3 Simple Ways to Nurture Your Child’s Creative Side {+ giveaway}
When I was in 5th grade, we had a dress-up-as-what-you-want-to-be-someday day. I went as an artist, complete with a little red beret and oversized smock. Somebody really should have taken pictures.
I never did become an artist, but I do still love to draw. Everyone has a creative side, though it manifests differently in each of us. Clearly, writing is my creative expression of choice these days, but I also enjoy photography and my art journal sits on the bookshelf next to our school books.
photo credit daniel kulinski on flickr
Brianna loves to draw, paint, knit, and sew. Josh loves music and plays the drums and guitar (and the piano on occasion). He’s rather fond of sculpting with clay and enjoys creating things from iron at a local forge. Megan loves to paint, make jewelry, and write. She’s got half a dozen or so novels in progress at any given time.
It’s a shame to me that so many schools are cutting art and music programs because I think we have a built-in need to find some type of creative outlet. Equally sad is the fact that many homeschool parents feel inadequate to nurture their children’s creative sides. There really is no need to feel inadequate. If we go with the theory that kids have an innate desire to create, all we need to do is provide a few simple things to facilitate that need.
Time
Homeschooling parents are in a unique position to be able to offer their kids something that is a precious commodity in today’s world – time. Because a smaller “class size” allows us to cover material more quickly, along with the fact that we’re able to cut out travel time and classroom management tasks (roll call, changing class rooms, etc.), homeschooled kids often have more free time during the day.
In today’s society, there is often the feeling that we need to fill our kids’ every waking hour with activities. Boredom, however, can be a good thing. It is often in the moments of creating their own entertainment that kids discover their passions.
Space
Let’s face it, moms and dads, sometimes we hover. Sometimes we feel the need to direct every single activity. We need to back off. I love to listen to Josh learn a new song. It’s like I can just see the wheels turning in his brain. He’ll play a part, stop because it doesn’t sound right, and change something. Lather, rinse, repeat. He doesn’t need me (or, more accurately, his dad because I’m not musically inclined at all) to step in and show him what to do. He needs space to figure it out.
It probably goes without saying, but Megan’s personal writing does not need my red editing pen. (I don’t really have a red editing pen, but you know what I mean.) That’s her space to write, create, and get her thoughts on paper. As she reads or we do grammar in school, she’ll start to pick up on things that she can apply to her own writing – like the time that I pointed out that a shift in character dialogue was indicated by starting a new line. She later mentioned that she’d gone back in and updated the dialogue in her book.
Kids also need physical space to create. Brianna has her sewing room set up in the basement and Megan has an art desk in her room. Both can leave their supplies spread out while working on projects without anything being in the way of the general day-to-day goings on of our home.
If you don’t have space for your kids to leave their creative supplies spread out, consider creating portable centers with plastic totes or bags.
Tools
Finally, kids need the tools necessary for their particular creative bents. Josh has his guitars (yes, plural) and drums – and access to a large tub of sculpting clay. Brianna has art pens and pencils, paper, a huge basket of yarn, fabric, and sewing notions. Megan has paint, paper, pencils, notebooks, and her laptop (along with a flash drive after a scare with a laptop crash).
Make sure that your kids have access to the tools needed to express their creativity. That may mean:
- A tub of art supplies
- Fabric, yarn, or thread
- Magazines for cutting and pasting
- Paint supplies
- Sculpting clay
- Online access to tutorials (Josh learns new chords from YouTube, not me!)
- Legos
- Beads and buttons
- Jewelry-making supplies
Christmas is the perfect time to stock up on the supplies needed to ignite your kids’ creativity. One year, we gave each of the kids a box of various crafting supplies as a Christmas gift. They loved it!
Artterro, a company offering eco-friendly creative art materials, shares my thoughts that
“…everyone is born creative. Sometimes the pace of modern life keeps us from making time for art…”
They feature an entire line of art kits for kids, perfect for gift-giving this Christmas. Check out their Art Journal Gift Set or the Perfect Sleepover Set, which gives your kids’ sleepover guests a perfectly creative excuse to put their electronics away and interact face-to-face.
Of course, creativity isn’t just for girls, so you’ll want to check out the kits with boy appeal, too, such as the Boys Club Set or the Outdoor Art Fun Set.
Give your kids a gift that will inspire their creative spirit this year. From now until December 17, 2014, use coupon code WEIRD to receive a free paper pack and free shipping with any order of $30 or more. You can also enter to win a $50 digital gift card from Artterro for shopping in the Artterro store. Follow the directions on the RaffleCopter widget below to enter.
Rules: This giveaway is open to United States residents, ages 18 years and older only. Giveaway ends at 11:59 PM (ET) on Wednesday, December 10. The winner will be selected at random using Random.org via RaffleCopter.
The winner will notified via email and given 72 hours to respond. You must enter a valid email address to win. In the event that the winner cannot be contacted by email or does not respond within 72 hours, the prize will be forfeited and and alternate winner selected.
Click to read the complete rules. By entering this giveaway, you indicate that you have read and agreed to abide by these rules.
