• Pet art projects are popular with animal loving preschoolers.boy and his pet image by Renata Osinska from Fotolia.com
  
  Welcoming an animal into a home is much more than the act of adding another object to the environment. Pets become members of the family that help youngsters learn about responsibility, life and love. Early childhood educators can nurture the natural bond between young learners and their pets. Teach a yearly pet theme to preschoolers that includes art projects depicting some popular family pets.
  
  

Cardboard Box Dog House

• Collect two shoe boxes, cereal boxes, or snack boxes per child for this dog house art project. Provide tape and glue for construction. Explain that each dog house needs a roof and an opening. Encourage children to give some thought to the design of their house before beginning. Show an example you have made or make available some pictures of real dog houses for inspiration. Pass the scissors and let the construction begin. Help children cut any boxes that are too thick for them to manage on their own. Paint the finished boxes and let them dry. Add designs to the dry dog houses by dipping small dog bone-shaped dog treats into paint and stamping them all over the houses.
  
  

Paper Plate Fish Tank

• Create a fish tank or aquarium out of two 9-inch paper plates. Cut out a 6-inch diameter circle from the center of one plate. Set this plate aside for later use as the aquarium top. Provide preschoolers with an assortment of foam fish shapes. Purchase these at hobby or dollar stores or cut them out yourself from larger pieces of craft foam before the project. Ask youngsters to color a fish tank scene on the plate with markers or crayons. Glue the foam fish shapes onto the colored plates. Finish the inside of the aquarium by drizzling lines of glue and adding sand or glitter to the glue lines to resemble sea grass. Place the plate with the circular opening over the top of the finished fish tank. Secure this with staples or glue. Add a special effect by covering the aquarium with plastic wrap. Tape the plastic wrap tightly to the back of the top plate.
  
  

Cat Paper Bag Puppet

• Gather the class around a table to construct a cat puppet. Set a brown or white lunch-size paper bag in front of each child. Lay the folded bags so that the bottom of the bag is at the top. Point out to the class that the rectangular flap at the top of their bag will become the head of the cat puppet. Help children fold under and secure with glue each side of the flap so that it ends in a point. Cut eyes and a nose from construction paper. Glue these to the cat's face along with pipe cleaner or thin paper whiskers. Add construction paper triangles for ears at the top of the head with glue. Ask children to give the cat puppets personality as you pass markers or crayons in hues commonly seen in felines. Prepare for plenty of meowing when youngsters slip their arms into this pet art project and open and close the puppets mouth with their hands.