NATIONAL ASSOCIATION 0F SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS

CHILDREN AND CREATIVITY*

By J. H. Presbury & A. J. Benson
James Madison Univerlsty
J. Fitch, Lyndon State College
and E. P. Torrance, University of Georgia

Background - Everybody is creative. Without creativity, we could not adapt to new situations or change the way we view the world. When people identify someone as "creative" then they mean something about the degree of creativity displayed. This degree of creativity depends upon the extent to which the ideas or results of the process are novel, valuable, differ from previous ideas or approaches, can be applied in other situations, and go beyond the commonplace. Such creative behavior is, by definition, unusual and unconventional. It has been said that just as low intelligence is stupidity, so is very low creativity ordinariness.

Not everyone will be delighted by the way a creative child thinks. No adult would wish for a child to be stupid, but they often pressure children to be ordinary.

Development - An active imagination is at the heart of creative thinking. For the young child, fact and fantasy, dreaming and waking, wish and reality, one's own view and "the truth" are all without clear distinction. This frame of mind is essential to remaining open to creative possibilities. But our "grown-up" society has strong feelings that children must fit in and be like everyone else. For example, it's okay for a two year old to develop imaginative and unusual uses for mother's saucepans (they can be hats, cars, anything), but later their use must be restricted to cooking and household tasks.

It is natural for young children to learn in creative ways - to learn by experimenting, manipulating objects, singing, dancing, story telling, making believe and the like. One of the first challenges to creative imaginings may be formal schooling. Teachers, and parents by this time, like conforming behaviors best -- e.g., being courteous and obedient, following rules, handing work in on time, etc. Along about age 9 or 10, creative children often experience the "fourth-grade slump" marked by a significant reduction in creative production. The pressure to conform and be like others increases during adolescence and some creative children never recover from the "slump." They go on to be conventional and ordinary adults.

The personality traits which some creative children develop are often viewed by others as strange or unproductive: (a) Free Thinking. Toying with ideas may appear undisciplined and lacking in goal orientation; (b) Gullibility. Creative children get excited about "half-baked" ideas and may not see the drawbacks or flaws that an adult would easily see; (c) Humor. Creative children find humor in ideas which adults consider to be very serious. This ability to question and see other perspectives may be interpreted as mocking and obnoxious; (d) Daydreaming. Creative children learn through fantasy and solve many of their problems through its use. Letting one's mind wander can help imagination to form new connections but may be seen as being inattentive or spacey; (e) Aloneness. Creative thinking develops from delicate, unformed ideas. Children need to be alone while their ideas emerge, but society's emphasis on togetherness makes this difficult; and (f) Activity. Ideas often come at times of "doing nothing." But once the idea comes, the creative child will become absorbed in the activity. This fluctuation, from what may seem to be laziness to over commitment to only one thing, is confusing and frustrating to others.

What Can I Do As A Parent?

Set an example. Honor your own childlike curiosity, enthusiasm, and "crazy" ideas. Keep yourself open to new experiences, share your own creative interests and take delight in the interests of your child. Give yourself a break-expect not to know all the "right" answers and accept less than perfection.

Examine your attitudes. Children who feel loved and trusted gain the confidence to be different and the courage to create. Over-concern for societal convention or sex-role stereotypes may inhibit creativity. If you believe that "a good child is a modest child," the child may be ashamed of the strong need to show his or her creative products to others.

Encourage your child. Encourage experimentation and exploration. Practice listening to your child without being judgmental. Edit, criticize, and question your child's ideas with great caution. Allow for, and support your child in failure. Avoid "empty praise" for every production and show your enthusiasm when you really feel it!

Enrich the environment. This does not mean that you must spend a lot of money. Children often ignore expensive toys in favor of the box in which they come. Unstructured play materials enable children to create their own ideas and encourage imagination. Old magazines, books, newspapers, games, old clothes, discarded jewelry can be precious treasures of unlimited possibilities. Take trips. Talk with people. Observe out loud and talk about the child's reactions. Provide experiences that stretch the imagination such as "pretend" situations, "I wonder what would happen if ... ?" discussions and making up stories. Daily rituals such as bedtime and mealtime can be opportunities for creative expression through conversation and storytelling.

Structure the environment. While It may be true that creative children's uniqueness may cause problems, it is not true that all children with problems are creative. All children require a predictable household where limits are set on their behavior. Creative thinking may lead children to question rules and to violate standards. Rules should be as few as possible but must be clear and consistently applied with obvious consequences for misbehavior and not as a show of parental power. Creative children will need time just "to be" and some control over how they spend their time. Today's push on being constantly busy (i.e., all the child's time filled with lessons, after school activities, groups) interferes with creativity.

Watch TV. And watch out for TV! TV can enhance visual imagery and imagination, and increase one's knowledge if used responsibly. However, creative people are not only consumers of the ideas of others, but produce new ideas. Getting hooked on the passive consumption of any medium, like TV, can block the productive energy of the creative child.

Encourage your child to record ideas. Children love to paint and draw from a very early age. This is an excellent creative problem-solving medium. Before they begin to write, they can dictate their ideas to adults or older children. Later, you may encourage your child to keep a diary or journal.

Work with your child's school. Most schools do not have programs especially designed for creative children. Help your school obtain volunteers and funding for programs in the creative arts such as dance, art, music, drama, etc. Keep a dialogue with your child's teacher so that he or she will interpret your child's behaviors in the light of possible creative ability. Advocate for your child but do not remain blind to the fact that creative children cause problems for the teacher. Anything you can do to relieve pressure on the teacher will benefit your child. Try - ever so gently - to get school officials to honor divergent thinking and to reduce the stress on correct answers and proper form.

Teach your child about creative children. The creative process never runs smoothly and children got into "bad moods" when they are frustrated. Say it's okay to daydream, pretend, have imaginary friends, think things other people don't think, and not be interested in everything that interests other children. As one now successful author put it: "My elementary school experiences were awful ... if (only) somebody had told me back then that I was 'creative' I would have had something to hold on to. All I know was that I was different:'

Of course, as a parent you cannot control all aspects of your child's creativity. You can follow the suggestions outlined above but your child will respond in his unique way. Your vision is unlikely to be your child's vision. However, deep satisfaction can be gained from participating in unlocking your child's creative potential, kindling within the lifelong fire of artistic and intellectual enthusiasm.

RESOURCES:

The Gifted Child Today. G./C./T. Publishing Co., P 0. Box 6448, Mobile, AL 36660-0448. The articles are readable and interesting. Included are activities in problem solving, poetry, and cartoons.

Davis, G. A. (1981). Creativity Is Forever. Badger Press, Cross Plains, WI. This is an easy to understand book which uses everyday examples to explain the creative process. It includes humorous and imaginative comments on the subject of creativity.

Samples, B. (1976). The Metaphoric Mind: A Celebration of Creative Consciousness. Addison-Wesley Publishing Co., Reading, MA. A more technical book than Davis', this is a good treatment of the differences between logical thinking, which currently leads to academic success, and metaphorical thinking, which is the starting point of creativity.

* From Handouts (1990), edited by Alex Thomas. A publication of the National Association of School Psychologists.