The Preschooler

The Cause and Effect of Painting

Without even realizing it, young children are constantly learning about cause and effect. I once wrote a mock news flash about how my son, then 18 months old, threw a red Christmas tree ornament onto our kitchen floor because he thought it was a ball. He was completely shocked when it shattered into hundreds of little pieces. The effect was not what he thought it was going to be.

Although preschoolers naturally learn about cause and effect through play on their own, you can also help make the concept a bit more concrete by providing activities which clearly illustrate cause and effect. Painting with watercolors is one such activity.

Once you have set up your area for painting, provide your child with a plain white sheet of paper. Place masking tape over all of the colors except the primary colors, red, yellow, and blue. Help your child blend colors to form the complementary colors, orange, green, and purple. Before each new color is made, ask your child, “What do you think will happen when you mix the colors (red) and (yellow)?” Try not to shout out what new color is made. Allow your child to be amazed at what happens when he mixes colors. Continue to allow your child to predict what will happen for each color combination. After all of the color combinations have been tried, remove the tape, and allow your child to explore with the entire tray of paints.

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Written by Laura on August 22, 2009