How could Parents Develop Creative Activities for Children?

Creative activities have been emphasized by many parents to help improve their children’s creativity which could benefit their future careers. Therefore, these parents tend to choose toys and games which could stimulate their children’s creativity. However, the most important thing that parents should know that no matter what creative activities they choose, their children should take a keen interest in them. Actually, there is a great variety of creative activities for parents to choose, such as pretend play, singing, dancing, making arts and crafts.

Picture 1: Doodle Pen Set

The benefits of creative activities to children have been concluded by educators and teachers as below:

l Improve imagination and creativity;

l Enhance self-confidence;

l Expressing abilities in children’s own thoughts, emotions and ideas;

l Empathy- standing on others’ shoes to think;

l Hoist decision-making and problem-solving, critical thinking skills;

l Develop social skills;

l Level up physical and motor skills.

So, how could parent encourage their children to have fun in creative activities? Teachers and education professors claim that the most important thing for parents to do when encouraging children to play creatively is to give them free time and step back from their play. In other words, when parents interfere in children’s play, they will be discourage to play creatively. For instance, children could do some creative activities even when they’re lying on the grass and watching the changing clouds in the sky.

Picture 2: DIY Doddle Painting Kit

Besides, parents could encourage children to share their artworks and talk about their feelings they had while making these artworks. It’s important for children to have fun from creative activities so they’d like to do them again. Parents should not interfere children’s creative games, especially when they are working with others on social media. It’s important for children to experiment and change something either at their wills or the suggestions of their pals till they think they’ve finished their artworks. At the same time, parents could encourage children to join in creative activities in these ways:

1. Asking them to explain their process, such as “Can you tell me how you get to the Arctic in this bike?”

2. Offering some suggestions in their experiments, such as “Maybe you can use this magic wand to help you with your project.”

3. Standing by to provide help so that they will be able to develop their play or artworks.

4. Giving them a workshop or storage box to support them with their creative projects.

Picture 3: Wooden Tangram Set

The most important principle for parents to abide by is that they should also being positive about children’s work. For instance, they should always say “I like your project. It’s really nice”. This is great for your children’s confidence and will encourage them to continue their creation. What’s more, parents should engage themselves in art appreciation in their children’s creative activities. For instance, they could take children to a local art gallery, exhibition or dancing performance so that they could be inspired with some new creative ideas. After the art appreciation, parents could further their art appreciation process by discussing how they feel about those artworks and encourage them to create their own ones.

Art and craft is always the most popular theme in children’s creative activities. When children see colors, shapes, patterns, lines or details in the surroundings, their curiosity will drive them to make their own artworks to express themselves. Whenever you see children scribble or squiggle some trees, flowers or figures, you can give them some paints, pens, paper or crayons because they are doing art creatively. This is the way parents could do to encourage children to do creative activities.

Picture 4: Scratch Art Drawing Notebook

Some pre-made things could also help children to do creative activities. Sometimes, it might be difficult for parents or children to find things to do creative activities. These pre-made things could be great choice for them. Here are some ideas for creative art and craft activities:

Picture 5: Fort Building Kit

Play with textured paint. Encourage your child to add sand, dirt or sawdust to paint and use this to decorate boxes or make paintings.

Make invisible ink out of a mixture of lemon juice and water. Your child can write a secret message with the ink. When it’s dry, they can hold the paper up to the light and see the message reappear.

Find a large cardboard box and see what your child can come up with. It could become a robot costume, plane, puppet theatre and so on.

Combine drawing, painting or clay-making with digital media. For example, make a clay model or a sculpture out of sticks and take photographs of it. Your child can use these photographs to make up a story.

Create digital artwork using software programs or apps.

Drama: creative activities for children

School-age children often make up and act out their own stories using simple props. Sometimes they act out events from daily life, movies and TV shows. Or you might notice your child acting out the lyrics as they listen to music or watch music videos. Also, children might act out roles like a caring vet or a police officer.

These dramatic activities give children the chance to work out real-life problems, like what to do when a person or a pet is sick or someone is angry. They also encourage children to see the world from someone else’s point of view, which helps to build empathy.

Here are some ideas to get your child involved in dramatic creative activities:

Picture 6: Magnetic Shape Shifting Box

Start a dress-up box. Use old clothes or buy simple props like cooking utensils from op shops.

Make simple puppets and put on a puppet show.

Take turns making up a story. You could begin with a simple situation and take turns saying what happens next. The longer the game continues, the more imaginative the story can be. If you need help to get started, you could try roll-a-story.

Video a play or performance. Your child could write the script and make the costumes, then video themselves using a smartphone or camera. They can edit and add special effects with software or apps.

Play games that involve guessing and acting, like charades and Pictionary. Your child could also make up their own set of flashcards with words to act out or draw.

Music, sound, movement and dance: creative activities for school-age children

Your child might enjoy making music, either copying songs they know or making up their own. Your child might also be keen to experiment with volume, echo, rhythm, tempo and pitch. And they might be ready to use musical symbols and notes to learn how to play a piece of music.

Picture 7: Hand Dinosaur Puppet

Here are some ways for your child to get creative with music, sound, movement and dance:

Let your child play or make sounds using bought instruments or instruments you already own. Encourage your child to try different volumes, tempos and rhythms, or copy the way you play.

Listen to the musical pieces Peter and the wolf and The carnival of the animals, which use different instruments to represent different animals. Guess what animal the music represents, copy the sounds and make up movements to go with the music.

Encourage your child to hum a favourite song, and try to guess what they’re humming. You can have a go too.

Use body percussion with singing. You and your child can tap your shoulders, knees or elbows to the beat of a song.

Play with music apps that allow your child to make songs and beats using the sounds of different instruments.

Dance to different rhythms and music. Or make up dance sequences about people, animals, machines, plants – whatever interests your child. Your child can teach you some dance moves too.

Picture 8: Fidget Pop Tube Toy