We take the same route to work. We go down the same aisles at the grocery store. We even get on the same machines at the gym. Booooorrrrriiiiiinnnnnnggggg.
A woman that works for me told me a story that reflects how kids and how adults see the world, even the things we see every day. She told me how she was a nanny for a family over a 4th of July weekend recently. One night the large windows in the family room lit up with reds, blues and whites from the town fireworks. The kids, about 7 and 10 years, went running to the window in excitement to admire the fireworks. They were all a flutter about the colors, shapes and sounds. From the kitchen, the dad looked up and said, “oh, don’t act like you’ve never seen fireworks before!” Thanks dad!
Of course these kids had seen fireworks before but it didn’t matter. See, the imaginative mind finds ways to see something different in things that are totally familiar to you. Doesn’t matter if it’s fireworks you only see once a year or that tree on the corner where you turn left every day, kids instinctively have that imaginative sense. They can find something new in what we see as the obvious. Ever notice how even watching that same Disney movie 10 times in a row makes kids happy. Pay attention, kids seem to find something new in a scene they’ve recited 100 times.
Ask yourself to find something new in the old today. The next time you’re at the stop sign look at that tree, and I mean really look at that tree. Look at the leaves, the branches, the grass around it. The difference in the colors, the shade, the shadows, the difference between that tree and another, etc.
Say it out loud. Talk it through. If you have time, stop, get out of your car, grab a blank piece of paper and a pen and draw what you see.
Another thing you can do is find 10 new things the next time you are doing the routine. A new sign, a new building, etc. I focused my examples in the car but this can be done anywhere – home, the office, walking the neighborhood and so on.
I discovered an entire row of townhomes with these adorable second story windows I’d never seen before. I had some time so I took a moment and drew the townhomes. Now, I’m not an artist but I am visual so this helped me really see the new elements I’d never seen before. I noticed flower beds with gorgeous yellow and orange tulips, window shades that looked kissed by the sun and more.
Dream big. Dream often. Blow bubbles!
Tags: arts and crafts for kids, creative activities, imaginibbles, indoor kids activities, kids activities, Playroom, right brain imagination, right brain thinking, tamara kleinberg
