Encouraging creativity. Ideas please?

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My DS aged 3 does not like painting or art and crafts. I absolutely don't agree with forcing kids to do things they don't enjoy (as I was as a kid) and he has many other interests, including an obsession with trucks, diggers and cars!

However I do want to encourage creativity and I selfishly would love to do more of this stuff with him. Does anyone have any ideas that might gently encourage him to paint, stick and glue? Or should I just forget it?

I know his creative side is expressed in other ways and through imaginative play (he is awesome at making towers from his dinky cars!) so I am not going to force it. But if any of you have some good ideas I would be delighted to give them a shot.

what about junk modeling? he could make cars, trains, boats etc. we've just had a lovely morning doing the same.
if not what about playdough or that moon sand stuff.

I think this is generally a boy thing! My DS wasn't really into that sort of thing at that age - and again was creative through imaginative play, lego, playmobile etc. I think if you can make it messy that helps! Finger painting, printing etc, clay, lots of glue.

Not sure about boys but my dd has just turned 4 and recently I made up an art box for her, with all here pens, pencils, scissors, selotape, stickers and paper in it. it's in easy reach for her in the kitchen and she now spends at least an hour a day cutting, sticking and making things.

I think having it handy has really helped her so I don't have to go and get everything for her.

How about a big roll of old wallpaper or lining paper in the garden plus chalk, paint, etc? My DS is not interested in any crafty things at all but when he saw the scale of this plus the fact that he could run his cars through the paint to make tracks he got interested (and very messy)

Do any of these great suggestions

AND

don't stress yourself out!!!

Den building is fantastic for encouraging creative thought and problem solving. Just let him loose with blankets, chairs, an old clothes airer, string, sticky tape etc.

Its not necessarily a boy thing, ds1 (3) is exactly like your ds but my ds2 is 19mo and loves puzzles and can't get enough of trying to draw and hand painting which is a new one on me! I think its their personalities, I certainly don't think I've done anything different as there is only 18 months between them

ds1 does enjoy playdough, stickers and sticker books (ones that have matching stuff in, the works do a couple of really good ones) clay, playing in sand (with plastic animals and cars) lego (supprisingly not that keen on duplo he prefers the smaller stuff) and mecarno

when we do painting he loves glitter and PVA glue - very messy though, he also is quite taken with Mr Maker on cbeebies which fits in with gingerbunny's idea of junk modelling but I haven't tried it yet as ds2 would probably be left out

littlefish reminded me, get loads of cardboard boxes and decorate/paint them as rockets or cars - ie check out this and make your own cheaper version

Definitely junk modelling - stuff like vegetable trays, toilet rolls, cereal boxes - basically, most of what's in your recycling box anyway can be converted into amazing rockets, boats, buses... you name it - we have them all. Do it together at first with lots of sticky tape, then graduate to gluing and decorating his creations if he enjoys it.

One of the only things ds my ds would do at that age was a Mr Maker idea,
get a big piece of paper,
cut up some old or cheapo sponges,
dip them in paint
place them on the paper
SPLAT them with a fish slice or wooden spoon,
ds and dd still love doing this even just with water on the paving stones outside when it's hot.
Ds would also do computer pictures on CBeebies site etc.

Also ds completely changed when he got to school. He came out of school nearly everyday in reception with a picture, or model.

def think the cars in paint is a hit, also you could try his other toys like dinosaurs, lego, stickle bricks, and anything else he enjoys playing with.

you could try tea bag painting, dipping tea bags into paint and throwing them onto paper, or welly prints, he can stomp around in pain making lots of prints.

You could buy stampers, and let him give a go at that, we have ones that are patterned or plain.

You could try coloured glue, dye it with food colouring and then drip it over paper.

make a track or road system for his cars?
Stick photos of friends/family to make a collage?
Quite often non-craft lovers will make pictures on the computer.

If you want to do more craft but he's not into it - design/make treasure hunts and games for him. (you get to do kiddy crafts under the guise of it being for the kids

Ds1 (3.3) likes it when he lies down on old wallpaper and we draw round him, then cut it out and paint or colour in the shape. Then repeated with ds2 and the dog.

Dens very popular here at the moment too.