5 Paint Projects for Toddlers (with Learning Opportunites)
Painting is a fun activity for toddlers that is full of learning opportunities. It gives toddlers the chance to express themselves and explore their imagination. Creativity is something that needs to be nurtured and encouraged. I have known many parents that avoid paint because they are afraid of the mess. However, paint is such a great sensory experience for toddlers so it’s a great activity to include.
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There are so many great washable paints to use that clean off carpets and clothing so easily. Crayola’s Kids Paints are my favorite. My son has spilled it on the floor and all over his shirts and you would never be able to tell after cleaning!
These five projects are great for teaching kids various skills and principles. Paint is great for teaching colors. While your toddler paints, name each color they use and try and get them to name the colors as well. Finger painting is great for sensory input and using a brush is perfect for fine motor control. These projects are sure to be a hit with your toddler and have them learning through their play!
Color Mixing
Paint
Paper
Place a small dot of red, yellow, and blue paint on a piece of paper. Have your toddler identify the three colors and then demonstrate how to use their fingers to mix each color together to create something new. It’s important to narrate everything so that they understand why they are mixing the colors. As you mix the colors together, label the new colors as well.
Blue + Yellow = Green
Blue + Red = Purple
Red + Yellow = Orange
After mixing all the colors together, your toddler will have a nice circle that shows each color of the rainbow! What a great way to learn color mixing and color identification!
Texture Painting
This is a project that you can really have a lot of fun with. There are so many different textures that you can play with. This adds another level of sensory input to painting. Exploring textures is such a wonderful way to learn. It’s possible to do this with a bunch of different objects. Anything that creates a unique texture is perfect for painting and exploring.
For a mess-free version, check out my Tupperware Painting Project.
Texture Painting Project #1 – String
Paint
Paper
Paint Roller – or another cylindrical object
String
Wrap the string around the roller and secure it. Roll it around in some paint and then let your toddler roll it on paper to see the effect it makes. Allow them to touch the roller and explore the texture with their hands as well. While they play with this, explain how the bumps they feel on the roller are making the effect they see on the paper.
Texture Painting Project #2 – Sponge
Paint
Paper
Sponge
Sponge painting is a lot of fun and is really easy. All you do is put some paint on the sponge and then press it onto the paper. Simple! You can use both sides of the sponge to explore the difference in texture between the two. It is also fun, for an older child, to cut out shapes in the sponge before painting to create yet another effect.
Texture Painting Project #3 – Hot Wheels
Paint
Paper
Hot Wheels (or other toy cars)
This is a really fun project. All you do is roll the wheels of a toy car in some paint and then roll the car on some paper. Using multiple cars with different types of wheels is a great way to demonstrate textures. Use some with big wheels and some with small wheels to show the principles of big and small. My son loves this project! It’s so much fun to push a car around and see the tracks. We used this technique to create a unique personalized letter for his bedroom door that he can be proud of.
Painting Rocks
Paint
Paintbrush
Rocks
This project is fun and has a benefit of honing fine motor skills by using a paint brush. Learning to control and be gentle with a paintbrush is an important skill that will ultimately help with writing skills later on. I love keeping these painted rocks and using them to decorate my garden, which is why I recommend acrylic paint for this project. Dip the paintbrush in the acrylic paint, and then let them paint the rocks! Show them how to rotate the rocks to paint all sides. When they are done, you have a beautiful little decoration to put outside!
Paint Pouring
Paint
Glass Jar
This is a great project to upcycle glass jars. Clean out a glass jar after finishing whatever food or sauce was held in it. Then pour a small amount of paint into the bottom. Allow your toddler to rotate the jar and watch the paint move around. Explain about how the paint always travels downwards (toward the ground) no matter how they move the jar. This is a great demonstration of the principle of gravity! When you are done, let the paint dry and you have a unique little glass container that you can use as a vase.
Stamp Painting
Paint
Paper
Stamps
Stamps are a lot of fun and a great way to learn about shapes. Dipping the stamp in paint and then stamping it on paper, you can label what each stamp shows. I’ve done this with basic shapes, letters, numbers, and pictures. Whatever the stamp shows, say what it is so that your toddler learns each one.
You can also make your own stamps out of lots of different materials, like erasers. This is a cheap way to make a lot of different shapes and older kids can experiment with cutting them out themselves.
I got a lot of my inspiration from the book The Craft Kingdom by Eli Maor. This book has a lot of ideas for painting as well as other crafts from soap making to crafting with nature. Each of these crafts provides a different learning opportunity for kids and toddlers. The book is organized by subject and has detailed instructions on various quick craft projects. They are all really easy and affordable. You can either craft the projects as shown in The Craft Kingdom or use them as inspiration to create your own unique piece of art.
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60 Comments
Lucy At Home
I love the variety of activities you’ve included in this post – the paint pouring in the glass jar stands out particularly as I’ve never come across this before but it looks really effective! I did a lot of painting with my older girl when she was little, but I haven’t done it as much with my younger daughter – you have inspired me to book a time in to get the paints out again!
