Category: Creativity Philosophy

Being cooped up on a rainy day can result in idle hands making trouble all over your house. To keep them busy, try an indoor scavenger hunt. Scavenger hunts help your kids practice problem solving skills in a fun and engaging way. The best part is that they’re totally customizable, so you can create a science-themed one for a rainy afternoon stuck in the house.

Don’t ignore the rain on a rainy day! This easy activity gets your kids interested in what’s going on with the weather and the science behind it. Making a rain gauge together is a great way to learn about the weather while stuck inside. To get started, you’ll need:

• Glass jar
• Pebbles or Stones
• Ruler
• Waterproof Marker

After you’ve gathered the supplies, it’s time to make your rain gauge. Have the kids put it together so they’re invested in the process. All you need to do is put the stones in the bottom of the jar and cover them with water.

Place the jar in an open area while it’s raining. After it rains, measure the level of rainwater with the marker. Keep the jar for all rainy days and create a chart so you can have an ongoing experience that your kids will have fun keeping track of!

This is another one that takes you out into the rain, but trust us, it’ll be worth it! If your kids like puddle jumping and spending time in the drizzle, it’s time to get the creative juices flowing and make sidewalk art.

Grab some sidewalk chalk and paint brushes. Draw on the sidewalk as you normally would, but then paint over it with the paint brush. It’s going to look like watercolor paint! If it’s not raining too hard, you can use a bucket of water over the chalk to get a better effect.

This is a good opportunity for your kids to explore their creativity in a unique way. Let them take their time doing different strokes and seeing what they can come up with!

To start, playing pretend is an activity that relates to positive emotions and is important for supporting childhood development and well-being. Research shows that children who engage in playing pretend are more likely to show positive emotions and improvements in their executive functions such as adaptable thinking and self-monitoring.

According to a study that observed 108 children, those who engaged in playing pretend were more likely to display positive emotions. The conclusion was that playing pretend may not only improve a child’s emotions but the other children playing with them too.

Another study showed that children that engage in pretend play have improved executive functions. The results showed that children in a 5-week fantastical pretend-play intervention showed the most improvement. Executive functions include adaptable thinking, time management, organization, and other skills. Overall, pretend play is an important part of childhood development with many benefits.

Play Together

Playing pretend isn’t just for kids! Try playing with them so they can see how you lay pretend, too. This will help them expand their creative mind and learn new ways to play. It will also be fun and beneficial for you! So throw on that princess crown and get to playing!
Don’t Force Anything

If they don’t seem interested in a certain idea, don’t push it. They aren’t going to get anything out of it if they don’t see the fun in the idea. Playing pretend will only benefit them if they are interested in what they are doing.
Utilize Their Interests

As a parent, you probably have a good idea of what your kids are interested in. Try to incorporate those interests when picking ideas for them to play pretend! If they like dinosaurs, try to create ideas surrounding that perhaps with toys and costumes.

Simply put, hands-on-learning means to learn by doing. It’s also referred to as kinesthetic learning. The problem with relying on technology to teach creative skills is that not all children or adults learn the same. Hands-on-learning gives you the opportunity to actually DO what you are learning about. Sometimes that’s all it takes for something to click.

Hands-on-learning is also great because it uses both sides of the brain. When we’re learning through other methods, such as listening to a lecture, we’re only using the left side of the brain. It’s important to involve both sides of the brain, and research from the University of Chicago shows that hands-on-learning is beneficial to students. The left side of the brain is used when we’re listening, as well as:

• Math
• Facts
• Linear Thinking
• Sequencing
• Problem Solving

Traditional methods of learning as well as using technology are very right brain oriented. Incorporating hands-on-learning gives the right side of the brain time to shine. It’s also important to exercise both sides of the brain for creativity and other life skills. The right side of the brain helps us with:

• Visualization
• Arts
• Nonverbal cues
• Imagination
• Anything creative

In today’s world, the skills you use your left brain for are nothing without the skills of the right brain. This is why STEAM learning is increasing in popularity and is incredibly valuable.

