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This is such an important question and one I am asked all the time!
As adults many of us forget how creative we were as children and lost some of it as we grew. If we don’t keep up creative ways of learning or activities that help us think differently, then our creative processes dry up. They don’t leave us, they just stay dormant.
It’s such a shame that many people don’t get the chance to live their whole lives creatively.
WHAT DO I MEAN BY BEING CREATIVE THOUGH?
When I say the word creativity, I bet you automatically think of artists or writers or actors. We link creativity to The Arts because those professions ARE creative. But would you think that a scientist is creative, or a shopkeeper? Probably not, but let me convince you…
Creativity is by dictionary definition:
“the ability to make or otherwise bring into existence something new, whether a new solution to a problem, a new method or device, or a new artistic object or form”. Britannica.com
Knowing this may help you to see that other professions also use creativity and, in fact, NEED creative thinkers to take ideas forward and make changes to our world. Let's take a closer look...
The scientists that worked round the clock developing a vaccine for COVID had to use their creative brains to work out how they could “bring into existence something” that hadn’t been developed before – and quickly!
A shopkeeper facing an economic crisis needs to think creatively to plan how to keep their customers coming back again and again.
Last night I watched a programme that showed ways that pubs in the UK had diversified to ensure they continued to make money. From craft nights, knitting clubs and cooking workshops to yoga sessions, they are finding new ways to bring a community together, in their space.
So, it’s easy to see how creativity is a HUGE deal as we and our children face a future that is ever-changing and fast-paced.
HOW DO WE KEEP CREATIVITY ALIVE?
Problem-solving is great for a creative mind. Arts and craft offer that in spades of course. Learning a new skill or how to paint, draw or knit is making the creative muscles start to work. Moving on to developing your own patterns and pictures, stretches them and makes them work harder. Building models and making things move or do something, like a string puppet or a junk model car is a great way to get those muscles working and every thing that goes wrong is just something to tackle – like an incorrect maths calculation that needs to be tried again. Think about the scientists who tried over and over until it worked!
Using crafting kits, or going to art clubs to allow your child that freedom to explore different materials and make things that you may not have at home, gives them an opportunity to explore different ways of making.
If you are feeling less than creative, using other people’s ideas always helps and if you start with your child, you may soon realise that you quite like the whole process too, and then before you know it you will be creating your own fun ideas!
For more information on creativity, subscribe to this blog and maybe have a look through previous posts too. There is a lot to read on creativity and how to develop it in your child.
If you need some help with ideas, check out our free calendar and planner:
With suggested ideas and video links on the calendar, they are the perfect way to bring some creativity to your child’s week. And the best bit? You get to do it too!
I’m talking the benefits of crafting with your child next week, so make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss it!
Have a great weekend!
Deb x