How to Help Your Kids Stimulate Their Creative Juices
Technology is a great thing, and we have come so far in our technological advances that it is no wonder why kids spend a great deal of time in front of screens. However, the screens can be limited to a child’s creativity.
So, what happened to the days when kids used their imaginations? I believe it has just been swept under the rug and can easily be exposed under the right conditions. Want to get your kid’s creative juices flowing? Here is how.
1 Gather some junk
Do you have any empty boxes around the house? How about empty plastic containers, nuts, bolts, wood scraps, string or rope, broken toys, or anything else that you could throw away? Put these things in a designated spot or storage container instead. Take your child by the hand and together create something out of the junk you have gathered.
Set parameters such as a minimum time frame in which they must spend time inventing new things. Make it more challenging by only giving them a few items to use. That way they will not just spend a few minutes creating, and then get bored and head back to the screens.
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2 Head outside
Get your child outside whether it is the yard, a park, or somewhere bigger. Go camping, hiking, exploring, and along the way notice things you have never noticed before. Keep a journal or make a list of all the observations.
Use that information for writing stories, building forts, and whatever else you can dream up. I guarantee that spending time out in nature will get their creativity flowing. Fresh air and a little exercise are always good for the body and the brain.
3 Grab some art and craft supplies
Construct an arts and crafts supplies box and include paints, crayons, markers, Playdoh or clay, glitter, glue, paint brushes, stencils, a variety of paper, string, yarn, and whatever other crafty items you can put in the box. You could even include coloring books or craft kits. Hand it over to the kids and let them design and produce new things from their imagination. Provide ideabooks if needed.
4 Use technology
Wait, what? You heard me right. Technology can aid in creativity, but you have to be very selective. Find apps that take kids’ original ideas further. For example, find an app that will take the clay creature they made and help them develop a claymation video. Or, search for apps that help the kids write stories and illustrate them. Be very selective and again, set parameters.
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Creative juices flow when children are uninhibited. They are not limited to what is on the screen in front of their faces or the video games in the house. They can put the controls down, head outside, or open the craft box and just go crazy! Join in on the fun, and together you will be dreaming up and making amazing things just from pure imagination.