It’s important to understand that creativity is like a muscle. If you don’t exercise, you won’t strengthen it. For kids, creativity is an essential part of the learning experience. As they grow, they not only need to know critical skills like problem solving and other hard skills to land a job. Employers are also looking at soft skills such as writing and arts.

Hands-on-learning allows creativity to flow because kids are physically doing an activity. Many of the tools used in this type of learning are art supplies, so don’t be afraid to get messy and have fun!

Every child learns differently, that’s why it’s important to give them different options to choose from. While one child may benefit from listening to a teacher explain something, another is going to benefit from just diving in and getting started.

You can try to force children to learn a certain way all you want, but at the end of the day they will benefit best from the method that engages them most.

A collaborative pack with Museum of Ice Cream has also launched, exclusively available on-location at MOIC in New York City, Austin, and Chicago, with a limited number available online at Clixo.com for $19.99. The Clixo x Museum of Ice Cream pack contains 9 pieces in Museum of Ice Cream’s classic colors, Strawberry and Cherry. In Clixo’s signature Quad shape, the 9 pieces magnetically snap and click together to build tons of clever creations, helping kids and adults alike explore their imagination!

Most kids are going to have a creative side to them, but some more than others. It’s important to encourage their creative skills as soon as they start. They may be able to turn them into a career someday.

Building Toys

These are an excellent choice for kids who fit into any category. They encourage creativity and critical thinking skills while allowing them to work with their hands. Clixo’s sets come in different shapes, sizes and colors. Kids aren’t limited to the sizes, and since they are made of bendable material they can manipulate them however they want. Grab them a set today and it will be sure to be a hit. 

For the athletic kid, you will obviously want to get them toys to encourage their sporty nature. The athlete isn’t going to want a science experiment set, so try one of these options.

Putt-n-Play Wooden Golf Set

The Putt-n-Play Wooden Golf Set from Fat Brain Toys is an excellent gift idea for athletic kids. It comes with props to create a mini golf course, so they can use it inside or outside. This golf set it recommended for children who are between the ages of 3 and 5.

Spooner Board 

Another great option for the younger athlete is a Sooner Board. A spooner board is good for practicing balance and they can use it inside or outside. They can slide around the house with it, or use it as a sled outside. The possibilities are endless. 

Bow and Arrow Set 

What’s more fun than picking up random arrows all over the house? This bow and arrow archery set is a unique gift that will set you apart. It will give them a chance to learn a new skill other than bouncing or throwing a ball around. 

Skynook

A Skynook is a great way to get your little bookworm outdoors. Think of it like a sitting up hammock. You can easily attach it to a tree and give them a safe space outside to finish the next chapter in whatever they’re reading. 

Reading Light 

Reading in dim lighting can cause eye strain and other problems. Try giving them an attachable book light for reading in dark environments. Whether it be in bed at night, or on a road trip, this little light will come in handy and they will definitely appreciate it. 

Their First Dictionary

What would a kid who loves to read want more than their own dictionary? They’ll have a great time flipping through the Miriam-Webster’s Elementary Dictionary learning new words. It will be a great reference point for when they’re reading and don’t know what a word means! 

To start, we need to know what critical thinking is all about. Surely you’ve heard the term used as a part of college and other types of learning. According to The Foundation for Critical Thinking, there are a couple different definitions.

Critical thinking is defined as the intellectually disciplined process of actively conceptualizing, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered as a guide to belief and action. That’s a pretty wordy definition. Simply put, critical thinking is the ability to think clearly and rationally to understand the logical connection between ideas.

So, this type of thinking is when you’re thinking about a subject or problem and are able to improve the solution by thinking skillfully. When your child is developing critical thinking skills, they should be able to:

• Formulate and raise questions 
• Gather information
• Apply that information to the question.
• Think open-mindedly about the question.
• Communication with others effectively about it and come to a solution.

