Creativity is a large part of childhood; as parents, we understand that encouraging our children to think creatively is a great way to develop fundamental skills. But how can we stimulate creativity and imaginative play?
Creativity is the path to success, the ability to look at problems and think laterally for solutions.
One of the best ways to inspire creativity is through the use of an environment. Your child needs to be in the right mindset - let's get out their collection of dress-up clothes and any toys that might be useful as props. Your POD already provides a great play space, particularly through the use of changing colours and interchangeable themes.
Below are some ideas for props and dress-up, based on our 7 wonderful themes:
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Galactic Space - astronaut (box jetpack, bike helmet covered in foil)
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Princess Palace - hero saving the kingdom (colourful cape and eye mask)
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Sub Aqua - diver or explorer (set of goggles, swimwear)
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Polar Ice Igloo - ice queen or king (crown or a sparkly wand)
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Walking with Dinosaurs - a curious explorer (binoculars and a hat)
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Savanna Safari (hat, soft animal toys)
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Rumble in the Jungle (torch, hat and magnifying glass)
Encouraging creativity through role-play and imaginative play, your children are lost in endless possibilities of play journeys.
Imaginative role play breeds social skills for a wealth of development from early childhood. These skills are then honed into the use of vocabulary, negotiation, problem-solving with the ability to exercise emotions and also how to deal with them.
Why exactly is it important to encourage creativity and spend time setting up this imaginative environment? Below we have summarised the 5 main reasons why this has many benefits for children and why we think it is so important.
1. Building self-confidence and social skills.
2. Imaginative play encourages children to explore real-life roles.
3. Teaches children to face their fears.
4. Practices communication and language skills.
5. Boosts critical thinking, research and reflection
So if your child asks to dress up in their favourite costume, encourage it! They want to be involved with pretend play and have the opportunity to view the world from another perspective. Dress-up time encourages a creative mind, as a child is able to imagine what it is like to become another character or personality.
Dress-up time helps to embrace a child's ability to imagine a new environment for them to explore and test. The costume encourages the mood, therefore their experience is enhanced.
Imaginative play is a key part of childhood as it is the perfect scenario for developing basic social skills. When a child asks for playtime, it is a child's way of communicating that they want to learn and develop fundamental skills. A child can be anything they want to be; they put themselves into situations where they might face their fears, build their confidence or develop their problem-solving skills.
When children are exploring their creative side through imaginative play, it is often their method of making sense of the world and testing a range of experiences. Imagination is very important as a child is able to think outside the box and learn.
Our sensory tents are designed to inspire children to enter their own world of creativity and imagination. They are filled with wonderful colours and we have 7 different themes available. Children are able to surround themselves with this amazing experience, using our colourful themes as a guide.