Coloring and drawing are two of the most basic and simplest activities we do, though they’re also immensely beneficial.
Coloring books and get-togethers for adults are huge trends these days. And, why now? Because such activities deliver fun and are an inexpensive way to relax. Children can obtain the same benefits and even more.
Why Coloring is Important?
Coloring and drawing enhance fine motor skills, helps to focus, and cultivates creativity. Coloring and drawing both help kids boost fine motor skills. Indeed. Also, it’s a good way to train the brain to focus.
For parents and teachers, these cheap activities need little preparation and can be fun while traveling in summer and winter vacations. Besides, materials are easily available at most general stores, discount stores, or online shopping. Besides, an innovation has come up, and a large number of coloring and drawing apps are available on mobile devices.
Education while Having Fun
For those searching for fun and smart ways to integrate educational components, coloring and drawing can be done quickly. With preschool kids, coloring can be done with wrapped books and pages.
According to their interests and abilities. In free-form coloring and drawing, the background colors or elements are erased from a pattern to create stand-alone objects. Free-form coloring helps kids in nurturing their creativity.
In all cases, schooling is introduced according to the child’s age and aptitude. For example, kids can “Count the number of cars on the page” or “Name all the various animals in the picture.” Also, you can focus on teaching numbers, colors, and even spelling. Likewise, parents can tell kids to draw a picture from their favorite book. Older topics can be later introduced through drawing as kids mature, possibly even creating interests in design, graphics, or architecture as they grow.
Learning Benefits of Coloring Activities
1. Fine Motor Development
Coloring helps children develop a firm finger grip. It allows training holding a pencil the correct way and helps in developing those fine motor muscles in their hands, fingers, and wrist to become stronger.
2. It imporves concentration
Children’s duration of concentration develops and enhances over time. Coloring needs good concentration. In fact, focusing on different tasks can help a child develop his or her general concentration levels.
There are pictures without colors, and when children are made to color them, they put extra effort. This extra effort paves the way for focusing and concentration.
3. Color Recognition
Coloring activities stimulate the grasping of color. Allowing kids to use different colors gives them an opportunity to apply different combinations. Moreover, after coloring various pictures, they understand that grass is always green and the sky is blue. Slowly and steadily, they realize what color is assigned to what object.
4. Hand & Eye Coordination:
Coloring assists in the development of hand & eye coordination. Children are taught to color within a definite area. Focusing on lines and coloring coordinate both actions that develop their skill.
When children first begin coloring, they will have a difficult time keeping within the lines. However, as they grow, their skill will increase. Staying within the lines of the picture requires substantial skill. When they learn it, they develop a sense of pride and achievement.
5. Sense of Pride and Achievement
We need to provide children every chance to develop self-confidence and a sense of self-esteem. When they create something different and beautiful, then this will encourage them to do more. Creativity helps in the positive development of their personality.
Ways to Teach Kids to Color Within the Lines
1. Teach Your Kid the Right Way to Hold and Move Brushes
Bring your kid painter with big and small size brushes and food colors. Show the kid color blobs that he can create on a clean sheet of paper.
He should learn how to hold small-sized brushes at the tip and large-sized brushes away from the tip. This way, he can move the brushes easily in a skillful manner. In fact, with big brushes, the kid learns the correct way to hold larger coloring tools and use them effectively to color within the lined space.
Related: How To Plan For Your Child’s Future With Children Education Plan
2. Develop Their Hand Strength and Coordination
Coloring within the lines requires substantial hand strength and improved eye-hand coordination. Develop hand strength by engaging him in hand strengthening activities. For example, grasping and moving small items and pinching soft objects like pillows.
Also, squeezing a spray bottle helps develop his hand strength. Give him big tweezers and make him pick up objects using them. This helps to enhance hand strength and hand-eye coordination.
3. Use Coloring to Fill Time
If you have younger learners, don’t underestimate the value of coloring. My second grader will often need additional instruction on math, while my kindergartener is already done with her work. Letting my younger child color her coloring worksheets while I teach the older one gives me extra time
4. Images with Big Borders
In the early stages of painting and coloring, tell your child to color images with big borders. Thus, this will help your kid learn to color more quickly. Surely, little by little, I encourage him to move on to color within thinner borders.
Different Types of Coloring Tools
Introduce your kids to different types of crayons of various sizes. Like thin, skinny-sized to thick, large-sized crayons. Let your child pick which size of crayon he finds easy to hold and color within a gripping manner.
Also, give several color markers of various sizes. Let your child make his own choice. Letting your kid choose a coloring tool that he can manage the best promotes the skill of coloring within the lines.
Children’s Education and Technology
Technology is affecting almost every aspect of our lives, our societies, and our homes. It is a major part of our world today. Children are born and raised in this digital world. Mobile phones, tablets, laptops, and other technologies are here to stay and will continue to develop and change the way we manage our lives.
The Way We Educate and Teach Our Children is Changing.
With the coming of technology in school and our home environment, learning has become fast and easy. Children have mobile phones, and information is at our fingertips. Relevant technology in schools has opened new avenues and opportunities in the education system.
