Get at least one of these ten astonishing books and help kids explore the world of imagination. Sometimes the process of creating can be challenging both for kids and adults. Kids can get confused about where to start and what they need for it. Or they simply have no inspiration to create a craft.
There are thoughts that kids are born either talented at creating art or with a mathematical mindset. Frankly speaking, you CAN let creativity thrive in your kids. And it is much easier than you may think.
Those of us who do not feel like being creative still can develop creativity in our kids. All you need is to recognize what particularly your child needs to develop their talent.
Creativity is all about imagination. You must support your little ones to take a risk and express themselves differently, in the way they want to.
Of course, there are various after-classes art activities that children can attend and learn craft there. But they are more about instruction, and creativity is different, more about exploration, unique expression.
When kids grow up, they may face boundaries to explore and imagine. They begin to question their creative abilities when comparing themselves with their peers. And that is the critical time when you have to interfere and support your little one.
And the books you are going to read about prove that, yes, the creative process is not an easy thing to learn. It requires much time and effort.
And do not expect that you will get a perfect piece of art right at start. These stories demonstrate that sometimes the best artistic ideas emerge from mistakes.
1. Beautiful Oops
This book is one-of-a-kind that you have never seen before. You will like everything about it: bright drawings, the plot, the main character, and the way it keeps readers intrigued all the time.
The story is worth reading for those who like craft, but especially for perfectionists. If your kiddo is that type of artist, who is ready to quit the art every time they feel they cannot create something perfect from the start, this book will show them a small secret that will change their attitude.
Every parent wants to teach their children one important life lesson: it is totally fine to make mistakes. And this demonstrates even more: mistakes can turn into unique, beautiful designs. After reading it, kids finally say “Hooray!” to their mistakes.
The story describes many different situations when spills, folded paper, torn pages, smudges, smears, paint drops can make magic appear.
Here are several scenarios of random accidents. The folded-over paper can turn into a penguin’s head. Or a small piece of torn page can be a cute smiling dog (just add some application of paint).
You see, making mistakes is not bad. You can manipulate them and turn useless-at-first-glance items into new exciting opportunities.
“Beautiful Oops” is also created to be torn apart, cut, folded, smudged, or artistically wreaked in your own way.
2. Faces
This gorgeous book is a great provocation to art activities from start to finish. It introduces kids to faces made of various materials.
“Look around – faces are everywhere” – a short sentence that fully conveys the main idea of the book. On every page of this amazing piece of literature, kids will find unusual cool ways to create faces using absolutely everything: collages, paintings, geometric shapes, printings, stationary, sculpture, and so on.
The best part is that they can use recycled materials to create unique, interesting art.
The book inspires on creating, finding faces everywhere. Plus, it is jam-packed with so many tremendous ideas and delights. Mainly, it is a visual book. Still, its short context is also lovely and helpful.
When you open the book for the first time, you will be impressed with the drawings’ quality and colors there. It is made of different sorts of paper and ink that make the book delightfully tactile.
Simply using everyday objects and looking at them differently with just a little imagination proves that one can find faces in almost everything. Ordinary things will not seem that simple anymore, from blocks to gloves.
“Faces” pushes kids to think outside the box and develop their sense of imagination. It is a beautiful book in itself. We bet you will keep returning to it over and over again.
3. The Dot
Every once in a while, you come upon a brilliant book that makes you think about how it is even possible. “The Dot” is one of those.
This book is not too long (just 28 pages), enough to hold kids’ attention from start to finish. It has cute simple drawings, but they have their special style and complete the story perfectly. And it does not have a lot of dialogues.
Still, within these pages and words, the author manages to convey a beautiful, heartwarming message. It inspires readers to take a risk on any endeavor.
It encourages kids to practice to get better results. And it proves how crucial it is to encourage and support each other.
The story is about a little girl named Vashti sitting at the desk in front of a blank piece of paper at the art class. She did not draw anything because she doesn’t consider herself an artist. She believes she has no talent for drawing, but she has not even tried it either.
The teacher is an experienced, wise woman and knows how to cheer the girl up. Her encouragement and the girl’s desire to improve herself work like a charm.
She puts a small dot of paint on the paper. And here is where her art journey begins. Vashti is surprised at what self-discovery she’s just made.
You know, each of us has a bit of creativity. And sometimes, we just need a little bit of support and encouragement to discover it.
4. Ish
The author of “Ish,” Peter Reynolds, takes the readers on an amazing journey to art in this book. But the story is even much deeper than just about the art. He tells his reader a life lesson everyone should learn: just because some people don’t like the thing we create doesn’t mean that others will not find it adorable.
This gentle fable tells a story about a little boy named Ramon. Ramon is crazy about drawing anything, anytime, and anywhere. Drawing is what makes him feel happy.
But in one moment, Everything has changed. Ramon’s older brother throws a reckless remark that his art has no use. It breaks his heart, and the art is not that joyful anymore.
Fortunately, Ramon’s little sister has a different point of view on things. And she is the one who opens Ramon’s eyes to something much more valuable than getting things “right.”
This is a picture book for children, but it relates to anyone in the business of creating. The best part is, it inspires the development of imagination while also showing the nice and mean sides of other people. It teaches to keep living artistically and also not to listen to those who are negative about art.
The book is whimsically and creatively done, especially its illustrations. They are marvelous. The story is interesting both for young and old and teaches a powerful lesson for all of us.
5. The Art Book For Children
This book has the potential to become one of those kids’ favorite books they enjoy in childhood and remember in their adulthood.
“The Art Book For Children” is a great overview of art for children of different ages to give them exposure to various styles of drawings and a chance to see masterpieces of famous artists.
