How first time lessons

Hey, I’m excited to give you my top tips for your first time teaching kids how to paint! Starting painting lessons with children might seem like a lot, but I’ve got tons of tricks to make it easier. I’ve painted with so many kids and picked up lots of cool hacks along the way!

First time paint lessons can encourage a child to start picking up painting more often. So in this blog I want to start with my best tips for set up, paint materials, paint environment, and basic painting lessons you can start off with.

Wear clothes that can get stained

Wear only clothing that can get paint on them. You can cover-up with a smock, or use old shirts. Smocks are similar to a cooking apron.

Prepare for messy painting

Prepare a painting space where it’s safe to make spills. Paint near running water stations. Being closer to a bathroom or kitchen will be easier for clean-up. Drop cloths on the ground help with spills and stains. There are washable paints and paints designed to stain and stick on surfaces.

Explain to children where paint is allowed to happen. I share funny stories in my books how I learned this the hard way! book Kids Painting. This #1 kids painting rule has helped me maintain crazy spills and messes. Express to children how you have prepared a work space for the painting activity. Prepare a painting workspace on a flat sturdy surface children can easily work around.

Prepare Paintbrush Clean-up Stations

Have ready and available a clean-up station for paintbrushes, for washing them out. This will help manage paint spills. Additionally, painting supplies should be close to help children from having to leave the painting workspace. And finally have napkins, rags, or a washing station near.

Use Safe Paints

Only use child grade non-toxic safe paints. Never use adult grade paints with young children. Adult grade paints may have advance instructions young children will not be able to follow. Some adult grade paints may have chemicals that are not safe for small children. Always paint in a well ventilated space with windows or doors. Read more on this topic here.

Best Paints

The best paints I recommend for introducing painting all student grade:

• Watercolor paints (student grade only)
• Tempera paint
• Acrylic paint (student grade only)
• Watercolor crayons
• Watercolor pencils

Provide projects that are more about exploring paint and experimenting. Children need plenty of time to learn how paint works and what its possibilities are. Do not expect young children to start painting realistic pictures or be able to copy paintings. Your projects should be fun and open to their ideas and experiments.

What to paint on

Using different surfaces gives children more opprotunties to practice the skill of painting. If you need more ideas of what children can paint on check my books Kids Painting or Early Childhood Art Guide, you will get lots of inspiration. I share lots of ideas on how I teach chidlren how to paint for the first time using all kinds of surfaces.

• Paper
• Cardboard
• Recycled cardboard
• Watercolor paper
• Canvas
• Rocks
• Wood

Paint brushes

Paintbrushes are the most common way to paint. You can use many fun objects like; sticks, stamps, feathers, rollers, potato stamps, bubble wrap, droppers, sponges, squeeze bottles, string, marbles and anything that can absorb paint.

The first lessons you should teach children is brushstrokes. How to blend paint colors, moving into how to mix primary into secondary colors (Color Theory) how to make lines, textures, and paint solid areas. Painting very basic shapes. Be open minded and encouraging of all artworks presented. I have a beginner PAINTING CURRICULUM focused on learning brushstrokes you can check out HERE. This is great for a teacher or homeschooling family. Here are some great blogs to start with:

9. Clean-up & Materials

The best advice I can give is to focus on teaching children how to set-up and clean up painting. How to put all tools and the art space after painting projects to older children capable of helping. You will feel more confident bringing out painting lessons to your students. If you would like to know more about teaching children painting join my weekly art NEWSLETTER HERE

10. Show  & Display Artworks

Display artworks where every child can enjoy their accomplishments or allow children to take artworks home to share with their families.

If you would like to learn more about teaching kids, I invite you to take this easy video training  Painting Key Lessons 101 – Online Video Course

 

A Short Cut Just for You

If you’d like to learn more about all getting kids painting, read my book, Kids Painting.

Kids Mixing Primary Colors, art lesson 12 step color wheel teach

How-to Teach A Child Painting | Ultimate Guide

All rights reserved © 2024, Nature of Art®

No part of this blog may be used or be reproduced in any manner whatsoever including reproducing, publishing, performing, and making any adaptions of the work – including translation into another foreign language without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Nature of Art® Publishing P.O. Box 443 Solana Beach, California 92075.