Background information

What is Creativity?

Creativity is a skill and a way of thinking, rather than a talent we are each born with (or born without!) Creativity is an essential skill in many aspects of life - problem solving, resilience, maths, science, and social and emotional intelligence; and it is our most valuable human resource.

Creativity is a process that allows us to form original thoughts and ideas through exploration, discovery and imagination. The creative process is very much about the process rather than the product, the journey rather than the destination. We all have the capacity to be creative, however it is a skill that requires practice. It is also important to provide an environment and resources that support creative thinking and expression, especially for young children.

Sir Ken Robinson: Do Schools Kill Creativity? (https://vimeo.com/20146136)

The benefits of nurturing Creativity

Creativity is a vital skill for the 21^st century. Creative thinking allows us to solve problems, cope with change, innovate and connect with others. Engaging in creative thinking develops our whole brain, helps us to understand the world we live in and how we might contribute to our community.

Why is Creativity important for young children?

Creativity is important for young children because it provides a way for them to explore, discover and make sense of the world around them. It provides opportunities to express their thoughts and feelings without judgement, deal with stress, explore ideas, hypothesise, experiment, imagine and think deeply about all that they see, think and feel.

The creative process gives children the opportunity to try new things without being right or wrong. They can try, and try again.

Providing opportunities for children to be creative is critical for their development and well being. Being creative develops neural pathways and connections in the brain and requires the use of the whole brain. This provides a foundation for creative thinking, problem-solving, social and emotional intelligence, well being and resilience.

Want to know more?

Check out the Cool Australia Factsheet: How can Educators and Families Nurture Creativity in Young Children?

Keep it fun. Try a new art form or medium each month and explore all sorts of ideas using that art form (try singing, dance, clay, puppetry, storytelling, painting, mosaics, weaving, video or photography, etc).

Lead by example. Show the children that it is fun to try new things and try out something new yourself.

Cater for all learning styles. We all learn differently so have a backup plan so that if some children are not engaged with one activity there is something else to capture their imagination and interest which uses a different part of the brain or body (an active physical activity and a visual or thinking activity).

Use all your senses. Creativity and imagination are fed through all your senses so make your creative activities sensory.

Make creativity part of every day. Play some music during transition, meal or quiet times; incorporate actions, finger plays, role play or character voices when reading stories; provide loose parts and open-ended toys rather than toys with one purpose or function; try some bath body or finger paint, or get creative with your cooking.

Ask open-ended questions to encourage creative thinking. I wonder….?

Nurturing Creativity Activity: Storytelling

Purpose: Story Stones are a great resource for creative thinking and storytelling, and there are lots of ways to use them. Storytelling is a great way to encourage early literacy, listening skills and provides opportunities to support children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Story Stones are also a wonderful way for children to drive the storytelling and be actively engaged in creating stories, rather than merely being passive listeners.

Equipment needed:

Smooth stones (the number depends on how many you want to make, you are limited only by your imagination). You could also use cards or other materials, we just love using natural materials though! They are very tactile and provide an opportunity to provide a sensory experience.
You can draw, paint, stick or collage your pictures on to the stones. Try a few techniques and see which you like best, and what works on the medium you have chosen.

Activity 1: Create the Story Stones by drawing, painting or sticking pictures and images onto the stones.

Instructions:

You can choose to create your Story Stones yourself and then share them with the children. Alternatively, the children can be involved in creating the Story Stones as part of the activity itself.

Try a few drawing, painting and collage techniques and see which you like best, and what works on the medium you have chosen.

You can follow a theme, a storyline from a book you are planning to read, or create a random collection and see where they take you!

Here are some ideas to get you started:

Weather - clouds, sun, rain, wind, snow.
Natural elements - flowers, leaves, sticks, seed pods, sun, moon, stars.
Natural environments - waterfalls, trees, mountains, rivers, flowers.
Built environments - house, bridge, shop, castle.
Trail of footprints, muddy puddles.
Animals - pets, farm animals, zoo animals, wild animals, sea animals, insects, birds.
People - different professions, ages and cultural backgrounds.
Families - mother, father, girl, boy, grandmother, grandfather, baby.
Vehicles – bike, car, train, plane, scooter, skateboard, sailboat.
Local Landmarks from your city, town or suburb.
Book characters and superheroes.
Self-portraits of the children.
Actions - jumping, walking, running, climbing, sitting, sleeping, eating.
Emotions - sad, angry, happy, confused, scared, worried, excited.
Tools and trucks - hammer, saw, screwdriver, crane, grader.
Body parts - eyes, ears, nose, smile, arms, legs, hands, feet.
Everyday items - kite, party hat, cake, clock, knife and fork, comb, book.

