Art

Try to get hold of as many different types of drawing and painting resources as you can! You could use paints, chalk, colouring pencils, crayons, pens, pencils, modelling clay and much more can be found in discount shops. Just don’t forget to put lots of newspaper down first!

Alternatively, instead of buying materials, let them get creative using things around the house – for example, pasta and pulses to create pictures using glue. You can even use items such as grass, leaves or twigs to paint with! Back in the Stone Age they only used natural resources for painting.

Encourage your child to keep a sketch book. Suggest that they take it with them when they go out so that they can look for things to sketch – a tree, a building, a scene. Alternatively, if they see something they would like to draw, take a photo on your phone and let them sketch from it when they are home. We look at lots of still life drawing in school so they could use these skills at home too.

Praise your child’s creations and encourage them not to get disheartened if they feel they have made ‘mistakes’. Everyone is an artist, there is no right or wrong! Explain that art is about being creative and trying out different things. You could even ‘frame’ their work using coloured paper or card and create a little gallery on the kitchen wall or in their bedroom to display their work. You could even have a ‘gallery’ of photos on a phone or tablet if you don’t have anywhere to display them.

Find out about local art galleries or museums that you can visit with your child. Encourage them to talk about what they see and to share their opinions – about subject matter, colours, what materials the artist used, and so on.