Art has many benefits for children and just a few of these benefits are that it encourages them to be creative, have patience and determination, and gives them an outlet for their emotions. Whilst some children are born with more artistic tendencies, every child can love art if given the chance and the right type of encouragement and exposure. Here are some tips on how to encourage your child to display their artistic side.
Comic books
Comic books are something that almost every child loves. They are a mass of creativity, encouraging writing, reading and drawing all in one. Children love reading about their favourite superheroes or princesses without needing to read a whole block of text, and having a visual aid of the drawings to help them form their perceptions of the characters. Buying your child age appropriate comics will do them wonders, as you may see them trying to redraw their favourite images and even creating their own comic book panels. If your child is more confident with technology than pens and pencils, take them to RageMaker.net to help them grasp the idea of what it’s like to make a comic, without having to draw the images, only come up with the story. Whilst this doesn’t sound too artistic, it will encourage them to try to draw their own and give them a basic idea of how a comic should be laid out.
Painting with Non-Traditional Items
Encouraging your child to paint seems difficult, especially when you imagine sitting down with paper, paint and a paintbrush and expecting a masterpiece. It’s likely that if you present your child with these materials you’re not going to get a good result. However, there are many more untraditional items to paint with that will encourage your child to get creative. You can make potato stamps, paint with fingers and give them household items such as toothbrushes to get them to experiment and try out different mediums. This will give them a way to express themselves and encourage artistic tendencies, whilst still making it fun for them – exchanging their painting tools every once in a while will tell them that art isn’t boring, and you can create art in any way you want.
Pasta Art
This may sound like an odd way to get creative, but it is used in kindergartens all over the world to get children to make something that they are proud of. Not only can pasta art be very cheap to create – as pasta is often found in the home, or can be bought for a very small price – this form of art will also encourage you to be more experimental, not just with art but also in life. They will start to realize that items don’t have to strictly be used for their intended purposes, encouraging imagination and creativity and an urge to experiment, which will help them in later life. Your child will be proud of their creation and will most likely want to make more, helping them to explore a different kind of art to painting and drawing – that of sculpting.
When given the right encouragement and opportunities, there is no end to children’s creativity. With this guide, you should be able to find the right style of creative expression for your child to give them benefits that will help them in later life, and help stimulate their brain.