If you are drawing onto the stones, you can use chalk or permanent markers, or you can paint by hand with acrylic paint.

You can also use stickers or images cut out from old books or magazines. Try to use a water-soluble glue that dries clear - put a small amount on a stone, and then place the cut-out in position, and use your fingers to smooth out any air bubbles. With a sponge brush, smooth and dab a little more glue over the cut-out, pressing around the edges with your fingers, to get a good seal between the paper and the stone.

Activity 2: Telling stories with your Story Stones

Story Stones can inspire storytelling by children, or enhance your own storytelling. They can be used in many ways; to inspire, spark an idea, engage children in a story you are reading together, to support comprehension discussions (order of the story: beginning, middle and end), as a non-threatening communication tool for non-verbal or non-English speaking children, or to encourage creative collaboration.

The list below represents a few of the ways you can use Story Stones to nurture creativity.

a) Storytelling circle

Invite three or more children to sit down in a circle.
Place the stones (picture side down) in the centre of the circle.
Ask each child to select two stones. Ask each to pick up the stones they have selected and to examine the pictures on their stone. They can continue holding on to their stones or they can place them on the floor in front of where they are seated.
Before the storytelling begins, talk to the children about using the pictures to introduce a new character or to create a new situation. Encourage them to introduce twists and turns in the story, and to use emotions and tones to make the story funny, scary, happy or thrilling and so on.
The storytelling begins with one child starting a story based on the stone that she/he has.
This storyteller continues her/his story for a few minutes. When they are finished, they place their stone down in the middle of the circle.
The next child in the circle continues the story, incorporating one of the stones (character/situation) they have chosen.
Every child in the group gets a chance to build on the story using the pictures on her/his stone.
As they finish their turn, they place their stone next to the first one in a line.
This continues and the circle repeats so that each child has a second turn and an opportunity to use their second stone as a prompt to weave into the story.
When the last child has their last stone, they bring the story to a close.

b) Adult Storytelling in a circle

Turn all the stones face down so that no pictures can be seen. The adult begins to tell a story and at various points in the story, invites one child at a time to turn over a stone revealing a new character, object or item which will be weaved into the story by the adult storyteller.

c) Individual storytelling by children

A child chooses three stones at random by putting their hand into a bag of stones and pulling three out. The child tells a story incorporating the three different characters, places, objects or textures. This is fairly advanced for young children and may require modelling by an adult the first few times.

An alternative to this approach is that instead of randomly selected stones, the child thoughtfully selects three stones that they would like to use.

d) Free play

Children use the stones however they choose to. They may use other toys as props or hold conversations between different characters on the stones. Time to play and explore freely and without structure is an important part of early childhood and it is often best not to interfere during this time.

There are many other ways you can use the Story Stones. Check out the Story Stone Adventure Cards for further inspiration.

Document your stories and create your own collection of Story Stone adventures for the children. What a great end of year memento!

Provocations:

I wonder what might happen next?
I wonder what I would do if I were (character)?
I wonder what might happen if…?

Possible lines of development:

Explore other ways the story could end.
Encourage children to imagine what happened before the story began or after the story ended.

If possible, allow children to make their own Story Stones.

If you want your pictures to last, cover them with a coat of water-based varnish.

Try some other props for storytelling - puppets, dioramas, models, costumes, etc.

Create some character voices to make storytime more interesting and interactive.

Try incorporating some action (fingerplays, role-play or dance) into your stories.

Evaluation

Complete an analysis of learning, listing evidence about:

Belonging	Finding something of interest
Communication	Expressing an idea or feeling
Exploration	Engaging with challenges and persisting when difficulties arise
Wellbeing	Being involved

Nurturing Creativity - Storytelling

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