Critical thinking is not a cut and dry sort of subject. It’s an umbrella of different ways to think about a problem and solve it. There are several ways you can encourage critical thinking in your child in and out of the classroom.

When you’re working on something together, try to challenge them to think of other ideas and solutions. Have them make a list of all of the possible ways it can be solved to help them exercise critical thinking. One way to do this is to set up playtime.

Another great way to help your child develop critical thinking skills is to engage in structured play. This type of play has an end goal in mind and encourages problem-solving and critical thinking skills. Free play will also encourage creative thinking, so consider purchasing toys that can be used for both styles.

Some of the best toys for developing critical thinking skills are building blocks. Wooden building blocks are a staple for a reason, but magnetic styles are easier to deal with and can be more fun. We recommend Clixo’s magnetic building toys for developing critical thinking skills.

The bottom line is that critical thinking is a skill that should be developed as early as possible. It is the type of skill that applies to almost all areas of life. If children aren’t taught critical thinking early, they may not be able to make it a valuable skill.

There are plenty of ways to encourage critical thinking even in young children. A great way to help get them started is by getting them to build toys such as the ones from Clixo. They make learning fun!

To start, structured play is exactly what it sounds like. Structured play is also known as goal-oriented play. Instead of allowing them to do whatever they want, children are given a task with an end goal in mind.

Examples of structured play include board games, puzzles, and team games like sports. As the name implies, they are structured activities with rules that need to be followed. Structured play has many benefits, including: 

Problem Solving 

When children participate in structured play, they will learn crucial problem-solving skills. For example, when they are doing a puzzle, they need to solve it by putting the correct pieces together. While it may seem simple, this skill is going to benefit them their entire life. Any type of structured play is going to encourage problem-solving since there is always an end goal in mind. ,

Setting Goals

The goal of any structured play is to set goals and achieve them. So, as your children engage in structured play they will learn how to set and achieve goals in other aspects of their life.

Along with structured play, there is free play. This type of play is typically the opposite of structured and gives children the ability to explore and create with no guidelines. So, free play is the type of play that has no rules. Children aren’t expected to complete a goal but are still encouraged to play with others.

Think of activities like running around on the playground or playing dress-up. Free play is essentially any activity that isn’t a structured game. There is no ‘winning,’ only play. Along with structured play, there are several benefits to free play as well. 

Socialization 

One of the biggest benefits of free play activities is that they get to socialize with other children. Without an end goal for playtime, children can socialize and learn to interact with one another. 

Exploration 

Since free play activities typically happen outside, they get to explore nature. When they’re playing in the yard or at the playground, kids can run around and find plants and animals to learn from. This will also give them the confidence to explore other areas and learn.

There is much debate on whether free play or structured play is better for children. The answer is that they are both equally as important. Both types of activities can work together to create a balance in developing your child’s skills.

While structured play is great for problem solving, free play will help your child learn to create ideas from scratch. These two skills go hand in hand, and will be applicable the rest of their life. So, when deciding which type of play is more important, the answer is that you should be using them together. There are plenty of ways to combine structured and free play, including using toys.

To sum it up, free play and structured play are equally important for children. Each style of play helps your child develop different skills that they will take with them into adulthood.

To start, anxiety is defined as an emotion characterized by feelings of tension and worried thoughts. It can be accompanied by physical symptoms like a rapid heartbeat, shaking and increased blood pressure. If you’ve experienced anxiety, you know how unpleasant it can be. 

Children can have a difficult time expressing their feelings, and they won’t know what anxiety is when it’s happening to them. Signs of anxiety in children can include:

• Being scared when away from parents
• Extreme fears in certain situations such as going to the doctor or being around large dogs 
• Being afraid of going to school 

If you notice signs of anxiety in your child, it’s important to talk to a professional. You can also use these tips to help them cope with feelings of anxiety. 

Keep Them Occupied 

There are several toys on the market geared towards calming anxiety. Most of them are referred to as fidget toys. This includes fidget cubes, popping boards and many others. These toys are designed to help your child calm down when they’re feeling anxious by taking their mind off of it. 

