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Color Monster Craft for Kids: Teach Emotional Intelligence with a Colorful Twist

Are you looking for an art project that will captivate kids of all ages? This Color Monster Craft is the perfect solution! Children can let their imaginations run wild as they create their own unique, colorful monsters. With this fun activity, kids can explore different emotions in a fun and engaging way. The Color Monster Craft is a great way to encourage creativity and self-expression in young artists

6 different color monster artworks by kids.

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What is The Color Monster?

The Color Monster is a children’s book by Anna Llenas about a confused and overwhelmed monster who learns to sort his emotions with the help of a little girl. The book is often used to teach children about managing their emotions and different ways to visualize how we feel.

Use the book, The Color Monster, by Anna Llenas as inspiration for this easy monster craft for young children. The illustrations in this book help open up a whole discussion of feelings and emotions about different children’s experiences. 

The book used in this lesson>>> The Color Monster by Anna Llenas

Why do we love this lesson?

Don’t worry though, this project is not as serious as it sounds. These fun and easy monster drawings do more than just create monster paintings.

Children easily gain a better understanding of how artists use color to express emotion during this lesson.

Having a bad day? Draw a color monster. Remember art is about the process!

Other Color Monster Books

What age is this art lesson for?

This project works really well with 5 and 6-year-olds. Some of the examples you will see in this post are from 1st graders. However, we know all elementary-aged children love monster art projects (so really this could work for any age). 

Read more>>>Easy Flower Art Lesson For 1st Graders

Older Kids Still Love This Project

This project is still definitely fun for them and you can encourage extra details and skills. In previous years when I had an extra class of older kids, this lesson was perfect for us. The kids honestly love being creative and acting like a “Pixar” animators.

Questions To Help Discuss Illustrations

  • What is the monster feeling? How did you know from the illustrations?
  • Can artists or people think different colors go with different feelings?
  • If you were one color right now, what would you be? Why?
two kid drawings on white paper and black outlines of monsters.

Tips For Helping Kids To Draw Larger-Than-Life Monsters

This drawing is great because there really is no wrong way to do it! Most kids will feel successful and proud of their silly (or serious) artworks. It also allows them to be a little silly and what kid doesn’t love that?

Start With The Eyes

Even though there is no wrong way to do this, the drawings work better if kids fill the whole page. In order to help get students to draw a large monster, start with the eyes. Encourage children to add their own details or number of eyes to make their monster unique.

6 different monster drawings on white paper by children.

Recommended Supplies

What are paint sticks?

Paint sticks are a newer supply that we have started using with children. They are tempera paint in stick form that dry quickly. The kids say they are like paint glue sticks and we think that is a pretty accurate description.

rainbow colored tempera paint sticks with kid art project being done in purple.
click to shop paint sticks

They definitely are a fun experience for children. You are able to cover a large area very quickly with a solid color. Some kids will absolutely love this supply. And others will wish they could have a little more control.

Tips For Using Paint Sticks With Young Children

  • Model proper use and even show how to pull them out of the box.
  • Only use one at a time. If not you will open yourself up to get all the packs mixed up.
  • If you have enough sets, share them with the person next to you.
  • Show how “one click will do you” like a glue stick
  • Tell kids you don’t want to have paint boogers (kids love it when you can relate Art to boogers). We say “boogers” anytime there is too much or extra of something (paper boogers when they rub the brush back and forth when painting, clay boogers when they draw too hard, etc.)
  • They can click a little more if they want to use the side of the paint stick top on an angle. This will help them do more detailed work.
  • They should go slow and steady.
  • Demonstrate how they can overlap and blend colors if you want.
orange paint stick adding color to white paper.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Read Book

Read the book, The Color Monster. Use the questions above or your own questions to help facilitate a discussion on how artists use color to express feelings.

Step 2: Draw Eyes

Start drawing a monster. Draw the eyes first.

black lines to make eyes on a white paper.

Step 3: Draw A Simple Line For The Head

Add a line for the head.

eyes and monster head drawing on white paper.

Draw a zoomed-in version or large monster on the white drawing paper. Children can choose paper orientation.

kid's hand drawing monster craft.

Step 4: Add Unique Facial Features & Details

Add details to the monster such as horns, mouth, nose, hair and texture. Encourage kids to show a feeling.

color monster drawings outlined with black thick lines.

Step 5: Use A Permanent Black Marker

Outline with a large permanent marker.

color monster drawing on white paper.

Step 6: Start Using Paint Sticks

Use paint sticks to add the main color to their monster. Encourage students to keep the eyes and teeth white.

This allows there to be contrast between the monster and facial features.

Step 7: Add Color To Background

Work on the background using the paint sticks. The main requirement should be that you will make the background different than the monster.

If the monster has a lot of color inside, leaving the background white also works.

hand holding color monster art project.

Questions to help them understand the art principle of contrast

  • What would happen if you made the monster and the background the same color?
  • Would you see your monster? 

Step 8: Continue Being Creative Until Artwork Is Finished

Allow kids time to finish their creative feelings monsters.

Art Lesson FAQs

What if I don’t have paint sticks?

And if you don’t have paint sticks, check out how you could do this project using a glue watercolor resist technique. We haven’t tried it yet, but a monster drawing in glue with paint could be really cool!

Where can I get more resources about social-emotional intelligence in children?

This color monster art project is a great first step to starting to talk about feelings with children. You can also visit Harvard University’s Center on the Developing Child or The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning for more ideas.

Are there any variations or extensions to this activity that I can try with my child?

If your children loved making this color monster drawing, you could consider exploring this topic further. Some suggestions include: writing a storybook adventure about their color monster or setting up a monster art gallery where kids can talk about their feelings and artworks.

Follow us on Pinterest, Facebook and YouTube for more free art and craft ideas!

Related Fun Activities To Do Together

Keep encouraging those little ones to be creative and showcase their feelings in their art (and color monster art project).

If you like this easy tutorial, be sure to give us 5 stars below 🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩 and have fun being creative with your family.

6 different color monster artworks by kids.

Easy Color Monster Craft For Kids

Elementary-aged children will love this fun and easy monster painting idea inspired by the book, The Color Monster.
Print Pin Rate
Course: Arts and Crafts For Kids
Keyword: color monster art lesson, easy monster craft, monster art projects, monster drawing for kids
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Active Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Author: Erin
Cost: Less than $5

Equipment

  • Pencil

Materials

Instructions

  • Read the book, The Color Monster. Use the questions above or your own questions to help facilitate a discussion on how artists use color to express feelings.
  • Start drawing monsters. Draw the eyes first.
  • Add a line for the head. Draw a zoomed-in version or large monster on the white drawing paper. Children can choose paper orientation.
  • Add details to the monster such as horns, mouth, nose, hair and texture. Encourage kids to show a feeling.
  • Outline drawings with a large chisel tip permanent marker.
  • Use paint sticks to add the main color to their monster. Tell students to keep the eyes and teeth white.
  • Work on the background using the paint sticks. The main requirement should be that you will make the background different than the monster.
  • Allow kids time to finish their creative feelings monsters.

Notes

Encourage each monster drawing to be unique and different. You will be amazed at how creative your students or kids can be!

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