And congratulations because someone decided this post was the best they’d read all week and so they added it to the BlogCrush linky for you. Hurray! Feel free to bob over and collect your “I’ve been featured” blog badge #blogcrush
Kat
Thanks! I will get my badge as soon as I can! I’m glad that I inspired you!
Melanie
Bookmarking for when my daughter gets a little older! Thanks.
Kat
I hope you enjoy!!!
Tricia Snow
Love these projects! Thank you!
Kat
Thank you!
Tiffany
So brave! I love the idea of the sponge – will have to try that out with the littles!
Kat
That is a favorite of my son’s!
Tina
Love this! It’s so important for kids to be able to discover their fountain of creativity!
Kat
I agree!
Tracey
One of my 6 year olds brought home a rock from the park today and sat down to paint it on his own before bed tonight! Love the paint pouring idea!
Kat
That’s so cute! I love when they take it on themselves to start an art project.
Christa
I have a toddler, and it’s still too hot in Las Vegas to play outside. I guess I just found our weekend activity! Thank you!
Kat
I hope you enjoy! I hate days where it is too hot to play outside. It’s so hard to see sunshine and stay indoors!
Dee
love these ideas! A great rainy day activity.
Kat
Yes! Rainy days are perfect for painting.
Kesha
My son loves painting projects. Thanks so much for these great ideas.
Kat
Thanks. Mine loves it too!
Alice
Great post! I love how excited the child on the pic is. xx
Kat
Thank you! My son is a cutie!
Jennifer Morrison
These look like such fun ideas! I am painting with my granddaughter this morning, so we will have to do some of these ideas.
Kat
I hope you have fun!
Kristi Ann
I love that you let your little one get crazy and messy also! We are always into something that makes a mess!
Kat
Yes! It keeps him happy and I feel like you can always clean up. Messy play is great for learning as well.
Jenn
I really need to let my kids try
This. I’ve always been so worried about the mess.
Kat
The washable paints are really easy to clean. It’s not as bad as it seems.
Michele
I love these ideas! My kids always loved to paint when they were small! Unfortunately paints weren’t quite as clean-up friendly as they are now, but some butcher paper or newspaper and old t-shirts and they were good to go!
Kat
Perfect! You can always just pick a “paint shirt” and use it every time! Now, the paints wash off so easily though.
Jocelyn
These are all super fun and creative! I love the biscuit can rolling idea. So easy! Pinned for later!
Kat
Thanks! I’m always trying to make our crafts more interesting!
Ala
Both our kids enjoy painting, and your ways to enjoy painting is so interesting. will do with our kids as well.
http://travelfamilyblog.com/
Kat
Thank you! I hope they enjoy it.
Kathryn at QuestFor47.com
One of my earliest memories is learning about color mixing on an episode of Barney the Dinosaur (ugh, I can hear that song now). Love these projects!
Kat
I remember that episode too!
Mary
These look like so much fun! The texture painting is my favorite. I’m a teacher, I may try some of these in class!
Kat
I’m glad you like them! I hope your kids do too! I know my son didn’t want to stop with the texture painting.
Ina @ Crafty For Home
I love this kind of activity, though I will regret the mess they made after, lol. But kids love painting a lot!
Kat
I always think the mess is worth cleaning up! And with washable paints, it is usually really easy.
amanda addison
love
Kat
thanks
Lisa
These are some great ideas! I love the texture one! I wish I would have done more of this stuff with my kids!
Kat
It’s fun to do. I find it keeps him happier than when we don’t do crafts as well.
Dawnmarie @ EnjoyingtheDays
That first picture with the finger painting looks like an autumn tree scene!
Kat
I hadn’t thought of it like that! It totally does! He’s making masterpieces already.
Deanna
Nothing like hands on projects for kids. My kids have loved making art since they were toddlers.
Kat
It’s such a great way to learn and play together!
Laur
Looks like so much fun! Great projects! I’ll have to try them sometime soon! Thanks for sharing!
Kat
Thanks! I hope you enjoy.
Dennis
I really wish we had sites like this when my children were toddlers. Nice post.
Kat
Thank you. It’s great to have these resources now!
Melissa Parcel
Fun ideas, I will share with my daughter so she can try them with my granddaughter (who loves anything to do with paint)
Kat
Painting is so much fun with a toddler! Adding variety keeps it interesting.
Pam
We used to finger paint a lot when my kids were little. One thing I always did was use a dollar store tablecloth on the table. Let it dry before folding and it could be used over and over. I’d just stash it with the paint supplies.
Kat
That’s a good tip! I have been using newspaper because we get so much delivered to my house and so we paint over it, then recycle!
Laura G
This is awesome, I love those ideas! I have also been wanting to let them splash paint on a vertical piece of paper. That would probably need to happen outside though 😉
Kat
That would be fun! I think that is definitely an outdoor activity though! Maybe with sidewalk paint?
Jasmine Hewitt
I want to try the paper towel roll, maybe then my toddler will like painting
Kat
It’s a lot of fun! Throwing some variety in there can make painting more fun for a toddler.
Laura
I love the effect of the roller! Sponging also always looks cool
Kat
I agree. My son loved them both too!