Painting with your hands and hands is a learning and development experience for babies and children, which we can offer from when babies are 7 months old.
Painting with hands and feet helps children:
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Develop perception, recognition and integration of different tactile sensations.
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Become familiar with your own reactions to different sensations: pleasure, displeasure, comfort.
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Strengthen the motor skills of your hands.
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Encourage free exploration.
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Increase attention spans.
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Share significant moments with the adult that strengthen the bond.
In this other article, we expand more about the great benefits that painting with hands and feet has for children's development.
But how to make a safe paint for babies and children at home that is also economical?
It's super easy to make!
You will need these ingredients:
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2 tablespoons of flour
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1 cup of water
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Edible coloring of different colors
- Optional: essence of vanilla, cinnamon, mint, curry or other natural edible aromas.
In a pan place the flour, add a small amount of water and stir. Continue adding the water little by little while stirring until you have a homogeneous mixture (there are no lumps). Bring the pan to medium heat, stirring until the mixture thickens slightly.
If you want to have paint of several colors, separate the mixture into different containers (according to the number of colors you are going to prepare). Add the food coloring of each color diluted in a little water to each container.
If you want to enrich the experience when playing, add some edible essence of your choice to stimulate the sense of smell.
Mix, let cool and that's it!
How to play?
Probably many parents and caregivers avoid doing these types of activities for fear of dirtying the house or the space in which they are.
We want to make you aware of the importance of these types of experiences for the development of babies and children.
You can keep a large piece of plastic at home or a protective tarp to carry out this type of activity and thus make cleaning easier.
We recommend using a large and hopefully thick paper or kraft paper. You can place the paper on the floor or stuck on a stained glass window, or easy-to-clean tile wall, so that children explore their movements by painting in both the horizontal and vertical planes.
Allow babies and children to explore painting with their hands , fingers and even their feet, it will be an experience for all the senses.
