We frequently hear this phrase that “there is only a fine line that separates genius from madness.” This phrase refers to the fact that no creative person exists without some touch of madness.
Children learn from their surroundings, and their environment plays a vital role in their development. Childhood is the time of shapeshifting and magic where doors become blackboards, toys are students, sofas are jumping castles, and bed act as boats with sheets as sails.
This might seem stupid to you, but children know how to enjoy by turning simple things into creative stuff. Kids are more creative than adults. According to a study, 4-5-year-old children are highly creative, and this creativity will gradually decrease as age increases.
Why Creativity + Imagination Is Important For Child Development
Today one of the main concerns of many parents is that their children spend a significant amount of time in front of screens, whether it is TV, tablet, or smartphones. Spending most of your time in front of screens is an artificial form of learning.
When a child concentrates on the visual and auditory objects for learning, they stop using their imaginations and don’t work on creating something new. Imagination and creativity come to children when they engage themselves in a kinesthetic manner using their bodies.
Children learn creativity and imagination by engaging their whole body and getting involved in their environment. Children express themselves through verbal and non-verbal play, and when they use their large and small muscles as well as their senses while playing, that helps them develop healthy and robust brain connections.
“Imagination and creativity are more important than knowledge”- Einstein.
As the child’s physical growth is essential, they must learn to imagine and create new things. Imagination is the gate to endless opportunities. This is where ingenuity, creativity, and thinking outside the box begin for the child.
Creative and imaginative play allows the children to express themselves verbally or non-verbally, plan, manipulate materials, interact, and try different roles. This is offering them learning opportunities, and children are able to think and imagine out of the box.
When your child plays with dough, works with art supplies, plays with water, splashes in puddles helps in their further development. Imagination and creativity foster cognitive and problem-solving skills among children. It is the desire of every parent that their child reaches emotional potential and highest intellectual.
How Imagination Affects Creativity?
Imagination is the creative skills that help the children to create scenarios, think, form ideas, and images in their minds without the direct involvement of audio or visual aids. This helps them in developing critical thinking skills, which allow them to think of the solutions during challenging situations and implement them. Imagination is vital for integrating learning processes and experiences.
Imagination and creativity are two different aspects that are liked with each other. Imagination is to think about something, and creativity is all about creating something out of your imagination.
To imagine is to bring things in your mind that aren’t really present. Every single child in the universe is born with the skill to imagine things that don’t exist. Everyone knows that blue cats do not exist, but a four-year old likes to enjoy possibilities to imagine and think about blue cats.
Parents play a crucial role in nurturing the child’s imagination and allow them to think and perform actions creatively. Sometimes parents knowingly or unknowingly suppress their child’s imaginative processes. As a result, they stop creating things in their mind. Imagination is the seed of creativity. And your imagination does not become great until one has the audacity to create it. Without imagination, there is no creativity.
The child you see that struggles to create something or unable to get ideas or neither he/she can come up with a solution to any small problem is due to the lack of their imaginative development. And it happens when their innovative thoughts are stifled. Imagination allows the children to contemplate various resolutions, creatively think, and become confident in their daily interactions.
Tips for Encouraging Imagination & Creativity among Children
Fostering imagination and creativity among children helps in their development. Here are some of the tips that help in encouraging them.
1. Investing time in outdoor activities
Taking your kids out to parks for a walk or for playing can be really beneficial. There are numerous benefits of nature, and it offers endless prospects for untiring creativity, problem-solving, and observation. Children can create something out of the clouds, draw on sands, and build something from branches.
2. Making up scenarios
Children like to make up scenarios. And when you invest in ideas and inventing scenarios, it enhances their social and verbal skills. Allow your child to lead the playtime. Take up roles with them. Allow them to play with animals, dolls, space stations, or playhouses. Making simple puppets by using hands will help in enhancing creativity.
3. Art Activities
Children who like to paint or play with colors are often perceived as creative. Art nurtures imagination and helps the child to implement their ideas on paper through paints. Art activities help in boosting children’s confidence and developing mortar skills as they gain the ability to master creativity through materials.
4. Asking Insightful questions
When you ask thought-provoking and insightful questions from your children, it allows the child to express their creative ideas and share their visions. This gives them the message that their imagination and ideas are valued. This is an effective way to nurture their imagination and thoughts.
Final Words
If you want to see your child performing best in every aspect of school and life, you need to encourage both imagination and creativity among them. Imagination provides a basis for both. Encouraging your kid to use their imagination by supports the acquisition of knowledge and ability for creative thinking, and this will help them accomplishing success in every field.
Author Bio: Samantha Kayleeis currentlyworking as anAssistant Editor at Crowd writer working under the essay writing service UK team. This platform offers exceptional academic assistance to students. She is an avid reader and has been learning about children’s psyche. She has contributed her innovative ideas through social media. Image Source Featured Image