Kris Bales is a newly-retired homeschool mom and the quirky, Christ-following, painfully honest founder (and former owner) of Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers. She has a pretty serious addiction to sweet tea and Words with Friends. Kris and her husband of over 30 years are parents to three amazing homeschool grads. They share their home with three dogs, two cats, a ball python, a bearded dragon, and seven birds.
My daughter is super creative. I’ve often had to change curriculum around to include art because she learns so much better through it! I love the idea of art and craft supplies for Christmas gifts. I was struggling with what to get her this year…so that’s perfect! Thanks! 🙂
I’d purchase the needle felting kit…looks like something my 10yo daughter would love 🙂
I’ve got a couple of budding artists who like a variety of art mediums. I just need to remember to provide time for them to create.
Thanks for the giveaway! I would love to get the art journal set.
Cool! I could really use some help in the creative arts department!
My boys would like the bug kit. 🙂
Art dolls and art journaling
I think art along with music and literature are the difference between getting thru the day and really living.
What cool kits! I’m thinking specifically of my crafty 11yo daughter. She draws out her Minecraft plans…extensively, so I think the blank art books would be her first choice, however the kit to decorate the journals would go right along. Why have a boring sketch journal when you can have a fun one?
I agree that everyone is creative in different ways. I’ve always loved expressing my creativity.
i love seeing my kids creativeness unfold as they draw and color. Would love to win this!
Journal kit for sure!
My kids would love any of these!
I’m starting to dabble in art journaling myself. You should see my Christmas list! 🙂 I have a couple of artistic granddaughters who would love this!
I would get the creative party pack. My four youngest, and even my 15 year old would have a fun party with all of that fun stuff!
These kits look really fantastic. Screen time has been eclipsing creative time at our house lately. We need to correct that. These kits are a great way to nudge ourselves in that direction.
I love the kits.
I would choose the book making kit for my little writer.
I love the art journal kits! That is what we’d spend the money on! Thank you!
I would order the art journal kit in blue for my son!
What a cute site! I love how it’s easy to read and navigate. Anyway, we just got started in art journaling, so I’d buy several of those.
My boys would love the bug kit and I’d have to get some paper for various projects including origami.
My girls would LOVE the art journaling kits (so would I!)
You are so right! I know from firsthand experience that time, space, and tools definitely help children find their creative passion. I have one daughter who loves photography, blogging, and web design. She uses all her free time to learn more and practice. My other daughter spends a lot of time volunteering at the library during Children’s Craft Times. She even travels to preschools to do mobile programs. I am so grateful the freedom to learn that homeschool gives us.
I like the creativity kit for my precocious pupils!
My daughter LOVES art, so any of the kits would rock. I think the jewelry kit would be a hit right now.
Yay! You know I love artsy, art journaly stuff!!!
So… most people are shopping for their kids. But I found something I’d love. Roving. I’ve been wanting to try it. (and I might share it with my kids…)
My kids would love one of these…
My son’s interest in art is limited to drawing. He especially likes to work on cartoon and comic book stories. My daughter, however, loves all mediums. She’d really enjoy this giveaway.
My daughter would love the bookmaking kit!!
This one looks fun https://artterro.com/shop/product/outdoor-art-fun-pack
What neat kits! I’d probably get the art journal kit and maybe the felt bugs kit too!
Thanks for the awesome giveaway! I agree wholeheartedly with this article. I thought I wasn’t an artist but we’ve been experimenting and I’m shocked at what we could do. Art kits help so much too!
I love art supplies. This company looks pretty cool.
I like the needle felting kit. I honestly think my daughters would like all of their kits.
I like the art dolls kit for my daughter!
I think my boys would like the outdoor art set.
Art journaling. Love the wire and beads, too.
The art journal gift set.
I’m sure my boys would love the bug kit, but I really think the journals are great.
These are just perfect to get our little budding artist started!
probably the book making kit or journals.
If I won $50 to spend at Artterro I would get the Outdoor Set for my kiddos!
Think I would get the Art Journal Gift Set.
I’d get the wool felt Jewelry kit and maybe the Wire and Bead kit.
I think my granddaughter would have hours of fun with the collage ornaments or the doll kit. This would make an excellent present.
I just love the bubble wands kit, what a great idea.
The Canvas Journal looks amazing!
I always love paper kits, but the Wool Felt Bugs kit looks like a lot of fun. My youngest would love it!
I think I would get the Wool Felt Bug Kit
Digicats {at} Sbcglobal {dot} Net
My daughter would love the Collage ornaments kit. I would like the bookmaking kit.
The jewelry is fun 🙂
I would love this for my girls!!! Especially for the wool kit or art journal.
I would choose the creativity kit or the book making kit.
These kits look fun. My kids would like the book making or collage ornaments kits. 🙂
My 11 year old would love to practice with the collage jewelry kit!
Needle Felting kit or Paper Craft kit
I’d have to let my daughter choose -she has a mind of her own and knows what she likes! I love all the craft options though:)
I’d love the creativity kit for my daughter (so artsy) and maybe a bookmaking kit for my son. Thanks!
I love this! I feel like kids adapt much better to real life when they are able to be creative rather than always feeling like they need to conform to the same exact processes as everyone else. I try to nurture my childrens’ creative sides every opportunity I get.