# One coloring book for a 3 year old and a 6 year old
By Nora Ember, Lantern & Ladder · Updated 28 October 2026
**The short answer:** Siblings of different ages can color together if each has their own page, side by side, rather than sharing one. A book that runs from easy pages to fuller ones gives the three year old big simple shapes and the six year old more to do in the same book. Give the older child a role, such as choosing colors, helping with an edge or naming the animal, and keep the crayons shared but plentiful.
Two children three years apart want different things from a coloring book, and two books is two arguments. How to set up coloring that works for both at one table: one book, two ways in, and a job for the older one.

## Why two books start arguments

Coloring activities for siblings of different ages usually go wrong in one
of two ways. The book is right for the little one, and the six year old
calls it babyish and wanders off; or it is right for the big one, and the
three year old cannot start a page and wants theirs instead. Buy one of each
and the children want each other's.

The fix is not two books. It is one table, one book that works at both ages,
and a page each.


## One book, two ways in

Some coloring books are ordered by effort, with the simplest pictures at
the front and fuller ones further in. That order is what makes one book
work for two ages: the three year old colors from the front, the six year
old from the middle, and both are in the same book with the same animals.

Look for a book where even the fuller pages are one big subject, so the
little one can still try them, and where the simple ones are not so bare
that the older child is bored. A six year old will happily take care over a
puppy's collar and the door of its kennel, where a three year old fills the
body and is done.


## A page each, side by side

Sharing one picture rarely works at these ages. The three year old colors
across the six year old's careful part, and that is the end of the
afternoon. Give each child their own page, next to each other, at the same
table.

If the book is single sided, a page can be cut out for one child while the
other keeps the book. Or print two copies of the same free page, so both
color the same duck in their own way and can compare them after.


## A job for the older one

A six year old with a three year old beside them likes being the expert,
and a job keeps that friendly:

- **Choosing.** The older one picks four colors for the little one's page.
- **Naming.** They read or say what the picture is, and what sound it makes.
- **Helping with an edge.** Not doing it for them: holding the page still,
  or showing where the wing ends.
- **Judging.** Choosing which of the two finished pages goes on the fridge
  first, as long as they take turns.

Keep it a job, not a rule. If the older one wants to color their own page
in peace, that is fine too.


## Crayons: shared, but plenty

Put one box of crayons between them and make sure it has enough of each
color that nobody waits: two of the favourite colors, not one. Chunky
crayons suit both ages; the six year old can have a few ordinary ones too,
for details.


## When the older one wants more

Somewhere around seven, a child who likes coloring will want pages with
more in them than a three year old's book can hold. That is the moment for
a book of their own, and the younger one keeps the shared one.


## If you want one of ours

This part is about our own books, so weigh it accordingly. Little Lantern
Coloring is drawn for exactly this: ages 3 to 6 in one book, the easiest
pages first and fuller ones further in, every page a single big subject,
and every picture on its own page with the back left blank, so one can be
cut out. [Farm and Garden](/series/llc/farm-and-garden) is the first volume
and goes on sale in November. For a child of seven or more, [Cute
Animals](/series/lc/cute-animals) in Lantern Coloring is the step up, and
the [whole Little Lantern series](/series/llc) shows what comes next.

## From the series
Little Lantern Coloring is drawn for ages 3 to 6 in one book: the easiest pages at the front, fuller ones further in, and every one still a single big subject. [Little Lantern Coloring](https://lanternladder.com/series/llc.md)

## Related guides
- [How to choose a coloring book for a 3 year old](https://lanternladder.com/guides/how-to-choose-a-coloring-book-for-a-3-year-old.md): Look inside: one big thing a page, lines that survive a crayon, no space narrower than a crayon, blank backs, and an age band that starts at three.
- [Quiet time without a screen: coloring a 3 year old will finish](https://lanternladder.com/guides/screen-free-quiet-time-for-3-year-olds.md): Set it up before you need it, give one page they can finish, sit with them for the first minutes, and stop while it is still going well.
- [Coloring inside the lines: when it comes, and whether to ask for it](https://lanternladder.com/guides/coloring-inside-the-lines.md): Usually between 3 and 5. Do not ask for it or correct it: praise the effort, and give the child big spaces and lines thick enough to find.
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Page: https://lanternladder.com/guides/coloring-for-siblings-of-different-ages
Lantern & Ladder, Utrecht, Netherlands. info@lanternladder.com