why we believe creativity is important

We're in About Thames Ditton's summer edition with an article about how creativity helps children's wellbeing - written for us by health journalist Siobhan Mason

Click here to read the full article online

There are many, many reasons why getting your children’s creative juices flowing is beneficial. Here are just a few that we like to remember from time to time:

• Using their hands enhances their cognitive development.
   

• Little neurons inside children’s brain fire up when they’re thinking creatively and this has a beneficial impact on their ability to problem solve.
   

• The sense of achievement is tangible, literally, everyone can see what they’ve made.
   

• Children are genuinely more employable in later life if they can think laterally, communicate clearly and work as part of a team. Creativity is the number one skill that business leaders say they need for their organisations to succeed.
   

• Art & sewing develops fine and gross motor skills and makes their fingers more adept. This, in turn, makes them better at other useful things like handwriting in school.
   

• As parents the best way to set children up for life is to have a balance of variety and stimulus in their lives. Creative, academic & physical activities all in equal measure.

at Magpie Makes we encourage children to:

• experiment with materials

• observe

• express themselves creatively

• learn from their mistakes

• persevere

• understand why and how things are made

• appreciate colour, texture, light & shade

• have confidence in their ideas

• develop life skills such as sewing

• collaborate

• tidy up!

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