The 5 Ways I've Introduced Art & a Creative Environment to my Young Toddler

As an artist mama, one of my favorite ways to interact with my almost two year old, is to do things with her that already promote creativity in ways she can understand! We spend lots of time outside, read lots and lots of beautifully illustrated picture books, and use introductory level art supplies. Below is a gallery of photos and brief explanations of the things we are doing. I hope this short post inspires you to go ahead and try some new things with your young toddler! (P.s. we started these when she was around 18 months old)

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1. TONS of time outside

We spend lots and I mean, LOTS of time outside! This has been such a big help for me as well because she is super entertained and engaged with all of the bird sounds, noises, and the sights of everything around. She loves to point to things and allow me to identify them for her. A young toddler at this age learns so much from their surroundings outside and it allows them to release a lot of physical energy as well. As an artist myself, I never feel inspired when I’ve been cooped up inside for long periods of time. I’m always using the outdoors as a resource for inspiration when it comes to my art!

2. I’ve introduced a basic sensory bin

In the future, I would LOVE to get one of those fancy, Montessori IKEA tables with the double bins—you know? But for the current budget, I spent less than $5 by using a plastic bin I found around the house and filled it with various bags of dried beans. She was instantly obsessed with it! We really love to do this activity before bedtime and let me tell you, it’s so relaxing. I really think it makes her sleepy because it makes me sleepy, haha. The sounds & feelings of the beans while she scoops them up and spills them makes for a great therapeutic/sensory exercise!! This is definitely something I ONLY do when I’m sitting with her. At this age they are still prompted to put things in their mouth and dried beans are for sure a choking hazard, so please supervise very closely if you choose to try this as well. I also like to make sure her hands are sanitized before we use it. When she’s older (probably 3-4 years old), I’d like to make “themed” sensory bins! Also, if you don’t have dry beans handy, you can also use dry rice or pasta.

3. I try to make books a magical experience

If you ever come to Thomasville, Georgia, you HAVE to visit the downtown indie bookstore, The Bookshelf and bring your kiddo! Annie the owner, has a very creative curation of books, especially the children’s area. She has the perfect set up of a paper roll on a little table with a basket of lots of crayons. The entire bookstore is probably one of the most inspiring environments you can place yourself in Thomasville (seriously), but the rugs and pillows surrounding the kids coloring table is so inviting for the activity! I love to take Reese here once every couple of months and let her pick out some new board books. The picture book selection is one to experience! I also love to flip through books with her frequently. It’s part of her bedtime routine, but I try to go beyond that. Even if she’s not fully paying attention, there is something magical about reading aloud to your child that creates a special bond & quality time together. (I would recommend reading “The Enchanted Hour” by Meghan Cox Gurdon for more on reading aloud.

4. I’ve introduced “Art Supplies”

The “art supplies” I’ve introduced to her so far, are crayons, sidewalk chalk, dot markers, playdough, and bubbles! I found the dot markers at Walmart, and they have been her favorite so far. She gets it all over her, but they wash off super easy in the bath. She also loves to color with crayons on plain paper and one of my favorite things is to watch her make color selections! I went ahead and got her a large variety of colors instead of the box with just the basic colors. She doesn’t really understand playdough yet, but enjoys the learning experience anyways. We have not started with all the fancy cutting tools and things because she’s just getting used to the texture and consistency of playdough itself. It’s plenty of entertainment for her right now for sure!

5. I invite her into my own creative space.

Any time I paint with acrylics on canvas I always invite her to help! She loves to watch me stand in front of a canvas and move my brush around, so I always let her take part in this as well. On the wishlist currently is this art easel and I’m hoping this is something I can get for her 2nd birthday this year!