Kid’s Activities & Crafts

A Future Culture-Vulture: Use Your Travels to Inspire Your Kids

October 30, 2017 by Painter Mommy Leave a Comment

Developing a love of culture often starts at an early age and if you expose your children to works of art and arrange a variety of cultural experiences, there is a good chance that their interest could develop into a passion.

A vacation is often the perfect opportunity to soak up some cultural highlights and give your kids an education while having some fun. Here are some pointers on how you can use travel to inspire your children to appreciate the arts and history.

A chance to inspire and educate

If you arrange a stay at somewhere like a Marriott New Jersey hotel you will often find yourself in an area that offers access to a range of free attractions like museums and art galleries.

There’s a lot to like about a museum when you are on a family trip and you don’t have to pay an entrance fee, but there are more valid reasons to go inside than the obvious attraction that you don’t have to reach for your wallet.

Museums offer a great opportunity to expose your children to some new experiences and broaden their understanding in a positive educational environment.

This exposure to learning and the chance to satisfy their curiosity will often prove to be the foundation for a greater connection to the world around them and the history that has shaped where we are today.

The power of art

Art has the ability to shape our feelings and perception of things like very little else can and many people have been inspired by a certain work of art that ended up having a profound effect on them.

Letting your child view some great works of art and allowing them to form their own opinion on what they are looking at and what it says to them can really help their creativity and critical thinking.

It’s a win-win situation as you can enjoy soaking up the culture too while knowing that your children are enjoying the experience in their own way at the same time.

Sign up for the tour

Many of the major museums and galleries and plenty of the smaller ones too offer a free guided tour of their works.

It can be a good way to enrich your learning experience and work your way around the exhibition in the most efficient way possible. Getting the inside track on the works from a knowledgeable tour guide is only going to help improve your enjoyment of the visit.

Follow the rules

You want to encourage your children to explore and appreciate the displays but it is also a good idea to set some ground rules if they are young and haven’t been exposed to this sort of environment before.

Fill them in on the usual protocol for visiting a museum or gallery, which includes no running and no touching, unless it’s interactive for the kids, which will be highlighted anyway if that’s the case.

It would also be a good idea to ensure that they have comfortable clothes and shoes for the trip so that your kids don’t start to flag after a couple of hours of walking around.

Take advantage of the chance to expose your children to some culture when you are on vacation or whenever you get the chance and enjoy seeing how it broadens their horizons.

4 Tips to Encourage Creativity in Your Children

March 24, 2017 by Painter Mommy 1 Comment

Creative thinking is a characteristic commonly found in successful business men and women. These people aren’t afraid to try new ideas or take chances. If you want to raise creative kids, but don’t know where to start, check out these four tips for encouraging creativity.

Create a Space Where Kids Can Get Messy

Image via Flickr by CCK_mom

It’s hard to keep your home clean when you have children. However, if your kids are always worrying about getting dirty, their creativity suffers. Instead of letting your kids run wild with the arts and craft supplies, create a space where it’s okay to be messy.

A sunroom or any tiled surface works great for a creative space because it’s easy to clean. Just make sure it’s free of allergens and stays at a comfortable temperature so your kids can play longer. During the summer, you can also set up some tables outdoors and let your kids make all the mess they want. Being messy isn’t really the problem; it’s being messy all over the place.

Schedule Time Each Day for Creativity

Most parents let their kids watch a little TV, and there’s nothing wrong with that. However, TV doesn’t help stimulate creativity. When kids watch TV, they go into a semitrance and don’t rely on their own brains to come up with things to do. If you want your kids to be more creative, turn off the TV and give them something to do where they need to think and explore their surroundings.

Set aside time each day during which your kids participate in creative activities. When your kids know they need to do something creative every day, they’ll start to think of things to do on their own. Over time, creative time will become their favorite time of the day.

Provide Ample Arts and Craft Supplies

Image via Flickr by Carissa GoodNCrazy

Another way to encourage creativity in your kids is to make sure they have all the supplies they need. Some kids can take crayons and some paper and color for hours. Others kids need more prompting with drawing books and creative toys. You know what your kids like to do, so find ways to bring in creativity.

Beyond arts and craft supplies, it helps to model creativity for your kids. If they see you sewing, painting, or gardening, they’ll want to join in on the fun. If your kids show an interest in a creative activity, make sure they have time to learn.

