You have all of the art supplies out and you are ready to dive into a new art project with the kiddos. The only problem is that your kids don’t seem to have a creative bone in their body! They are not excited and they are certainly not ready to dive into a new project!
It’s okay! Not all children are naturally creative. Chances are that you have have a kinesthetic learner on your hands and they simply just don’t want to have to sit still! Either way, not to worry! I have some tips below that will help get your kids in a creative mood!
- Give them right exposure. To harness creativity in your children, you need to give them a lot of exposure. Unless they try different things, they won’t be able to understand what excites them. If you have a hobby, pursue it. Even better, ask your children to participate in it. It can be gardening, painting, knitting or even cooking. Take your kids to libraries and extracurricular activities classes. Let them choose what they want to learn. Chances are high that after some time they would lose interest in one and want to try another. Don’t stop them. Keep on encouraging them. Your encouragement and love would help them to unlock the doors of creativity.
- Give them enough free time. Children need free time. Your homeschoolers also need free time to think and play on their own. Do not tell them what to do in their free time. Make it their time and closely observe them. Is he painting, creating something with the blocks or simply gazing at the sky? Let him. He will learn how to utilize the time slowly and make productive use of it.
- Give them resources. Children need resources to foster their creativity. If your kid loves to paint, keep ample art materials at home. If he loves craft, keep basic craft materials handy. Similarly, for music loving kids, store plenty of CDs at home so that he can listen to them.
Take them to book stores, museums and art galleries where they can observe others’ work and get ideas. - Make it a family activity! Children need lots of encouragement to unleash their creativity. The entire family must encourage him and take part in it. Keep aside the weekends for such joint activity sessions. It would also help you to bond better with the children and spend some quality time.
- Make your home screen-free. Technology is good as long as it is not stunting our mental growth. Too much of television, iPods and iPads would hinder the mental growth of children. Restrict the time they spend watching TV or playing games in iPads. The more you make your home screen-free the greater the benefits. You will find your kids finding more time to pursue creative interests.
Encourage your kids and always praise their hard work. Help them to learn more and develop their skills. Let your little bundle of joy amaze you with his creativity.
