Modern technology makes it easier than ever to put TV time to work in our homeschool. Our latest experience with that has been through streaming Amazon’s Creative Galaxy.
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We’ve loved our experience with Amazon Prime ever since we became members, but our experience got even better when Amazon began creating their own shows for kids. Creative Galaxy was one of the first Amazon originals for children we watched. Let me tell you, we were quickly hooked!
Using Amazon’s Creative Galaxy
for Preschool Art
Amazon’s Creative Galaxy is a super cute kids show that has tons of educational content, especially for younger viewers. It’s a fantastic way to introduce art to kids and encourage creativity, but it also reinforces foundational preschool concepts like counting, colors, shapes, and even logic skills.
The show centers around an alien boy named Arty and his sidekick Epiphany and their efforts to solve problems through art. Each episode is divided into two segments that end with kids creating art together. From a homeschooling standpoint, I love that the kids in each episode are hanging out creating art together and not doing it in a classroom.
With all of this creativity and art emphasis, Creative Galaxy is a great way to incorporate art into preschool at home. To do so, however, it’s helpful to know what to expect in the episodes and how to best capitalize on them. Here’s a look at Season 1 of Creative Galaxy:
Creative Galaxy Episode List
Episode 1 – Arty’s Masterpiece / A Home for Bunny – This episode introduces shapes, geometric concepts, and pointillism. I also like that it includes architecture as a form of art. You could do the suggested art activities in the episode or go with an easy Q-tip pointillism activity.
Episode 2 – Mom’s Birthday / A Present for Baby Georgia – Mosaic art, sculpting, and sewing basics are all introduced in Episode 2. My favorite thing about this episode is how it encourages kids to give creatively. What if we all gave that way instead of buying a gift? Hmm…
Episode 3 – Jackson’s Action Painting / Arty Plays Safari – Episode 3 introduces action painting and has a fun, yet messy activity with it. The episode touches on Jackson Pollock, but focuses more on action painting methods. The Jackson Pollock book from Mike Venezia’s Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Artists series would be great for expounding on the artist that inspired the method.
(Tip: to reduce the mess, place paper or cloth inside a box lid while exploring action painting.)
Episode 4 – Annie’s Bracelet / Arty’s Team Shirts – I’m all about making jewelry with my preschooler, but I’ve never gone to the trouble of making beads. I love that this episode teaches how to do that!
This episode also does a great job of introducing tie-dye art. This episode and a tie-dye kit is all you need to tackle a tie-dye project with your little learners.
Episode 5 – Annie’s Flowers / Arty’s Indoor Campout – Episode 5 is all about tissue paper art and Van Gogh’s Starry Night. Although Vincent Van Gogh himself isn’t the focus of the episode, a book like Katie and the Starry Night would enhance your learning.
Also, the activity for the Van Gogh segment is a night light/lantern. It’s adorable, but you may prefer a project that reflects Starry Night a bit more. If so, you may want to consider an easy recreation the masterpiece instead.
Episode 6 – Jackson’s Dog / Arty’s Play – This episode makes drawing less intimidating by emphasizing how drawing is essentially a combination of shapes and lines. It’s especially good to review shapes and to encourage younger children who get frustrated when drawing.
Episode 7 – Arty’s Art-y Party / Arty’s Birthday Treasures – I love Episode 7’s crafty theme. Paper mache crafting is the focus of the first segment, while art with craft sticks and a DIY party game are the focus of the second half.
Episode 8 – Bathtime with Arty / Dinnertime! – The DIY theme continues into Episode 8 with homemade bath crayons and imaginative tablescapes. Fun and preschool-friendly, for sure!
Episode 9 – Family Fun Day / Game Night – Building a game from repurposed materials is the goal of the first segment in this episode. Similarly, the second segment inspires children to create board games. My little one loves this kind of thing!
Episode 10 – Arty Paints Annie / Arty’s Colors – Pablo Picasso’s art shows up in Episode 10’s first segment, sending the message that there are no mistakes in art, even if the piece doesn’t look like real life. What a confidence-builder for kids (and not-so artsy adults like me)! Along the same lines, the second segment focuses on using unusual colors in art.
If you’d like to focus a bit more on Picasso with your preschooler, an easy cut-out project and Picasso and the Girl with the Ponytail would be great for learning more about him.
Episode 11 – Arty’s Artistic Lunch / Art After Lunch – Playing with food is always fun, right? The first part of Episode 11 encourages kids to get creative with Kandinsky-style sandwich art, while the second segment gives ideas for reusing food containers for robots, rocket ships and other fun stuff! If your little one particularly enjoys this spotlight on Kandinsky, reading The Noisy Paint Box and a Kandinsky tree art activity would be fun ways to follow up.
Episode 12 – Arty’s Book / Arty’s Grumpy Day – Have you ever made a book with your little learner? If not, Arty and his friends will show you how. You can follow the directions from the first segment of Episode 12 or you can follow up with a Create Your Own Books Kit.
The second half focuses on using art to express emotions and highlights The Scream by Edvard Munch. The suggested activity is one that preschoolers is spot on, while Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day would be a great book to read after watching and creating.
Episode 13 – Baby Georgia’s First Christmas / Christmas Memories – Arty and friends celebrate Christmas in Episode 13. The DIY snowglobes, photo books, and ornaments from this episode are great creative ideas for preschoolers to tackle during the holiday season.
and enjoy Creative Galaxy, unlimited streaming of thousands of movies and tv shows, two day shipping on millions of items, streaming of millions of songs through Amazon Prime Music, and more!
I loved this blog entry so much that I wanted to expand on it! I made this Episode Guide for Season 1 that includes pictures of the projects in the show, how-to guides and teaching tips, and materials lists. Hope this is helpful to those looking to get the most out of this show!
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Creative-Galaxy-Season-1-Guide-Preschool-Kindergarten-Elementary-Art-Lessons-3489588
Fun! We have Amazon prime too but I was not aware of this show. It might be a bit young for my boys but we’ll have to check it out and see.
My 9 year-old watches it with my preschooler at times, but the show itself is better suited to younger kids.
I would say that about half of the activities at the end of the segments would be enjoyable for older children too, though!