Tips to Encourage Kids’ Creativity

Tips to Encourage Kids’ Creativity

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If you have children or grandchildren, it is your duty to encourage their creativity because it is that which will help them to be intelligent, resourceful, well rounded and happy human beings who can meet any challenge head on and who are able to relax and enjoy life the right way.

Unfortunately, too many adults do not see the benefit of creative pursuits, preferring their children to concentrate on the skills they think will make them more employable such as math and science. Obviously, these are important skills to learn, but so is creativity. In fact, creativity can make children better at those important core subjects by enabling them to think through problems in unique ways.

So, creativity is good, but how do you encourage it in your kids?

Encourage them to Seek Answers

If you spend time with kids, you will know that they ask a lot of questions. When they do this, instead of just giving them a simple answer or avoiding the question if you’re unsure of the answer, say “I don’t know, let’s see what we can do to find out.” This will encourage them to start thinking more about everything from the color of the sky to the way the TV works by actually engaging with the world around them.

Buy Creative Toys

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Instead of buying the kids ready-made toys like dolls and racing cars, buy them Lego (no kits), Meccano, Play-Doh and other toys that will keep them busy, encourage them to use their imagination and create interesting stuff out of nothing.

Ask their Opinions

Whether you’re looking at a beautiful piece of art or watching the TV news, you should never be afraid or too dismissive, to ask your children’s opinions on the world around them. This will encourage them to think freely about a range of topics, which will ultimately lead to greater creativity and intelligence. Just make sure you are open to their ideas, even if they clash with your own.

Let Them Explore

So many kids spend their days indoors staring at screens when they could be outside exploring the world around them. I know it can be worrying letting your kids out on their own, but once they’re old enough, let them play hide and seek, climb trees, catch bugs and explore what nature has to offer, even if they’re only allowed in the backyard.

Help Them Achieve Their Dreams

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Send them to band camp, make them their own CD’s with the help of Nationwide, or show them how to publish their stories on Amazon if you want to really encourage them and help them to achieve their dreams of being a writer, rockstar or whatever else it is they dream of.

Avoid Perfectionism

If there’s one thing that stifles a child’s creative it more than anything else, it’s perfectionism. If a child thinks that they must do everything perfectly, eventually they’ll put down the crayons and give up. So, whatever your child does, be sure to give them praise. You don’t have to overdo it, and if you can find a gentle way to offer constructive criticism, go ahead, but never let them think that creative projects have to be perfect because perfect rarely exists.

Are you raising a creative kid? What are your top tips?

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com  is trying to keep you looking good and
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