I love toddlers. I truly do. And I'm told this is a rare trait.
I'm not a baby person. I'm a toddler person. Rare. I know.
I love watching my daughter explore her world. I love seeing the world through her eyes. Yes she can be difficult. Yes she has tantrums. And yes she occasionally has them in public. I still absolutely LOVE the toddler stage. Over several blog posts I will share with you why I love the toddler stage. My hope is that, if this is a stage in the parenting process where you struggle, you will be able to see, understand and enjoy toddlerdom as I do. Or at least be able to tolerate it. *smile*
Painting with a toddler is a ton of fun! I've been complemented many times on "how brave" I am to bring paint around a toddler. And I'm not just talking about finger painting. It really never occurred to me that painting, with a toddler, was something to be afraid of. And yes I hate messes! Over the years I've learned tips and tricks that take the stress out of painting with a toddler. It can be a fun and relaxing experience for both you and your toddler. I decided to categorize these tips under "DO" and "DON'T". This makes them simple and straight forward. And I love both simple and straight forward.
Painting with a Toddler
DO
1. Plan ahead.
Gather all the items you'll need for painting ahead of time. Toddlers are notoriously impatient. (Even more than adults!) If all the supplies are together and ready to go, you've already taken the stress out of "set up".
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| In a cupboard: Paint, brushes, paper and smocks |
The items I recommend having gathered together are:
paints - of various colours,
paint brushes - multiple small brushes for their small hands,
paper - either paint specific paper or regular writing paper. Both are great,
smock/apron - to protect their clothes,
painter's tape - to tape down the edges of their painting. Either to the table or the floor,
plastic lids - to be used like a painter's palette,
cloth and bucket - to wash hands, the table and anything else!
2. Choose the proper paint.
Be sure the paints you choose are water based. This will insure an easy clean-up and decrease the chance of stains on clothes. Any paints that contain acrylic or latex will adhere to clothing permanently.
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| Water colours vs. washable colours |
Water colours (pictured above on the left) are a beautiful medium but not recommended for toddlers. A toddler simply doesn't grasp the concept of first dipping their brush in water and then the paint. Even a three year old will struggle with this idea. To prevent stress for both you and your toddler, I recommend using small pots of washable paint (pictured above on the right). They can be purchased together or individually at general stores, art stores or the dollar store. Using washable paints affords you the luxury of a quick clean up and tossing any accidentally painted clothing into the wash without issue.
If you do purchase large bottles of washable paint, pour a small amount onto a plastic lid (from a sour cream container or the like). Use a different lid for each different colour. This will prevent mixing. If you'd like to show your toddler the joy of mixing paint, then feel free to pour small amount of different colours onto the same lid. Be warned: it may become a fun time of paint mixing and not actually doing any painting.
3. Clear the area of anything you don't want painted.
In the beginning I would keep a cup of water or juice and food for the kids to drink while they painted. If you don't want something painted or knocked over, prevent the stress and keep it away!
4. Tape their paper to the table or floor.
This tip will prevent many headaches and stresses. Having the paper taped in one location will also help keep your child (and the paint!) in that same location. I often choose the table top instead of the floor as it prevents stepping on the painting by the child, our pets, or myself.
You may also choose to cover your table or floor with newspaper or a drop cloth. I have done both of these in the past and have found them to be of greater effort than simply wiping it all clean with a cloth at the end.
5. Have one brush per colour.
Another concept that toddlers have a hard time grasping/remembering is to rinse their paint brush between colours. A toddler will happily go from paint colour to paint colour without rinsing their brush. They get caught up in the creative fun of painting and either forget or don't understand that their brush needs to be cleaned so as not to mix the colours. If you don't mind the colours being mixed than simply disregard this tip. I, on the other hand, go insane! Save your sanity by simply having many small brushes.
6. Line up the paint pots at the top of the painting.
This is the best tip for preventing messes. If the paints are kept to either side of the child, they will eventually knock one over. By keeping them at the top of the paper any knocking over will occur onto the paper thereby preventing a mess. Only using paints that have been poured out onto reused lids will also prevent paint from being knocked over.
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| Paints kept above the painting. |
7. Attach your toddler's apron in this manner:
A large neck hole is a must for any apron or smock used. If using an apron, prevent the front from pulling down by threading the waist strings through the neck hole at the back.
8. Expect a mess.
This will happen. There will be a mess. At some point in time, paint will be spilled. Paint will get on their hands. Maybe even their face or hair. Expect it. Have a cloth and/or a small container of soap and water ready for when it does.
9. Expect them to purposefully paint themselves.
Toddlers are naturally curious. They visually see the paint on the paper and they want to know what it feels like. They want to touch it. It's all part of the learning process. Expect it and let it happen. Draw the line at letting them taste it.
You can even encourage them to paint their hands and create hand prints. Grandparents love to receive hand print art from their grand kids. This Mommy loves it too!
10. Display their art.
It will give them pride in their work. When they're done, simply peel the tape and painting from the table/floor and adhere it to the wall to dry. I often add a small piece of tape at the top of the painting to prevent the paper from curling. If your child has used copious amounts of paint, allow the painting to dry flat for an hour or two before taping it to the wall. The fridge front is another great place to display their art.
To prevent an overwhelming amount of artwork on your walls and fridge, replace old painting with new ones weekly or even daily. Saving old paintings to show them when their older is fun. You could also put old paintings into frames and hang them permanently in your home, give them as gifts or re-purpose them into cards or wrapping paper. Last year I used some of the children's artwork to create calendars for grandparents. They were a real hit!
DON'T
1. Don't expect it to be easy.
Although I have given you all the tips and tricks I can think of, do expect some difficulties.
There will likely be a few battles. But they will only truly be battles if you make them battles.
For example, they may not want to wear their smock. When my daughter Brooklynn was younger, she refused (as toddlers sometimes do) to wear a smock, so I made sure she was wearing clothes that I didn't mind becoming stained with paint. Or sometimes I'd let her paint topless. Her clothes can't become stained if she's not wearing any!
Or they may not like the feeling of paint on their hands. Or want it to touch their clothes. Simply have a cloth at the ready. Don't argue the reality that using paint may cause paint to be on them or their hands. Instead teach them to remain calm in a stressful situation. Help them by remaining calm yourself, gently hushing their alarms and reassuring them that all will be well by wiping up any mess with the cloth. Look them in the eye and say "all better". It builds their trust in you, keeps the situation stress free and prevents the development of fear in your toddler.
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| Brooklynn washing her own hands after painting. |
2. Don't expect a Rembrandt.
Or a Picasso. Maybe a Jackson Pollock. A toddler is mostly exploring colour when they paint. Not so much form. They paint "scribbles". Which is perfect for their development. As they age into Preschoolers they'll began to attempt to recreate the shapes and images they see around them. For now they're learning the medium of paint through experimentation. And would doesn't love experiments?! Let them. You may be surprised at how beautiful their artistic expression will be.
3. Don't expect this activity to occupy your child for hours.
On average the whole act of painting with a toddlers lasts about 15 minutes. Sometimes less. They may spend more time if they've discovered something that is fascinating to them (such as mixing paints, painting their hands or using different brush sizes) but it still doesn't last long.
4. Don't give up!
If you have a disastrous experience, don't give up. Look back at the experience and take note. Learn from your mistakes, makes plans to avoid them in the future and try again. And don't forget your child will grow up. They won't be a toddler forever. And they'll learn from mistakes too. So don't give up!
Creating art and memories that will last a lifetime.
Share your thoughts, experiences and tips below or here:
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Happy thoughts,
Andrea
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