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Children can so easily become discouraged with art if they find it difficult to work with a particular medium. In some cases a simple change can make all the difference.
We start off well, giving children fat crayons that they can hold comfortably in their developing hands, in colours that stimulate their imaginations. Crayons are also ideal for learning about applying differing pressures to create different shades, and some colours can be mixed by colouring over one with another. Don’t be too ready to ween your child off using crayons. There are many beautiful crayon sets that even much older children would be delighted to use.
Without realising it, parents, teachers, and art resource packagers and stockists start making it difficult for children to develop their artistic skills early. The most common pencil is the HB, designed specifically for writing, and which is too hard to draw with comfortably, except to achieve a specific effect. If your children start experimenting with pencil drawings, buy them a range of softer pencils, for example 6B, 4B, and 2B. The higher the number, the softer the lead and the darker the lines will be.
Even coloured pencils are made in a harder base than is comfortable to draw with. Look out for softer pencils, or pencils made with a watercolour base that can be moistened to create paint effects.
Usually the first painting kit a child receives is the traditional watercolour set. It’s obvious why this is popular. Watercolour can be washed out of clothing easily and doesn’t stain. If the paint dries, a few drops of water will revive it. Watercolour sold as solid paint blocks allow parents to avoid the nuisance of burst or leaking tubes. And watercolour lasts a long time because it is mixed with water and is meant to be used as a transparent wash.
But not only is watercolour rather a difficult medium to work with, children’s sets are likely to contain those solid blocks of paint rather than tubes, making it even more tricky. And watercolour is not ideally suited to a child’s play temperament and desires for expression. Children like thick paint in bold colours that they can use to fill in large areas of paper. Watercolour can be frustrating for a child to master and should be a medium that you introduce later once you notice their interest in how different paint mixtures create different effects.
For younger children, ordinary poster paint is fine as a start, and gives them a far more interesting experience of painting. Older children, who show a desire to learn more about painting and art, can move onto acrylic paint if their needs are not being met by poster paint. Acrylic paint is extremely versatile, and can be used to mimic both oil and watercolour painting, and is therefore ideal for introducing children to different painting techniques. But be sure to instruct your children first in the proper care of their paintbrushes, pallets, clothing, and floor surface when using acrylic paint. Acrylic paint left to dry on the brush is impossible to remove, and a build up of paint will ruin a brush, and acrylic paint stains almost all surfaces permanently.
copyright © Elsa Neal 2005 (Please contact the
for permission to reprint this article.)
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