We live in a world of creativity and curiosity, and yet, kids are becoming less and less creative and curious. As a teacher, I look at students in their current life, and I picture them as a successful adult: What are they doing? How successful are they? What can I be doing NOW to help them be successful in the future?
Most employers today are looking for creative thinkers. Those who can problem solve and think outside the box are highly sought out by employers today. Companies are constantly reaching for innovation - and in reality, our entire society is constantly thirsty for innovation, the latest and greatest thing!
I go on that long explanation of the future employers because it all starts now. That sweet little babe staring up at you with drool running down their chin is the future of our world. It is our job as parents (and teachers) to mold our children's minds....and it doesn't have to be rocket science! All we really have to do is give our children the opportunity to explore and MAKE MESSES. Sometimes, it can be as simple as giving an infant old enough to sit up a lid, bowl, and spoon and letting them just explore it.
I have been known on more than one occasion to put uncooked noodles or uncooked dry beans into a bowl with a spoon and let my son have at it. This not only sparks their creativity, encourages hand/eye coordination, and works on those kinesthetic/tactile skills. And I mean really - does it really take us THAT long to clean it up?
How often are we preventing our children from blossoming their creativity because we don't want to be inconvenienced? REAL TALK MAMAS.
Once your kiddos get older and are able, this can also be a great opportunity to teach them cleaning skills. You allow them to make the mess, and you make a game of cleaning it up!
Can I be frank for a minute? Screen time does the EXACT OPPOSITE of sparking creativity. It does the exact opposite of teaching clean up skills and hand/eye coordination skills. While there are definitely some great educational videos out there for children to watch, they simply CANNOT replace putting real materials in kids hands and letting them explore. Exploring kinesthetically/tactile-y (yes, I just made up a word!) is entirely different from only exploring mentally. Screen time totally has its place - but don't rely on your children's educational TV programs to spark creativity, curiosity, and problem solving abilities in your children. Place real things in front of them, too!
Lessons Kids Learn through Making Messes:
1) Hand/Eye Coordination
2) Clean Up Skills
3) Creativity
4) Curiosity
5) Problem Solving Skills
So...as crazy as it may sound....get to making messes and sparking that creativity! Just remember not to lose your mind in the process :)
Stay tuned for a few blog posts about IDEAS involving controlled messes....or not so controlled messes.
