Skip to main content

Why sponge painting is a great way to kickstart imagination

Let your child express their creativity by ditching the paintbrush and sponge painting instead

The best way for parents to give kids a leg up in education is to incorporate the arts into their daily lives even when the kiddos are young. Studies show children who actively participate in art activities are far more likely to achieve academically than those who don't. The reason why is that artistic activities have quite a few cognitive and emotional benefits for kids.

Difficulty

Easy

Duration

5 minutes

What You Need

  • Sponges

  • Paint

  • Paper

Activities like coloring, drawing, and painting help young children develop those all-important fine motor skills in their hands and fingers. They use these fine motor skills for many things, from buttoning and zippering to texting on smartphones. Art activities stimulate the imagination while enhancing cognitive and critical thinking, as well as language, and math skills. On an emotional level, these activities help relieve stress while boosting confidence and self-esteem. So put away those flashcards and get out the paint. You don't even need brushes and an easel to create a masterpiece. With a sponge, paper, and a little imagination, sponge painting can get those artistic juices bubbling.

young boy sponge painting

Sponge painting

Sponge painting is an activity used often in preschool and kindergarten. The best part of this fun activity is that you can't be too young or too old to sponge paint. Adults have even utilized the technique for home decorating projects. Kids of all ages enjoy sponge painting because it’s a little more unconventional than a traditional paintbrush and easel.

girl sponge painting

How to sponge paint

The activity allows for more artistic experimentation than conventional painting. Sponge painting is also relatively inexpensive. Sure, sponges in all kinds of fun shapes and cutouts are available online and in craft stores, but if you want to reuse what you already have at home all you really need is to cut up old sponges into different pieces.

Step 1: Set up an area

Before the kids sit down to sponge paint, be sure to clear an area and lay down some newspaper or a disposable tablecloth. If the weather permits, sponge painting is a wonderful outdoor activity. Have baby wipes on hand for kids to clean their hands prior to heading to the sink. Sponge painters should wear old clothes or a smock if possible.

Step 2: Get the paint ready

Parents and teachers know spills are imminent when kids sit down to paint, often because of those water cups that always seem to tip at the most inopportune moments. With sponge painting, water isn’t needed. You can clean the sponges once all the kids are done. Reuse the sponges after a good wash or toss.

Step 3: Prepare your sponges

You can cut up old sponges in different shapes and designs, and even incorporate seasonal options. If you don't have any household sponges handy you can buy them at most craft stores or online.

Step 4: Give kids options

For kids who don't like to get their hands too dirty, attach a clothespin to each sponge. Kids can hold the clothespins while painting instead of grabbing the sponge. Sponge painting tools with handles and sponges attached to the ends are available online.

Step 5: Provide the canvas

Kids can sponge paint on any type of paper, but finger paint paper works best.

Step 6: Choose the paint

Tempera or poster paints are ideal for sponge painting, but make sure the paints are washable and nontoxic. Sponge painting paints come in an array of colors and types, including basic, neon, metallic, and even glitter. For easy cleanup, put the paint on paper plates or bowls within easy reach of the kiddos. Keep the sponges for particular colors. For kids who love mixing up colors, set aside paper plates or bowls and sponges for them to experiment with colors.

Step 7: Let their creativity fly

Like finger painting, sponge painting is pretty straightforward. Kids grab a sponge and start making prints on their paper. Some kids try to create a scene or picture while others prefer dotting with the sponges to make an eclectic design. Anything goes with sponge painting, as long as kids stay on the paper, and that’s most certainly part of the fun.

Child sponge painting

Sponge painting for teens and adults

The benefits of sponge painting don’t end when kids reach a certain age. Artistic endeavors like sponge painting have benefits for tweens, teens, and adults, too. Sponge painting rooms became a home decorating thing in the 80s and have never really fallen off. Just like sponge painting on paper, sponge painting walls are less restrictive than traditional brush painting and achieve an off-beat, textured look.

A child making a leaf painting.

Other things kids can paint with

The artistic imagination should never go into a box, which is why the arts have such a positive impact on a child’s development and the overall well-being of adults. Of course, painting with brushes is fun, but painting with nontraditional items like sponges is imaginative in its own right. Here are some other household things kids can use to experiment with painting:

  • Q-tips
  • Bubble wrap
  • Combs
  • Cookie cutters
  • Empty paper towel rolls

Closing thoughts on sponge painting

Albert Einstein said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.” Art is an important component in a child’s development because artistic endeavors not only stimulate the imagination, but taking part in art, especially as a young child, helps develop fine motor, cognitive, critical thinking, language, and math skills.

