These books provide art activities, ideas for family art time, and tips for thinking about art for children as a learning experience. You’ll be sure to find plenty of art your child can do with materials you may have around the house already! Most of these books can be found at your local library.
1-2-3 Art: Open-Ended Art Activities for Working With Young Children – Jean Warren
Hundreds of skill-building activities that provide age-appropriate and cooperative experiences for young learners. More than 200 easy, hands-on, open-ended art activities.
Art: Basic for Young Children – Lila Lasky and Rose Mukerji
Full of examples of how art can instill confidence, communication, and creativity in young children by increasing sensitivity to the physical environment, offering new ways to express feelings, and enhancing awareness of individuality.
Art for the Very Young – Elizabeth Kelly
Art for the Very Young offers over 50 art activities for children to create art and learn about basic art concepts and techniques, such as line, shape, color, space,texture, form, and value.
Big Book of Kids’ Crafts – Better Homes and Gardens
Hundreds of super-fun ideas to keep little hands busy day after day. Includes inspiring, creative projects for kids of all ages and skill levels.
Child’s Play: Easy Art for Preschoolers – Leslie Hamilton
Over 150 fun, simple, and creative projects for children ages 2-6.
Considering Children’s Art: Why and How to Value Their Works – Brenda Engel
This in-depth resource provides information on how to look at children’s art.
Crafting Fun: 101 Things to Make and Do with Kids – Rae Grant
In our hurried times Crafting Fun introduces kids to classic childhood crafts that many of us remember fondly.
Creative Crafts for Kids – Gill Dickenson and Owen Cheryl
Stimulate your child’s creative talent and imagination with fun crafts for two- to ten-year-olds.
Dribble Drabble: Art Experiences For Young Children – Deya Brashears
This book offers ideas for art projects for very young children, such as golf ball rolling.
Easy Origami – John Montroll
A collection of 32 projects for novice origami hobbyists, clearly illustrated with easy-to-follow instructions that even beginning papercrafters can follow with successful results.
First Art: Art Experiences for Toddlers and Twos – MaryAnn F. Kohl, Renee F. Ramsey, Dana Bowman, and Katheryn Davis
Children can discover their world as they explore these 75 fun-filled art adventures.
The Giant Encyclopedia of Art & Craft Activities for Children 3 to 6 – Kathy Charner
Teacher created, classroom-tested art activities engage children’s imaginations. The best of the best of art and craft activities, themes include alphabet, circus, cooking, dinosaurs, farms, insects, sports, and weather.
The Jumbo Book of Easy Crafts – Judy Sadler and Caroline Price
Kids will find hundreds of easy crafts, including animals, nature crafts, games, gifts, toys and works of art.
Kids Create!: Art and Craft Experiences for 3- To 9-Year-Olds – Laurie Carlson
Over 150 creative craft and art activities for children ages three to nine years old.
The Kids’ Multicultural Art Book: Art & Craft Experiences from Around the World – Alexandra M. Terzian
Children can explore roots, rhythms, and traditions from all corners of the earth while crafting their own art and artifacts.
The Little Hands Art Book – Judy Press and Loretta Trezzo Braren
This art book introduces children to the use of key materials for creating art, including glue, clay, dough, paint, paper, markers and crayons.
Little Hands Create!: Art and Activities for Kids ages 3 to 6 – Mary Dall
With everyday items kids can let their artistic side take over and create paper coffee filter flowers, egg carton boats, and milk carton villages.
Little Hands Paper Plate Crafts: Creative Art Fun for 3 to 7 Year-Olds – Laura Check and Norma Jean Martin-Jourdenais
Kids bring paper-plate sea creatures and wild animals to life, “try on” careers with paper-plate hats, and create marvelous masks for make-believe play.
Look What You Can Make With Paper Plates – Margie Hayes Richmond and Hank Schneider
Paper plates are transformed into a vast array of toys, games, decorations, and gifts.
Loo-Loo, Boo, and Art You Can Do –
Presents instructions for a variety of simple art projects, including painting, potato prints, face masks, collage, papier mache, and clay beads.
Paint Without Brushes – Liz Wilmes and Dick Wilmes
Paint without Brushes goes beyond the paint jar and brush to encourage children to explore the world of paint.
Preschool Art: It’s the Process Not the Product – Mary Ann Kohl
Over 200 activities teach children to explore and understand their world through open-ended art experiences that emphasize the process of art, not the product.
Books for Kids
These books are perfect for reading to your child and then talking about their favorite kind of art or an art project they did recently (such as finger painting or playing with clay). Be sure to check these books out at your local library!
Animals: A First Art Book – Lucy Micklethwait
An introduction to great art, through wonderful paintings of animals from across the centuries. We see paintings of horses, dogs, farm animals, and baby animals from a range of famous artists, including David Hockney, Andy Warhol, Durer and Renoir.
Anna’s Art Adventure – Bjorn Sortland
On her search for the art museum’s bathroom, Anna meets famous artists, becomes part of some of their paintings, and makes her own art.
Art – Patrick McDonnell
“Art” introduces children to the imaginative world of art and the endless opportunities it holds.
The Art Lesson – Tomie De Paola
Little Tommy wants to be an artist when he grows up, so he is thrilled to learn that he’ll have art lessons each week in first grade.
Begin at the Beginning: A Little Artist Learns About Life – Amy Schwartz
Sara gets stuck when she must paint a picture for the second grade art show, until she discovers the best place to begin.
The Dot – Peter Reynolds
From the illustrator of the Judy Moody series comes a simple, witty story that entices even the stubbornly uncreative to make a mark and follow it on a journey of surprise and self-discovery.
ish – Peter H. Reynolds
This sequel to “The Dot” is simple, witty story that entices even the stubbornly uncreative to make a mark and follow it on a journey of surprise and self-discovery.
Josefina – Jeanette Winter
Count along in English and Spanish with a Mexican folk artist as she sculpts her world from clay: one sun, two angels, three houses . . . ten stars to twinkle bright in the sky.
Little Blue and Little Yellow – Leo Lionni
Little blue and little yellow share wonderful adventures. One day, they can’t find one another. When they finally meet, they are overjoyed.
Ready to Dream – Donna Jo Napoli
Ally and her mother are visiting Australia for the summer, and she can’t wait to start drawing all the new animals that she’ll see.
The Shape of Things – Dayle Ann Doods
A square is just a square until it becomes a house in this clever book.