Getting Creative without the Mess

One of the things that makes me happiest is seeing my children and my students getting creative.

But I'll be completely honest, I can only deal with a certain amount of mess. Of course I encourage the children to clean up themselves but until they are a little older their standards of cleanliness don't quite meet mine.

Writing this article has been a collaborative venture as my girls have loved discussing their favourite activities with me.

Paper Craft
Such as origami and paper aeroplanes. Origami doesn't have to be fancy, children of ages can get folding. Similarly paper aeroplanes can be anything from a basic fold to complex weighted creations

Beading
We love beading because we all find it therapeutic and it doesn't just have to be about making jewellery. We particularly enjoy creating all sorts of trinkets with harmer beads, such as key rings, coasters and festive decorations.

Construction
Construction is any type of building. From the baby stacking cups to the complicated Lego and Mecano sets more suited to adults.
Some of the things we like to construct with are Duplo, Mobilo, Jenga blocks, Lego, Majong tiles and cardboard boxes.
A note on Lego. While building a new Lego creation from the instructions provided is an excellent skill and to be encouraged it is also important for children to create freely without instructions confining them. This can come naturally for some children while for some it can require more encouragement, but it is worth the investment as they get so much pride out of their own unique creations.

Simple Cooking
My children were very explicit that this needed to be added to the list and they are so right. As parents we can have a tendency to want to make our children's meals or cook something fancy when we do get a chance to get in the kitchen together. But making simple meals such as sandwiches and toast can be a real pleasure for children. The favourites in our house at the moment are homemade paddlepops, jelly cups, tea and fruit kebabs.

Cards, letters and drawings
This is self explanatory but the key here is purpose. If a child is passionate about learning to draw a particular animal they will sit for hours watching clips on YouTube until they master it. Similarly if children are making things for others this gives them purpose and they are much more likely to give it their best effort.

Homemade Crayons
The coolest thing I discovered a few years ago was that if you melt crayons down you can make new crayons. There are so many possibilities with this and it is such a great way to use up all those tiny ends of crayons. As you can tell from the photo we made multi coloured crayons but you could also make certain shapes or put all the one colour back together and have a new set of crayons.

Getting Crafty with Wool
I'm putting this one on the list as it is something that we are just starting to explore. We've had lots of fun in our house making pom poms of all different sizes, even the adults got involved. But there is so much more that can be done with wool and a little guidance. Of course there is the option of learning to crochet or knit but for younger children this might be tricky so you could try things like finger knitting, hanging decorations and dream catchers.

Of course these activities do still require a little tidying up but we are not talking about paint, glue or slime. My rule is simple: pack up one activity before starting a new one.

Hopefully we've given you a few ideas that might inspire you while you have time at home.

For even more ideas you could check out this list of 100 things to do at home from inspiring educator and friend Gavin McCormack.

The main thing is…have fun!