Note
- School children learn and develop through creative activities such as drama, art, music and dance.
- Give school children time and space to be creative, encourage them to think creatively and celebrate them.
- You can adapt creative activities for children with different abilities.
Creative activities: Why they are important for learning and development in school
School-age children often focus on creative activities. This is good because creative activities such as drama, music, dance, arts and crafts can help school-aged children:
- Develop creativity and imagination
- Build self-confidence
- Express feelings, thoughts and ideas verbally and non-verbally
- Understand the world from the perspectives of others
- Practice and improve social skills
- Develop physical and motor skills
- Train decision-making, problem-solving and critical thinking
- Develop memory and attention
Develop spatial abilities. Encourage your preschooler to enjoy creative activities
You can encourage creativity by providing playtime for your child and taking time away from the child’s play. Even boredom can inspire children’s creativity.
The same goes for relaxation—for example, lying on the grass and watching the clouds change shape.
It’s important for your children to have fun and think about creating something. You can help achieve this by encouraging your children to share their artistic and creative experiences with you and your family. It’s a good idea to ask your child before sharing their artwork with others, especially on social media.
When your child is creating something, they like to keep experimenting and changing their work to make sure it’s finished.
You can encourage this by:
Ask about the process – for example, “Tell me how to put the wheels on a bus”
Think of a way to experiment – for example, “Tell me how many sounds you can make with the drums”
Offer help if they need it – for example, “I can hold that shape while you draw.”
It’s also a good idea to give your child a workspace or storage space to store their unfinished projects.
Whatever artwork your child is creating, you can encourage their work with lots of praise. For example, “I love the lyrics of your songs.” This is good for your child’s confidence.
Some children are more creative than others, so you can’t “teach” your child to like them. But you can give them a good idea.
Arts and Crafts: Creative Activities for School-aged Children
At this age, children become more aware of colors, shapes, patterns, and details. Where your children used to draw and paint trees and flowers, now you can see leaves, branches, stems, and flower petals.
School-aged children also think about making things—they don’t need ready-made parts. For example, they might draw and cut out wings for a butterfly, or make wings out of paper and leaves. Younger children still need your help getting started.
Here are some creative arts and crafts ideas:
Let your child build and decorate a small house out of natural materials like cardboard boxes and tree branches. Play with texture painting. Encourage your child to add sand, soil, or wood chips to paint and use them to decorate boxes or make paintings.
Get a large cardboard box and see what your children can do. It can be transformed into doll clothes, airplanes, puppet theaters, and more.
Combine drawing, painting, or clay making with digital platforms. For example, making clay models or sculptures out of wood and photos. Your child can create stories using photos.
Go on a nature walk and take nature photos. Use an app or software program to create stories, albums, or maps from the photos.
Let your child create digital art using software programs and apps. Using digital technology can stimulate children’s imagination.
Drama: creative activities for school-aged children
School-aged children often use simple tools to create and act out their own stories. Sometimes they act out everyday events, movies, and TV shows. You might watch your child act out the words while listening to music or watching a music video. In addition, children can take on roles such as being a veterinarian or a police officer. These role-plays give children the opportunity to solve real-life problems, such as what to do when someone is sick or angry. They also encourage children to see the world from other people’s perspectives, which helps build empathy.
Here are some ideas for engaging your child in role-playing and creativity:
Start making a dress-up box. Use old clothes or buy simple items like cooking utensils from the store.
Make simple puppets and put on a puppet show. Let’s get to creating a story. You can start with a simple scenario and then move on to telling what happened next. The longer the game, the more imaginative the story becomes. If you need help getting started, you can try a storyboard.
Write a game or a presentation. Your child can draw and make costumes, then film their own movie. They can edit and add special effects using computers and apps.
Play games that involve guessing and guessing, such as role-playing.
Write a story and ask your child to act it out. It’s best to choose stories that encourage your child to explore new places, such as stories from different times, places, and cultures.
