruler and pencil.
  • Make a mark every 4cm as a guide and help your child make a line across the paper.
  • Starting on one end paint the first row red. Which colour comes next? Orange.
  • Continue painting each row in order (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple).
  • Set aside to dry.


Step 4: Add your clouds

  • Take out cotton wool balls and show your child how to gently pull them apart to elongate them.
  • Add white glue along the edges and stick on the cotton wool. Let dry.
  • These will be the clouds.

Step 5: Arch your rainbow

  • To form your rainbow arch roll the card around an empty kitchen or TP roll and hold for 10 seconds.



Your finished 3D Rainbow art

I hope you and your children like our rainbow art and crafts activity for kids!

If you enjoy doing art and craft activities at home with your child why not try out ActivityBox for a month or two with a monthly subscription!

We provide you easy to follow instructions and all the materials you need each month based on a new theme your child will love.

Happy crafting!

~ Miss Julie