5 Things You Can Do to Spark Your Children's Imagination
Are you looking for ideas for how to spark your children's imagination to greater heights?
As a mother, I understand the vital importance of a strong imagination in my children. I know that their success in life, their problem-solving capabilities and their ability to navigate the storms of life depend on having a healthy imagination. And yet I see far too many Children's imaginations uncultivated and even extinguished to a large degree at way too young an age.
In fact, I know many a parent who not understanding the power and importance of imagination seek to suppress it in their children to help them "face the realities of life". This saddens me more than I can say. Believing in the impossible are what makes the impossible well...possible. Which is why I find myself often contemplating how as a mother I can not only keep my children's imagination alive and healthy but spark it to greater heights.
There are soo many things you can do for and with your kids to help them have a healthy imagination, but today I want to focus on my top 5:
Read to your children.
I am of the firm opinion that books, in general, are a major gateway to imagination. Just having good books around your home can make a difference. However, I highly recommend you take the time every day to actually read out loud to your children. When you do you not only open the door to your kid's imagination you get to walk through it with them. **If you don't have many books in your home then take advantage of your local library.
Invest in building toys.
Building toys are toys that your children use to build things. These are toys like Legos, K'nex and Magformers. For younger kids, I would recommend Building blocks and Lego Duplos. Playing with these sort of toys not only help your child develop the fine motor skills they also feed the imagination (especially when they go off script and don't just build a set design but start creating their own.)
Encourage Outside Play.
There is nothing more magical than nature. If you don't have a secure yard for your kids to play in every day, then try taking them on nature walks, to local parks, or friends homes. You can also take your kids to local gardens, walking paths or cool outdoor places like mountains, lakes, beaches etc as the weather permits. Bonus points: fresh air and sunlight are also great for your child's physical health.
Create a Family Theater.
Growing up one of my favorite activities was putting on weekly Family Theater Nights with my brothers where we would perform for my parents (which we charged them to watch of course) We spent many an afternoon preparing for the evening entertainment, Sometimes we would dress up and perform. Sometimes we would build things like ships and planes from toys that we would pretend to fly and battle (usually when y brothers were in charge) and sometimes we would do puppet shows. It was always so much fun and during these times our imaginations were king. (To learn how to make an easy DIY Family Theater Curtains from Old Sheets check out my post here).
Go on Field Trips.
Take your kids to Local Museums and historical spots. Visit the Zoo or Aquarium. Go to local festivals and Fairs. The more you expose your kids to the world the deeper their imagination will grow. Why because they will have more things to imagine about.
In the end, the most important thing you can do to spark your children's imagination is to encourage and not try to suppress it. Even more, show your children that you have an active imagination. Share your imagination with your kids. Be fanciful and hopeful. Tell stories. Dress up an play pretend. See the world through the eyes of possibilities. Indulge in fairytales. And think outside the box when trying to solve problems. When children see you using and valuing your imagination they will see it is important and will feel freed to use their own. Monkey see monkey do and all that.
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