How to Develop Imagination and Creativity in Children?

How to Develop Imagination and Creativity in Children?

                       Bishnu  Paneru

A significant part of child development is to develop the ability to interpret their understanding of the world on their own way. This may be through drawing, painting, models, singing, dancing, making puppets and ‘pretend play’( pretending themselves teachers, students, mother, father, son daughter etc). 

Advantages of Imaginative Play

1.     Feel happy and get satisfied

2.     Be expressive

3.     Develop language skills and social skills

4.     enhance concepts and skills related to shape, colour, texture and handling tools

5.     Interpret their ideas and understanding of the universe.  

Every children love to work independently. They do not want intervention or prompting while they keep themselves busy in different activities. When children are doing ‘pretend play’ and interrupt, they stop the activity. They feel cautious and lose confidence due to too much or inappropriate interventions. In dolly washing and sand play slight intervention may needs. In storytelling 100% parents involvement is needed. 

Here are few activities on developing creativity in children.

1. Drawing Painting

Children should have a chair and table in their room of their height. There must be a plane paper, crayons, pencil colour or water colour with brushes. Children begin drawing scribbling with pencil or crayons on the paper. If they use water coulur and brush there will be only strokes on the paper. Even if the drawing or painting is not as clear, never interpret their drawing rather ask what have they drawn. At present we do not expect perfect drawing rather we expect children to think and be imaginative creative with new story. Teachers/Parents need to display children’s drawing painting work on display board so that they feel motivated to continue their passion. 

2. Puppet Making, Pretend Play, Sand & Water Game and Other Games

In ‘pretend play’ adults should not intervene children. Children of their age group assemble and do role play of teacher, students, father, mother, son, daughter etc. 

Children have natural instinct to play with sand and water. I have seen many parents stopping children not letting to play with water and sand/soil. Children tend to look forward to get exposure to water and sand so parents need to create safe zone to do dolly washing managing rubber doll, shampoo, water tough, bucket filled with water, jug, a towel. They need to be shown how to give washing to the dolly using language so that children and do the same becoming a good story teller. 

There must be a sand pit in every house and school. They manipulate sand to make different designs using their imagination and creativity. We can use sand pit to develop language. Adult may play with children. They imagine cooking/baking. We may ask them to prepare coffee, bake cake or prepare food. The adult could give compliment-wow tasty! I like it! Thank you! 

3. Story Time

Parents need to be role model to encourage children reading. If children see parents reading books, they also get motivated to read. Before falling asleep we need to tell story. Every story should have positive message and morals. If we are reading from the book for early graders we need to choose a book with illustrations. If a child does not know how to read we need to show the picture and tell the story. We need to read book pointing out each word so that children can figure out the pronunciation. After finishing story we need to ask children what they have understood. Chinese Nobel Prize winner Mo Yan has listened to so many stories told by the wonderer story teller who used to visit different part of China and tell story sitting in a public place. Madan Puraskar winner Amar Neupane used to listen to fairy tales Madhu Malati Ko Katha in his childhood and cry a lot as Madhu and Malati got separated. Both the writer could develop creativity and imagination listening to the stories, in that time there was not easy access to book. Reading habit in long run helps to heal the scars and inner wound so reading is regarded as a therapy as well.

Development of imagination and creativity in children is earlier the better. Hence, we need to foster creativity in children from early childhood.