Artistic activities like sponge painting are wonderful for children of all ages to take part in. Sponge painting is a fun activity that really gets the creative juices flowing. It’s relatively inexpensive, easy to set up, and not just beneficial for little ones.

Editors' Recommendations

Dawn Miller
Dawn Miller began her professional life as an elementary school teacher before returning to her first love, writing. In…
5 children’s books about inspiring Asian American women
Children's books about Asian American women in history
A mother reads to her young daughter

Whether you're celebrating Women's History Month in March, Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month in May, or bringing representation to your child's bookshelf any time of year, these AAPI women kids' books will help teach about inspiring Asian American women in history to kids in elementary school or middle school. These five illustrated books for kids about AAPI women in history tell the stories of dozens of historical figures worth learning about.
Asian American Women in Science: 15 Inspiring People You Should Know

This book, for readers ages 8 to 12, tells the biographies of 15 Asian American women in history who broke barriers in science. Some of the women include Kazue Togasaki, the first Japanese American woman to become a doctor; Chien-Shiung Wu, a Chinese American physicist who worked on top-secret projects; and Isabella Aiona Abbott, who became an expert on the marine plant life of her native Hawaii. It's a must-have for those looking to add to their collection of AAPI women kids' books. By Tina Cho.
The Fearless Flights of Hazel Ying Lee

Read more
Skip the adults and learn about these amazing kids for Black History Month instead
Teach your children about these amazing Black kids in history for Black History Month
Black History Month poster

We always learn about the same people for Black History Month -- and they are almost always adults. But there are plenty of amazing Black kids in history who have done outstanding things we all need to know about. Spend this Black History Month talking with your children about these outstanding kids in history instead of the grown-ups.

Claudette Colvin
If you asked your children who Rosa Parks was, they would be able to tell you all about her story. But really, there's a child that figuratively stood up first. Claudette Colvin was arrested when she was only 15 years old for refusing to stand up and give her seat to a white woman. The incident happened in Alabama in early 1955, before Rosa Parks followed suit later that year.
Mikaila Ulmer
Talk about taking your lemonade stand to the big leagues. If you don't watch TV reality shows, you don't know about Mikaila Ulmer. This young woman appeared on Shark Tank in 2015 when she was 11 years old and landed a deal with the sharks to sell her homemade lemonade. You'll find her lemonade, Me & the Bees Lemonade, in stores like Target, Kroger, and Whole Foods.
Misty Copeland
While her ground-breaking feat happened when she was in her 20s, Misty Copeland's journey started when she was only 13 years old. A ballerina prodigy, Copeland became the American Ballet Theatre's first Black woman to be made a principal dancer in 2015, the first in the company's 75-year history at that time.
Mo’ne Davis
Don't tell girls what they can and can't do. Mo'ne Davis is the living epitome of that statement. In 2014, Davis broke records when she became the first girl to pitch a winning game in Little League World Series history, also making her the first girl in the post-season to pitch a shutout. Her accomplishments then landed her on the cover of Sports Illustrated, making her the first Little League player -- at all, boy or girl -- to do so.
Sandra Parks
Sandra Parks was only 13 years old in 2018 when she was shot in her home in Milwaukee while watching television with her brother. What makes her story so much more powerful is that Sandra had just won an essay contest where the topic she wrote about was gun violence.
The Little Rock Nine
We've all seen the picture of little Ruby Bridges being escorted into her school after desegregation. The story of The Little Rock Nine is in a similar vein. Nine high school teenagers were chosen in 1957 as the first Black students to go to Little Rock's Central High School after the Supreme Court ruled segregation schools were illegal.

Read more
7 books about inspiring Black women from history
Children's books about Black women who are historical figures
Little girl reading a book

Countless Black women in history have made important contributions to society and culture, and these seven books lift up over 80 of them. From Harriet Tubman to Sojourner Truth and biographies to anthologies of many Black women in history, these Black History Month books for children are best for elementary school and middle school kids. Dive in and teach your children about these important women in history.
A Black Woman Did That

This 2020 book spotlights 43 inspirational Black women in history who have made a difference in the world. Dr. Patricia Bath restored the eyesight of people around the world, Misty Copeland became the first Black principal dancer of the American Ballet Theatre, and entrepreneur Madam C. J. Walker became the first female self-made millionaire in the early 1900s. This brightly illustrated book shares their stories and others.
Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker

Read more