Look around you and you will likely find a lot of grownups who really love to pull out the Crayons and stay within the lines. One of the greatest delights of childhood is one of the ones that starts very early for most kids – coloring. There is just something magical about placing colorful pencil or crayons to a piece of paper and making magic with color. I don’t think any of us ever truly outgrows the sensation of joy and admiration that coloring brings. In fact, I am convinced that one major reason people resolve to have children is to have the opportunity to sit down and color again – without anyone looking at them sideways. And coloring is always fun for Halloween. One of the most popular themes for Halloween Coloring pages is Scooby Doo.
All kids like to color, but there are important reasons to encourage and guide this activity beyond the simple hedonistic impetus to have fun. Coloring Builds Fine Motor Skills – Perhaps the biggest benefit children get from coloring pages of animals or their favorite cartoon characters is the development of fine motor skills. This includes learning the proper way to hold the crayon, marker or colored pencil they are using to draw with. When supervising young children learning how to color use gentle instructions to encourage them to hold the writing implement near the tip, cradled between the tips of their thumb, index finger and middle finger. Many children grab the crayon in their fist. Correcting this improper usage is an important first step towards real penmanship.
Children who use coloring pages will also better their ability to concentrate. Being able to concentrate is an important skill for children to have, and the earlier they start developing it, the better. Focusing on a drawing on a page does much for children. Children learn to be patient as they take their time to apply colors to the images in the coloring book. Problems with hyperactivity and attention deficit disorders, as well as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, also known as ADHD, are diminished, psychologists believe, in children who devote a good portion of their time to coloring pages. Finally, children who are involved in coloring pages will most likely experience fewer psychological problems when they are young. The reason for this is that the minds of children, who are able to enjoy using their imaginations to create exciting worlds filled with fantasy and adventure, are strong and flexible. This coloring creativity aids them in steering clear of problems like childhood depression.
Since preschoolers love to color different things as much as older children, there are several websites that cater to this age with very simple patterns of butterflies. These are large designs that are easy for the youngest toddlers to color. These can be found on the internet and are available in PDF formats that can be downloaded and printed from either PCs or Mac computers. As the children get older and more experienced with their artistic talents, they become bored with the simple butterfly patterns for the younger children. There are also websites that accommodate this age group with butterflies that have significant more detail as well as help them learn a wider variety of colors and shades – and some feature different flowers and seasons. In order to keep the children interested in the art and beauty of butterflies, there are websites that provide more advanced butterfly patterns to be printed for the older children. These butterfly pictures are more meticulous, with additional backgrounds that the children can also color and to enhance their creativity. In addition to coloring books, there are other items for this age group to color such as bookmarks and posters.
Coloring picture of magnifying glass