When my child was a toddler, I remember her spending some of the most satisfying time with finger painting. It was the one time, when she would sit still for more than 40 seconds. And what’s more, she didn’t need me to be there for those few minutes at all.

Finger painting has been around for centuries, but its developmental effects on young children and toddlers were discovered only later. Without getting into too much detail about the research itself, I’ve found out a lot about how finger painting can benefit children right from the age of one. Today at ten years old, my daughter still finds self expression through painting.

 

Here are some of the most important benefits of finger painting that will give you every excuse to start your child on it.

 

• The best thing about finger painting is the fact that the whole focus is on enjoying the process father than the end product, an important life lesson in itself.
• Preschoolers learn about the world through their five senses of taste, smell, touch, hearing and sight. Finger painting allows them to use all five senses (provided you are using edible finger paint)
• It promotes creativity, imagination and self expression.
• It gives lots of opportunity to young tots to practice their hand eye coordination.
• Older tots learn about color mixing and exploration.
• It promotes sensory development.
• Sometimes children express their emotions through painting.
• Finger painting is easy for toddlers who can’t wield a brush or a crayon.
• It makes a great activity for a bunch of toddlers painting simultaneously.
• The art work can be displayed for years to come, remind you and the child of the happy time spent together.
• The messier it is the more fun!

 

Making Edible Finger Paint at Home

I could never quite trust store bought paint for the fear of toxins and chemicals. There is a simple recipe I use for making edible finger paint at home.

Yellow: Mix turmeric in one cup of water and boil it till it reduces in half of its quantity. Add sugar to taste and store in an airtight container.

Red: Peel a beet and cut into small pieces. Add 100 mils water to it and pressure cook it till the beet is tender. Once done, strain the colored water and mix in the sugar! And Viola edible red finger paint.

Green: Quite similar to the recipe above, all you need is some spinach leaves pressure cooked in very little water. Once done, strain the water in a container and store it in fridge.

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