by Valerie J Routhieaux

Created on: March 23, 2010

Spring Fun

There are a lot of kids in my neighborhood.  The one thing I see as soon as the snow melts are kids outside.  They are always busy doing something.  Riding their bikes, riding their skateboards, rushing down the sidewalk on roller blades, anything that will bring out the laughs and giggles.  And they are always in groups.  Kids like doing things with other kids.  It’s that way on the school playground as much as at home.

Another great sign of spring is that parents don’t have to beg their younger children to go outside to play.  The older children can be more formidable because they have turned into couch potatoes with their 360 X-box, Wii, Gameboy, Nintendo, and all the other video games that occupy the teen and pre-teen psyche.  Younger kids want to be outside, and don’t need to be coaxed or bribed into it.

The parks get added attention as soon as the snow melts.  Kids running over the jungle gyms and other playground equipment that challenge imagination and build up strong muscles, and best of all for worn out parents is worn out children who will go to bed without a whimper and fall asleep as soon as their head hits the pillow.

The one thing kids do outside that always intrigues me most is the one where imagination is at work.  Why would this one intrigue me?  I like to think of myself as creative and imaginative.  The only outside activity that fits the bill is sidewalk art.  Arm a child with sidewalk chalk and their imaginations soar.  The sky’s the limit in what they will create on the sidewalk.  Rocket ships to distant planets, a game of hopscotch, even pictures – family portraits are all seen on the sidewalk.  This past week I was even impressed to see some math equations, something I never saw when I was a kid and our chalk was a rock.

Do you remember the Walt Disney movie Mary Poppins?  Dick Van Dyke played a character, Burt, who could do just about anything, including sidewalk art.  His drawings had a bit of magic to them as Mary, Burt, and the children popped into the pictures and were instantly at the county fair, going for a ride on a carousel that ended in a race to the finish line.  And who could forget the restaurant scene with the penguins for waiters.

Imaginations soar when children take a piece of chalk in their hands and create masterpieces.  Not only can imaginations soar, but the chalk isn’t limited to white anymore.  Pastel colors of blue, green, pink, yellow, purple mark the sidewalk.  Sidewalk art is fun and enjoyable, and brings kids of all ages together, and even if the rain washes their artwork away, they still have plenty of chalk for when the sun comes out again.

So this spring and summer too, arm your children with sidewalk art and see what he or she will create.  You might be surprised to find you have a budding artist in the making.  It’s both inexpensive and fun, and will result in hours of creative enjoyment as your sidewalk becomes a work of art.

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