Adolescence and creativity: great children
Although there are innate geniuses, it is normal for good and creative ideas to emerge from reflection and knowledge. The effort to separate from the data to analyze them has as a reward the development of creativity and critical sense. Creativity requires repetitive acts that favor autonomy, the right use of freedom, curiosity, open-mindedness and optimism.
Progress continually demands innovative minds, capable of finding more humane solutions to new problems. It is also true that the human being has his own resources to respond to those requirements and make any activity a masterpiece, a step forward, thanks to his imagination.
The creativity it is a treasure that we all carry within one form or another, and that we must develop until it becomes a habit. Our teenage children are at the best moment for us to help them discover and develop theirs. The best way is to create in our home the necessary conditions for them to develop their perception, originality, expressiveness, curiosity and initiative.
The effort to know the world around us
The hereditary factors and the personal aptitudes have a relative importance and, in short, what ends up importing is the effort to know and understand the world around us. In order for our children to get this message, it is essential that we provide them with occasions in which - based on a daily news or event - domestic conversations go deeper into the causes, factors and scope of those events.
Only if there is knowledge can there be creativity, but when that is achieved, it does not arise spontaneously, in the form of ideas, observations and brilliant reasoning. Once the data, figures and other elements that make up reality are known, the effort to separate from them and analyze them from a new perspective has as a reward the development of creativity. Our children must learn, therefore, to develop a certain citing sense, which will help them to separate themselves from the avalanche of data and figures attached to each event.
Knowing them, you can dispense with them at a given moment and calibrate the real dimensions of the problem, arriving at a proposal. If we take the opportunity to raise certain problems that affect humanity, we will be encouraging, in addition, to develop their creative thinking at the service of others, while opening new horizons.
Creating is a habit
Like any other habit, creativity requires repetitive acts, that favor attitudes such as autonomy, the right use of freedom, healthy curiosity, openness of mind and optimism. One of the main objectives in adolescent education must be, precisely, that they learn to make good use of his autonomy and his freedom.
To develop creativity, both faculties will be very necessary, and it is essential that adults avoid cutting the wings of their thinking. On the contrary, we must find a way to encourage them to know what they are interested in, to document themselves, to look for sources, to analyze ... to stimulate, in short, their desire to know the world. Along this path, your mind will open up to new horizons, while at the same time structuring your critical sense.
In any case, the ability that can not fail in the creative teenager is optimism. This trait, so typical of children at this age, is undoubtedly the yeast over those already mentioned, the one that prompts the young person to create, to look for an innovative and good solution to any problem, convinced that it is possible to find it. .
Great children
Each person manifests his creative talent in a particular way. We will have to make an effort to know the skills and abilities of each of our children. Maybe one excels in music, another in sports, maybe we even have a bookworm ...
The important thing is that we create an environment in our home where they can let out that treasure inside. It does not mean that they can do what they want, but that they feel comfortable expressing themselves and taking an interest in providing solutions to the problems that arise around them.
Exercises to stimulate creativity at home
To stimulate creativity in the home, we can use any activity that helps our children develop the skills. But if we want to perform a global exercise, we can use three techniques: tormenta of ideas, product improvement and dialogue.
- The storm of ideas or "brain storming"There are several phases, first a problem arises, which can be real or fictitious, everyday or global in scope, and then each one issues his ideas and proposals, which the others have to listen without issuing any contemptuous or adhesion judgments. .
In the next phase, each idea is analyzed from several perspectives: if it is viable, convenient, harms someone, etc. Finally, the solution that most value among all is chosen.
- Product improvement is to take advantage of any circumstance - we have to change the family car, decide the summer ... - to ask the children questions how * can be improved? * How would it be cheaper and longer lasting?
- The dialogue, Finally, it is a common exercise in any family, which we can use to encourage the analysis of topics that interest children, so that they learn to ask questions, distinguish concepts, be critical, etc.
Qualities that the creative young man possesses
- Perception: has sensitivity to capture facts and ideas, is informed and has an open mind.
- Imagination: is able to transform reality in his head, and develop new hypotheses.
- Originality: invent and bring new ideas. He knows how to find new approaches.
- Expressivity: is able to communicate fluently his ideas.
- Curiosity: to look for the causes of everything that surprises you and does not understand.
- Initiative: which leads him to dare to give his most innovative opinions and to be independent in his personal approaches.
Rocio Serrano
