“Every child is an artist,” Pablo Picasso once said. What better way to let your young artist express themselves than a simple chalkboard wall?

A chalkboard wall instantly adds personality to a child’s room. And it can motivate kids to draw, play teacher with their siblings or plush toys, or even learn their ABCs or multiplication tables.

Here are a few of our favorite examples…

A chalkboard, in a child’s mind, is a piece of freedom, a wall where they are allowed to create masterpieces – as opposed to mom’s kitchen wall or the hallway!

Chalkboards come in all colors, and the web is full of DIY recipes to make your own custom-color chalkboard. But I prefer them in old-fashioned black. The trick is to get dust-free chalk – less chalk dust means a lot less cleaning time!

If you don’t feel like painting on the wall, you can scout some vintage chalkboards and arrange them on a wall like a collage. But beware of little artists who might “chalk” outside the box! You can also paint the storage doors in your child’s playroom instead of the wall.

So get your paintbrushes and rollers ready, and make an artist’s canvas for your little one on a whole wall, or a portion of one. You may even release your own inner artist – plus, you’ll be the coolest parent ever for drawing on the wall with your kid.

Careful — overdose of fun ahead!

Image credits (from the top): IKEA Family Live (photo 1), Scandinavian Deko (photo 2), Petra Bindel for Elle Sweden (photo 3), Taverne Agency (photo 4), Decoist (photo 5), Dos Family (photo 6), Smile and Wave on Flickr (photo 7), HGTV.com (photo 8), Valkoinen Harmaja (photo 9).