All children have that one special skill, that one spark of creativity that needs to be encouraged and uplifted. Sometimes, this support helps kids discover their creativity and skill which was unknown to them. Creativity comes in various forms such as drawing, painting, dancing, writing etc. Some children find acting and reading appealing.
Tips to Nurture Creativity in Children
Create a Positive Environment
Children need a positive environment to express their ideas and creativity. When they feel they are encouraged and are not under any pressure, they get ideas and act upon them. It is important to provide kids with positive environment which involves encouragement and no strict judgement at home. Home is the place where they first discover their knack for creativity and home is where it should be nurtured with loving care and support.
Keep Creative Resources Handy
Some field of activities require resources that you can keep with yourself, in order to promote creativity in your kids. If children can easily access to pen, paper, crayons and other crafty material then they can display their creativity when the moment strikes. Kids can create amazing crafts from even the simplest materials like scrap papers, empty boxes. So keeping glitter pens, sketch pens helps in promoting creativity in art and craft among kids.
Provide With Creative Toys
Investing in open ended toys which promote creativity in kids can be your best investment. Toys like building blocks, sets, dressing up games and animals can encourage imaginative play and creativity. Children can explore limitless creativity within these toys. Puzzles and sudoku can also help children to satiate their curious mind while also providing them enjoyable playtime.
Promote Inspiring Thoughts
When your child has a creative idea or unique thought, you can always promote it. You can also guide them along the way so they explore and achieve the skill they’re trying to acquire. When your child does something new, be sure to ask them mindful questions like why they did that or how they did that? What changes would they like to make? What does the drawing means? Questions likes these promote their creativity and makes them feel inspired as well.
Have Free Time
In order to build and nurture creativity in your kids, one important thing to bear in mind is that it won’t come out in a decided timetable. Creativity needs unstructured time to flow and hear up on its own. When kids get alone time, their creative skills get time to breathe and come out. So don’t put your children in boxed set of time by saying that they must show their creativity in a limited period of time, because it doesn’t work that way.
Reduce Screen Time
It is very important to restrict and reduce screen time for kids who spend hours in front of TV doing nothing. If your child spends most of the day lazing around the couch and watching TV or playing mobile games then he or she is bound to get away from creativity as they won’t get a chance to explore it as most of the time they’re glued to the screens. You can encourage your children to explore their creativity and imagination rather than playing with a device which is not good for them in excessive amount.
Switch Environment
Kids often get bored at one place for a long time. They should get chance to explore their surroundings in order to get their creative juices flowing. Also different environment may have different effect over a child’s imagination. Some kids might find a visit to a park or a water park happening to their senses while some may find museum and libraries fascinating. So keep switching your child’s creative environment and give them a chance to explore what works best for them at their own.
Encourage Diversity
Young children are naïve and most of the time when they don’t find their interests matching with their peers, it might disappoint them and make them wonder what’s wrong with them. You must let your child know that being different from others is something one should embrace and never be ashamed of.
As every child is different and their interest lies in different things, so what may make one child happy may spark no interest in another, and this is absolutely normal. Diversity can be seen in your home as well. For example, it is possible that your one child loves singing and dancing while another prefers quiet reading time over anything else. Both the hobbies should be encouraged and applauded. Stay open to new ideas and experiences and let your child know it as well.
Display Your Creative Skills
Sometimes, all your children need is for you to display your creative skills. This might also strike an interest in their minds to showcase a skill of their own. Very often, children tend to copy their parents in what they find fascinating. Little girls often copy the dressing style of their mothers and little boys want to act strong and masculine like their father. It Is all a part of child psychology.
So when you display your skills, it might lead your children into evaluating their best ideas and bring them into motion to the fullest extent possible. Also provide them with feedback where it is due. It encourages children to perform well and makes them feel supported, so it becomes easier for them to display their creativity.
References:
https://www.waterford.org/resources/creative-activities-for-kids/
www.tutordoctor.co.uk/blog/2019/december/10-ways-to-nurture-your-childs-creativity-and-im
