Children and Young People

Arts activities can have a positive impact on the mental wellbeing of children and young people. Arts engagement has also been linked to increased creativity, confidence, and social connection. The Arts can also make a difference to hand-eye coordination, communication, gross and fine motor skills.

Below are some ideas for engaging in the arts with children and young people.

Before taking part in the activities below with a child or young person, please obtain consent from their parent/guardian.

Colouring

Why not try a “colouring afternoon” with the child or young person in your life? Colouring is fun and a great way to spend time with each other.

You can use pencils, pens, crayons, highlighters, whatever you can find. We have created colouring sheets for you to download for free. Which sheet do you like the best?

Download colouring sheets

Playdough

Playdough is fun, encourages children to use their imagination and is a great sensory activity. Playdough can also be a great family DIY project with lots of easy recipes on the web. There are both cook and no-cook options, with most recipes only requiring flour, salt, oil, water, cream of tartar and food colouring. Some links to education department recipes are below.

Make your own playdough

Music

Why not share your favourite “feel good” song with the child or young person in your life? Tell them why you like the song. Then ask them what their favourite “happy” song is.

Listening to music is something you can do as part of your everyday life to relax or lift your mood. Perhaps you could put together a playlist of your favourite songs and listen to them on your way to school, the shops, work, etc.

Make your own playdough

Download colouring sheets

Reading

Reading is great for relaxation and mental wellbeing. Reading to babies and children promotes brain development, imagination, language and learning. For young people, reading expands their imagination, language and knowledge.

A great place to borrow books, audiobooks, comics, magazines, music and movies is your local library. Most libraries also have a range of free programs including story-time, baby rhyme time and toddler time. If you live in Western Australia, click the button below to find your local library. A list of e-resources are also available from the State Library of Western Australia.

Find a library Open E-library