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Watercolour Leaf Study

A companion sheet — print it, scribble on it, keep it or recycle it

Voleio

What we're doing

Mix six greens from three colours and paint one leaf properly.

  • About 50 minutes
  • Art
  • Creative

Gather these

  • Watercolours
  • Paper
  • Brush
  • A collected leaf

Step by step

  • Collect one interesting leaf.
  • Mix six different greens and swatch them.
  • Sketch the outline lightly.
  • Paint from lightest to darkest.

Worth talking about

Colour mixing
Observation
Tone and shape
VOLEIOWatercolour Leaf StudyPage 1 of 3

Record what happened

There's no wrong way to fill this in

Voleio

What we did

Write, list or draw — whatever suits today.

Skills we touched on

SkillHow it showed up

Reflect together

What surprised you about watercolour leaf study?
What was the easiest part? What was the fiddliest?
What would you change if you did it again tomorrow?
VOLEIOWatercolour Leaf StudyPage 2 of 3

Take it further

Three doors out of the same activity

Voleio

If it felt tricky

Do leaf rubbings with crayons instead.

If it felt easy

Add a botanical label and paint a second leaf from memory.

If you'd rather do it differently

Try printing with the leaf rather than painting it.

Next time, we could

  • Try it outdoors
  • Invite a friend or sibling
  • Stretch it over a whole week

Our own ideas