Paint Paint Paint Paint

So I've mentioned before that I believe kids learn through movement and sensory experience - and what's more of a sensory experience than painting? Jake actually had sensory problems when he was in preschool, so much so that we worked with an Occupational Therapist for two years. Among other things, Jake was tactile defensive - and that's where painting came in.

It took so much just for him to be able to TOUCH anything wet or slippery or slimy. So finger-painting? The hallmark of the preschool-age experience? He was having none of it. He was happy to use a brush, but wouldn't use his fingers for the longest time. Sometimes if he was painting for quite a while, he would loosen up and start painting on himself and enjoyed it until he realized he had paint on him - and then all activities would come to a halt. It was a long process, but he seems to have gotten past the defensiveness. Painting in all its forms was very much a part of our lives during those years.




Now that he's going into 3rd grade, he's much more interested in playing computer games than painting - and when he does want to be artistic, it's usually with my scrapbooking supplies. But I look back on our painting days fondly.