Materials for drawing kids. Choosing colored pencils and felt-tip pens Wax pencils for children from 1 year old

All kids love to draw, and Crayola pencils can be safely given to one-year-old children.

Due to the special shape, the pencils will easily hold any toddler in the pens. There are only 8 bright colors in the set. All pencils have been tested for the absence of harmful substances and toxins. Therefore, even if the baby pulls a pencil into his mouth, there will be no harm.

basic information

Age of the child: from 1 year.
. Contents: 8 colored pencils, each 1 cm in diameter.
. Features: comfortable shape, drawings of different animals on each pencil.
. Manufacturer: Brazil.

Safety

These wooden pencils are made from environmentally friendly raw materials and are completely safe for the child, even if he decides to taste them. However, babies should not be left unattended with pencils. But this general rules safety concerns that apply to all toys for young children.

Child development

Drawing is creative occupation, which is available even for 10-month-old children. Crayola pencils develop:
. fine and gross motor skills of the hands;
. fantasy and imagination;
. creativity;
. color perception;
. perseverance.

In addition, the child will be able to learn the colors and names of animals that are depicted on the pencils. Drawing for just a few minutes a day gives children not only joy, but also an impetus to further comprehensive development.

Our Review

Crayola Pencils are specially designed for the youngest artists making their first steps on paper. The product is packaged in a bright colorful box through which pencils are visible, with drawings applied to them.

There are only 8 pencils in the set. Their advantage is that they are thicker than regular pencils. At the same time, their cross section is classical, hexagonal. But in a small pen, pencils really fit more comfortably. The core of the pencils is also thicker and softer.

The lead does not break, but it draws at the slightest pressure. The colors are very bright and clear. Blue color not to be confused with green. Each pencil depicts one animal:
. a lion;
. lamb;
. piglet;
. frog;
. elephant;
. duck;
. monkey;
. cow.

Price quality

The price of these pencils is an order of magnitude higher than ordinary pencils. However, the cost, in our opinion, is fully justified. The pencils are non-toxic, hand-friendly, bright and soft.

conclusions

Crayola pencils are designed for toddlers aged one and over. The pencil lead is soft, the colors are bright and juicy. The set will last a very long time.

For materials and tools for drawing at an early age, specific requirements can be distinguished. Not all adult materials and tools are suitable for a baby. In this post, I provide an overview of only our favorite, proven, materials from 1 to 3 years.

Oil pastels (oil crayons)

Oil crayons are a convenient and inexpensive alternative to pencils for preschoolers. In my childhood there were only classical wax crayons. The latter painted inconspicuously and required strong pressure. Now among the materials for drawing big variety. Oil crayons are a type of wax crayon that do not require much pressure and leave bright colors. Among the oil pastel sets you can find very interesting color palettes. The only disadvantage of oil crayons is brittleness. If you throw them, stand on them with your feet, sit down, the crayons break, if they are used for their intended purpose, then they behave perfectly.

Oil crayons

Of the proven options, we liked the Colorino crayons. They have an interesting color scheme, a juicy soft trail. In the photo above, the surviving part from a set of 12 crayons (my-shop). When buying, each crayon was wrapped, but Yana tore off all the labels. This set is already more than six months old, it was in free access Yana and for his age he is perfectly preserved. Colorino also has a set of oil pastels 24 colors (my-shop). We haven't tried the extended color gamut yet.

Also painted:

• oil crayons Orange Elephant, they are similar in texture and color to Colorino;
• soft trihedral crayons from the Luch chemical plant, declared as oil crayons (my-shop). But they have a rough texture and gloomy colors, compared to Colorino. I do not recommend.

Oil pastel for the little ones (oil crayons)

Oil crayons in a plastic holder

When Yana was already 3 years old, I noticed on sale oil crayons in a plastic holder of the Colorino brand (my-shop). They are even softer and juicier than regular butter crayons. The retractable mechanism allows you to adjust the length of the rod. The plastic case protects the crayons from breakage. The thickness of the crayons in plastic is about 1.5 cm.

