How can painting help development

As children learn to control their scribbling, they make a wider variety of shapes, eventually making all the shapes necessary to write the letters of the alphabet—any alphabet. Open-ended, process-oriented art is nothing but an endless opportunity for making choices, coming to conclusions, second-guessing decisions, and evaluating results.

Children become more comfortable with uncertainty and remain flexible thinkers, which is key for creativity and confidence. And the more experience they have with a variety of materials and techniques, the more likely they are to try new combinations and ideas. Children absorb incredible amounts of new information, and they need to process what they have learned in a safe, reflective way.

Art allows them to explore feelings and deal with both daily and significant events. Art materials provide a safe outlet for emotions. Feelings and ideas can be reduced to a manageable size and manipulated as desired. Movement, image, color, line, and imagination all help children express themselves in a multidimensional way. This is a way that words may not be able to do, or that may be more comfortable for them than words. When we encourage our children to explore art, we encourage them to master themselves, their bodies, and a variety of tools and techniques.

We give them many ways to express themselves. As parents and teachers, we can offer an environment where it is safe to experiment and create. An environment where questions are encouraged and children have free access to the materials they need and enjoy. We do this not to produce career artists but to raise children who are confident and comfortable with their creativity in whatever form in takes.

It can help people of all ages, races, abilities, and even languages engage in a shared and generally mutually loved activity. The path to an art-filled life involves an open mind, a few simple tools, a bit of preparation, and an exploratory approach.

I have an online course for parents who want to raise creative kids. It also fosters mental growth in children by providing opportunities for trying out new ideas, new ways of thinking and problem-solving.

I came across this interesting article about Mary Ann Kohl who is the author of numerous award-winning art idea books for children. Creativity is not to be confused with talent, skill, or intelligence. Creativity is not about doing something better than others, it is about thinking, exploring, discovering, and imagining. Art and craft activities give kids a sense of achievement and allow them to take pride in their work which builds confidence.

This helps them develop patience, which all kids need help with! Even me sometimes! Kids just love to spend time with their parents and what better way than to do arts and crafts together! You get to spend quality time bonding with your kids and at the same time, you are creating lifelong memories to cherish. Through active experimentation, he invents a new way to paint.

Although tying three paintbrushes together may not be earthshaking, Gene is learning skills that could help him invent something new, like a car that runs on solar power or a cure for cancer, when he grows up.

For more information, take a look at the following eXtension Alliance for Better Child Care articles:. Skip to content Creative art activities can help children in all areas of development. For more adventurous activities, check out our post on seashell crafts!

The painting benefits for babies are much the same as the benefits of painting for kids that are a bit older. Some of the most important benefits of painting with babies are sensory development eg through touch during finger painting and development of fine and gross motor skills when using tools such as brushes and sponges.

Allowing babies to experience painting will also develop their visual senses, creativity and can be a great bonding experience with parents. Here are some must have gear to get your creative painting skills flowing. All content is the property of the Sophie Marie. We are a participant in the Amazon services LLC associates program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to amazon.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Check out our ocean sensory bottle! Or if you need gift ideas for crafty kids we have some great ideas for three year olds here and all sorts of other gear here.

Sophie Marie Sophie Marie is passionate about providing the very best for her kids and her family. She spends half of the year living in an isolated community in Far North Queensland so online research and finding the best products is a skill she's perfected over time.