Hey there!
Thank you so much for joining me today. I’m Charlotte from Colourful Teaching For You. For a while now, we’ve been looking at different ways to manage stress, but today we’re switching gears and looking at the concept of creativity. More specifically, we’ll be focusing on the importance of creative learning in the development of our children.
My story:
I don’t know about you, but when I was a student, I was expected to learn what was taught, and do what felt like millions of questions that seemed overly tricky. I was asked to memorize poems without really understanding how to write one or the beauty of them. And mostly all of our assignments required that we do copious amounts of pen to paper work and tedious amounts of homework.
MY GOSH WAS I BORED.
I learned for the sake of the assessments and then forgot about them after. Have you or your children ever felt this way?
It’s a wonder I wanted to become a teacher. Actually, that’s not true. I was fortunate to have had many wonderful teachers and mentors in my life who saw more potential in me than I saw in myself and who challenged me. I remember putting on a mini musical for a presentation about horse breeding in grade 11. You heard me right. My teacher gave us free reign to be as creative as we wanted, so I pulled out all the stops. I sang, danced and put on a skit. And yes, I put together and wore a costume. I dressed up like a horse.
I HAD TO WAIT UNTIL I WAS IN GRADE 11 TO EXPERIENCE THAT JOY.
My point, my friends, is that even though I can’t tell you much about my experience in school, I can recount that particular moment in detail. I still remember rushing off to the bathroom to change into my costume. I was nervous but oh so excited.
This is what creativity does for our children. It excites them. It motivates them.
I didn’t buy my costume. I made it. I created my script. I went above and beyond for that assignment. I didn’t have to, but I did. That’s what your children will experience if we provide them with opportunities to be creative.
Amazing:
Once we teach them the process, which does take time, you children will run with it and you’ll be amazed with what they come up with. You’ll see them excitedly waiting for the time to work on their tasks.
Do you want to know why? It’s because when we, as parents and teachers provide them with the space to be creative, it opens up an avenue for them to be free. They have the agency to express themselves and to problem-solve. Through the very act of problem solving, they gain a deeper level of understanding of the topic at hand, which increases their engagement and confidence level, which in turn reduces stress and anxiety. Do you see the flow and the importance of this?
Goodness! For the past few weeks, we’ve delved into the world of stress and looked at ways to overcome it. If you’ve been part of this journey, you and children have taken action and are well on your way.
But what’s missing? Creativity. Integrate it into your day.
Here’s some quick actionable tips:
- Ask your children what THEY ARE INTERESTED in learning and go on that journey with them. Let them lead the way. That’s the best way to spark creativity within them.
- Help your children map out their ideas.
- Set some time aside for this time for three reasons (we’ve talked about scheduling & prioritizing before):
1) because you and your children are busy, so you need to make sure you make time for it
2) because it gives your kids something to look forward to
3) you’re being consistent so that they know what to expect.
Next Step:
As a teacher (I can’t say mom yet because my baby is too young at the moment, but he’ll join us on this journey in a few years), the best way that I integrate this into my teaching practice and eventually my home, is through project-based learning.
If you’re a teacher or a homeschool parent and you’re looking to empower children by adding fun, creativity, innovation and independent learning into your curriculum, then project-based learning is the way to go. The Creative Child Community is officially open but will be closing its doors on Saturday night at 11:59pm. With this form of education, not only will your children thrive, but so will you, because you’ll get your time back as you won’t need to create any projects or lessons. It’ll all be done for you. You’ll also receive video training sessions, accountability and community so that you’re not alone on this journey, but are supported and cared for.
If you’d like to be a part of this awesome community for $13/month with 2 months for free on the yearly plan, I’d love to hear from you because the price will go up when we do our official to the public. CLICK HERE TO JOIN!
In the meantime, you’re also welcome to send me a private message if you have questions. I would love to answer you.
Let’s do a quick recap:
- We talked about the importance of creative learning
- We looked at 3 quick actionable steps: look at your child’s interests, help them map out their ideas & set some time aside to work on it- by the way, you can integrate this into your own life as an adult as well- to spice things up a bit.
- We’ve talked about The Creative Child Community as a way to support you along your journey of integrating creativity into your home or classroom
- CLICK HERE TO JOIN THE CREATIVE CHILD COMMUNITY
Alright friends, thank you so much for joining me. Remember to create, experience and teach from the heart. Take care.
All my best,
Charlotte