Washable markers

The next important tool in children's drawing are markers. For children under 2.5 years old, it is better to choose washable ones. It turns out that felt-tip pens from different manufacturers are washed off in different ways. So, with the felt-tip pens of one unscrupulous manufacturer, we spoiled the color of the dishwasher door with our drawings. After this incident, I decided not to take any more risks, and bought washable felt-tip pens only from the trusted Crayola brand. Pictured below are Crayola washable markers for different ages. Pay attention to the shape of the rod:

• for the smallest, the rounded tip of the rod protrudes by 1.2 mm, felt-tip pens 1.5 cm thick (my-shop). These markers are designed to grip the marker perpendicular to the surface. For children from 2.5 years old, they may already be uncomfortable!
• for two-year-olds, the rod is enlarged and sharper, the thickness of the felt-tip pen is 1.5 cm (my-shop). Drawings made by such felt-tip pens can be seen.
• for older children, the shape and thickness of the markers are classic (my-shop).

Markers (regular)

When Yana was 3 years old, we switched to ordinary felt-tip pens. The reason for the switch is that regular ones are cheaper and have a more interesting color scheme. In search of an inexpensive and high-quality option, I settled on the Giotto brand. Our Giotto set of 24 markers (my-shop , labirint) was purchased about 8 months ago. Most felt-tip pens still draw beautifully, and there is no need for new felt-tip pens. According to the color scheme, there is a feeling that in the sum of the colors the emphasis is on pink-brown tones. However, no one will draw with all the colors at the same time, but individually there are a variety of shades (3-4 shades) of all colors.
Together with the Giotto set, I bought a set of Erich Krause to try. Erich Krause felt-tip pens started to dry out after about a month, and after a couple more I threw them all out as unusable. Perhaps I came across a stale product, but I have no desire to buy Erich Krause felt-tip pens again.

Finger paint

I diligently tried to understand finger paints, but I couldn’t be imbued with them. Yana's painting with paints went difficult. Then it turned out that children are not very fond of strange textures that get their hands dirty. For those who are not in the know, all finger paints have the consistency of a thick translucent jelly. We tried both nameless options and branded ones. Of the brands that I remember, they tried Jovi (my-shop). None of the options impressed me. In my opinion, it is easier to take starch, jam and cook thick jelly. You can also brew jelly from a bag, but add a third less water than indicated in the recipe. The consistency will be identical to finger paints. For a richer color, add food coloring.

According to Zhabych (a blogger - a teacher at the Children's Art School, I mentioned her in my article), finger paints are not intended for drawing, but for getting to know the texture. In fact, at an early age, the baby does not care what to smear, porridge or paint. It was for this reason that Zhabich postponed her daughter's acquaintance with paints until a more conscious age.

IN general idea tactile acquaintance with bright tinted jelly, as a developmental activity, I like it more than drawing with finger paints.

Gouache

I don’t remember when gouache appeared in our house, but before the birth of Yana, we definitely didn’t use it 😀 . The period of gouache sampling should be at the age at which the child stops getting dirty. Gouache washes well, but it can be difficult to wash it off the skin. Some colors are directly eaten. Gouache contains toxic ingredients and should not be swallowed.

I went through several options and settled on copies of the Luch chemical plant. For price and quality children's creativity it is optimal. We also liked Ikeevka gouache, but it is more expensive. For comparison to this moment(January 2017):

• Ikeevskaya gouache costs 469 rubles - 400 ml (8 colors);
• Gouache from the Luch factory costs 157 rubles - 360 ml ( big set of 18 my-shop colors).
• Gouache from the Luch factory costs 85 rubles - 120 ml (a set of 6 colors my-shop, labirint).
• Gouache from the Luch factory costs 115 rubles - 180 ml (a set of 9 colors my-shop, labirint).

