Craft Fun at Ikhaya Lo Thando
26 June 2019 | Shannen Harte
A great part of what we do in our school is to encourage creativity amongst our little ones. Giving them the chance to be creative, letting their minds wander to a peaceful yet constructive place.
Letting your mind focus on making something without pressure or stress (craft time should NOT be stressful) allows your other thoughts to take a rest, helping you to achieve inner calm and relaxation.
Many crafts involve patterns - think beading, threading, mosaics, and weaving. Others involve building and construction - think puppet making, cardboard castles, and box crafts. These all help kids to develop early maths and creative problem-solving skills.
Here are 4 Reasons to Craft with your Children:
1. Developing fine motor skills- It helps small children develop their motor skills as they have to cut paper and even stick things together.
2. It helps children focus- Completing a craft takes determination and some amount of focus and discipline. As the result is satisfying and personally rewarding, children will want to finish it so they can show off the final product to their parents and friends.
3. Children learn to take instructions- If you are supervising and guiding the child, there will be instructions to be followed. This will help children with their listening skills.
4. Improving children's' vocabulary- While crafting with your children you can teach them new words like "glue", "stick", "wax", "cardboard" - basically anything that you use in the craft. You can also take the opportunity to introduce shapes and colors to your child.
