Creative play at christmas!! (Creative Play in General)

Member Name: mummy2twogirls

Product:	Creative Play in General
Date:	10/11/08 (42 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Having so much fun with your child

Disadvantages: the mess afterwards

It's amazing what you can achieve with a little bit of imagination and creativity, when trying to entertain children. I suspect many parents have brought their children the latest toy on the market to find that they'd rather play with the box it came in. Or at least play with it for a couple of hours and decide it's not there thing and it gets discarded to the bottom of the toy box never to see light for months.

Children need entertaining all the time, as their minds can get bored very easily, and there are various ways of occupying them and not just by buying them expensive toy's. I have to admit 90% of the toys my two daughters own where brought by family and friends, because sounding the cruel mother i am i do not believe in shelling out on lots of toy's just to keep their minds active.

This year as a country have had more than our fair share of bad weather, so my mind has been working overtime to make sure each day my children are learning something new in the way of creativity, lying dormant around our houses are hundreds of idea's in which to teach our children the meaning of 'creative play', and here are some of the things we've tried and tested.

~Cooking~
Children of all ages love cooking, as it encourages role play, I'm not talking about cooking three course meals, but simple fun things that your child can get involved in, making things like rice krispe cakes is always a big hit, and there cheap and easy to do, my daughters love adding the chocolate to the krispies and having the big job of mixing them together, to save on arguments i normally divide the mixture into two smaller bowls which makes it easier for them to stir, and give them each 6 cake cases and help them add the mixture, their favourite task after is adding the little smarties on top.
We also make biscuits as well, again they are simple to do, normally i make the mixture beforehand, and we roll it out and use cutters to shape them together. We then wait for the 'magic cooker 'to bake them, during this time we all help to tidy up and put things away. When there cooked and cooled we ice them together and make faces, and of course sample our delights.

~Music~
Child learn so much through music, different rhythms, tempo's, pitch's, of course they won't be able understand fully what they mean, but it certainly gives them a head start in the future, my kids love to make sounds with different musical instruments, and all of them we have made from bits around the house.

*Cardboard box guitar* Find a old box, a shoe box would be ideal take one side out leaving the rest, find four different sized rubber bands and attach over the box, thinner and tighter bands make a higher pitch sound and thicker more loser bands make a lower pitch sound, your child can then decorate his/her box, by painting, colouring, or sticking ribbons on to them.

*Shakers* These are so simple to make, take a old plastic bottle and make sure it is thoroughly dry before use, add a couple of handfuls of rice, places the top on and seal with tape, This make a quicker and simple toy, which believe it or not can keep children occupied for hours, they love to sake it up and down, or you could use it as a rain maker and watch the rice tip from one end to the other.

*Bottled music* I bet most of us, in our life's have blown across the lip of a half-empty pop bottle and marvelled at the richness of the tone, children will love doing this, grab around 5 glass bottles if you can and fill them with different amounts of water, your child will love blowing each bottle and making tunes- though i would recommend this for slightly older children.
* Singing songs* We all know how much children love to express themselves through singing, sitting with them and singing simple nursery rhymes can be so much fun, especially if mum or dad do impressions of the different animals you sing about, also take a little time after each rhyme to talk about the different things you sang about.

~Outdoor play~
All children need fresh air in their lungs once in a while, and even if it's a cold autumn day, there are so many things you can do that doesn't involve sticking them in a paddling pool whilst you catch up on some sunbathing, me and the girls love wrapping up warm in our hats, coats and gloves, and going to explore the wonders of outside, normally it's in our garden, we do things like nature trails finding different coloured leaves, stones, and wild flowers, we wander around the garden and i encourage the children to tell me what they see and we talk about it.
We have a bird table in the garden and they love to put little bits of bread and seed out for the birds, we then go inside and watch out the window at the different species that land and happily eat the food.

We go for walks to the park, it doesn't cost anything and they love running around, getting exercise, and being pushed on the swings, splashing in puddles is another big hit, put on there wellies and old trousers and see how many puddles you can find between your house and the park??

Trips to local petting farms are also a big hit, children love interacting with animals, and finding about different kinds, they don't have to be tigers or elephants, as sometimes it's best to start with the basics with younger children, most farms will let children feed and stroke them, and seeing the smiles on their faces is priceless, they will feel so proud knowing they've got up and close with horses or pig's and it helps them to become more confident to. Most farms also don't charge the world, under two's are normally free and children over that age is only a couple of pounds, so take a picnic and make a day of it, don't forget your camera to capture them special moments.

~Role play~
Children love role play as it helps there learning abilities for later in life, and there are lots of ways to encourage this, which includes

*Dressing up* girls love to be princess's/queens and angels, and boy's love to be kings, policemen, and action hero's, route through your wardrobe, airing cupboard, and charity shops, and make your own props, a piece of wire wrapped in silver foil can make a excellent wand, try also making their hats together, with card- measure the diameter of their head, cut out a piece of card and either glue or staple together, then get your children to decorate with glitter, shiny materials and ribbon. Or masks are very easy to make also using thin card/paper, find a picture of the superhero your child wants to be and copy, use covered elastic to fasten.

