Creative Play
This is an important message for parents and teachers. Movement and free play is what underlines creativity. It's important to engage with your whole body, whole brain, and whole self.
At the age of 3, my son's favorite playtime activity is to play with cars and putting them on top of each other, as if its a sort of garage. This is simply creativity at work. While he understands the concept of a garage, he is also trying to study balance by placing the cars on top of each other in the most effective way.
There are ample studies to show how free play effects creativity. It aids physical dexterity, helps understand working in a group but above all teaches creative thinking. Unfortunately, children's free-play time in the U.S. has dropped an estimated 25 percent since 1981, according to a report published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Free play allows the brain to leisurely meander and thats why the best ideas come in showers. TV and internet tops the list of spending free time but interferes with divergent thinking. Children under 3 are spending almost 2 hrs a day engaged in some electronic media, as per a Kaiser foundation report.
You as a parent, need to intervene:
1) Limit TV time to less than 2 hours
2) Limit post school organized activity
3) Let them go outside and play
But most importantly, participate in their free play. When your little one becomes a dinosaur and says aargh, just let your inner child out and let out that aargh!!
