Most children enjoy creating art with their hands even before they can hold a paintbrush. Art is a way for them to explore the world and learn more about it. Experienced parents, teachers, and even therapy professionals can explain how young artists use their imagination to develop creativity. They experiment with colors and textures using paints or even things like shaving cream or food.
Teaching children to paint is a great way to help them not only develop their artistic abilities. Painting can spark creativity and allow children to express themselves. It can also boost their self-esteem. Additionally, when children learn to hold a brush and make strokes, it strengthens the muscles they will use for holding a pencil and handwriting.
With so many benefits of painting, why don’t you start to teach your child to draw right now? Read this article to find useful tips on how to begin and use the coloring pages from Kids Academy as a guide!
How to Begin
1. Fingerpaints
Kids adore Fingerpainting! It is not just fun, it is also a great way to get your child interested in art and start the process of learning how to paint. Dress your children in some clothes which you don’t mind getting dirty and find a spot in the house where they can be messy and creative. Make sure you have non-toxic fingerpainting paint and that you have lots of paper plates and thick paper. To boost creativity, encorage children to play with shapes, colors, and designs.
2. Mixing Colors
After children have played with fingerpaints for a while, you can start to teach them about colors and what happens when you mix them. To make it easy for children to explore the effects of colors on each other, use coated paper plates. Show your kids how, for example, red and blue make purple. Keep mixing colors, and add new hues to make pictures!
3. Different Paint Brushes
After little artists are done with fingerpainting, it is time to introduce tools and brushes for painting. There are many types of paintbrushes available at craft stores. For example, flat or angled ones. You can also explore tools like masking tape, spatulas or painting sponges. Children may experiment with abstract designs or create pictures. In any case, they are already learning if they are using new tools.
4. Using Models
In order to improve in painting skills, kids need to learn how to draw pictures. Models are a great way to teach young artists how to draw. Even though children might not be able to paint from the start, their drawing skills will help them paint more complex pictures once they have a brush in their hands.
5. More Practice
Like with any other skill, practice makes perfect. Fortunately, children love to paint and create art. To help your kid practice and improve their skills, arrange daily art practice. Just set aside some time for art lessons every day to give children enough time to improve their skills and have fun.
Coloring Pages
Kids Academy offers a variety of online coloring pages that you can either complete on the computer or print out and color manually off-line. The coloring activities help
young learners develop a sense for shades and colors. What is more, with the assistance of worksheets children can review academic subjects. For example, these coloring pages for 2nd grade are a great way to revise family words, emotions or long and short vowels, and many more. You can access them through the Talented and Gifted app or directly from the Kids Academy website.
As mentioned, if children learn how to draw, it will help them build a foundation for painting skills as they get older. Coloring pages can be used as models for practice. These are some tips to promote kids’ success:
1. Trace coloring pages
Both the Talented & Gifted app and Kids Academy website have a wide selection of coloring pages that can be used for more than coloring. The majority of coloring pages are a simple image with a darkened outline, so they are ideal for tracing.
First, download the page on your tablet or iPad. After you lay a sheet of plain white printer paper over the tablet, your kids will be able to draw along the lines. The illuminated screen will let the image shine through the paper, making it easy for kids to trace.
2. Draw an image without tracing.
Your child can then recreate the image by themselves, without needing to trace it. This will allow them to reproduce the image on their own. When learners are confident in drawing the image without having to trace it, they can practice with other images to help them improve their skills.
3. Use watercolors.
You can also print out the coloring pages from Kids Academy website and use watercolors to paint them. Other paints might be too thick or watery to use on printer paper, but watercolors will allow children to experiment with using a paintbrush to create brush strokes. Encourage children to experiment with different strokes and brushes when coloring the pages.
The coloring pages from Kids Academy also provide tips for little artists on what color to use for a definite area of the drawing. Some coloring worksheets include the names of colors as well as examples of how they can be used on the image. This will help the child learn colors’ names and how to use them.
Although painting may seem like something that only artists can do, many parents realize the joy that art brings to their kids. It’s a great way for children to express themselves, as well as learn a lot of useful skills