While the classic fidget toys are great, sometimes it’s good to think outside the box so that kids are building other skills at the same time. Clixo’s Tiny and Mighty packs up easily so you can take it with you everywhere. In addition to keeping your kid’s hands occupied, it also promotes spacial awareness, encourages creativity, and more!

Be a Role Model 

You’ve surely been anxious at some point in your life, so let your child know that! If you are practicing the proper coping mechanisms for anxiety, you can share them with your child. Setting a good example will help your child to understand that stress and anxiety are a part of life, and there are healthy ways to deal with it. 

The last thing you want to do is have your child see you be overwhelmed by anxiety. Of course, as a parent there will always be moments. You cannot always be the super hero. Just try to practice health tactics in front of your children to help their anxiety as well as yours. 

This should be a no-brainer, but time can get away from you. You’ve had the trip planned for months, and the next thing you know you’re throwing everything into the bag a few hours before departure. 

When you’re traveling with your kids, the best thing you can do for yourself is to make a list. Have everything packed a few days before, and go through it before you leave so you are sure you’re not missing anything. When in doubt, always check again. 

Planning ahead should also include buying tickets to popular tourist attractions. The last thing you want to happen is something the kids really want to do sell out. That will be a recipe for stress. 

Along with the snacks, bringing a water bottle is an absolute must. When you’re busy traveling, hydration can fall to the wayside. Bringing a reusable bottle will allow you to not only fill it with water but with juice or a protein drink. 

Accidents happen, especially when you have kids. Even if you’re staying at a resort with plenty of amenities, you never know when you’re going to need a bandage. When you create your packing list, be sure to add a basic first aid kit to your list, including:

• Pain relievers like ibuprofen
• Hand Sanitizer (A must in the current climate)
• Bandages 
• Ice Pack 

When you travel with your kids, you should also look into nearby immediate care clinics. That way, if something does happen you aren’t scrambling on Google to find the nearest place without a 7-hour wait. 

Rest days are crucial when traveling with your kids. Plan a day where you don’t have anything planned. If everyone needs to rest, great! Otherwise, see where the day takes you. The internet won’t show you everything a place has to offer, so sometimes it’s good to explore with no plan! 

To sum it up, traveling with your kids doesn’t have to be a nightmare. Bringing proper supplies, planning ahead, and making sure everyone has snacks will help immensely. Remember to bring games and toys for long-haul flights and road trips to keep the little ones occupied. Most importantly, don’t forget to relax and enjoy your vacation! 

To start, it’s important to understand what STEM actually is. Simply put, STEM skills focus specifically on scientific concepts. STEM stands for:

• Science
• Technology
• Engineering
• Math 

They are also referred to as “hard skills.” Having STEM skills is incredibly valuable in the job market and can lead to high-paying jobs in the technology field. There is continuous growth in the job market, and the Pew Research Center reports that STEM jobs have grown 79% since 1990 which outpaces the rest of job growth in the United States. 

As technology continues to advance, this makes sense. STEM jobs are the jobs that are contributing to the boom in technology, and they likely won’t run out anytime soon. With that being said, those who work in STEM are also creating technology that could make some jobs obsolete. 

For example, STEM jobs such as data tracking and reporting could eventually be done only by
AI. Employers will no longer be looking only at hard skills. To stand out, potential candidates will need to have a list of creative and personal skills, as well. 

Since both STEAM and STEM are similar, it can be difficult to understand the difference. Both are valuable sets of skills but have different approaches to problem-solving. When you incorporate the arts with science, you get a well-rounded approach to critical thinking. 

In STEM, students are typically encouraged to develop skills on their own. In STEAM, collaboration is a huge focus. Think about any art class you’ve taken. You don’t simply learn the skill of painting or drawing. You study other artists and work together on analyzing the work. This is the type of skill STEAM is trying to bring to STEM. 

