Crayons or Markers for toddlers?

BerriGirl

Jack seems to be interested in playing with pens and "drawing." More like scribbling... but it's so cute! I LOOOVED drawing when I was a kid, so I hope he takes after me:)

Anyway, has anyone given crayons or markers to your toddler yet? Are there toddler friendly versions out there? I was at Walgreens yesterday and looked to see what they have, but I didn't want to give him actual markers - that would make quite a mess...

Nicole731

I have given Hunter regular markers. As long as they say non-toxic I am not concerned. He did get kind of messy and try to eat them though and ended up with blue lips. Luckily I had him in his highchair and it wiped right off that. I am going to get him some crayons soon though.

MandC17

Crayola makes these fat markers that are shaped like animals. I have some for DD but I haven't let her use them yet because I think she'd draw all over the carpet and furniture.

Crayola also makes 'color-wonder' stuff that only marks on special paper so that they can't make a mess. You could try that.

ETA: here are the toddler markers. They are called Tadoodles.

nosoup4u

DS has been "drawing" with crayons since about 12 months - I gave him some on a lark, and he actually drew with them instead of eating them (though he's not on putting things in his mouth, generally).

My mom made the good point that kids love markers so much more, that it's maybe a better idea to hold off on them until he's bigger. So for now it's crayons (and sometimes pens if I'm feeling generous). I also bought a really big sketchbook at an art supply store for him to draw on. hth

citygirl_

nosoup4u:

DS has been "drawing" with crayons since about 12 months - I gave him some on a lark, and he actually drew with them instead of eating them (though he's not on putting things in his mouth, generally).

My mom made the good point that kids love markers so much more, that it's maybe a better idea to hold off on them until he's bigger. So for now it's crayons (and sometimes pens if I'm feeling generous). I also bought a really big sketchbook at an art supply store for him to draw on. hth

ditto

Markers just seem like they could do a bit too much damage if he snuck one away, lol!

MrsKellyOrBust

We do crayons with a big sketch pad. He likes to sneak them in his mouth on occassion so I don't want to go the marker route yet. And a misstroke with a crayon is less likely to leave a mark on the carpet or couch. You are pretty much guaranteed if the marker hits one of those things, it's going to mark it.

rlthomas7

The Tadoodle markers are nice, but they don't dry very fast so he ends up fingerpainting with them. So for now, we stick to Tadoodles crayons. I also bought some very fat crayons to try.

The most success we've had is with washable fingerpaints. We made a father's day masterpiece with that.

Jelliebean1982

Try the bathtub crayons.  They're really easy to clean and give DD her crayon fix for the day. 

joecubed

we have the tadoodles.  DS likes to color with them for about 10 seconds, and then he likes to "BALLLLLL" them around the room.  *Shrugs*

rlthomas7

Also, we save "art" for when he's in his high chair. We recycle cardboard, so I use cardboard from the stack as his paper. Just turn a cereal box inside out and that's a great surface, that doesn't tear and can't be eaten as easily.

MandC17

rlthomas7:

Also, we save "art" for when he's in his high chair. We recycle cardboard, so I use cardboard from the stack as his paper. Just turn a cereal box inside out and that's a great surface, that doesn't tear and can't be eaten as easily.

 This is a great idea. 

lite-bright

Crayola makes large crayons in addition to the regular-sized (smaller) ones -- just not in as many colors. DD has both and for now, prefers the larger ones. 

The Tadoodles crayons were a bust for us. It's much easier for her to hold and use normal crayons. The Tadoodles weren't worth the cost, IMO.

We also do washable finger-paints and she's just now really getting a kick out of that. I've got some bath-tub finger-paints as well that are super easy to clean up.  

We haven't done markers yet.  

NJGirlNTheSouth

Tadoodles seemed awkward for Emme. She likes the triangle-shaped crayons (also by Crayola) much better. No markers yet... that is just asking for trouble with Emme

jays_bride

DD had crayons for the first time on our plane trip a few weeks ago. She loves them! They have become a standard at restaurants to keep her busy. She still tries to put them in her mouth, but it seems like she's just doing because she isn't supposed to. She also *mostly* stays on the paper.

dpdw

Crayola makes "washable" markers and crayons -- we use both & they clean up easily enough.  We only use them at the kitchen table.