Every Day's a Party

Sing a silly, willy song. Sing it out of tune. Sing it loud and sing it proud. Sing it to the moon!

You don't have to be a fabulous poet (as proven by my opening lines), or be the best artist, musician or designer to be creative. Providing opportunities for creative play in your child's day are as important as exposing your kids to planting a garden (science) and counting (math). Exercise their imaginations. The bonus for us parents? We get to escape into their world for a bit. Listen and watch carefully to learn how your child is feeling and what's really going on inside.

To draw out the creativity in your child (and yourself) try out a few of these ideas.

• Open a canvas. Give your child a blank piece of paper to color, draw and write on. Coloring books are great, but giving them a clean slate can let them explore without boundaries. Drawing a blank? If the blank page is overwhelming to both you and your child, play a story game. You draw one thing, the sun, for example. Then let your child draw something, a ball. You'll begin to see and talk through a whole story that ends up being a great piece of artwork! Feeling brave? Give them a paint brush and an open wall in your garage.

• Build a machine. Provide random household items and some tape. That's right, beyond just the block set you have, offer wooden spoons, a mixing bowl, a pair of pliers, buttons or scraps of paper. Start by asking your childern, "What could you build with that?" If they need more direction, "I wonder what the machine looks like that makes Cheerios (or another of their favorite snacks)." Then sit and help them get started. 

• Sing and dance. Turn on the tunes, and let yourself be free to wiggle and twirl. Kids love to see their parents being silly. Dancing, playing instruments, marching around the house or making up songs of your own can be some of the best times to let your creative out. Stick your child's name into a fun song, and you'll be a hero. Soon, they'll be offering their own lyrics and special dance moves. Practice rhymes and enjoy.

• Make an obstacle course. Outside or in, give your children the chance to create a world of running, jumping, diving over, ducking under or rolling, by making their own obstacle course. Time them or compete with them, and you'll both get a nice workout.

• Make a party. Decorate, bake, organize the seating, make the invitations and wrap up gifts. There's so much that goes into a party, why not let your little one make up reasons to plan one? "Happy random Tuesday, everybody!" is a great theme. My three-year-old can spend all day working on the elements of a party. She'll work so long that we don't actually get to attend the party, but I suppose that's not necessarily the point.

• Open a book. Make it simple by reading books to unlock worlds they've never known before. Take a picture book with little words, and make up your own tales of what else may be happening in the scene.

• Act it out. Along with reading, take their favorite story and bring it to life. With little or no props you can act out nursery rhymes, stories or songs very easily. You don't have to do it word for word, that's the fun! Our favorite is Goldie Locks and the Three Bears. Stuffed animals play supporting roles and often the "bears" are eating pizza rather than porridge.

With each activity, gently guide when needed, but mostly follow. Your children should take the lead. Empower them to be their unique little self. Encourage them to belt out that song loud and proud. Belt it all the way to the moon!

And go ahead and have a party to celebrate when you get there.