Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/imaginary-soup-homemade-books-and-tattered-blankets-creative-thinking-in-early-childhood/5017546/
I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.�" Albert Einstein
As we prepare young children for the students they are to become, we often prioritize the behaviors and patterns of thinking we believe are indicative of school readiness. We may delight in response to a child building a tower using several wooden blocks or correctly answering questions of facts. When the child counts to ten or specifically identifies a breed of dinosaur, we overtly express our pleasure. To the contrary, we may not encourage the child’s pretend playmates with quite the same enthusiasm. Yet, imagination is the primary tool we use across the lifespan to penetrate the mysteries of our world.
Pretend Play. Over the years in my work with young children, I admit that I have auditioned for countless acting roles in spur-of-the-moment pretend play episodes. I have cheerfully appeared in the productions envisioned by multiple great child directors. Although, even with much practice, my dramatic abilities have never risen beyond low-average, my enthusiasm for the spontaneous creativity of young children has rocketed. In the wonderful world of children’s imaginative play, I ...