Create resist art with this logical thinking patchwork heart tech + art activity!
Matters of the heart are not always logical! Fortunately, this patchwork heart resist art activity is filled with logical thinking and creativity.
This low prep STEAM activity pairs science, art, and technology to create artwork to display just in time for Valentine’s Day!

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What is resist art?
Resist art is made with different materials that repel or resist each other. For our patchwork heart resist art activity, we used two different methods to create resist art: glue resist art and oil resist art.
You can also make resist art with wax candles, tape, glue, rubber bands and more! We’ve also made beautiful Hometown Map Artwork and turned math into art with oil resist tessellation art that turned out pretty awesome!

What is computational thinking?
Computational thinking is a way of problem-solving that involves thinking about a problem in a way that can be solved by using computing tools like logic, decomposition, abstractions, algorithms, patterns, data collection and analysis, and simulation or modeling.
Computational thinking can be used to solve problems in almost all areas of our lives and helps kids develop some pretty great life skills that can apply to a variety of situations.
A computational thinker approaches problems by experimenting and playing to solve a problem that might have more than one possible solution and working together with others to reach a common goal.
Computational thinkers persevere when faced with a difficult problem, find and fix errors in complex problems, design and make solutions for open-ended problems, and understand their own strengths and weaknesses
Grab this coding activity: Can You Solve our Animals Logic Word Puzzle?
Why work on logical reasoning?
Logical reasoning is the ability to analyze and make predictions about things or explaining why something is the way that it is.
Logic puzzles are a great way to use to emphasize the concept of logical reasoning by following a set of rules to complete a puzzle and explaining how each piece follows the rules to complete the puzzle.
Patchwork Heart Resist Art Materials
- 12×18 construction paper
- Pencil
- Black glue
- Oil pastels
- Watercolors
- Brush pens (optional, but totally awesome to use!)
You can grab our free printable patchwork heart logic activity at the end of this post!

How to Make Patchwork Art Resist Art
Before we began our art activity, we practiced our logical reasoning on a regular piece of paper (optional).
The rules of the patchwork heart activity are:
- You must use four different patterns.
- A pattern must not touch the same pattern vertically, horizontally, and diagonally.

We made a lot of mistakes too, but making mistakes can also be an awesome way to learn concepts too!

Use a pencil to draw a large heart on a piece of long white paper. Begin by drawing a vertical line down the center of your heart.
Then draw three vertical lines on each side. Try to space them equally from each other. Finally, draw three horizontal lines across your heart.
Trace your pencil lines with black glue. Let your glue dry for 30 minutes to 1hr.

Begin by drawing four different patterns in the four squares on the top left peak of your heart with a pencil.
The half square closest to the center will be the hardest one to surround with patterns. This is the place to start.
We are missing a line in our heart! I don’t know how it happened, but I’m sure it has something to do with the four kids including a baby who is just learning to walk and gets into every single thing he can! Oops!
The trick is to use the pattern in your very first square twice in row two, spots 3 and 5. Check out this image for assistance:

After you have finished drawing your patterns, use oil pastels to trace your pencil patterns. You can choose to draw them with oil pastels right from the start if you’d like to risk it!
We made two mistakes skipping the pencil marks, can you spot them?
(Hint: Our mistakes are symmetrical — the red chevrons on the left and the purple hearts on the right!)

Use watercolors to paint in each square. Make sure to continue following your pattern and choose a color that complements the oil pastel color in the square.
Maintain that color/pattern scheme for the whole project to make your heart into a patchwork heart.

Interested in grabbing a low-prep STEAM patchwork heart logic activity?
Grab our free printable patchwork heart logic activity that includes an empty heart and four different patterns to work with.
Simply cut out the patterns and then decide where you are going to use them. Then, trim the squares to fit into the heart squares and solve the puzzle!
The first page of the workbook is the answer. If you want to save some ink, you can just print pages 2-3 for the activity.
CLICK HERE TO GRAB YOUR FREE PRINTABLE PATCHWORK HEART LOGIC ACTIVITY
PIN THIS IMAGE TO SAVE THIS ACTIVITY FOR LATER!

Computational Thinking Activities
Find more logical reasoning and computational thinking activities for kids!
Logic Word Puzzles for Kids
We have a ton of logic word puzzles for kids to work on vocabulary and logical reasoning skills!
Practice Logical Reasoning with Letter Sudoku Unplugged Activity for Kids
This Letter Sudoku activity is a way to introduce kids as young as preschool to the rules and the use of logical reasoning to solve a problem.
Guess the Animal Unplugged Boolean Coding Activity
Learn about boolean and comparison operators with this Guess the Animal unplugged boolean coding activity!
Circle Algorithm Art Unplugged Coding Activity
This circle algorithm art activity introduces basic coding skills by giving kids a set of rules and steps to follow to create unique designs in each circle!
Fruit Hoop Summer Sudoku Logic Puzzle for Kids
This fruit hoop summer sudoku logic puzzle for kids is a way to introduce kids as young as preschool to the rules of Sudoku and how to use logical reasoning to solve problems.
How to Code a Dirt Volcano
Learn about variables, sequences, algorithms, and loops and code a volcano! Learn how to communicate with a robot with clear steps and commands.
Runic Alphabet Frozen Coding Activity for Kids
This Futhark runic alphabet Frozen coding activity is a great hands-on activity to decipher some secret messages!!
How to Code a Lion Directed Drawing Algorithm Art
Can you follow the algorithm and draw a lion in this directed drawing unplugged coding + art activity?
Meet Toni, the Maker Mom behind Our Family Code

Hey there, I’m Toni! I’m a software engineer and Maker Mom that finds my joy in unleashing my children’s curiosity by exploring STEAM concepts with my fantastic five!
When I’m not chasing toddlers or raising tweens, you can find me tearing things up and putting them back together over here at Our Family Code.
I am the owner and content creator of multiple educational websites designed to increase access to STEAM & STEM education with a focus on teaching computer science and coding to kids of all ages!
You can also find out more about me by visiting ToniGardner.com!