Creativity with children: developing artistic abilities

      Gzhesyuk Aleksandra

      Arts professional, artist

      Collaborative creativity with a child is not only the joy of interaction but also a developmental tool. Drawing helps a child freely express their feelings, shapes imagination and self-confidence. It is especially useful to try different artistic techniques: they open unique opportunities for developing perception, motor skills, and the emotional sphere. Below I will describe simple but effective drawing methods that can be easily used at home.

      Finger painting

      Pour gouache or acrylic paint into small plates and prepare a thick sheet of paper. Invite your child to dip their fingers or palm into the paint and leave prints. You can create clouds, trees, flowers, or simply bright patterns. The child will enjoy drawing lines and changing colors directly on the sheet, watching how they blend.

      This method develops tactile sensations, builds confidence in natural actions (“I can make a painting myself”), and helps the child better perceive color and its combinations. For little ones, finger painting also becomes useful practice for fine motor skills.

      Inkblot technique

      Drop a little ink or watercolor onto a sheet of paper, then carefully fold it in half. When you unfold it, unusual spots and lines will appear on the surface. Invite your child to imagine and find images in them: a tree, an animal, or even a fairytale character. After that, you can add details with a marker or pencil, turning the blot into a complete drawing.

      This technique develops imagination, teaches seeing shapes in random patterns, and helps the child accept an unexpected result as part of the creative process.

      Collage

      Prepare colorful magazines, newspapers, wallpaper scraps, or pieces of fabric. Invite your child to cut out images or fragments of colored paper they like and glue them onto a base to create their own composition. It can be a landscape, a fairytale character, or an abstract pattern—everything depends on imagination.

      Collage develops a sense of composition, attention to detail, and perseverance.

      Intuitive drawing

      Give your child paint and sheets of paper without choosing a specific theme. For inspiration you can play music—calm or rhythmic, depending on the mood. Let them draw lines, spots, or shapes as they feel like in the moment, trusting their feelings.

      Intuitive drawing helps express emotions, relieve tension, and feel freedom in creativity.

      Monotype

      Apply paint to a smooth surface—this can be glass, plastic, or even a transparent folder. Place a sheet of paper on top and gently press it with your palm. When you lift the sheet, unusual prints will appear on the paper, which can be altered and supplemented with added lines: turn the spots into flowers, animals, or landscapes.

      Monotype teaches the child to experiment, develops the ability to see unusual images, and to turn chance into part of the creative process.

      Grattage (scratching)

      Shade a sheet with bright-colored wax crayons, then apply black gouache mixed with a drop of liquid soap over the top. After it dries, take a wooden stick and begin scratching a picture that reveals the colorful layer beneath.

      This technique develops perseverance, patience, and attention to detail.

      Painting on wet paper

      Wet a sheet of watercolor paper with a sponge or brush, then apply watercolor to it in dots. The paint will spread, creating soft transitions and unusual shapes.

      This method develops a sense of color and reveals to the child the beauty of spontaneous effects.

      Prints of natural objects

      Use leaves, grasses, flowers, or even vegetables. Dip them in paint and make prints on paper.

      This gives the child a tactile experience of interacting with the surrounding environment, and develops observation and attention to detail.

      Stories in drawings

      Invite your child to create a simple story and depict it step by step: first the introduction, then the development of the plot, and finally the ending. They can make a mini-comic or a small book.

      This technique stimulates imagination, logical thinking, and the ability to express thoughts sequentially through images.

      Creativity with children is not about the result but about the process. Different techniques help a child develop imagination, feel colors and shapes, and be bolder in self-expression. For parents, it is also an opportunity to better understand the child’s inner world and spend time together.