5 Ways to Nurture Your Little One’s Creativity
Young children learn and develop their own creativity through play. Check it out five proven ways to enrich your little one’s playtime, while also igniting their creative super-powers.
1 Set the scene: a calm, enjoyable environment.
Children are masters of creativity and are known to be inherent artists and scientists. Our main contribution as adults is to offer a calm and safe space where they feel welcomed to play and explore. Research shows that the primary purpose of our ancestral brain is survival – not learning - so, to learn efficiently, we need to feel safe and at ease first. Therefore it is vital that the environment allows us, adults, to be relaxed and calm too, as primary caregivers are the most essential reference point for little ones.
2 Free Movement, Free Play
Offer as many opportunities as you can for free movement and free play. When young children are learning to move, they are not only learning how to sit, crawl, walk, jump, run, but they are also learning how to learn. As Emmi Pikler said: “He learns to do something on his own, to be interested, to try out, to experiment. (…) He comes to know the joy that is derived from this success, the result of his patience and persistence.”
3 Young children love reality - more than toys
Maria Montessori would say that young children love to interact with real things more than toys because they are on a mission to know the world and to develop into fully capable adults. To grow and learn is their job – it's their urgent to-do list. The revolutionary pedagogue observed in her practice that as soon children can master their own body, they start a tenacious effort to understand and conquer the world. If you would like to experiment letting your little one play with “real toys”, do make sure they are entirely safe and age appropriate. Wooden spoons and pans are a great hit. Toy boxes too.
4 Breath In, Breath Out
Rudolf Steiner described the children’s play as being as dynamic as our breath, taking air in and then blowing it out. Breath In activities are introspective ones, require concentration and allow the child to be in contact with him/herself. (eg. drawing, puzzles, lego, reading). Breath Out are active and energetic activities and allow the child to release energy and explore the world around them (e.g. running around, jumping, play with a ball). Children well-being is enhanced when they can vary between those two dynamics throughout the day. When boredom or restlessness strikes, it might be time to change the rhythm. Switching to another kind of play can make miracles sometimes.
5 Play in Nature
Nature offers one of the best sensorial experiences, as it has an incomparable richness and diversity. Regular contact with natural environments profoundly enrich children’s play and creativity and supports general well-being, not only for little ones but for big ones too. A weekly dose of Vitamin G, a term coined by the author Richard Luov is highly beneficial, especially for children and also for every urban human in this world. Check out more about Richard's amazing research at richardlouv.com.
Ready to experiment? Share your creative adventures with your little ones, and drop us a line at info@imaginari.org
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