Today’s children are growing up in an advanced technological age. Recent research shows that 80% of children spend excessive time in front of screens. Therefore, it is crucial to prioritize the development of creativity in children.
Activities such as art, music, storytelling, and imaginative play are key to fostering uniqueness and creativity in children. They are also some of the best ways for children to explore themselves and enhance their sense of self-awareness.
Let us explore why it is necessary to nurture creativity!
Nurturing Creativity: Essential for Today’s Children
Nurturing creativity in children has various benefits, including limiting their screen time and promoting self-exploration. Let us look at a few of them:
- Curiosity has been a driving force behind many remarkable achievements. All activities involving creativity help to stimulate curiosity among children.
- Promotes a sense of achievement among children when their loved ones praise their creativity.
- Creative activities help children develop qualities such as patience, self-esteem, and confidence.
Now, let us see how we can promote creativity through various activities:
Art: Promoting Creativity via Painting, Sketching & Drawing
Drawing, painting, or sketching promotes an infinite range of imaginative creativity. It is not just a source of creativity but also a method of learning while enjoying the process. Let us see a few of the advantages that art includes:
Advantages of Engaging in the Activities of Art
It is difficult to include all the gains of indulging in art-related activities. However, a few of them are:
- When children mix watercolors or draw with pencils, they learn about cause and effect.
- It is a great tool for promoting emotional expression, especially among introverted children who socialize less.
- Receiving praise from others and witnessing their final creations helps in boosting children’s confidence and decision-making power.
Ways to Promote Art Among Children
Knowing a few of the methods to promote art among children to boost their creativity can be beneficial for them. Here are a few methods:
1. Creating Art Space
Create a special area for art where children can explore new ideas. Make the room attractive with colorful images and cartoons to foster a sense of creativity among children.
2. Provide Material
Provide children with all the necessary materials to create artwork. Some common essentials are various types of colors ( watercolors, oil pastels, pencil colors, etc.), pencils, scrapbooks, charts, etc.
3. Teaching
Parents can guide their kids by teaching them to draw shapes, mix watercolors, and experiment with colors. This is a moment to teach kids and strengthen your bond with them.
Now let us know how we can foster creativity via music:
Music: The joyful art of sound
Music is an art form that allows children learn joyfully. Let us see a few of the advantages that music has:
Advantages of Music:
Not only does learning music have benefits, but listening to it has many benefits as well. Following are a few of them:
- Helps create a positive environment that brings joy, happiness, and positive emotions to children.
- Music in the form of lullabies helps calm kids down and strengthens the bond between parents and kids.
- Recent research shows that students involved in music training demonstrate higher verbal intelligence.
Ways to Encourage Children to Learn Music:
Curiosity is the mother of learning. If children are encouraged to explore and listen to music, they may develop mastery over this art. Let us look at a few of the ways to encourage them:
1. Playing Music Regularly
Regularly playing soothing or favorite music might encourage kids to learn music.
One can also create a playlist of different music aligning with kids’ moods and activities. For instance, cheerful songs are used for playtime, and soft music is used for sleep.
2. Providing Musical Instruments
Easy accessibility to musical instruments like piano, violin, guitar, flute, etc, may encourage them to explore the world of music.
However, beginners should be introduced to instruments like tambourines, etc, to build their interest in music.
3. Providing Music Classes
If the children show a strong interest in music, they should be sent to music classes to enhance their musical skills.
Now, let us see the magic of storytelling:
Storytelling: Engaging Young Minds Through Stories
One should not underestimate the power of storytelling. It might appear to be a very easy task, but it leaves a deep impact on the growing, young minds. Let us see a few of its advantages:
Benefits of Storytelling
One of the best advantages of storytelling is that it allows children to learn moral values via simple and impactful stories. It can be used to teach children about what is right and wrong, thus enhancing their decision-making power.
When children hear stories, they learn to visualize and generate new ideas. This not only enhances their comprehension power but also improves their verbal skills as they learn to use the right words.
Now, Let us see how playing fosters creativity:
Playing: Building Strength and Resilience in Kids
No one can deny the fact that kids involved in sports are often energetic and confident. Playing is a basic right of every child. Let’s take a look into the benefits of playing:
Benefits of Playing
Playing sports improves muscular strength and helps maintain a healthy life. Children can easily learn qualities like a healthy competitive spirit and resilience while playing. Qualities like discipline and self-confidence can be easily seen among the kids who love to play.
Children who play tend to develop strong social skills and a sense of teamwork. Also, playing enhances the release of endorphins, a feel-good hormone that reduces depression and anxiety.
Let’s explore how we can encourage children to play:
Ways to Encourage Children to Play
There are many ways to encourage kids to play games, whether through high physical activity or mental strength. Let us see them:
1. Celebrate achievements
Acknowledge the play achievements of children and praise their efforts. This helps them to perform better and give their best every time they play.
2. Invite neighbors
Arranging the materials to play is not enough. Parents should also invite children of neighbors to play with the child if the child is alone. This helps kids to develop a sense of teamwork and a healthy competitive spirit.
3. Set time to play
Parents should set schedules for their kids’ studies, meals, and playtime. This will help them become habitual about prioritizing physical activity, leading to a healthy lifestyle.
Conclusion
In the hustle and bustle of the modern lifestyle and the age of digital devices, parents are paying less attention to their children. However, this has led to adverse impacts on kids, such as addiction to screens, unhealthy lifestyles, etc.
In such cases, art, music, storytelling, and play stand out as some of the best ways to foster creativity in children. These activities not only boost creativity but also prepare kids for future challenges, helping them develop valuable qualities.
Discover the joy of creativity! Contact Bevin Carter today to learn more about nurturing art, music, storytelling, and play.