Are you stumped about what to do with your preschoolers? If you are a teacher you might have some great ideas, although with preschoolers it always seems like a battle. Preschoolers are at a very strange age because they lack the critical skills that so many of us have. Their lives are almost entirely determined by other people. This can be very frustrating for them and preschoolers often look for creative outlets as a source of control. In a creative endeavor they can do whatever they want and they have the control. However, most preschoolers don’t have the talent to draw or do complicated crafts. One of the only real creative activities they can undertake is to color.
Coloring is one of the best activities for any group of preschoolers. It gives them creative license and they can take pride in their creation. There are some coloring activities you should consider if you are going to work with preschoolers.
One of my personal favorites is to have your preschooler color their favorite animal. You can obtain coloring books at just about any local craft or school supply store. Allow the children to choose what animals they would like to color. Give them creative license to color with whatever colors they like best.
Another favorite of mine is coloring a large drawing divided up into individual squares for each child. Don’t tell the children what the complete image is until they are finished coloring their square. This will keep up their excitement. When they are finished coloring put all of the pieces together to complete a wacky design or image.
Some of the kids I work with like to color mystical beasts. Almost every preschooler knows what a dragon is and all of them would like to color their beautiful scales. With so many popular fantasy films out there these days most kids know about fantasy creatures. Allow them to color the animals in an entirely fantastic way.
Many preschoolers also have a favorite superhero. Almost all superheros have specific colors associated with their costumes. If kids today are as big of fans of superheros as I was when I was young then they know the colors associated with their favorites. Batman can be colored black, Spiderman and superman are red and blue, and the joker is purple and green; the combinations of colors are varied.
Although you might suffer a little humiliation to do it, you can allow the kids to color a drawing of you. Children are usually loving but they love to poke fun at their teachers. Draw a full scale sketch of yourself and explain that it is the teacher. Then allow each child to color whatever sections they want. This one should create some real excitement in a classroom that knows their teacher well.
Regardless of the activity you decide to implement, make sure that you teach the children the various names of the colors they are using. Coloring need not be just another form of entertainment for kids. When you hand a new marker or pencil to a child make sure that they can tell you what color they are receiving. Also, before a preschooler colors an animal, superhero, or anything else, have them tell you what they are working on.
Using these techniques you can encourage creativity and keep your preschoolers entertained. You might also discover a particular aptitude or ability for art. It is never too early to encourage an ability. However, regardless of ability your preschoolers will have the time of their lives coloring.
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