Color Me Happy
This activity always has a different outcome. That is one of the reasons I love doing it. It does color me happy! Toddlers love to draw, and we love to see their creations. This activity can be as disorganized or organized as you plan it to be. It can easily be tailored to a specific holiday or turned into a present for someone special!
The items needed for this activity:
Variety of drawing utensils (whatever you have)
Item or textured surface to draw on (I love the paper mâché animals!)
Steps:
Next time you sit your toddler down with crayons and paper, add some extra inspiration! Offer several different colors of construction paper and let your child choose a few.
Add some extra (non-toxic) writing utensils like markers, chalk or pens (if you think they are able to use them safely). If you have uniquely shaped crayons to add to the mix, that would be great as well. I found these at Michael’s and my toddler absolutely loves them.
A surface with a different texture, such as cardboard or aluminum foil, could also be added to the mix. I found this paper mâché animal to add to this activity and it was a big hit!
Sit back and watch your little one do what they do best, create!
Lastly, Encourage your little one to share their masterpiece and let them know that you are proud of their creation, and they should be proud as well! My daughter’s excitement for the activity and the pride in her darling eyes when she showed Daddy her artwork was priceless.
The last time my daughter did this activity, she made some beautiful artwork on her hands. My first instinct was to encourage her to color on the paper again but then something inside me demanded to know why it mattered. When I really thought about it, it did not matter because the markers are washable and non-toxic. Since when do we shy away from a mess? She was creating art and that was the point of the activity.
I catch myself thinking about these types of situations a lot. I hope that we all are always able to have patience and consideration with our toddlers because they absolutely deserve it.
