Monster Coloring Page

This monster coloring page is pure silly fun. A big round monster stands on a pale hill with three eyes, two pointy horns and a wide grin that shows two fangs. One long arm waves up high, and the other swings down low. Round spots dot the sides of his body, and his soft belly has rows of wavy lines.

He has no scary parts at all. In fact, he looks as if he just heard a good joke. That makes it a good pick for kids who want a monster but do not want bad dreams.

Pick your colors for this monster coloring page

A made up creature has no wrong colors, and children love hearing that. Green is the classic choice, though a blue or orange monster looks just as good. Try a bright body and a pale belly so the wavy lines stand out. Make the spots a darker version of the body color. The claws on his feet can be white or even sparkly.

The eyes are the fun part. Keep the whites clean, and leave the shiny dot in each pupil empty. His mouth looks best in red, with the teeth left white. Try a dark purple sky behind him, with yellow stars to fill the corners.

• Color the big body first with the side of a crayon.
• Go over the spots with a darker color at the end.
• Draw hair, a hat or a bow to make him your own.

Draw a monster friend

After coloring, children often want to make a second monster. Fold a sheet of paper in half and let them draw a shape of their choice. Now add a number of eyes by rolling a die. Roll again for arms, then again for horns. Each roll makes something new, and no two kids end up with the same creature.

This game builds number sense. A three year old can count dots on the die, then count the same number of eyes on the page.

Talk about feelings

A monster can be a helpful way to talk about big feelings. Ask your child what this one is thinking. Is he happy, or is he only pretending? What would make him sad? Some families make a "worry monster" who eats worries. Write a worry on a small slip of paper, feed it to the paper monster, and throw it away. It sounds simple, but many kids find that it helps at bedtime.

Stories about friendly creatures have a long history. The idea of a monster shows up in old tales from all over the world, and an older child can read about it on Wikipedia.

Party and classroom ideas

Use this sheet as a place card at a Halloween party. Kids can color a monster and write their name on it. For a class, hang them all on a wall under the title "Our Monster Family." Ask each child to write a name and a favorite food under the drawing. Worm spaghetti comes up a lot.

Count his fangs. There are only two, which is why he looks more friendly than fierce. Give him a job. Maybe he reads bedtime stories to the kids who are scared of the dark.

His three eyes are worth a second look. The middle eye sits on top of the head and is smaller than the other two, so ask your child what a third eye might see that two cannot. Answers range from monsters under the bed to extra cookies hidden on a high shelf.

Meet more silly friends

Once your monster coloring page is finished, try the cauldron coloring page, which has a smiling pot, or the vampire coloring page. Young artists will find more easy sheets on our preschool coloring pages hub, and the rest of the spooky set is on the Halloween coloring pages hub.

Questions