Every parent knows that children are seemingly born with an unimaginable amount of energy and “spark”. In their article about creativity prompts, Craft Whack calls them “inherently creative little beasts” and we think that’s an apt description of what they are in their early years. Of course, as parents you want to cultivate this spark so it lasts a lifetime.
Knowing how to be creative can come in handy not only if your kids chose to go into art, but in all walks of life. Even a marketing executive or an entrepreneur needs some creative skills to connect with other people, and the ability to see the world from different angles is crucial for people who are writers or musicians.
Today, we’re going to give you some prompts that can help you tickle their creative bone, so to speak. It’s important to encourage them to solve problems in unconventional methods, and to figure out new ways to do things.
On cloudy days, encourage your kids to watch the sky and draw the things they see in the clouds, or even to describe them. Encourage them to try and see if they can see multiple shapes in a single cloud, and to draw or paint whatever they see as well.
On projects like this, it’s important to let your kids pick whatever art mediums they want. Don’t just limit them to a pen and paper, and let them have fun with clay or paints, and even paper mache if they want.
Kids love drawing on the walls. It’s the reason many landlords don’t want to rent to couples with kids, but maybe you can channel that evil for good. There is chalkboard paint available in the market that can turn many flat surfaces in chalk board. The catch is that you’ll have to wait about three days to let the paint dry before you can use it, but once the surface is ready you can let your kids loose on the new wall.
Equip them with a box of colorful chalk, and see what they create. You can leave their works of art up until they’ve filled the whole wall and photograph them. This way your kids will be encouraged to really make an effort on it instead of winging it because the art is temporary afterall.
You can give them themed challenges and even see what they create when you limit them to one or two colors.
Not every creative activity needs to involve art supplies and staying still in one place. Kids role-play all the time, and it’s one of the best ways to spend their time. Create challenging and fun scenarios for them to act out, and maybe even help them put themselves in other people’s shoes.
Have your kids act out being animals, and imagine what one day in the life of one would look like. There’s no wrong way for them to go about this, and maybe you can even get in on the fun by playing a role in their story. When you’re encouraging your kids to be creative, it’s important to remember they’re not fully grown adults, and that they don’t have the same notions about art – or what it should look like, that you do. Remember that art doesn’t have to be perfectly drawn or all straight lines and clean circles, and that any play-acting doesn’t have to make sense. By giving into these urges to correct or “guide” your kids too much, you can end up doing more harm than good. Remember! The goal here is to foster creativity from an early age, there will be plenty of time to perfect their brush strokes!
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