When your child says, “I don’t know how I feel”, try giving them a paintbrush instead of asking another question.
Children do not always have the words to describe what is happening inside them. A child may know that something feels uncomfortable, overwhelming or confusing without being able to identify the emotion or explain what caused it.
Creative activities can give children another route into emotional expression.
Bubble and watercolour painting is a particularly engaging option because the process is unpredictable. Bubbles pop, colours spread, patterns appear and the child does not need to produce a recognisable picture.
That makes it useful as an expressive arts activity for children aged around 6–12, particularly when you want to encourage conversation without turning the moment into an interrogation.
What Is Bubble and Watercolour Painting?
Bubble painting involves combining a liquid painting medium with a bubble solution, creating coloured bubbles and transferring their patterns onto paper.
The child can then add watercolour to the resulting patterns, allowing the painting to develop organically.
Bubble painting is already used as an open-ended children’s art activity because it allows children to experiment with colour, texture and pattern without requiring conventional drawing skills.
When used within an expressive arts setting, the activity can also become a prompt for talking about feelings.
The important part is the process and the child’s own meaning-making, rather than trying to decode the finished picture.
Why Use This With Children?
Imagine asking a child:
“How are you feeling?”
You might get:
“I don’t know.”
Or:
“Fine.”
Or perhaps no answer at all.
Now imagine putting some colourful bubble solution on the table and saying:
“Let’s see what happens when we make feelings into colours and bubbles.”
That changes the conversation.
The child has something concrete to explore. They can make choices without having to immediately explain themselves.
Watercolour also lends itself well to experimentation because colours can blend, spread and change as water moves across the paper.
The activity can therefore become a gentle starting point for emotional vocabulary and reflection.
Who Is This Activity Suitable For?
Recommended age: 6–12 years
This activity works particularly well with children who:
- find direct emotional questions difficult
- enjoy sensory or creative experiences
- communicate more comfortably through images
- become frustrated when asked to explain their feelings
- enjoy experimenting with colour
- are developing their emotional vocabulary
Older children and pre-teens can also add their own interpretations, stories or symbols to the bubble patterns.
For younger children, the adult may need to handle the bubble-blowing step.
What You Need
You can keep the setup very simple.
Basic materials
- Watercolour paints
- Watercolour paper or thick mixed-media paper
- Paintbrushes
- Bubble solution
- Small cups or containers
- Straws
- Water
- Paper towels
- Protective covering for the table
For the bubble mixture, child-safe, non-toxic materials should be used.
Safety note: Children should never suck through a straw containing bubble solution or paint. Supervise the activity closely and demonstrate how to blow safely. For a child who may accidentally inhale or swallow the mixture, an adult can create the bubbles instead. Bubble-painting guidance for children similarly recommends close supervision around the straw and avoiding ingestion.
Supplies You Can Add to Your Art Kit
If you are building a small expressive arts corner at home, these are useful supplies to look for on Amazon.
1. Washable Watercolour Paint Set
Choose a child-friendly set with several colours.
2. Watercolour Paper
Thicker paper handles wet media much better than ordinary printer paper.
3. Children’s Paintbrush Set
A small selection of brush sizes allows the child to experiment with different marks.
4. Non-Toxic Bubble Solution
Look for a child-friendly bubble solution suitable for craft use.
5. Mixed Media Sketchbook
This can become the child’s ongoing creative journal for expressive arts activities.
6. Washable Table Cover
Bubble painting can get messy, so a reusable waterproof table cover makes preparation and clean-up easier.
How to Do the Bubble Painting Activity
Step 1: Prepare the Space
Cover the table and place your paper in front of the child.
Put a small amount of bubble solution into a container and add a little washable, water-based colour.
Prepare separate containers if you want to create different colours.
Step 2: Make the Bubbles
Show the child how to blow gently through the straw without sucking the liquid.
Let the bubbles rise above the container.
Then gently place the paper over the bubbles.
When they pop, they leave behind circular patterns and irregular patches of colour.
Bubble painting instructions commonly use this process of creating a mound of coloured bubbles and pressing paper onto them to create the print.
Step 3: Experiment With Colour
Try another colour.
Let the child decide where to place it.
They might overlap colours.
They might cover the entire page.
They might leave large areas of white space.
There is no need to correct the composition.
The unexpected results are part of the appeal.
Step 4: Add Watercolour
Once the bubble prints have dried, invite the child to use watercolour over the patterns.
They can:
- Follow the bubble circles
- Paint around them
- Connect different shapes
- Add lines or symbols
- Let colours blend
- Turn the patterns into something recognisable
You can also leave the artwork abstract.
There is no requirement for the painting to become a picture.
Now Turn It Into an Emotional Conversation
This is where the activity can become more than an art project.
