Coloring is a great activity for kids. It offers them a chance to express their creativity while mastering fine motor skills, hand eye coordination, and a host of other things. So, purchasing coloring books can be one of the best things you can do for your child. The following is a look at some of the things to consider when buying kids’ coloring books:
1. The theme: Coloring books generally have a theme of sorts. It might be that they are based on a Disney movie, or it is about animals, or vehicles, or something else. When selecting books for your children, remember that they will want to express their creativity, and will have a lot of fun with any coloring book, but will be more interested in a coloring booklet with a theme that appeals to them. Choose a color book that features their favorite characters, or the item of interest in their life. For example, if your little boy just loves trains, get a Thomas the Train coloring book. If your little girl is as girly as they come, look for the Disney Princess coloring book, or possibly Strawberry Shortcake.
2. The complexity. Determine your child’s level when it comes to coloring. Some color books provide large coloring spaces making it easier for children to color the page, stay in the lines, etc. As the child gets older, their skill level for coloring increases as well, and the difficulty of the book may as well. Some coloring books come with written instructions, and other games, such as a dot to dot, or a maze. If you want to keep your child happy, and still challenge them, choose coloring or activity books in their range or level, and do not frustrate them with books that have too small of pictures, or too many spaces to color, or written instructions.
3. The material. Some coloring books offer the ability for the child to simply run over the surface with the pens or crayons provided, and it will turn out to be the right color regardless. Some are more like paint books, and some have magic marker surfaces and come with markers that will not show up on any surface but the specially prepared book pages. Choose the book that best suits you and your child. If you are worried about markings on the walls, then don’t select a pack of basic crayons, get something that uses special crayons. If you want your child to exercise their own creativity and not have to fit in the lines or color schemes planned, get basic pages. It is up to you.
If you do not want to select coloring books, you can go online and choose free printable coloring pages. This way you are sure to get pages your child is interested in, will want to color, and that fit their age and ability level.