3 Ways To Nurture Creativity in Kids
Before I started my own art advisory (where I assist private clients on buying art), I worked for many years in museums, specifically in education, where the main goal was to help people connect to the works of art on view and understand how and why artists make their work.
In these roles, I often interacted with groups of children, specifically at the Guggenheim, where we welcomed young visitors to the museum as part of the Learning through Art (LTA) program. One of the core tenets of the program was to create environments that would foster and nurture creativity. In an academic world where standardized testing and curriculum requirements set the pace for young learners, visiting a museum or participating in an art-making workshop, was an opportunity to create a setting where creativity and experimentation would blossom.
Based on those experiences, here are three straightforward strategies that you can use to foster a creative environment for your kids:
Ask questions: a key principle in museum education is to use inquiry-based learning to guide conversation - using questions to encourage dialogue and share information. Most importantly, using open-ended questions, that cannot be answered with a yes or no. So when you interact with your kids, a good way to lead the conversation, especially when it comes to the things they make or artwork they see is to ask questions that are open-ended and follow up with more questions. So for example, rather than asking “Do you like what you made?” you might ask “Tell me about how you made that?”
Value process over product: another core value of the LTA model was to place emphasis on the process not the product. When you do this, the environment is relaxed and places value on exploring different materials; there is no right or wrong when you place the focus on the process. Much can be learned from the process of making something, whether or not it comes out exactly as one plans. As a child works on an art project or homework, ask questions about their strategies and inspiration. Commend their determination while working, rather than exclusively praising the end product.
Embrace mistakes: when mistakes happen, or when they create something that doesn’t come out quite the way they planned, it is a learning moment for resilience and perseverance, not to give up. I especially love the book, The Dot, by Peter Reynolds, where it follows the story of a young girl who is encouraged to create art, despite her early frustrations and mistakes. Encouraging kids to embrace their mistakes also allows room for risk-taking and experimentation, the ultimate environment for creativity.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this short but straightforward guide on encouraging creativity in kids! For strategies on boosting your own creativity, check out this link.
