Sunday, June 24, 2012

Have Fun Creating Art with Your Child!


Providing sensory experiences for your child is positive for his or her development.  Creating art allows your child to use his senses and build his brain.  Playing with play dough, painting, drawing and making collages all spark connections in the brain.  Having these experiences will help your child be more successful in school.  Summer time gives us many creative project ideas which may be tied to the season.

You may help your child get the most benefit from creating art by:

·         Encouraging him or her to enjoy the process of making art.  The most important part of the creative process is that the child should interpret what the project should look like.  Your child will be more apt to explore his creative desires if we accept his finished project without any criticism.

·         Providing materials.  It’s great if your child has access to crayons, paints and paper.  Household items such as fabric scraps and catalogs or magazines are also fun to use when making art.

·         Say something specific about your child’s artwork.  “You used a lot of yellow and blue in your picture.”  Your comment could also sound like, “It’s great how you incorporated Santa’s reindeer into your picture,” or “The sculpture of the penguin has a nice long beak and big feet.”

·         Hanging his or her creation on your refrigerator, setting a sculpture out on a counter or giving the results of an art project to a favorite relative will make your child feel appreciated.  By displaying the artistic creation your child will feel a sense of accomplishment and pride.

By encouraging your child to be creative he or she will benefit by increased brain activity and a higher level of self-esteem.  Your attention to a project which he or she is proud of will help to spark his or her sense of ownership and will encourage him or her to experiment with his or her creative side to a greater degree.  Don’t forget the most important thing: Have fun creating art with your child!

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