Painting is not only fun but also helps in learning

Dipping a brush into colourful paint begins a child’s journey towards something beautiful, but there is more than just a painted picture. As she/he moves the paintbrush across the canvas, a child develops cognitively, emotionally and physically.

When children learn how to paint, it helps them learn sizes, shapes, patterns and designs. The children love the way it feels when they stroke with a paint-brush.

Young Citizen spoke to Fountain Gate Pre and Primary school pupils about what they enjoy about painting and what they learn from it.

Monica Michael, Grade One

I really enjoy painting. We learn how to paint at school as it helps us to develop our decision making capacity. When you start painting you need to plan which colour you need to put in different parts of the picture in order for your picture to look nice.

Saleh Jabir, Grade Four

If you know how to paint you can know how to solve your problems because you can make choice about your own art work so it also makes the children to start working by themselves. Sometimes when I am stressed at home, I paint and my mother understands because I express myself through it.

Thruway Alexander, Grade Five

If children begin painting at an early age, it makes them gain skills and will know how to focus better. It helps one to discover their creativity because here we learn about various colour mixtures, strokes, balance etc.

Our teacher told us we build self-confidence by knowing how to paint which is true because it also helps to communicate our emotions and feelings through the use of different colour.

Japhet Makau, Fountain Gate’s School Director, says it’s very important to have painting sessions for all classes because through painting they exercise their brain and learn how to express their own feeling.

“When it comes to nursery children, allow them to explore with the colours and try new combinations. This helps them develop their cognitive and motor skills,” says Ms Makau.