Most people are quick to conclude that talent and creativity are hard to learn unless you're born with natural gifts. However, you can guide your children towards developing various talents and creative skills by providing a suitable environment and encouragement. Here are a few ways you can nurture your child's talents.
1. Create the Right Conditions for Success
While it's easy to think that outstanding talent is rare, any child can develop and hone their talents when exposed to suitable learning conditions. Unlike adults, children cannot ignite talent factors without assistance.
Typically, most children require sufficient talent management and support from parents to nurture consistent growth. It's vital to ensure your kid feels comfortable and relaxed so they can express their creativity to the fullest extent. This means allowing them to think freely and play without strict judgment. Offering appropriate encouragement creates the perfect environment for exploring ideas and getting creative.
2. Seek Expert Instruction Early Enough
Seeds of talent and creativity are often sowed early before the fifth birthday. While some parents already possess the talents they're trying to impart to children, other parents may not have any experience in these areas. However, providing support in the talent area is instrumental to shaping and accelerating progress.
Most parents try their best to provide guidance, but it may not be easy when you don't have the experience. Regardless, arranging expert instruction sessions can help your child learn the ropes from a professional. While you can provide books and other instruction resources, the child will likely quickly outgrow the amateur level.
If the child has a keen interest in music, you will realize it's difficult to keep pace with the kid's growth. At this point, it's best to enroll them in a reputable facility like the South Shore Piano School to acquire advanced instruction and skills.
3. Limit Screen Time and Encourage Efforts Towards Their Talents
Screen time on phones, computers, TV, and other audio-visual devices, can be time-consuming. The CDC notes that most children spend about 7.5 hours per day on screens, which can be unhealthy for younger children.
Typically, excess screen time limits the time your child can spend on other developmental and creative activities. Minimizing screen time can make your child more creative and proactive toward their talents. Typically, children tend to get more creative when on-screen time is restricted.
Contrary to popular belief, practice among talented individuals isn't casual; it's a deliberate and goal-oriented decision that goes beyond one's comfort zone. Whenever you praise a child's efforts toward their talents, you encourage them to explore deeper and learn from their mistakes, leading to consistent development.
4. Arouse Their Curiosity and Give them the Freedom to Explore Different Ideas
Kids are born with natural curiosity and often desire to know more about everything. Therefore, it’s your responsibility to offer interesting and relevant indications and pointers to cultivate curiosity further and guide the child in the right direction.
For example, you can expose the child to art, culture, and literature to familiarize them with the deeper meanings and implications of these creations. Alternatively, you can engage them in more intellectual topics like environmental situations and their effects on society. Regular engagement in interesting topics can evoke their curiosity, but you need to find creative ways of presenting the topics.
5. Don’t Solve All their Problems
Letting your children solve some of their challenges is a great way to nurture their creativity. Parents often intervene too quickly and end up with a quick but temporary fix that doesn’t help the kid develop problem-solving skills. It’s best to allow your kid to discover how to fix some issues independently.
While it’s important to intervene when the problem is beyond their abilities, don’t be your child’s default solution to all challenges. If you let them figure some things out on their own, you can mold them into practical problem solvers. The child needs to develop a good level of independence and learn to think for themselves when facing challenges. If your toddler struggles to remove their shirt, wait a few minutes before helping them to see if they can do it.
Similarly, conflict resolution is a critical life skill, and you want your kids to develop the ability to be assertive and solve conflicts easily. While it’s necessary to intervene whenever the conflict gets out of hand, let them solve minor conflicts with siblings without parental intervention. However, it’s your duty to support them, but you shouldn’t deny them an opportunity to solve conflicts independently.
Endnote
While you can be tempted to push your child along with certain activities and talents, it's best to realize that children must be allowed to grow their talents with hard work and passion. Your job is to keep the child focused and provide guidance to ensure consistent growth. Most importantly, endeavor to help them understand that talent excellence is built, not born.