*Bubbles* Everybody loves bubbles, and you don't have to buy shop brought ones, why not make your own, take 1 tsp of washing up liquid, and add 3 tbsp's of water, mix and pour onto a plate, take a large paper clip or something to that effect and bend into a triangle, and you're ready to start blowing bubbles, you blow the bubbles and give your children the task of seeing how many they can catch before they get to the ground.

*Cardboards box's and den's* Ask your local appliance store if they have any large spare box's , use these to make castles or houses for your child, paint or colour to look appropriate ,cutting out windows if needed, you don't need to create a masterpiece, just make it look a little life like, these will keep imaginative children entertained for hours, also try making dens using large old sheets or blankets and tieing them to two chairs, or drape over your sofa, be sure to be ready to do a lot of 'pretend' door knocking and ask your child if you can come in for tea! Having your camera handy is a plus ready to take photo's to add to the photo album.

*Sand and water play*
A dish tub filled with sand or water can provide entertainment as well as a great learning experience. Ideas to add to water play: a drop of food colouring, turkey basters, funnels, cups, dish soap, boats, plastic toys, brushes and sponges, ice, cold or warm water, baby dolls or play dishes to wash, toddler safe balls, items that will sink or float. Best to be done outside but if you have no choice, use aprons on children, and cover the floor before use, with a old plastic sheet/mats.

*Face painting*
Get creative, and paint your children's faces, set's can be brought very cheaply from pound shops, craft shops etc, even if you're not the world's best designer, you can still have fun in the process.

*Home treasure hunts*
Can prove to be more fun, than hide and seek, write out a list of clues for your children to find, things like a pink/blue sock, a drawing of a tree( which they'll have to do themselves) a stuffed animal, etc, make sure you write things that they can find, and always give them boundaries i.e.- don't go into mummy and daddy's room or the bathroom, and tell them they don't get a prize if they leave a mess behind them- reward them with a pack of sweets, lollypop, or a pack of raisins.

*doctors and nurses*
Encourage them to play doctors and nurses, using their dolls/ stuffed animals as patients, try teaching them a little bit about why teddy is poorly- maybe he's fallen of the chair and needs to have an x-ray, and a bandage on his foot, or maybe dolly needs to have some medicine, get a old medicine spoon and let your child pretend to give it to her. By sitting with your children and talking to them as you play it will help them to understand that sometimes we all get poorly and might need to go to the hospital/ doctors at some point, by approaching the situation lightly, if your children does have to go to any of these places for any reason, it will help them understand a bit better, and perhaps they won't be that scared or frightened.

*Shops*
All children love to pretend to shop, so why not make your own shop, using box's made into till's, and why not use old plastic plates cups, hunt places like charity shops, eBay for plastic fruit/food/money, doesn't matter if their second hand, you can easily wash them, try teaching them about different foods, where they come from, how to you keep them or cook them etc, all take it in turns to be the shop keeper and customers, upturn toy box's and lay out things they can buy, i.e. books, toys and games, and make your own signs to put up, and make your own money by using paper for notes, and card cut into circles for coins and colour them in.

~ Colouring, painting and sticking~

Being so close to Christmas why not let your children make their own Christmas cards for close family and friends, collect together old Christmas cards and cut out the pictures of Christmas tree's, robins, winter scenes etc, use coloured card- red's, greens, gold's, and let them get sticky, hunt pound/craft shops for glue, glitter, special Christmas craft sets and let them give the cards their own personal touch, which the receivers will love. Envelops are cheap to buy to just make sure you get the right sized ones.
Have fun making decorations, things like snowflakes are fun, all you need is white paper, scissors, glue and some glitter, use the scissors to cut out different patterned snowflakes, and use glue/glitter to decorate, you can either then stick them in their bedroom windows, or use a hole punch, add some ribbon and add to your Christmas tree. Or make stars using 6 lollypop sticks, use three to make 2 triangles, and stick making a star, paint in seasonal colours and add glitter/ ribbons etc.

As a parent you will know what activities are best suited to your child regarding their age, always supervise them when using water/ scissors, etc. And try to get involved as much as you can as this can help you and your child bond with each other, not all creative play has to cost money, when chucking things like egg/ cereal boxes away, just think could they come in useful?? Be on the lookout when shopping for cheap art materials or things you think could come in useful when doing these tasks.
If you have more than one child, try not to let any of them feel left out, and involve them all, also teach them about sharing things with one another.

Anything can be achieved, all you need is a little imagination and creativity, go on you never know it might be fun

Summary: all you need is a little imagination