Are You A Creativity Killer?

March 3, 2009

by IRANIAN CHILDREN (iran music)

Has been quite awhile since I update my blog. Have being busy with the launch of Motherhood Monthly and Ashlyn is unwell.

How times flies.. Ashton celebrated his birthday in January this year.  My boy has grown up.  He is officially 3!

I have been a full-time mum with him since he is one year old and witness every stage of his growth.  From a baby to a boy who have a mind of his own.  Ashton cuts his birthday cake not once, not twice but 3 times this year.  He had a celebration with my in-laws, my family and in school.

This year, he wanted to do everything himself.  He had his full bouts of birthday request and his birthday wish is to grow his Thomas and friends family.  He chose his own birthday cakes and even want to decide where he wants to place his birthday candles.

What frustrate him was the the way the elder generation of the families tried to interfere with the ways he place his birthday candles.

He put candles on Thomas the Train’s faces and they goes “u ruin Thomas’s face, should place it outside the train”.

His 2nd cake is a round fruit cake and he place the candles at the edge of the cake and the family goes ” it it not nice.. people normally don’t put candle at the edge of the cake, everyone put it in the middle”.

His 3rd cake is Finding Nemo’s cake and now he is happy.  His teacher is GUG asked him where does he wants to place his candles and he goes” one on the deep blue sea, one on Dory and  another on Nemo.”

Looking at Ashton, I realized that all children have the creativity within them and they knows what they wants.  It doesn’t matter where he place his birthday candles and it does not bother me that his Thomas and Friends cake was ruin because he had the candles on Thomas’s face, Percy’s eyes and James mouth.  What matters is he is creative and knows what he wants.  Encourage your child’s creativity and don’t dampened them.

How do I encourage my children’s creativity:

1. Encourage free play - it is through free play that they explore
2. Being Silly myself - be outrageous as a parent, once your child sees that you have the courage to think outside the box, they will do so.
3. Giving them lots of exposure - my husband n I have a resolution, to bring them to a different place each month so that we can simulate their inquisitive little mind.
4. Read to my children every night - reading storybooks encourage imagination

What do you do to simulate your child’s imagination?

Posted in Education, Managing Parenthood, My Parenting Journal, Toddler Behavior