"I Can Do This": How Colouring Helps Children Build Confidence
Lola Olajide, founder of mindful colouring book brand Ruthy Michaels, smiling and holding two colouring markers against an orange background ā self-care and mindfulness colouring for busy mums and caregivers.
"I can't do it."
If you're a parent, you've heard it. Over homework. Over shoelaces. Over a new class or a new friend. Sometimes it comes with tears. Sometimes it's a quiet shrug that worries you more.
We can't do it for them. But we can help them hear a different sentence, often enough that it starts to feel true.
Why positive words stick when children colour them
When a child colours "I can do this," they don't just read it. They spend ten quiet minutes with it. They trace every letter, choose every colour and finish the page.
That slow, hands-on time matters. Colouring helps a child settle, and a settled child is more open to a new idea about themselves. At the end, they have something they made, with a message that belongs to them.
Small ways to use an affirmation page at home
The finished coloured page of ā I can Do Thisā
Colour together. Sit beside them with your own page. No teaching, no correcting. Just company.
Say it once. When it's finished, read it aloud together: "I can do this." Keep it light.
Put it where they'll see it. On the fridge, the bedroom door, or inside a school book.
Point back to it. Next time they're stuck, you don't need a lecture. "Remember your page?" is enough.
When they still say "I can't"
They will. Confidence isn't built in one afternoon. It grows in small moments that quietly pile up. Some days the page will just be a nice thing to colour, and that still counts.
Praise the effort more than the result. "You kept going even when it was tricky" builds more belief than "It's perfect."
A note for you, mum
Here's the part nobody says: our children learn "I can do this" by watching us.
So on the days you're running on empty, with the work call, the school run and the washing that never ends, you're allowed to need those words too. Colour a page beside them. Let them see you take ten minutes for yourself. That's a lesson in itself.
Frequently asked questions
Does colouring help children's confidence?
It can. Finishing a page gives a child a small, real win. Colouring positive words repeats a helpful message in a calm, low-pressure way.
What age is affirmation colouring good for?
Most children from around four upwards enjoy it. Younger ones can colour while you read the words aloud.
How long should a child colour for?
Ten to fifteen minutes is plenty. Stop while it's still fun.
The "I Can Do This" page comes from my children's affirmation colouring book: positive words for little hands to colour and big hearts to believe. [Shop the book ā]
