Experimenting with different materials is a great way to keep children engaged in painting, and to make the activity seem fresh and new. For little ones it’s best to let the activity be about the process not the product, so it doesn’t matter what the results look like or whether the picture looks like something in particular – but just enjoy exploring the tools, and having fun making marks and patterns.
And old toothbrush works really well as a paintbrush and makes a fun art project for kids of all ages.
We used toothbrushes to paint and “clean” egg carton model teeth before but also used the tooth brushes to make patterns on coloured paper and foam cups
Toothbrush painting is a great activity to keep kids occupied indoors during any rainy days this summer, or on days when it’s too hot to stay outdoors.
Since it’s such an open ended activity, you can use it to fill 5 spare minutes, or a whole afternoon! The activity costs only a few pennies, if that, since you’re making use of a toothbrush that would have been destined for the bin, plus paint and paper that you probably already have in your craft cupboard.
My children all enjoyed this, from ages 3-7. I love the look of concentration on my middle boys face here! You do have to hold the toothbrush differently than you would handle a normal paintbrush or a pencil, so it does take a bit of concentration and coordination to get going with it.
We used just a couple of colours for our toothbrush paintings, but the possibilities and colour choices are endless. Have fun!
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Anna Mariker
Anna is a London-based stay at home mum to three boys. Her fabulous blog In The Playroom is a parenting and lifestyle blog, about playing, learning, and life with young children. She shares kids crafts and activities which are simple and easy for any parent to do with the supplies you probably already have in your home. You can follow her on facebook, twitter, and pinterest to see all the lovely crafts and activities she does!