I am a father of three little ones. Each one has the ability to amaze me in different ways, but on a day-to-day basis we constantly fight to ensure that they follow the rules we have at home. Many times the rules that we set, which are important to us parents, can end up turning off the creativity that is so important to them (and us). At times we forget that we are helping them to be better human beings and many times this does not translate into silent obedience but rather into solving problems (many times abstract) and completing their tasks intelligently. We want to mold them into adults who help the world to be better and, last but not least, into happy people.
We feel that creativity plays a very important role in this task and that, with creativity, we can see what is gloomy in an interesting panorama to grow. Here are some "tips" to encourage creativity at home:
1) Ask your children "What if?"
What would happen if you don't feed the dog? What if you could travel to a place where you don't know the language? What would happen if we did not have a television or cell phone? What if birds could work in home service? Asking hypothetical questions can help you think about different ways of living life and looking for previously unforeseen solutions or opportunities.
2) When something bad happens or you make a mistake, look for the positive side
Our children, just like us, can get discouraged when something goes wrong. Resilience is built from a young age. How many times did we fall before starting to walk? We must keep a positive mind and learn from the mistakes we have and look for the positive side to move forward. This practice develops much more easily if it is accompanied by the support of a parent.
3) Learn and promote the interests of your children
When a child is passionate about a topic, they are much more likely to follow those topics through to completion. Let's take advantage of those interests to attach them to topics that we consider important and they will see how much easier it will be for them to learn about other topics. I don't think someone can bear to talk about Minecraft or Roblox for hours like our children can, but within that there are several things that we can correlate so that learning about other things and sitting down with them to do something together will stimulate them to put more effort. This is much easier to apply when it is a sport, art or music. Half an hour playing the piano together, an afternoon painting something or 1 hour playing a sport will stimulate them to keep trying.
4) Let's ask open questions
We are not content with asking closed questions. A Yes or No question never helped us get to know our children better. Asking them open questions helps them to use their brain better and to look for more concrete answers that can lead to new ideas or better detail what they have rationalized.
5) Promotes free time and creative play
At my house we strive to have few character-specific toys. Princess Elsa and Anna, as well as Spiderman and Iron Man, will go out of style but open-ended toys tend to be used as any character possible. Leaving the house to play in the green and putting their heads together to play creatively can lead them to stimulate their brain in differentiated games that can be applied on a daily basis. A couple of crayons and blank sheets of paper can go a long way if we don't have any coloring books for their favorite characters.
6) Try different things
Trying things in a different way can help them think about new scenarios and new options available. When you are on a new project, especially an artistic one, invite him to try something different, to use elements outside of his comfort zone, and to use them to try to do something that may not work. Children learn more in the process than in the result. So let's put elements out of the ordinary so that they strive for new results
7) Read together
I can't do enough relevance on this. Read and read a lot but above all READ TOGETHER. Our children are little sponges and reading will help them see worlds outside of what they ever imagined. In the process, they will learn not only new vocabulary, but also experiences and solutions to problems that would not normally be available to them.
To bring this blog post to a close I recommend you try one of these new activities this week.
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