Today, I want to share tips for beginners starting to paint with children at home or in the classroom. If you’re considering starting painting, it can feel a bit overwhelming. But don’t worry, I have some advice to help you get started on the right foot. I also offer many art guides, videos, and supplies that can further enrich your experience, which you can find on my website. Throughout this blog, I’ll list resources. I can’t wait to share some easy painting ideas for children that you will surely appreciate.
Painting is truly loved by children of all ages—even toddlers enjoy it! When children join my art workshops, their smiles and excitement are joyful. Even teachers who have never painted before have smiles on their face! Plus, painting can be a calming and relaxing activity for all.
When I meet parents, guides, and teachers, I know there’s a concern about how messy painting can become. But I’ve developed key lessons that demonstrate how to paint without making big messes. Painting can be set up properly to support children while keeping the environment tidy. Once you understand the basics, how to set up, and how to support painting sessions, you’ll wonder why you didn’t start sooner. While I can’t teach you everything in just this blog, I offer plenty of resources so you can further deepen your learning. Let’s start with the painting basics.
Painting Basics
Lets start with understanding what painting means. Painting is the action of making brush strokes marks with a paintbrush, hands, sponges, paint rollers, or stampers. Brushstrokes are created with liquid pigments – paint. Usually children paint on paper, canvas, cardboard and wood surfaces. Toddlers – elementary grades are old enough to learn how to paint.
Preparing the Environment for Painting
Preparing the environment should include an art space, a shelf with materials within reach, and art storage for incomplete projects. Before painting starts, designate a painting area for children to work in. Think about this areas like you do for food prep. You need to be near a sink and use tables that can get messy.
Make sure the child knows where paint is allowed. Let them know where they can paint to avoid stains. If necessary, put down tarps, rugs, or towels in this area to keep floors clean during any painting activities. When painting at home, I recommend areas like the kitchen, patio, or a room spills are OK to happen.
Without this proper guidance, you will struggle as a guide and want to restrict children from painting. With no guidance children have no way of understanding expectations. If you want to learn how to teach these presentations check out my art guides or painting video training.
Here is what demonstrations and presentations should look like:
- Show children how to work around the environment
- Where to set up for painting
- How to manage messes
- Clean up and place all the materials back on the shelf
- Demonstrate how to store finished artworks or incomplete work
Manage Painting Messes
If you don’t want large messes, shrink down the paints and paintbrushes. Use the smallest available size of paintbrush and put paint into small containers (as opposed to giving students the entire bottle). This is one of the major tricks I share in my books and guides Kids Painting.
Prepare the the art environment with all the mediums and materials easy for grabbing. Be sure your painting areas also has beautiful painted samples for children to admire. These can be samples you created or other students work. Have white and clear containers it’s easy to see color choices.
Paints Easy to Use
These are the best choices for painting with children. If you want to learn more about what paints to use on specific paint projects, check out this blog, Kids Painting Book or any of my Art Guides early childhood or elementary. Another great tip is to try these paints out on your own before you introduce them to your students. Test the paints and be sure the paints measure up and can produce the right results you need.
- Dry watercolor cake palette, 36 colors – best for ages 5+
- Watercolor finger paint – best for ages 3+
- Acrylic paint (kids/student-grade only) – best for ages 5+
- Watercolor pencils – best for ages 5+
- Watercolor Crayons – best for ages 5+
- Tempera paint sticks – best for infant & toddler
- Dot Paint Stampers – best for infant & toddler
- Paintless Wood Painting Board 3+
Painting Routines
When introducing painting to your classroom, be sure there is time to present all the materials. This will ensure the children can work independently with them. You’ll want to show them how to set up, how to use the materials properly, how to make proper paint brush marks, how to take care of paintbrushes and how to clean up and store their paintings. These procedures will turn into regular routines, helping children develop independence and start expressing creativity regularly.
Painting Materials
Generally you will need different size paintbrushes, paint palettes and objects for children to paint on. Common surfaces can be thick paper, watercolor paper, cardboard, canvas, rocks or sticks. You will also need a cleaning system for maintain mess while children paint. To learn more on this download my free painting checklist for painting. Or check out my books.
