WiseTip: AL-CRE-M1626-I01A

Approaches to Learning

Promoting Creativity

Encourage your toddler to explore new objects or materials on their own before offering suggestions on what to do with them.

WHY IT MATTERS

For creativity to flourish, learners must be actively involved in their learning process.

Prentice, R. (2000). Creativity: a reaffirmation of its place in early childhood education, Curriculum Journal, 11, 2, 145–58.

When children control the investigation of knowledge, they have the opportunity and authority to be innovative.

Jeffrey, B., & Craft, A. (2004). Teaching creatively and teaching for creativity: Distinctions and relationships. Educational Studies, 30, 77-87. doi:10.1080/0305569032000159750

While encouragement and support from responsive caregivers helps a child explore, caregivers should also be mindful not to overwhelm the child with too much stimulus. Giving them time to explore, without interfering, may also better help build creativity.

Curtis, D. (2011). Seeing children do more with less. Exchange (19460406), 199, 84–87

Adults who rush in to help too quickly may remove the child’s opportunity to find new and creative solutions to the learning problems that the child is trying to solve.