Encouraging creativity
How to raise creative children? A question parents often ponder. As our children grow up, we tend to have a preconceived idea of skills that we need to teach them: how to tell the time, how to tie their shoelaces, how to ride a bicycle, why it’s important to be kind and respectful to others, how to wash the dishes and so forth. What isn’t always made top priority is how to encourage their creative side. And creativity is not limited to artistic skills like painting, writing and decorating a cake – it also relates to problem-solving, an ability that will help them countless times in life.
Five suggestions for raising creative children

1. Allow them to be bored
2. Get them outside


3. Diversify their palate
4. Encourage them to use their imagination
Some examples could be:
If you had a superpower what would it be and why? If you were an animal, what would you be and why? If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?
The questions and answers can be serious, made up and even funny – it’s purely an exercise to get them thinking and considering why they choose what they do.


5. Involve them in problem-solving
Some prompts could be:
The car is always a mess after the weekend – what can we do to limit it getting so messy? The kitchen cupboards are so untidy – how can we organise things better? We’ve got all these vegetables in the fridge that need to be eaten before they go bad – what can we make with them?
Getting them involved makes them feel important, builds their confidence and allows them to think creatively about a solution.
We understand the importance of creativity
At Wolsey Hall Oxford we believe in nurturing creativity. Our password protected Primary and Secondary community websites give students the opportunity to indulge their creative sides by joining a variety of clubs and monthly show-and-tell sessions, browsing our virtual library and engaging in our friendly, inclusive student forum – there is something for everyone.