While STEAM is a highly complex combination of skills, it’s never too early to start learning. STEAM skills are typically learned with a hands-on approach which can help your child during development. 

Getting your kids involved in STEAM learning will also encourage them to start passions at a young age. Exposing them to science as well as the creative arts will give them so much to choose from as they learn and grow. 

It can be easy to think that STEAM is too complex for the young ones, but there are plenty of simple activities to start them out. The activities don’t have to be complex. Early-life STEAM activities include: 

Build Things

Something as simple as building blocks can develop STEAM skills. We recommend Clixo’s Rainbow Pack to start . The slim, flexible, magnetized pieces come in all sorts of shapes and sizes to encourage creativity. This simple activity is great for the beginnings of STEAM learning. 

The bottom line is that STEAM has evolved from STEM and for good reason. Adding in the arts ensures that children and adults alike are developing creativity along with technical skills. What good are the tech skills if you can’t problem-solve or bring new ideas to the table?

It’s never too early to start encouraging STEAM learning with your children. Educational toys are a great place to start. Remember, make learning fun! 

Everyone wants to be outside during the summer, so why not start a garden to keep them busy? Planting a garden will teach your kids responsibility and patience as they learn about growing their own plants. One idea is to give them their own row in the garden that they are in charge of, and let them choose the type of vegetables they’d like to grow. 

When they pick the vegetables out, encourage them to learn as much about them as they plant their garden. Once they grow, you can even use the vegetables to teach them about cooking, as well. A garden is a wealth of knowledge for children and adults alike! The best thing is that they’ll have no idea they’re learning and will have fun growing their own food. 

They don’t have to know it’s education. They’ll be happy to have a new toy and you’ll be happy that they’re secretly learning (and giving you a little time to enjoy a cup of coffee). There are plenty of options on the market for toys that will help your kids busy while teaching skills like science and math to everything in between. Using educational toys is a fantastic way to “trick” the reluctant into developing skills for the future. 

Clixo’s magnetic building toys are a good example of this. These educational toys take building blocks to another level. They are flexible 2D shapes that are magnetic and your child will develop skills as they play. You’ll probably like them too! 

Exercise is not only important for physical health, but for your mental health as well. Research has shown over and over again how good exercise is for cognitive function. Your kids are already going to want to run around outside this summer, so turn it into a workout!

You can engage in games with your kids such as tag or hide and seek to keep them playing while exercising. Another great activity is to get bicycles and go for a family bike ride. 

Writing is just as important as reading. Try having your kids write in a journal either every day or once a week to reflect on their summer activities. This will get their brain working and a good way to keep their memory sharp. Take them to the store so they can pick out their own journals to make it extra special. 

Your baby is growing and developing at an incredible rate in their first year of life. The renowned Jean Piaget, a crucial pioneer in the study of cognitive development, deemed this the “sensorimotor stage” from birth to two years of age. This is the time when kids start to learn representational play and understand symbolism. The foundations of your child’s creative thinking start to develop as early as six months to one year of age.

Encouraging Creativity in Babies

As your baby is developing the foundations of creativity, playtime is a crucial part of their growth. You can expand their creativity from the start by handing them toys that make noise like maracas and rattles, as this teaches them that they can create sound.

Books are another excellent way to stimulate your baby’s creativity. Simply placing the book in front of them for them to explore during tummy time can help them begin to understand shapes and artwork. Remember, bold and starkly contrasting colors are best for babies’ vision.

While preschool-aged children are still in the “preoperational stage,” these years are particularly instrumental in their creative development as their little brains keep developing and they don’t yet have the academic pressures of school and grades. Research shows that attending preschool can truly help kids take advantage of this opportunity. A study measured kids’ creativity before and after preschool education and found that the typical preschool curriculum improves creativity.

Encouraging Creativity in Preschool-Aged Children

In addition to enrolling your child in preschool, there are plenty of ways to encourage creative thinking as they develop. This is the ideal age to lean into toys that allow your child to build things, like magnetic pieces that connect together to create designs, structures, animals, and more. This starts teaching kids that they can create anything they can imagine.