Instead of immediately asking:
“What does your painting mean?”
try starting with curiosity.
You could say:
“I wonder what these bubbles would say if they could talk.”
Or:
“If one of these colours was a feeling, which feeling would it be?”
Or:
“Which part of the painting feels most like you today?”
The child decides what the colours and shapes mean.
That distinction matters.
A black area does not automatically mean sadness.
A red mark does not automatically mean anger.
A messy painting does not automatically indicate distress.
The child is the person who gives the artwork its meaning.
Try the “Feeling Bubble” Experiment
You can make the activity even more playful.
Ask the child:
“Imagine every bubble is carrying a feeling.”
Then invite them to choose a colour for each feeling.
For example, they might decide that:
- Blue is worry.
- Yellow is excitement.
- Green is calm.
- Red is frustration.
Or they may create meanings that are completely different.
There is no correct colour for an emotion.
That gives the child an opportunity to develop their own emotional language rather than memorising an adult’s interpretation.
What If Your Child Doesn’t Want to Talk?
Do not turn the artwork into an interview.
A child may simply want to paint.
That is fine.
You can say:
“You don’t have to explain it. We can just look at it.”
Then sit with them.
You might eventually hear:
“That bubble is the argument we had.”
Or:
“This bit is when I was scared.”
Or:
“This colour is what happy feels like.”
The conversation can happen naturally when the child is ready.
A Simple Metaphor to Try
Here is another way to explain the activity to a child:
“Feelings can be a bit like bubbles. They can appear suddenly, get bigger, bump into other feelings and eventually pop or change.”
Then ask:
“What would your feelings look like if they were bubbles?”
That gives the child something to investigate rather than something they have to answer correctly.
What Parents Should Avoid
The biggest mistake is trying to become an art detective.
Avoid statements such as:
“You used black, so you must be sad.”
“That’s a very angry painting.”
“Why did you make that part so dark?”
These interpretations come from the adult.
Instead, allow the child to explain their own work.
Try:
“Tell me about this part.”
“What is happening here?”
“What made you choose that colour?”
“Which part do you like?”
“Does anything in the painting feel different now?”
The child’s interpretation should lead the conversation.
This Is About Expression, Not Artistic Skill
Your child does not need to be good at painting.
In fact, this is one of the reasons bubble painting can work well for children who become anxious about drawing.
The bubbles create the starting point.
The child does not have to draw a perfect face, landscape or object.
They can simply respond to what appears on the page.
That makes the activity accessible to children who may say:
“I can’t draw.”
You can respond:
“You don’t have to. Let’s see what the bubbles make.”
How This Can Support Emotional Learning
A creative activity like this can open opportunities for children to practise recognising and communicating feelings.
The conversation may help them explore:
Naming
“What feeling is this?”
Connecting
“When do you feel this way?”
Noticing
“Where do you notice this feeling?”
Changing
“What happens when you add another colour?”
The art provides a concrete object that the child and adult can look at together.
That can feel easier than having the adult’s attention focused directly on the child’s emotional state.
Try It During a Calm Moment
You do not have to wait until your child is having a difficult emotional moment.
In fact, introducing the activity during a calm period can make it easier for the child to explore it without pressure.
You could keep a small expressive arts box containing:
- Watercolours
- Paper
- Brushes
- Bubble solution
- Crayons
- Markers
- A sketchbook
Then the materials are already available when your child wants to create.
Watch the Bubble & Watercolour Technique
I demonstrated this technique in a short video for EducateAble, including the simple process and the emotional prompt you can use with your child.
Watch the YouTube Short here:
If you prefer visual demonstrations, watch the video first and then try the activity with your child.
When Professional Support May Be Helpful
Creative activities can support emotional expression, but they should not be treated as a diagnostic tool.
A single painting cannot tell you whether a child is anxious, depressed, angry or experiencing another difficulty.
If a child is experiencing persistent emotional distress, major changes in behaviour, difficulties at school, ongoing anxiety or other concerns that interfere with everyday life, consider seeking support from an appropriately qualified child mental health professional.
The artwork can still be useful as a starting point for conversation, provided the child’s own explanation remains central.
Want More Expressive Arts Ideas?
If your child finds talking about feelings difficult, you can build a small collection of creative prompts that make emotional conversations feel more natural.
Explore more expressive arts and child emotional wellbeing resources from EducateAble:
You can also explore the EducateAble YouTube channel for short, practical ideas that parents, educators and professionals can adapt for children.
Final Thought
The next time your child says:
“I don’t know how I feel.”
You could put some paper on the table and say:
“That’s okay. Let’s make something and see what shows up.”
Sometimes a bubble popping onto a sheet of paper can create an opening for a conversation that a direct question could not.
And the child gets to decide what that bubble means.
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