Comments on: the creativity crisis & indie culture

By: Gale

Gale — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 22:35:05 +0000

A wonderful article! I remember when I was little my mom made me a cabbage patch doll. My friends said it “wasn’t real.” I didn’t care. I liked it better than the “real” cabbage patch doll I finally got but never played with as much as that one. I loved that my mom had made it.

But, kids can dabble in name brand character play without it destroying their creativity. My boys are big into Star Wars right now. We got them a cheaper set…it had droids and clone troopers, but none of the main characters. Lo and behold, one of the droids became C3P0, one of the clone troopers becme Luke Skywalker, a duplo girl they already had became Leia, and they made R2D2 from other legos. Brand name products purchased…creativity still in tact!

By: Alice Hunt

Alice Hunt — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 03:11:31 +0000

Some of the best creative toys are wooden blocks. Lots of them. And Brio train sets with LOTS of track, straight track, curved track, tracks that split into 2 tracks. Then let them build and design their own little worlds. Girls love it too and even the grownups. Crayons and white paper are another thing. Every day you can do something different with them. And turn off the TV.

By: Yazmin

Yazmin — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 15:04:41 +0000

You’ll be fighting that feeling with him for years to come. I do what I love and my husband still struggles with it after 11 (soon to be 12) years of marriage.

The sad thing is that there are *a lot* of people who feel the same way. It’s very rare to come across someone who was brought up with the mantra “Do what you love and it will never be work.”

By: Adaleta

Adaleta — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 18:08:13 +0000

I thought you all might enjoy this wonderfully inspiring talk.

http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html

By: Adaleta

Adaleta — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 01:00:04 +0000

Great post Tara!
But I will say, with authority of an experienced film editor (that is my background), and a mom, that one should not let kids watch movies, any movies, till they are at least 4 or 5 years of age. It works strange things with their minds, it literally overloads them with emotion and information. So it is not strange that they just get hooked on it: it becomes a required exposure since the real world is not en par with the amount of readily available stimuli at toddler age. When you combine that with the material that they are regularly served on TV, namely advertisements, it is not surprising that they become consumers, not creators.

As far as the handmade toys go, the best toys are the ones kids make them selves. Whether they are masks, houses, forts, jewelry, you name it. Hence the success of Legos and big old cardboard boxes for example.

As a mom, I love going to craft stores with my son. He comes up with an idea what he wants to make, and we then figure out how we can do it on a budget. A box here, an old sock there, some stuffing, pompoms etc. Those toys are always the best, and longest appreciated. The time you and your child put into the toy together is what they appreciate the most, it is what they will remember when they grow up. So, if you want to have a creative kid, be creative together. Don’t expect that they will just pick it up along the way of growing up. Be an example.

By: Rebecca Stees

Rebecca Stees — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 00:28:01 +0000

I think the key is being able to invent your own game.

Kids play with the stories that are in the culture as a starting point.

Recently, I was creating with my campers some Native American inspired artwork. None of the kids under seven years old had heard of “Cowboys and Indians” (I live in the Bay Area, CA)

They’ll ask did you see Star Wars?
Do you know Pokemon?
Do you have a dog?

And that gives them some characters and relationships to start making up their own play.

……..
I was taking to a mom the other day about the tyranny of the word “bored”. That somehow a kids saying I’m “bored” sort of sets off a guilt reaction in parents.

IMO, kids have to get a little bored to have the incentive to start inventing their own fun.

I definitely let the kids get a little “bored” at my camp. And the result is more creativity, for sure.
……..

Here’s a little fun— I just ran across this because my new hobby is making little animations on doink.com and I like to see what kids are creating there too.

Remember what fun it was to just make faces in the mirror?
Evidently, Jim Carrey used to practice this a lot.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2cl6xRZ_c0&feature=related

Young humor…..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WzFFFFyZBU&NR=1
……….

This post has me thinking about a request that one of my camper’s parents made this week —- that I start blogging about things that parents can do at home with their kids to encourage their creativity.

I have a good one that you can do when you are in the kitchen and your kids is underfoot….

By: Julie

Julie — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 15:23:43 +0000

Hi,
This is the first time I have visited your site, and imagine my delight to find the first article I read to be all about our creativity and toys that help kids pretend! I started making my little playhouses about 14 years ago when my nieces and nephews were little and my sisters were looking for toys that would spark their imaginations. Now, as an “older” mom of a 5 year old boy and a 4 year old girl, my own kids are constantly helping me dream up new designs, and they have given me some of the best ideas! I have always encouraged imaginative play by my kids, and I LOVE handmade toys that encourage our kids to be creative.

Thanks for such a wonderful post! I am looking forward to viewing more of your blog.

Julie

By: Weekend Link Love – 17/18th July, 2010 « Epheriell Designs

Weekend Link Love – 17/18th July, 2010 « Epheriell Designs — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 03:16:06 +0000

[...] Another great post over on scoutie girl about the ‘creativity crisis‘ [...]

By: Amber (woodmouse)

Amber (woodmouse) — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 18:27:01 +0000

This post spoke near and dear to my heart as a parent and toy maker. All of the things you mentioned are what inspired me to create simple, open-ended toys as they are what I want for my son. I spoke about what “open ended toys” are on my Etsy handmade portrait video and it is basically my rule of thumb when it comes to whether or not a toy or child’s product enters our home. Like you, I don’t have a problem with watching the occasional TV or Disney movie…but I draw the line at all the other branded toy clutter that comes with it. Sure, he pretends that a fish toy is Ponyo…but other times that same fish finds its way into fish soup when he is cooking. Think he’d cook up an actual Ponyo fish toy? Nope. Branded toy clutter.

Anyway, back to the underlying point…yes, I do indeed think TV and mass-marketed branded toy clutter is partially to blame for the “creativity crisis” and schools too. Creative learning needs to be part of everything. At home and in school. There is room for creativity everywhere, in everything. What is the point of force feeding knowledge to kids if they then lack creativity to actually use it? It needs to be in everything.

Thanks for this great post…I’m striving to incorporate creativity in the everyday with my son. Being flexible. New ways of looking at things. Allowing the space for him to problem solve even when I know the answer. When I do this I benefit also. I can’t tell you how much I’ve learned and discovered and been inspired.

By: Delight Worthyn

Delight Worthyn — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 01:11:09 +0000

As a culture we generally do not value art.As an artist who has mentored youngsters I am saddened by this.Even schools with good art programs fail to exploit the real value in the arts which is this-at it’s core art is about creative problem solving.Learn this and it will help throughout life.I hope that the kids I work with have learned a little about process instead of only product.I always get a look of shock when I tell them that there is no such thing as “wrong” and that my only rule is NO ERASERS.Great post!