Creativity and Problem Solving for Kids

Kids have such amazing imaginations, and an innate ability to think outside the box, that it's important to encourage these abilities - as all too often they are lost by the time a child grows up. Here are some ideas you can use to help your kids use their imagination to develop great problem solving skills:

1) Encourage them when they talk about their fantasies and make up stories - don't tell them they are being silly, instead get excited and ask questions. You can even encourage them to close their eyes and become aware of the fact that they can visualize things vividly inside.

2) Talk to your child about his different senses so that he becomes aware of what he already does with his imagination - creates pictures, sounds, feelings and even smells.

3) Play a game with your child where one of you chooses a simple every day object - the classic example is a paper-clip, but pretty much anything will do! - and then see who can think of the most possible uses for that object. This is a very powerful way of developing creativity and problem-solving, so play it with your child often!

Happy parenting,

Cassie