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Sidewalk chalk is a childhood rite of passage. I mean, hasn’t every kid drawn a hopscotch board on their driveway?
But, sidewalk chalk art goes far beyond simple hopscotch games and alphabet practice. Now, there are entire festivals celebrating the art form featuring elaborate street paintings created by professional chalk artists and street artists.
Now, I’m no chalk artist. But these creative sidewalk paintings have inspired me to use sidewalk chalk to get creative with my kids, too.
Last month, I used some sidewalk chalk paint to make a fun “Flower Child” photo-op for Priscilla. This week, JC and I headed to the park for some big sidewalk chalk art making and subsequent fun car play in the sunshine. Check it out…
Giant Sidewalk Chalk Art for Kids Car Play
Supplies for Giant Sidewalk Chalk Art Town & Road
All you need for this engaging activity is some regular old sidewalk chalk and a few toy cars.
Any sidewalk chalk will work, but I find the cheaper the chalk, the more pastel the colors. So, when I’m putting time into an activity like this one, I try to spend a little extra to get the brighter sidewalk chalk, like Crayola or Colorations.
And, any toy cars will work, as long as they are washable since they will be used outside and might get a little chalky.
Finally, any pavement surfaces work too. It doesn’t have to be completely flat asphalt. You can make this easy pavement art work on any driveway or footpath.
Drawing a Sidewalk Chalk Town & Road
I used black sidewalk chalk to sketch out our chalk town and roads first. I started by drawing a giant oval. It doesn’t have to be a perfect oval. A wavy, wonky oval makes a much more fun toy car road, right?
Then, I worked my way around the oval, drawing simplified parts of a town. I included:
- a farm with a barn, silo, and fence;
- a camping area with a triangular tent, an oval-shaped pond, and pine trees;
- a house surrounded by oval-shaped shrubs and a little dog house;
- square and rectangular city buildings and skyscrapers;
- a square police station labeled with “POLICE”;
- a large rectangular hospital labeled with a “+”;
- and a tall church with a steeple and cross on top.
But you can add anything you’d like to your chalk town. You can even get your little one involved in coming up with creative ideas while you draw them.
Coloring Your Sidewalk Chalk Art
Once I had our chalk art town all sketched out, I colored it in. It was as simple as coloring in a coloring book but as fun as making a masterpiece!
Then, I added another wavy oval line around the inside to make the road. I colored the road in front of the city gray with yellow lines like a highway. And, I colored the road in front of the farm brown like a dirt road.
Playing in Your Chalk Town
That’s it. Your sidewalk chalk town and road are ready for play!
Simply invite your toddler or preschooler to drive their toy cars along the chalk road and explore the chalk art town and city. Encourage their imagination and language development by talking to them about the places they are visiting while they play.
J.C. had a blast driving his toy cars through his sidewalk chalk art town. By the way, a toy police car is a must for this town with a police station! There were some pretty intense police chases around that oval road.
Sidewalk Chalk Art Tips:
- Use basic shapes to draw buildings and objects.
- Keep things simple. Small details are hard to draw with chunky sidewalk chalk.
- Use 2-3 colors for each building/scene.
- Add highlights and accent lines with white chalk or a lighter contrasting color.
- Add shadows and depth with a darker complementary color.
- Use your fingers to blend and spread colors.
- Use a light touch when blending white and other light colors; they get “muddy” fast.
Kids Sidewalk Art Supplies, Stencils, & Accessories on Amazon:
Find everything you need for your fun sidewalk chalk art right on Amazon…
Crayola Washable Sidewalk Chalk SetSidewalk Chalk HoldersCrayola Tie Dye Chalk 5ctChameleon Colors Sidewalk Chalk Paint KitMelissa & Doug My First Sidewalk Chalk Set With HoldersArteza Kids Sidewalk Chalk and Stencil SetColorations Familiar Shapes Stencils for KidsCrayola Glitter Chalk 5ctREADY 2 LEARN Easy Grip ChalkCrayola 24CT Sidewalk Chalk
Like this Idea for Sidewalk Chalk Art for Kids? Save It & Share It!
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More Kids Play & Sidewalk Chalk Art Ideas from B-Inspired Mama
- Flower Child Sidewalk Chalk Art Photo Op
- 7 Fun Ice Chalk Ideas for Kids
- 20 Fun Play Recipes for Kids
Emma Wilson says
These photos really bring back a lot of memories from my childhood. There were no computers, no Playstations, and most of my generation grew up perfectly fine. We only had a few white chalk pieces and they kept us busy for entire afternoon.
Krissy @ B-Inspired Mama says
Crazy how things change!
Tanya says
What a cute little town!! Love it ๐ Im sure my 6 year old would have fun with this. Thanks for the idea.
Krissy @ B-Inspired Mama says
Thank you. My JC loved it! Share a picture with me (on my facebook page) if you make one for your kiddo.