Colouring and drawing are two of the earliest and most basic hobbies we engage in, yet they are actually quite beneficial. In fact, adult colouring books and parties were trending a couple of years ago, offering enjoyable and low-cost ways to relax and reduce stress. Colouring for children has the same and even better benefits.
Colouring and painting can assist children in improving their fine motor skills, training their brains to focus, improving hand-to-eye coordination, and understanding boundaries and structures better. Colouring also stimulates creative thinking and allows children to experiment with different colour combinations, which improves their colour recognition.
All of these benefits come from a simple activity using readily available materials. Who could have guessed? Not only is it a clever way to incorporate educational components for your children, it’s also an enjoyable method to improve mental well-being. Hopefully, by the end of this blog post, you will join your little one in giving life to empty shapes using colourful means!
1. Helps Develop Hand to eye coordination
Hand-eye coordination is the ability to process information collected from the eyes to lead and control the hands to complete an activity. If children do not build their coordination skills, they might:
- Avoid engaging in physical activities
- Be slower than their classmates when it comes to developing physical abilities
- Become clumsy
- Face problems with academic learning
- Have a hard time developing their social abilities
As children should colour within the boundaries of different shapes, their hand-eye coordination gradually improves. Basic coordination abilities, such as holding crayons correctly, sharpening crayons, and knowing which colour to use will greatly help children complete many future tasks. Colouring for kids also helps prevent cognitive decline, particularly if they choose complex and difficult drawing sheets.
2. Colouring for kids Improves Fine Motor Skills
Colouring is a fun way for kids to develop the muscles in their fingers, hands, and wrists, making it easier for them to wield small things. Children as young as two years old begin by grabbing a crayon in their fists and placing it on paper. They begin to grip it with their fingers as their fine motor skills improve, and they finally learn to control their crayon beyond a random scribbling.
Moreover, we all know how important proper pencil grip is. Colouring is an enjoyable way to practice pencil grip. It’s a good idea to start with larger crayons and slowly help them work their way down to the smaller ones. Triangle-shaped crayons are especially good not only because they don’t roll away but also because they make it easier for children to hold them properly.
Using an interesting activity like colouring to foster motor skills is in line with the constructivist approach that ensures children are in charge of their own learning. Each age group, from toddler to kindergartener, should also get their own unique colouring books that suit them best. This way, kids will grow more confident while not getting bored of learning and improving.
3. Teaches Boundaries, Colours, Structures, and more
Juvenile and toddler development relies on the ability to recognize boundaries. Even if they decide to become rebellious artists in the future, it’s still helpful for all kids to learn the rules before breaking them. Colouring sheets can help establish a feeling of organization and teach kids about physical shapes and boundaries.
Children can learn about lines, curves, colours, geometry, patterns, and structures by colouring. A good childcare centre doesn’t give children a formal lecture about each colour’s name. Sure, teachers are always there to give your little ones practical info about shapes, patterns, and colour names. But the real learning happens as children use the colours.
This way, kids learn colour names, experiment with different colour combinations, and learn more about shapes, patterns, geometry, lines, and even counting. You can ask them simple questions like ‘Can you draw a blue circle?’ or ‘How many roses did you colour?’ and the learning begins. Nothing needs to be prepared ahead of time.
4. Fosters Creativity
Filling the blank spaces using coloured pencils and crayons fosters creative thinking. Learning to sketch will lead kids to enjoy creating imaginary worlds, which is one of the biggest benefits of colouring for kids. They also learn to plan as they choose colours for their artwork and then the order in which they will colour the various parts of the design.
As every parent probably already knows, little ones are more inclined to create very unusual effects and colour combinations at first. This is only normal, as their mind is full of concepts and ideas to experiment with. But gradually, children learn to transform their ideas into reality and go beyond bizarre sketches. That’s exactly when their self-esteem soars, and they are more willing to participate in other creative activities.
Don’t be upset if your child isn’t colouring correctly or if they’re colouring outside the lines. Rather, applaud them for their efforts, instead of chastising your children for making mistakes while colouring, encourage them. Drawing and colouring are common ways for children to express themselves. They are wonderful outlets for expressing inner ideas and feelings.
5. Brings Relaxation & Helps Manage Emotions
Colouring can have a deeply soothing and relaxing effect on children as they shift their focus to concentrate on completing their pictures. This relaxing pastime can help both kids and adults manage emotions while also diverting their attention away from stressful events.
Do you feel that your fast-paced lifestyle is affecting your mental and physical wellbeing? An interesting study showed how colouring has helped many people manage their anxiety and reduce their stress.
Another study shed light on how patients found chemotherapy and other cancer treatment approaches more bearable after colouring. They even reported a significant reduction in distress symptoms just by doing this simple activity!
This is not surprising given that all arts and crafts activities have the power to focus attention in the same way that meditation does. Carl Jung, the great psychoanalyst, also recognized the advantages of colouring for kids and adults. He even had his patients colour mandalas for relaxation and self-discovery.
Final word
Colouring may seem to be just a childish pastime, but it’s much more than that. Colouring books and sheets are among the most educational tools you can give to toddlers, infants, kindergarteners, and children of all other ages.
The greatest benefit of colouring for kids is perhaps the fact that they enjoy it while learning so much more. It stimulates their imagination and allows them to express their inner thoughts and feelings.
By highlighting the many benefits of colouring for kids, we hope that we will inspire teachers and parents to employ colouring as a mindfulness tool to help children relax and refocus.
Colouring encourages creativity, improves fine motor skills, helps children improve their hand-to-eye coordination, and is a great way to unwind for both adults and kids.
At Clever, we believe that your child’s self-esteem grows when they make their own decisions and learn through play and exploration. That’s partly why we incorporate colouring in our centres, an activity that may look simple and old-time but is much more than meets the eye. Book a tour of our facilities to start your baby’s journey for happier and safer care under the supervision of skilled teachers.
