What makes a good coloring page for toddlers
Big shapes, extra-thick outlines and things they can name. What to look for in a coloring page for 2- to 4-year-olds, plus the pages to start with.
Two- and three-year-olds hold a crayon in their fist and color in big sweeps. A page made for an older child, with small shapes and fine lines, ends up as one big scribble. These are the things that make a page work for little hands.
Big shapes, and only a few
Look for pages with five to ten large areas to fill. One animal or object in the middle of the page is ideal. Backgrounds full of grass, clouds and tiny flowers can wait until later.
Extra-thick outlines
Thick lines work like a fence. Even when a toddler goes over the edge, the shape still reads as a shape and they can see what they colored. On Coloring Parade, choose Toddlers 2–4 to get the thickest lines.
Things they can name
Toddlers color for longer when they know what they are looking at. A cat, a ball, a car or a birthday cake gives you something to talk about while they work: what color is the cat, where is its tail.
Pages to start with
- Friendly Ghost
- Simple Christmas Tree
- Baby Unicorn
- Dino Egg Hatching
- Sleepy Fox