Let Your Kids Make Mistakes

Creativity comes when kids experiment and try new things. If your kids know you won’t be mad when they make a mistake, they won’t worry about trying something new.

Praise your kids when they try something new, but don’t make them feel like they’re under surveillance. Creativity happens when there’s freedom to explore without interruption or interrogation.

There are tons of ways to encourage creativity; there are just a few listed here. You just need to plan ahead and do what works for you and your kids. We’d love to hear what helps your child be creative in the comments below.

Five Exciting Art Projects That Your Kids Can Do At Home

January 28, 2014 by Painter Mommy Leave a Comment

No matter what time of the year it is, you will always be looking for ways to keep your kids amused whilst they are at home. Like most parents, you will want to limit the number of hours they have on their games console or watching the TV, but of course you need to find a substitute activity to distract them.

Why don’t you introduce more art based activities in the home? You may discover that your children have a natural affinity for art, or you might just find that they have fun trying. To limit the amount of cleaning that you need to do afterwards, make sure to lay down a plastic sheet or at least some old newspapers. On warm days they could even go outdoors onto a paved patio area if possible.

So if you think that this sounds like a great idea, here are some projects that your kids could get stuck into… for more ideas, have a look at www.pencilstreet.org.

Create a Paper Mâché Hot Air Balloon

Paper mâché can be a lot of fun, so why don’t you help your kids to create some art for their bedroom? You will need to blow up a balloon before pasting it with newspaper and glue; when dry, simply pop the balloon and you will have a hard shell. It can then be painted, and then attached to a small cardboard box and string to give the full effect.

Complete a Coloring Book

Why don’t you get your child a coloring book and see how long it takes them to complete the whole thing? With practice, their control of the pencil crayons may improve over time. It should be an interesting activity to see whether they get better at staying in between the lines of the drawing.

Paint Their Rooms

If you are due to decorate your children’s rooms, is there any way that they could help? Whether this is just doing ten minutes of the main wall, or stenciling something, it can make them feel like they have helped towards the task as a whole. Of course you should always take the full precautions about skin sensitivity and ventilation.

Draw You or Their Sibling

Introduce your kids to the art of drawing by getting them to draw you, or one of their siblings. They will discover more about the form of the body, as well as learning about proportions and how large they need to draw certain features. You could do this once a year and see how the images change over time.

Do Some Sidewalk Chalk Art

For younger kids, an activity such as sidewalk chalk may appeal a bit more. You can find tubs of thick chalk in most toy stores as well as online. It is best to do this on your own driveway, as well as making sure that your kids don’t create anything that will offend your neighbors. If you don’t want a permanent drawing on the ground until it rains, it is probably best to make sure your garden hose is working sufficiently first.

Innovative Kids’ Storage Solutions

May 6, 2013 by Painter Mommy Leave a Comment

How often do you find yourself telling your children to tidy their bedroom? Why is it that children seem to continuously manage to create a bomb site of their room?

Is it because they pull out every toy under the sun? Or could it be because they never put dirty clothes in the laundry or clean ones in the wardrobe? Well, all these things are factors, but perhaps the main reason behind messy rooms is a lack of storage.

As adults, we find all sorts of nooks and crannies to stash things away making it difficult to find them again! Children always need access to their clothes, toys, books, homework, pens, computer and so on, so they find it easier just to leave it where it is.

With innovative storage solutions, you could make it a whole lot easier for your child to tidy up after themselves and you to keep on top of the mess.

Kids’ storage should be colourful, fun and useful. If your child’s bedroom is packed full of dull brown and grey drawers or wardrobes, they won’t engage with it. Just picture the bedroom of a three year old – I imagine serious and dark furniture isn’t what first springs to mind.

Use Colour

By incorporating bright colours into the room, you’ll immediately make it more interesting and engaging. Of course, colour alone isn’t going to lead to a tidy bedroom. When installing furniture in a kid’s bedroom it needs to be safe and durable. Some key things to look out for include rounded edges, the construction material and just how much storage it really offers.

There are loads of pieces of furniture you’ll need to make up a kid’s bedroom, including the bed itself, wardrobes, drawers, desks, study units, shelving and so on. With this in mind, many parents avoid going down this route for the fear that kitting out a bedroom packed with kids’ furniture will cost an arm and a leg.