Consistencies and color schemes these options are different. Differences in consistency are not critical. Both are comfortable even for toddlers. Many people now make high demands on color palettes, so I give a photo.

Ikeev gouache drawings

The classic 6-color gouache palette of the Luch chemical plant in two packaging options - in screw-on jars and in block containers. Screw-on jars seemed more convenient to me.

Fastidious and aesthetes, pay attention to Lucha gouache in the Lux version (my-shop, labirint). For children, the differences with the classic series will not be obvious. For me, I'm a bore 🙂, in this version, the colors are cleaner and more attractive.

In general, when choosing gouache, one should focus on the quality of the colors. Poor quality gouache when mixing colors can give dirty shades. If, after drying, the drawing becomes dull, we also make claims to the quality of gouache. In this regard, I did not like the behavior of the popular gouache Cartoons from the manufacturer Gamma.

Watercolor

Marina Ozerova writes in her book that watercolor is not needed until the age of 7. Our practice has refuted this. At one point, Yana began to paint with gouache layers that were too dense. It got to the point that one drawing took the volume of one jar of gouache. The transition to watercolor allowed me to dose the paint correctly. Therefore, once again, where there is creativity, there are NO rules.

As with gouaches, I fell in love with the two main producers Ikea and the Luch chemical plant. In the case of watercolor, for the first acquaintance I recommend the 6 color palette of Lucha (my-shop, labirint). Then smooth transitions to wider color gamuts (12 my-shop colors, labirint). Ikeevka watercolor is very beautiful, but dry. To a small child it is more difficult to draw with it than with a classic consistency honey watercolor like Luch. In my opinion, it is better to switch to it after the child has confidently learned to draw with a classic consistency.

Watercolor in the black block - Ikea, in white - Luch chemical plant.

24-color watercolor palette of the Luch chemical plant. Yana's own coloring 3g.7m.

Ikea watercolor. I painted the birds, Yana painted the leaves (she was 3 years old and 6 years old).

Pencils

I placed the pencils at the end of the review because I have nothing to say about them. Yana doesn't like pencils. I bought a pack from Ikea a couple of years ago and they are still intact. Compared to oil pastels, they require more pressure and leave a pale mark. Perhaps I chose the wrong version of the pencils, so they are ignored. Although Ikeevsky is praised by many. There was an idea to choose more soft pencils. Maybe you know better options, write about them.

Completion

Finally, everything I wanted to write about drawing, I wrote. I foresee questions about brushes and an easel. Brushes are most like Ikeevsky. Most of the brushes we've tried have lint. Even at the brushes of the chemical plant Luch :-(, although I didn’t expect this from them. We don’t plan to buy an easel. It’s more difficult to draw on it than on the surface, because there is no support for the hand. The purchase is possible only if Yana is seriously passionate about drawing.

And further! Now, to get even closer to the readers who know and love me, I post photos with notes in instagram. In my profile you can see how it went,. If you are interested please subscribe. I will be glad to new subscribers!

Announcements of blog articles, as before, are published in the group

Choosing the best colored pencils depends on the age and skills of the artist. many children early age they prefer felt-tip pens or paints to pencils because they give a richer color and do not need to be sharpened. Drawing with pencils is more difficult, but the skills to work with them will come in handy in the future. Therefore, it is important to choose pencils with which it will be convenient and pleasant to draw, they must have the following properties:

• safety;
• ease of use (to lie well in the hand);
• brightness;
• strength;
• availability.

The money spent on buying cheap pencils often turns out to be thrown to the wind: they are not so pleasant to draw with, the stylus can be brittle and break immediately upon sharpening. Such pencils leave a pale color on paper, it takes effort to draw clear lines, which are then easily erased, and the palette leaves much to be desired. A high-quality product will be easy to sharpen without breaking, economically spent and give bright, saturated colors, finished work will not be erased from paper and fade over time, for a long time pleasing to the eye.

