Coloring activity for toddlers? Is it possible?
Crayons and colored pencils are a staple in every preschool classroom.
And I’m 99.99% sure that a household with a toddler living in it has these coloring materials, too!
The question is: When should coloring be introduced to children?
As a professional, I believe that coloring CAN be introduced to children as early as toddler years.
Notice the emphasis on the word can?
Letting a toddler tinker with crayons would benefit his/her fine motor skills.
As your child takes control of the crayon, he/she is unknowingly strengthening his/her hand and wrist muscles.
But I think it is important not to force the idea of coloring to toddlers.
Exposing them to crayons or colored pencils is already a mighty step. Asking them to actually color is still not in the picture at this point.
Seb was barely 12 months old when we first introduced him crayons. At that time, we just wanted him to be familiar with the material. We definitely didn’t expect anything from him except hold the crayons, look at them and NOT EAT them. 😛
Oh, and we also gave him papers! Just in case.
We surely don’t want him to write and color the walls. Yikes!
But aside from that, we did nothing else. We just let him scribble on the paper and just enjoy the crayons. We did remind him not to munch on the crayons, though. 🙂
Coloring activity for toddlers is a pre-academic activity, so as much as possible we want Seb to have a fantastic experience of it so he would have a positive concept of school.
So for now, while he’s still developing his hand and wrist muscles, we would gladly settle for intersecting lines, parallel lines, loops and circles.
And we’ll show it to him when he’s already 18. And if he still draws the same way, we’ll judge him to the moon and back! 😛
Teacher’s Advice:
Coloring can be introduced as early as toddler years.
Provide papers so your child would learn the idea that they are supposed to write on it and not on the walls (or anywhere else for that matter!)
Is your toddler already doing coloring activities? How is it? I’d love to hear your stories. <3
You can also read this article about other great fine motor activities for your toddlers.
Oh, and please visit my Free Printable Page for more!
P.S.
Do you want PREMIUM FREEBIES? Please subscribe to my blog. I promise it will be worth it!
Oh! And please like and follow us on Facebook and Pinterest! <3
Happy learning,
40 Responses
Our grandson comes from a family of artists. When he turned 1 we bought him large crayons. He was instantly sold. While there are many activities he enjoys, drawing seems to be #1. When he visits us it’s the 1st thing he wants to do. In his own home there is not a day when he doesn’t want to draw. It’s mostly circular drawings with scribbly lines. He asks who ever he’s with to draw things. He has never tried to draw on anything other than the paper that’s been given. He holds is pencil/crayon properly and switches hands frequently. He is soon to be 19 months old. We think it’s time to introduce him to a coloring book.
That is awesome! It must be great to be surrounded by artists.😀 Your grandson is truly blessed. I hope he continues to enjoy colouring and drawing. In these times, a lot of children get distracted with technology that they swap their crayons and pencils to gadgets and game consoles.
Thank you so much for reaching out. I enjoyed reading your comment. It’s messages like this that motivates me to keep working on my website. Happy learning!
I don’t know if it’s appropriate but I still find colouring..or completing something extremely therapeutic
It’s totally normal. I do it, too! 😁
Another great activity and set of advice from this blog! I love what you do and offer 🙂
Thank you very much, Kristie! 😊
My girls have been coloring for a really long time. I think we started introducing crayons and crafts things when they were 2.
That’s great! I bet their fine motor skills are really good. 😊
I know we introduced coloring to our daughter during the toddler years. I think her learning coordination and everything was great. But then she started drawing on the walls, and it wasn’t so nice. 🙂
hahahaha… It also happened with my nephew. Good thing it was was easy to erase. So now we’re more watchful. 😁
Our 4 yo has now started oding a much better job at coloring. He must have heard it somewhere but is now trying to color within the lines
I always believe that we need not force youngsters to learn how to write or color. As they see us hold a pen or color, they are most likely be interested. Grab that opportunity. It wouldn’t hurt if we make it a habit to draw or write so they will be used to the idea. In no time, you will be surprised they are writing or drawing eagerly and like a pro.
I totally agree. Forcing will result to the opposite of what you want them to do. 😁
Wow! That’s great! Maybe my nephew will be able to do that when he’s already in preschool. For now he can color away as long as it’s on paper. 😁
My son loves colouring. Even if he doesn’t know how to do that properly it’s not an issue for him. He loves his crayons 😀
Same with my nephew. At the moment he’s just doodling and making scribbles. And that’s good enough for us. 😁
I would defo let my toddlers color form a very early age. I think that is what my mum did for me! it’s good for creativity!
Conratulations to your mom for raising a creative daughter! 😊
I think it’s great to introduce children to coloring early. Both of there senses and creativity skills.
I think so, too! 😁
Yes, I agree that kids should be introduced to coloring as early as possible since it gets them all creative and active.
We really want to develop creativity in children.
colouring is great at any age. I don’t have kids but when i do I plan to introduce colouring and painting at 1 or maybe before if they understand
Karamel_KC
http://www.karamelsessence.com
I agree! 😁
Coloring is a really good activity for toddlers. That will build up creativity in them. And also, it boost their memory. My mother said I was used to color on books even on walls when I was child.
Your mother must be a bery patient woman. 😁 We always keep an eye on my nephew when he has crayons or markers on hand. He has already slipped past us a couple of time. 😁
Your little Picasso is well on his way. Good job with grabbing those crayons. Lol!
Yup! Though we want to make sure he’s doing his masterpiece on paper! 🤣
I think creativity can be introduced early. I remember my brother was used to love to paint the walls when he was a toddler if he had paper and coloring books would have been easier.
The whole house is one big canvas for toddlers. So we really have to keep an eye on them. Unless you really want to have graffiti on your walls. 😁
I know my kids always enjoying coloring. I let them do it as toddlers, I just watched them to make sure they stayed on paper.
hahahah… We can totally relate! My nephew would color the floors and walls if given the chance. 🤣
I love introducing colour activities to my younger clients. They always enjoy it plus its a great fine motor exercise!
I agree! It’s a really effective fun motor skill acitivity. And it’s fun, too!
So cute! I don’t remember when I started crayon colouring but I remember I loved drawing. I love it till date.
I still remember coloring in when I was in preschool. 😁 One of my earliest memories.
Actually some of my first memories involve coloring. I was given coloring pencils and books probably when I was a toddler, and I remember how much I used to love drawing. I had no talent and my “art pieces” were always scribbles, but I had so much fun creating.
It’s always fun to remember childhood memories such as this one! 😁 I also have coloring memories.
That’s great! My nephew’s coloring material are in a small backpack. And when he wants to color, we put it on him and we tell him, “Okay, it’s time to go to school!” Then we’d walk around the house, go back to the room, bring out the crayons then he’d start coloring. It’s like a ritual that he seems to enjoy, too! And when he’s done, he packs up (he already knows how by himself) and then put the backpack on again, walk around the house and then go back to the room. And then we say, “Welcome home!”
It’s silly really but as long as he’s happy! 😁
Thanks for dropping by! I hope your child continues to enjoy coloring. 😊
So cute! I definitely let my 1 year old scribble with crayons and markers all he wants (supervised). We keep all his art stuff in a box on a shelf, and when we pull it down for him he sits on the carpet and is so excited! It is a great way to teach him colors and counting. We also keep stickers in the box, which he loves more than anything else, haha!