As your child plays, consider playing positive, upbeat music too. Listening to music enhances creative thinking, and one particular study found that “happy music” was the key – they used classical music with an upbeat and positive tone. Consider playing this type of music in your home often, especially during playtime.

In Piaget’s outline of cognitive development, kids reach the “formal operational stage” at age 12. This is when they can start to wrap their minds around abstract concepts and problem-solve without needing physical representations of the problem. This is when kids’ creativity has the potential to truly reach its greatest heights because they can now develop entirely new abstract ideas.

Encouraging Creativity in Teenagers

As grown as your teen might think they are, it isn’t too late for you to stimulate their creativity. Take note of the types of creativity they seem to enjoy, whether that includes music, visual arts, drama, or other art forms. Encourage and praise their pursuit of those creative outlets.

A more positive mood seems to allow teens to unleash their creativity. One study found that people were more creative when thinking positively compared to when they were thinking negatively or were anxious. Teaching your teen to be optimistic and consider the best possible scenario could help them develop their creativity.

If you want to help your child put their natural creativity to use, you can do this at any age. Creativity isn’t something that goes away completely – it just needs to be practiced and honed like any other skill. Use the research-backed tips and ideas above to help your child access their creative side.

To start, we need to go over what STEAM stands for. Not to be confused with STEM, STEAM stands for science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics. These are incredibly important skills for children to start learning at an early age because they’ll need them in adulthood.

STEAM-focused toys are intended to help your little tot spark a lifelong interest in creative areas along with science. These toys are going to teach you tot skills that are in demand in the real world. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, STEAM and STEM-related occupations are expected to grow by 8% by 2029. So, it’s important to start them young.

Improve Motor Skills

One of the biggest benefits of educational toys for tots is that they improve motor skills. According to research, around 5-10% of elementary school children show delayed development in motor skills. One way to detect this and help early is to get them educational toys when they’re tots such as puzzles. 

Improves Problem Solving

Many educational toys operate under the process of trial and error. For example, magnetic puzzle toys encourage your child to work through the puzzle and find what fits through trial and error. The more they practice, the better they will get at it.

They Improve Concentration

Toddlers have very small attention spans, and they can easily lose interest in what they’re doing-especially if it isn’t fun. The last thing they’re going to want to do is to sit down and learn, but using educational toys makes it fun for them.

Clixo Rainbow Pack

Yes, classic building blocks are great, but with toys like Clixo your child gets much more. Clixo packs are toys that your tot can use to boost their creativity by building 3D magnetic creations. The Rainbow Pack comes with several uniquely shaped flexible pieces.

With Clixo, there are no batteries or screens so your tot can get lost in the lovely colors and shapes creating whatever comes to mind. Each piece is made of top-quality, eco-friendly material and they are light and compact. When you’re done, they stack easily to store them for next time! Clixo is perfect for kickstarting your tot’s STEAM skills.

Skoolzy Counting Bears

You probably remember these bears from your childhood, and they’re still a staple educational toy. It’s important to remember that your toddler is still very young, so STEAM skills are going to still look very basic. These bears come with scoops and cups to teach your tot about math very early and have fun while they’re doing it. With different colored bears, this toy will also help your child develop sorting and organizational skills.

To sum it up, there’s an endless supply of educational toys on the market that your tot should have. It’s important to encourage creativity and skill development as soon as you can for your young ones. They will be able to take the skills they learn into adulthood which will benefit them as the job market continues to prefer those with STEAM skills. Happy playing!

ReelAbilities Film Festival was initiated in New York at the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan in 2007, founded by Anita Altman and Isaac Zablocki. The festival was the first of its kind to present a series of award-winning films by, about and for people with disabilities. As the festival progressed, screenings continued to take place at multiple venues across the city and all films are followed by discussions that engage the community in promoting inclusion and celebrating diversity, while providing accessible conditions to match the different needs of our multi-layered society.