Coloring books have been a fundamental part of child rearing for the past several hundred years. In fact, I bet that the concept behind coloring books was even practiced back in ancient times by young cavepeople. I can imagine young men and women using various dyes (blood, smeared fruits, etc) to paint colorful pictures on cave walls. No matter the history, it is clearly evident that coloring and drawing is a very simple art form that children of all ages can enjoy.
Recently, coloring books have leaped from traditional books onto the Internet. Free online coloring books can be found all across the net. And the benefits to online coloring books vs. traditional coloring books are many. First of all, images can be cleared of colors with just a simple mouse click. Kids can color an image, clear it, and then color it again however many times they desire. Second, online coloring books are free and offer numerous images to color. You can find Halloween coloring books, Disney coloring books, circus coloring books, and even Bible color books online. All you have to do is search for them.
In addition, using an online coloring book application is relatively simple. Your children need only to log onto an online coloring book website, pick an image, and then start coloring it. Some online coloring book pages allow free-brushing whereas others do not. In ones without that option, your children will pick a color and then select a portion of the image. That entire area will then turn into that color. For instance, if your child chooses green and then clicks on a man’s coat, the entire coat will turn green. Obviously, the preferred method is to choose a page that allows your child to paint the image freely.
If unable to find an online coloring book site that allows free-brushng, you can alleviate the situation by copying the picture into your Paint program. Located in your Start Menu applications, this simple program lets you paint a picture anyway you want. Search the Internet for a good coloring book image, right click on it, select ‘copy image’, and then merely paste it into Paint.
Anyhow, another terrific benefit to relying on free online coloring books is that it will give your children exposure to the Internet. Furthermore, it will allow them to learn basic web navigation skills and how to use a mouse properly. In addition, did I mention that it is all free? No more easting money on crayons, coloring pencils, and sharpeners. And once your child is done coloring a picture, he or she can print it and then you can hang it on your refrigerator.
Did I pique your interest yet? To get you started, here is a list of free online coloring books with themes that might interest you:
Halloween Coloring Books
http://www.free-coloring-pages.com/halloween/index.html
Disney Coloring Books
http://disney.go.com/magicartist/coloring/
Circus Coloring Books
http://www.surfnetkids.com/games/circus-cb.htm
Bible Coloring Books
http://christiananswers.net/kids/clr-indx.html
Football, Mother’s day, Animals, and More Coloring Books
http://www.coloring.com/pictures/choose.cdc