That would be a perfect introduction to art for younger readers, and older ones will broaden their horizons considerably.
It is an awesome guide to 30 outstanding artists and their famous paintings. The quality of the illustrations and the paper itself is top-shelf.
Each reproduction of the work goes along with clear and interesting explanations and suggestions on how to discuss the painting with your kiddo. They are equally high-level and useful indeed.
The book inspires children to have a close look at each beautiful painting and use their creativity to realize why artists create their works exactly in this or that way. The book also includes questions that appeal to children’s critical thinking and give so much space for discussion.
Educative. Instructive. Interactive. You just couldn’t be more pleased.
6. Colorful Dreamer
If your kiddo is the one who adores reading about famous artists’ lives, they will be delighted with “Colorful Dreamer.” This picture book is by no means a documentary biography of Henri Matisse. Still, it depicts enough background of his inspiration, how he found his passion and pursued art as his whole career.
“Colorful Dreamer” is a story about a little boy named Henri, whose dreams are all about colors though his hometown is dull and gloomy. Parents call him a dreamer because they think their son has no potential to draw, but he could be a good law clerk. Henri himself hates the idea of being some office clerk.
In defiance of his parents, Henri continues dreaming about a colorful,exciting life. This dream pushes him to travel and try himself at painting.
He masters his painting every time. He masters his craft gradually every day. As he travels around the world, he becomes noticed everywhere and gains the desired success.
Henri loves to craft so much that he creates art from colorful cutouts of paper, even already being unable to paint.
On the one hand, the book tells an excellent life story of a famous artist. And on the other hand, it encourages kids to never give up on their dreams even if the whole world is against them.
The book is inspiring indeed. It teaches both young and old that it is never too late to find one’s real calling.
7. I’ve Painted Everything.
“I’ve Painted Everything” is a real treat.
Let us start from its cover. It shows a small elephant who looks dull and disappointed, standing in front of a simple outlet drawing. His name is Hugo. And he looks like he needs support or some help. And he really does.
Hugo is an artist living in a small picturesque town. A day comes when Hugo runs out of ideas about what else to paint as he has painted everything.
Luckily, his best friend Miles does not think so and knows how to deal with Hugo’s disappointment. Friends go for an amazing trip to Paris and explore the whole city.
They visit the most beautiful sightseeings such as the Louvre, the Musee d’Orsay, and a couple of other gorgeous places. At last, they come to see Eiffel Tower shining. Such a great journey inspires Hugo and fulfills him with a lot of new fabulous ideas for his craft.
He learns a good lesson: a change in perspective will never again let him think that he is run out of ideas. A message to live by for all of us, right?!
The story is instructive but full of humor at the same time. And humor is just one bright side. Another one is the humanity of both friends.
How Hugo is nervous during the flight, how he reacts when he has no more ideas, how curious Miles and Hugo are about Paris, how Hugo is excited when new ideas visit him. These feelings make the book kid-friendly, and children can relate themselves to Hugo and Miles almost in every situation.
And think about Miles. He is a great friend too. He cares about Hugo so much. He supports him and helps in any tough situation. That is a good sample of a reliable friend.
Of course, it is a children’s book, but adults will find a useful nod for themselves either. The illustrations are special and interesting. A must-see for every young artist. The book will inspire them to always keep their eyes and mind wide open.
8. Looking At Pictures
What an amazing introduction to art for young kids! Lots of bright drawings to hold children’s attention. Appropriate (not overly) wording helps kids understand the context clearly.
The book covers the most famous artists and their masterpieces, from Picasso to Monet. After reading “Looking At Pictures,” your kiddo will walk away with a great impression from historical art, knowing where, why, and how it came about.
The book is divided into chapters. Each one is devoted to different paintings, such as landscapes, portraits, still life, etc. The author walks readers through various drawings, lights, colors, symbols and depicts the comparison between different artworks that have similar keynotes.
The book introduces cartoony sketchy illustrations standing next to the rich colored art reproductions. Such contrast allows kids to see how beautiful both artworks are, but what different feelings they arouse.
9. Sky Color
Beautiful illustrations go along with an amazingly creative lesson.
This is a story about a happy little girl Marisol who loves painting. And she gets a great opportunity to express her art to others.
The teacher asks her to paint a mural for the school library. Wow! It is going to be a huge and exciting project. Marisol cannot wait to start painting.
Suddenly, she realizes she has no blue paint to depict the sky. She wonders about it the whole day, gazing at the sky and different colors of nature. When the night comes, Marisol closes her eyes, and beautiful dreams visit her.
What are the dreams about? And how is she going to resolve the issue with the blue paint? Find out when you read this marvelous story.
The book encourages young artists to be creative and wriggle out of the standards. It inspires to paint what children actually see rather than copying the visual conventions they have learned.
10. A Day With No Crayons
One more great instructive story about creativity. Though the most adorable part of this book is clever, well-done illustrations that get gray when Liza’s crayons are taken away, but gradually the colors are re-introduced.
Sometimes Liza pains on the walls. And her mother takes away her beloved crayons. Liza gets so angry until she realizes that she can make collages and art with the things surrounding her, from the simple white toothpaste to colorful flowers in the garden.
It is a cute story about finding beauty in everything around us, especially when the world seems to be upside down, dull, and uninteresting.
The book looks to be simple at first glance, but it appeals to children’s minds deeply. You know, sometimes, the simplest words touch the deepest feelings.
There are different ways to encourage kids’ imagination to soar. And books are the most efficient ones. They teach good life lessons; inspire to keep minds open, create unique things, and express their thoughts.
So, help your little ones gain courage and confidence to develop their artistic abilities. One of such books would be a great gift or simply an addition to your home library.
Well, you can never go wrong with books, anyway.
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