Nurturing Creativity in the Heart of Childhood

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, this means that I will make a small commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you.

Nurturing creativity in the heart of childhood is passing on the gift of creativity. What does that even mean? How can I pass creativity on to my children? They might not have the same God-given creative genius that I have. Very true, but I can help them uncover their own genius. Our children, just like us, are born with an imagination and a desire to bring beauty into the world. Let us help them discover their inner creator.

A sad story

There was once a little French girl who did not like to have her hands dirty. She did not like finger painting or playing with clay. Her teacher told her mother that “that child did not have a creative bone in her body.” In front of the child. Well, for 25 years, this little girl proved the teacher right, she stopped creating. Then one day she found this one creative project that she really, really wanted to accomplish and so she did. Turns out her creative genius did not reside in clay nor in paints but in fabric and needles and threads. She was creative, she just did not like to have her hands dirty… All children are creative, not just necessarily in the way we are.

So what is a mama to do

We start small. We start with the basics. To help my child discover her creative genius she needs to have access to materials that trigger her imagination. Surrounding my child with beauty, helping her discover the world around her, all these are the first steps I can take to ignite her creativity. Most of us do this unconsciously. We decorate the nursery, our home is a place where beauty can be found. I take her to the park, the backyard or on a nature walk or hikes pretty much since day 1. When we go to church, my child is exposed to the beauty of the liturgy, of the music, of the readings. We are always exposing our children to beauty.

Guide by example

By being creative myself, I am displaying for my children the endless possibilities of the imagination. Their creative genius might not be the same as mine but, in the end, it doesn’t matter. They will discover their own. Witnessing the emphasis that I put on letting my creativity flourish shows them that it is an important and accepted part of who they are. Involving them in small ways when I am being creative ignites their desire to be creative. It has a wonderful cascading effect.

Museums

Museums are a fantastic fuel for imagination! We love going to museums, the zoo, the aquarium, they are always a source of delight. Everyone comes home with new ideas to explore further, duplicate or to role play. I have brought home so many “museum ideas” from how to display books to how to set up “discovery zones” in my home. We have a little house on the prairie and it is hard for me to find extra space for big displays, so we keep things small, but available. A flower unit for a preschooler can easily fit on a small shelf: a couple of books, a wooden puzzle and voila! (See more on flowers coming this week!)

Creativity at home

What I have found is the key to igniting my children’s creativity is to have material available. If it’s available, when creativity strikes they know where to go to find what they need to make it come alive. Pens and papers have their home in baskets and jars, displayed appealingly, in our school/craft room. Playdough and clay are in drawers out of sight but not unreachable. The sewing machine lives up high but not so high that it cannot be brought down in a minute. Right now our Junk Journaling and book binding supplies are very accessible since they seem to be THE thing in high demand.  Through the years we have accumulated quite the supplies from leather to silk painting, including glass mosaics and wooden peg dolls. All materials are available and accessible at all times.

Accessibility

Accessibility is the key. Setting up my home and my creative spaces so that my children can spring into action when creativity strikes is essential. We use a lot of dressers with drawers or cubbies with bas kets, so things are out of sight, but they are rarely out of mind. Sometimes, due to space restrictions, things are a little harder to reach. But if they can’t reach them, the kids know where they are and that they just need to ask to have them brought down to be able to use them. In general, they know that they have free access to all art and craft supplies, as well as a trunk full of costumes, building blocks, neutral toys such as Legos and Playmobils. The kitchen is the only place with a more restricted access, so to speak. But as they are growing older, this access opens up slowly and surely. As long as they refill what they empty and add to the grocery list what they finished.

Curiosity

When a child is curious about a creative technique or tool we usually start with the most basic of supplies for it. I always choose quality supplies, as a poor tool makes a poor job. And sometimes we pulled in the help of friends and family who already own the tools. When he was 13 or 14 my son became interested in wood turning. That, now is not something you can just invest in just to check it out, lol! A lathe and quite the set up is necessary for it. So on our next trip to Grandpa’s he spent quite a bit of time in the shop learning to use a lathe and discovering the possibilities. By the time we came home he had found a used one for sale that he paid for with his own money. I have learned to ask around, you never know who will be excited to teach your child something new.

Time for creativity

Every new endeavor needs time to learn. Teaching my kids to use the sewing machine starts on my lap, sewing straight lines on paper, then circles, etc… From there they learn to thread it, how to start and stop, and to keep their fingers away from the needle. It takes some of my time to teach them but once they know how the machine runs they can let their imagination go! Right now I have a 11yo sewing a doll dress that she designed based on an already existing pattern. My children also need time on their own to create and that often comes in during Morning Time. During this time we are all together, listening to stories, it is the perfect time to work on painting, drawing, knitting, crocheting, embroidery, wood whittling. Anything that occupies little hands and allows the brain to pay attention to the story.

Morning Time as creative time

Originally this post was going to be titled: Keeping Little Hands Busy During Morning Time, but it took on a life of its own… One of the reasons I love Morning Time so much is because it really is an all inclusive package. It is the spa resort of home education. We have already covered the rich literary culture of Morning Time but it is also rich in creativity. There is the assigned creativity found in timelines and cartography as well as narration, of course. But there is also the creativity that keeps little hands busy. These handicrafts, that few now practice regularly, are so rich and satisfying. I love hand embroidery, the repetitive motion of the needle through the fabric is so soothing. My daughter spent quite a bit of time crocheting during our morning times. Others set up watercoloring or drawing stations. Whittling and wood burning have also had their moments. Handicrafts release tension and allow our focus to be enhanced. I was discouraged, as an adult, to take embroidery or knitting projects to conferences, and every time I end up falling asleep, lol! But truly having my hands occupied allows my mind to relax and soak in the words. That is why I encourage my children to keep their hands busy while learning.

Rules and boundaries

Of course there has to be some rules and boundaries, and these will vary according to your family. For us, any handicrafts brought to Morning Time have to be quiet ones (no power tools or Legos!) and they cannot damage the carpet. Most of our Morning Time takes place on the couch in our living-room, but we are close enough to the school/craft room that a desk can be moved closer and if any messes happen they are easy to clean.  But here are a few rules to creativity in general:

• Put it back where you found it when you are done
• Clean up after yourself
• Keep to your space
• Refill if it’s empty or add to grocery list
• If it is noisy, make sure the time is appropriate (avoid nap time and Morning Time)
• Always have an adult present if it requires anything sharp
• Enjoy yourself
• No judgement on the finished products: only constructive criticism 😉
  
  These simple rules make creativity in the home a real pleasure and allows for the imagination to flow abundantly!
  Love,
  Mattie

Here are some wonderful books and resources that we keep handy for inspiration:

• Wild and Free magazines and books
• The Original Girl’s Handy Book by Lina Beard
• Big Book of Playtime Activities, Ray Gibson
• Look What I Did With a Leaf! by Morteza E. Sohi
• Nature’s Art Box, by Laura C. Martin
• Fairies: Petal People you Can Make Yourself, Rachel Haab
• Doodle Stitching, by Aimee Ray
• Art Lab for Kids, Susan Schwake
• The Creative Family, Amanda Blake Soule
• Handmade Home, Amanda Blake Soule
• Show Me A Story, Emily K. Neuburger
• Back to Basics (This one has been the ultimate best book to have on our shelves, ever! It will inspire so many fantastic projects and rabbit trails!)

And a slew of How to Draw books from animals to flowers. This is not an exhaustive list, these are just the ones that have had the most success in our home.