Pencils can be used for drawing from the age of one. For this purpose, Crayola "Mini Kids" is best suited. From the age of three, you can start using Stabilo Trio and Kores "Kolores" children's pencils. school age and amateur adults will be interested in Faber-Castell and Koh-I-Noor pencils. Professionals have higher requirements for quality, and their choice may already be on expensive well-known brands such as Derwent or LYRA.

Drawing for children This is a very interesting and useful direction in the development and formation of a child's personality. Through drawing, the child learns the world, splashes all his emotions on paper, develops imagination. In addition to being very an exciting creative activity that develops fine motor skills, and this is the stimulation of parts of the brain responsible for thinking, speech, visual and motor memory, coordination.

Not knowing how to properly hold a pencil or brush in their hand, they try to scribble on paper. Why are they doing that? After all, a one-year-old child is not able to depict something meaningful, and his parents will not see drawings with houses for several more years.

The first attempts at painting on the walls are complex actions. The child does everything at once: develops motor skills, imitates adults and tries ways of self-expression. He is aware of himself as a separate person (usually this happens during the period of the so-called "crisis of the first year of life") and feels the need to leave a visible mark on the world. Drawing enables him to see the results of his own actions.

A child should always have paints and brushes, colored pencils and felt-tip pens, crayons, drawing paper, illustrated editions with paintings by artists.

In this article we will talk about which set of pencils is best for a child.

Colored pencil sets from our childhood

Currently, there are several varieties of colored pencils on the market. The first ones are the most traditional wooden ones, invented several decades ago, with a lead made of colored pigment and kaolin. The ones that we and our parents drew. Once such pencils were 100% product range in its market niche, but today progress has already stepped very far, and many other types of pencils are presented on the plastic and virtual shelves of conventional and online stores. Pay attention to the materials, softness of the lead, size, shape.

How to choose the first colored pencils for a child

Due to the special shape of the rod, perfect for naughty little fingers triangular pencils. A box of colored triangular pencils is the perfect gift choice for children preschool age who are just learning how to properly hold a pen in their hands. Another small plus of such drawing tools is that they do not roll off the table, reducing the possibility of distracting the child from an activity that requires concentration.

If you couldn’t find trihedral pencils in the store, then opt for a set hex pencils. The worst option for an insecure children's pen is pencils with a round section.

Children under 3 years old it is better to choose thick enough pencils with a diameter of about a centimeter.

For children, soft colored pencils are preferred. They are brighter and it is much easier to draw with them, you will not develop the habit of pressing on paper with a writing instrument.

As for the choice color palette, then during the period when children are just getting acquainted with flowers, it is worth limiting yourself not big set– in 6, maximum 12 colors.

Variety of colored pencil sets

watercolor colored pencils - combine the advantages of colored pencils and watercolor paints. Their basis is watercolor paints pressed using a unique technology that does not allow crumbling when pressed. When drawing, they allow you to get very bright colors, compared to slate, they are softer. And if a drawing created with watercolor pencils, wipe with a brush dipped in water, then we will get the effect of watercolors on paper. Very interesting idea, Truth?

Wax pencils - As the name suggests, they are made from natural wax. Bright colors provide natural and absolutely safe food colors. In this case, the pencil is entirely a drawing rod, and at the same time it does not get your hands dirty at all. It also does not require regular sharpening, the kid can draw with either side of the rod, even sideways. In addition, images created with this type of pencil are durable and do not fade in the sun. And you can draw with them not only on paper, but also on many other surfaces (wood, cardboard, clay, etc.).

plastic pencils - less common than the other types mentioned above, but still having a number of advantages. In particular, they give a thin touch, do not break when dropped, and are easily erased with an eraser. But at the same time, the colors are not as bright as those of watercolor and wax. And the plastic pencils themselves are harder.

Let your child draw whatever he wants. The results may surprise you!