Fortunately, that’s no longer the case, as it is possible to get stylish pieces for less than you think. For example, Kidspace furniture available at Woolworths.co.uk manages to incorporate colour, style, durability and remain at a relatively low price – so why not take a look today?

Extra Curricular Activities: How Soon is too Soon for your Kids?

January 17, 2013 by Painter Mommy Leave a Comment

Participating in extracurricular activities is enriching for the development of children and teens. It’s a great way to get them interested in healthy hobbies, stay in shape, and practice social skills, outside of the school environment. Studies show that participation in extracurricular activities leads to healthier, happier, and well-adjusted children. In addition, the challenges of mastering a skill, healthy competition, and needing to work with others as a team teaches children imperative lessons that help them throughout their entire lives. For these reasons, many parents are eager to enroll their children into classes and teams as soon as possible. However, there’s been a growing concern that perhaps children are overstressed or starting out too young, foregoing much-needed time for creative play and relaxation. It’s important for children to start young so they become habituated to the active lifestyle that extracurricular activities provide, but a balance needs to be met between engagement and an appropriate environment for children to explore and play.

Choosing the Best Extracurricular Activities:

The age of your child is not as important as their skill level and temperament. Assess if your kids are at a stage where they are ready to interact with peers and participate in an activity. Some children may be more comfortable in foreign social environments sooner than others. Certain activities also require motor skills, memorization, and the ability to follow directions that your child has not developed yet. Regardless of skill level, there are a variety of activities to choose from that can suit children of all ages.

Gymnastics:

Gymnastics is a great sport for young children, as they love to tumble, climb and crawl. Children’s bodies are still flexible and limber, making it much easier to execute gymnastic forms. There’s also a high level of personal instruction for children still learning the nuances of rules and procedure. Finally, the padded floors and walls make gymnastics an incredibly safe sport for toddlers.

Swimming:

Swimming is also a great sport for young children. The buoyancy of the water eliminates any impact with harsh surfaces, presenting fewer risks for kids. Swimming classes can also be taught as a group, or in a one-on-one environment. The personal attention received in one-on-one lessons can be helpful for children that are nervous or anxious in unfamiliar environments. Swimming classes also aren’t as competitive as other sports and provide ample opportunity for your child to focus on learning a few simple strokes while having fun in the water. As swimming lessons are offered to toddlers and infants, you can begin classes as early as you like.

Art Classes:

Art classes can be a lot of fun for small children. Introductory art classes leave ample room for your child to have fun and be creative with minimal pressure. As budgets for art programs decrease in schools, it’s important that we as parents encourage the arts in extracurricular activities. Creative arts are more than simply aesthetics; they can help your child develop the skills to creatively solve problems and they are also healthy venues of self-expression.

Important Things to Remember:

Although parents are free to enroll children at any age, to avoid overwhelming and stressing your child, there are few things to keep in mind:

Keep it fun and relaxed: The objective for young children is to stimulate interest in extracurricular activities. In the beginning, it’s important to allow your child to have fun and associate positive feelings towards active pursuits. You don’t want to risk frightening him or her from the experience with something too difficult or boring. Choose an activity that will allow your child to experience fun and enjoyment.

Choose activities with low pressure and competition: Introducing your child to a highly competitive environment too early can be very stressful and unhealthy. Choose activities that allow for more collaborative play with less emphasis on achievement and competition.

Be mindful of risk and injury: Young children are very vulnerable to injury and lack the skills to protect themselves. Choose an activity that is safe and has minimal physical contact.

Ultimately, it’s important to allow your child some room to pick and choose something they like and they’ll be more likely to continue participating. When children are very young, it’s important for them to associate positive emotions with healthy hobbies than it is for them to master them or compete. Thrusting children into overly demanding, stressful, and foreign environments prevents them from obtaining the benefits of extracurricular activities. You’ll have plenty of opportunity to gradually increase challenges or pick more strenuous activities when your child becomes older. For now, keep it light and fun and your child can begin reaping the benefits of extracurricular activities at any age.

Guest Post Bio: Brett Callan is an instructor at murraycallanswimschools.com, where their Escondido swim lessons offer customized support for children throughout San Diego. He loves to enjoy the San Diego weather whenever he can, whether from the beach or at a pool.