20 Fun & Creative Painting Ideas For Kids

Finding ways to keep your kids entertained in the holidays or the children in your class interested in art can be challenging.

Contents show

20 Fun & Creative Painting Ideas For Kids

We have found 20 fun and creative painting ideas for kids to help you keep that creative spark alive and your kids having a good time.

1. Drip Painting

Drip painting is a fun and simple way to let kids get creative with paints. You can use a regular easel or make your own from three pieces of cardboard to form a triangle.

Tape the paper to the top of the easel. Kids then use different colored paints and let them drip down the paper. Messy but fun!

2. Pointillism

The technique of pointillism was made famous by the French artist Georges Seurat. Kids can mimic his style using water colors and cotton buds.

They will need to create a sketch or outline first and then use the cotton buds dipped in paint to fill in the picture.

3. Painting Rocks

Painting rocks is a fun activity with kids. They can hunt out some great shaped

rocks on the beach or at the park and bring them home to paint.

Depending on the shape they can paint flowers, fruit or animals on the rocks with acrylic

paint. You will need some small and fine tipped brushes for this activity.

4. Spin Painting

You won’t need any fancy equipment for this fun and creative activity, just some paper, paint and a salad spinner.

The paper needs to be cut to fit inside the salad spinner. Kids can then squeeze or drip different colored paints onto the paper and spin that art!

Each painting will be unique and the more paint they add the more colorful it will be.

5. Blow Painting

Blow painting with straws is a wonderful way to allow children to express themselves creatively.

With some acrylic or washable liquid paint, paper and straws they can make some wonderful art work and interesting designs.

This is a fun way for kids to explore what is possible with their own imaginations and some basic art materials.

6. Splatter Painting

The technique made famous by Jackson Pollock is a really fun activity for kids who absolutely love anything messy.

It’s a painting style that is best done outside to reduce the amount of cleaning up afterward.

Put down a large drop cloth, canvas or large piece of paper and give your kids lots of paint and brushes. Then stand back and watch them create.

7. Painting With Forks

Paint brushes are not the only things that can be used with paint to create a piece of art. Show your kids how to use a fork and some paint to make beautiful flowers, palm trees or animals.

It gives the painting an appearance of texture and is very effective.

Kids love using unusual objects to create art so give it a go.

8. Cotton Ball Painting

Cotton ball painting is a budget friendly and fun activity to do with children of any age.

Small children will find it easier than holding a brush and older kids can experiment with different colors, patterns and shapes.

This activity helps smaller children improve their gross motor skills.

9. Finger Painting

One of the painting techniques that kids love the most is finger painting. This is an activity where they are allowed and encouraged to get messy so let them express themselves with this technique.

There are specific finger paints, or you can make your own from flour, water and food coloring.

10. Water Gun Painting

Water or squirt gun paint should absolutely be done outside as this is going to get messy. But your kids will love it, just make sure they squirt the paper and not each other.

Buy some small squirt guns at the dollar store and fill them with water based paints.

Then put some canvas or poster board on easels in the backyard and let them go nuts.

11. Bubble Art

Kids of all ages adore bubbles so add them to a painting activity, and you have a win-win situation. You’ll need some dish soap, water, food coloring, clear plastic cups, cardstock paper and straws.

Mix all the ingredients together and let the kids blow into it with the straws to make bubbles. Put the cardstock over the bubbles and as they pop they leave imprints on it.

12. Window Painting

Window painting means letting kids paint on glass. It makes a nice change from paper and card and children like doing something that’s different.

Create a framework for them using painters tape and when they’ve finished peel it off to reveal their framed work of art.

This is probably an activity that’s best supervised, so they don’t start painting the walls too!

13. Ice Painting

Ice painting is an unusual but creative way for kids to experiment with color. These paints are simply food coloring added to water in ice cube trays with a popsicle stick in each one.

When they’re frozen they can be used to slide smoothly over paper and create a watercolor effect.

14. Balloon Art

Definitely an activity for outdoors this balloon art creates some wonderful paintings. Fill several balloons with bottled paint and blow them up.

Attach a large canvas to a tree or similar and put a drop cloth underneath. Then pin the balloons to the canvas.

Kids then throw darts to pop the balloons and let the paint splatter the canvas.

15. Bubble Wrap Art

Bubble wrap art involves kids painting directly onto the bubble wrap and then transferring the pattern or design onto paper or card.

They can create some great effects this way including fish scales, snake skin or mosaics.

The possibilities are endless, and the results will be worthy of fridge status.

16. Hand & Foot Print Art

You may have noticed that kids love being messy but when that combines with being creative it can make a real learning experience.

Let your kids create their own work of art with their hands and feet and some washable paint.

17. Swirling Paint Technique

For older children who have fine motor skills this swirling paint technique can be used to make some really wonderful pieces of art.

It can be used to paint flowers, galaxies or even abstract shapes and designs.

Let them use their imagination, it’s the best inspiration.

This technique can be used even by preschoolers. Simply cut a toilet paper roll halfway into strips and let the kids use it as a stamp by dipping in different colors and pressing onto black construction paper.

19. Sponge Painting

Sponge painting is an easy activity to set up and even preschoolers can enjoy this painting technique.

Attach clothes pins to pieces of sponge then give the kids some paper and blobs of paint. Masterpieces will be created.

20. Crayon & Watercolors

Help your kids create magic paintings using crayons and watercolors. They draw a picture or design on paper with the crayons and then paint over it.

The watercolor paint resists the crayon which lets the pattern underneath show through, just like magic!

Summary

We hope you have enjoyed our fun and creative painting ideas for kids and that it’s given you some new ideas and inspiration.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSsdnC896pU

16 CREATIVE DRAWING HACKS FOR KIDS (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSsdnC896pU)

Author
Recent Posts

Simon Lewis

Hi, I’m Simon Lewis.

I have been in the education space for over 20 years.

I am fortunate to have been the person that all of my students come to with their troubles, and I help in any way that I can.

Unfortunately, I’m only available in one high school of many around the country.

That is why I have created my site so that I can help other children, and their parents, all over the world.

I hope you find my site to be helpful.