Home Is Where the Art Is

By Heather Spiva

Summer days at home with the kids can be downright monotonous. And while it’s tempting to laze around with the remote, you’ll get more laughter in your living room—and make way cooler memories—by encouraging kids’ creative play. Try any or all of these fun ideas for encouraging kids' creativity and self-expression, all from the comfort of home:

 
ACT OUT

Drama does come naturally to children, so why not help the kids put on a play? Dressing up, playing with dialogue, and acting out a scene or two from their favorite movie or book is a fantastic way to beat boredom and get kids thinking and moving. Here are a few more ways to make all their world a stage:

• Make a props box and help kids fill it with old hats and coats, scarves and crazy clothes, or visit your local thrift store for inexpensive costume pieces.
  
• Write some story starters to help kids pen their own plays: “A little boy joins the circus,” "One day an old man got lost in the woods," or “A talking monkey comes to visit…”
  
• Look online. Tapped for ideas?   Several websites offer play scripts for kids.
  
• Show time! Encourage the kids to perform for family and friends.
  

If your child comes to life when playacting, treat him to a public production. Star Wars fans won’t want to miss Fairytale Town’s August performances of “A Princess of Stars, Episode 2: Drakko Strikes Back.” Kids can both watch and act in the show! (Visit FairytaleTown.com for show times and other info.) Theatre Arts Educator & Educational Workshop Specialist John Lee says that through theater, “Kids learn valuable life skills, and have loads of fun, too.”

BUST A MOVE
If your kids are anything like mine, they’re moving all the time—even dancing to commercials. Your booty-shaking toddler may look adorably silly, but dance is a wonderful art form to grow up with—a perfect fusion of athleticism and artistic expression! “Whether it’s formal training or just encouraging kids to open up a trunk of old clothes and improvise [in costume], dance nurtures kids’ imaginations,” says Deirdre Hawkins, Owner and Director of Hawkins School of Performing Arts in Folsom. Here's how to nurture their love of dance:

• Have an impromptu dance party. Just crank up the music and dance around.
• Start a friendly dance competition with the neighbor kids.
  
• Encourage your little choreographers to create and rehearse their own routine then show off their moves with a performance for the family.

If you think your tiny dancer could expand her skills with a little organized instruction, Greater Sacramento has plenty of great schools, and most city rec departments offer dance classes, too. From ballet and jazz to tap and hip-hop, there are all types of dance for all types of kids, says Hawkins. No matter where they take classes, your little movers and shakers will thank you for the fun, learn a few new moves … and sleep really well at night. Many studios and schools even offer a free trial class for new students, so ask about that option when scouting classes.

COLOR THEIR WORLD
Summer is the perfect time to set the easel and paints outside in the shade, and just let the kids go nuts! Here are four more ways to inspire your visual artists:

• Sculpting with Play-Doh or clay offers kids a fun way to improve hand-eye coordination and three-dimensional thinking.
  
• Make self-portraits with finger paints.
  
• Trace your child on butcher paper then let them add clothes, facial features and a storybook background.
  
• Let bigger kids custom-paint their rooms by creating a mural or stenciling one wall.

To give your kids a little extra inspiration (and give yourself permission to skip out on the clean-up), check out the offerings at ArtBeast Studio in Midtown (ArtBeastStudio.com). Bridget Alexander, director of ArtBeast, believes in giving young children “a regular diet” of a whole range of arts, and that art is vital for sharpening kids’ minds and nurturing their creative spirits. Great news for parents: First attendance to a class is always free, so kids can see what they like best before committing.

The Crocker Art Museum’s “Drop, Yak, Splat!" series is another fabulous artistic opportunity for Sactown kiddos. This program, which is free with admission on Second Saturdays and Third Sundays, is a “museum adventure for families” you and your kids won’t want to miss. For more details, including other programs and events for budding artists, head to CrockerArtMuseum.org.

If your child loves drawing with sidewalk chalk, mark your calendar for Labor Day weekend (September 3-5), and cruise by Fremont Park for the annual Chalk It Up! event—truly inspiring!

THE POWER OF THE PEN
 Acclaimed children’s author and California native, Kristiana Gregory, says that writing “helps [children] sharpen ideas and sort out thoughts, and, ultimately, teaches them critical thinking.” All of these skills are especially important, Gregory point out, “in our modern digital age, with so much information being thrown [kids’] way.” Encourage young writers' creativity with these fun activities:

• When your child finishes reading a book, encourage her to create alternate endings, or tell a whole new, original tale.
  
• With little ones too little to write yet, have kids dictate while you write. Extra-ambitious little authors can add illustrations to their stories. 
• Gradeschoolers and tweens can keep a journal for writing poetry or song lyrics. It’s a great way for kids to express themselves and explore ideas while playing with word choice, rhythm and rhyme. 

Baby bookworms will love the lap-sit and mommy-and-me circles at your local library. They host story times for toddlers and preschoolers every week, too. There are book clubs and fun summer reading programs for kids and teens, too. (Visit SacLibrary.org to check out all the offerings in your area.)

The final stage of any writer’s work is publication, of course. So, encourage each child in your family to write something to share at a family gathering or neighborhood barbeque. Who knows? You might just be raising the next great American novelist.