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16 Fredericksburg Parent and Family • July 2016 The good news is everyone is born creative. The bad news is that creativity seems to diminish signifi cantly by fourth grade. Creativity is applying original thoughts and ideas and having them work. This takes lots of experiences, thoughts, imagining, exploring and discovering. Therefore, the more opportunities children have to solve problems creatively, the more creative they become. Psychologists Darya Zabelina and Michael Robinson of North Dakota University conducted a study giving us a three-part explanation. "Young children approach novel tasks with play and exploration: their output is often highly original. As children age, some of this spark of creative originality is lost, but why? First, the regions of the frontal cortex responsible for rule-based behavior develops more slowly than other regions of the brain and thus increased conventionality with maturation refl ects a relatively permanent change in the brain's hardware and software. Second, educational practices increasingly discourage play, and encourage conventional responding. Thus, creativity, important to original thinking may be stifl ed by the education system. Third, adults approach problem solving by looking for correct solutions, which undermines originality/ creativity."The best news is that building on natural creativity in childhood helps children remain creative as they age. Rex Jung, a neuropsychologist at University of New Mexico, found that people who consistently engage in creative activities become better and faster at marshaling the brain's creative networks. WRITTEN BY ELAINE STONE unleashing Your Child's Provide unstructured Time Kids need undefi ned blocks of time to allow space for adventures. Stacked schedules and predetermined focused times are creative blockers. remove Stress/expectations Pressures brought on by competition, performance, comparisons, right answers, and "fi xing/bettering" their creations are creativity reducers. Children must contemplate if the outcome will be acceptable. All creations are approved! Validating the process of creativity encourages trying. Promote individualism Let each child explore their own creative pursuits. Seek to identify natural creative bents like design, movement, music, nature, math, or science. Encourage areas of passion. Simplistic Play-Props Use blankets, blank paper, simple blocks, art supplies, boxes, non-accessorized items (i.e. dolls, trucks, fi gures) and nat ure to let children be creative. Allow your children to create play accessories and utilize objects in self-inspired ways. Limit "screen time" which stifl es creativity. Stimulate Ask open-ended, thought-provoking questions. Promote creative thinking. Allow children to express their ideas. "Can you think of another way to do that?", "What would happen if ..." and "What made you think of this?" Take off the Leash Let children roam, daydream, try, fail and fi nd solutions. Give children creative confi dence; boost their desire to create. Your efforts will help unleash an innovative, problem-solving, resourceful adult. CREATIVITY is creativity genetically predetermined? environmental? Can parents aid its development? Answers: somewhat, yes and yes. CREATIVITY HOW TO TURN CREATIVITY LOOSE