Drawing and Imagination: Getting Toddlers Jumpstarted
It is amazing how providing SuperBoy with the tools and toys of drawing have ignited his imagination. He drew a circle for the first time the other week with a close family friend’s help. And then he did an oval on his own. It’s a pretty wild oval, but it’s still in the family of circle, right? Now he loves to draw circles all day long–on his easel, with sidewalk chalk, on the walls of the tub with his washable crayons!
Between his easel and these baseball cards my mom got for him–he’s all set! He likes to separate them into matching piles, and call out which are which. He asks for his “baseball guys” all the time. He even wants to nap with them. And I’ve learned what a “balk” is.
The morale of this little story: spend a few minutes, and reap a few hours. Just by investing time and effort into teaching your child something that’s amusing and informative to them, you give them such a gift! And then they self entertain, so you can go clean the blanket your infant had a poopfest on because you thought diaper-free time was a charitable gesture!
I am always amazed when people bring me their children and say no i don’t allow them to color to messy or some other excuse! ( I’ve had 2 yr old who have never used crayons!) E has started to make E and O in the past 6 m and will tell you all about her art! It is so much fun to hear and see their imagination in the work! My favorite ??? for art is Can you tell me about your picture? Nice and doesn’t assume you know what it is which can offend a young budding artist. You are doing a great job!!
I LOVE it! And if you actually sit down and help a child form shapes, and talk about the artwork, they get so much more out of it. A mess is only a matter of perspective, right? Your kiddos are lucky! Thanks for the encouragement!
But the question lingers… What is a balk??
Apparently it is when you start to pitch the ball, but then throw it elsewhere–which is apparently illegal?? The inner dynamics of baseball are very mysterious to me 🙂
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