Paint Colors
Give your students just a few color options at first—maybe even limit it to one color. Too many options can be overstimulating, causing them to lose focus (which could lead to messes). I typically start beginner lessons with just one color until my students get the hang of their materials and brush marks.
Painting Key Lessons
Painting key lessons are very important to teach. They provide children with a structured foundation to build essential artistic skills. These skills build upon each other, enabling children to confidently paint independently. Without these core lessons, it’s difficult for children to progress with painting or follow routines. When children are given these sequential key lessons, they can advance to more painting practices like mixing colors, creating desired art elements, developing color values, and planning their painting ideas. With proper key lessons, children are also able to create all art elements using brushstrokes.
Process-Based Painting For Beginners
If all this seems hard, start with process based painting. s. This means your students do not have to follow directions to get a specific result. Process-based painting gives children the freedom to explore. Giving them the freedom to experiment with paint mediums any way they desire. Start painting projects by creating in process-based and open-ended lesson
Easy Painting Ideas
- Learning Brushstrokes: Explore different brushstrokes.
- Primary Color Mixing: Discover how to mix primary colors.
- Stick & Rock Painting: Use natural materials like sticks and rocks as unique canvases.
- Paint Roller Fun: Experiment with paint rollers to cover large areas.
- Bubble Wrap Painting: Use bubble wrap to stamp colorful patterns and textures onto paper.
- Flower Prints: Dip flowers into paint and press them onto paper.
- Painted Papers: Transform plain paper into beautiful backdrops or collages with paint.
- Wood Crafts: Paint different wood craft shapes with paint.
- Sponge Painting: Use sponges to dab paint onto surfaces, creating soft and blended effects.
Staging Painting Trays
Learning to stage paint activities can engage children and make art exciting. Over the years, I have developed systems and processes for staging painting activities. The general idea is to isolate one movement or technique and have all the materials ready and easy for children to work with. If you would like to learn how to stage an art shelf, check out the Art Shelf Staging Video training here.
Kids Painting Book
Kids painting book describes the paints to use with children. It includes materials & set-up advice. You will get a good understanding of how to quickly set up for painting with children, plus tips. The book explains how to control painting messes. This is a beginner guide for someone new to working with children and painting.
Painting Works – Art Album for elementary grades
This art album provides comprehensive guidance on teaching painting to children, offering insights into the most suitable paints for various projects. It encompasses essential information about the basic painting materials and tools required, along with key lessons and principles to start with. The album elaborates on seven key lessons in detail, featuring beautiful pictures of painting lesson ideas and examples of different techniques to effectively teach students.
Additionally, it includes references to artist techniques and insights into best practices for choice, process-based, and guided instruction. This art album serves as a companion to the “Kids Painting – Brushstrokes Curriculum,” and features Spramani’s framework and key lessons for fostering autonomy and independent, artistic expression. This art album is a valuable addition to your curriculum shelf, featuring full-color pictures and inspiring ideas for effective teaching.
No prior painting experience needed!
Spramani presents her personal painting album featuring the most common lessons she teaches in lower and elementary levels. The album showcases pictures of all the painting lessons, accompanied by comments and detailed descriptions. These foundational lessons cover popular artist techniques and offer ideas for integrating them into common Montessori lesson concepts.
Art Album Features:
- Features
- Printed version comes in spiral comb binding.
- Full color pictures
- Painting key lessons included
- Paint facts
- Painting techniques
- Featured artist and paint history
Painting Curriculum – for all grades
- Get 57 sequential, step-by-step art lessons that are easy to follow in scope and sequence.
- Save time with prepared lessons that are ready to schedule weekly, biweekly, or monthly.
- Children will love these fun painting lessons while building foundational skills and techniques.
- These are the key lessons on art elements for every child to start with.
- You don’t have to be an artist to teach these lessons!
Order Painting Materials
Premium painting materials I use for all my classrooms can be purchased at my website. Every paint is safe and non-toxic. I have used all of them and love the results. You will be able to find all age range. I’m happy to answer any questions about all paint products.
Painting Video Training
I have two types of training. I recommend both to hone your painting skill sets and teaching.
Painting Key Lessons 101
Color Mixing basics (Free)
Watercolor Joy (Free)
