While we know that taking some time to sit back and focus on one activity is beneficial for our own stress levels, there’s even more to gain from the practice of coloring for kids! From developing fine motor skills to promoting creativity and self-expression, coloring has many benefits. Here are some of our favorite ways coloring can help your kids flourish.

Why Coloring is Good for Kids

Fine Motor Skills

Coloring, painting, and crafting all help young children develop and strengthen their fine motor skills. These activities improve their hand-eye coordination, can help them understand proper pencil grip, and can even elevate their writing skills.

Relaxation and Meditation

Coloring is one of many activities for kids that can help introduce them to the world of mindfulness and meditation. Taking some time each day to slow down and relax can do wonders for self-regulation, too. Coloring is such a popular aspect of meditative practice that there are now a plethora of intermediate coloring books aimed at adults. 

Focus and Concentration

Focus and concentration go hand-in-hand with meditation and mindfulness. Learning how to block out distractions and stressors in the world around us is an important skill to learn early on. This skill is especially important for kids as they enter educational institutions.

Color and Object Recognition

For younger children, activities such as coloring can help them with learning their colors as well as object recognition. Matching colors to everyday objects can help them build the skills of visual memory and pattern perception.

Promotes Creativity

One of the more well-known benefits of getting involved in the arts is the development of creativity. The more kids play with colors and artistic experimentation, the more creative and imaginative they become. 

Conversation Prompts to Enhance the Experience

One of the lesser-known benefits of coloring for kids is language development. Talking with children about what they’re coloring, why they’ve chosen the colors they have, and what’s going on in the image can help them develop stronger verbal communication skills. Here are some possible conversation openers to get started with:

What are you coloring?

Have your kids describe the characteristics of what they are coloring and where else they’ve seen the character/object. This prompt also helps build their object recognition skill. Guide them to use the correct vocabulary and ask them about other objects that might relate to what they’re drawing.

Why did you choose those colors?

Ask your children why they chose the colors they did. Is it because they are their favorite colors? Are they making a color connection to the real-life version of the object? Does the color express any kind of emotion they think the character/object has?

Shall we create a story together about what you’re coloring?

Talk more about the image and create a backstory together. Is the character on an adventure? If so, what kind of adventure? Are they alone or are others joining? What’s the purpose of the adventure and how does the story end? Have fun and flex those creative muscles!

Free Downloadable Moshi Coloring Pages for Kids

Click HERE for some free, downloadable coloring pages featuring your kids’ favorite Moshlings.

Using Music to Elevate Activities for Kids

Music is a great way to promote creativity in your child. Music with lyrics that your child is familiar with, such as nursery rhymes, may cause them to want to sing along and be focused on the words. Tracks with no words, such as Moshi’s instrumental music, can enhance relaxation during coloring time and also boost imagination through its whimsical orchestration. Below are some of our favorite Moshi Music instrumentals to listen to while coloring.

Moshi Music tracks to listen to while coloring:

• Jeepers’ Flying Carpet Fantasy
• Fluttercup’s Unicorn School Sonata
• Truffle’s Beanstalk Symphony
• Hunky Dory Music
• Octo’s Oceanic Overture

Alyssa Morgan