Taking your place as the new head social coach of the family, it is your responsibility to make sure that everything your child is doing is focused on confident creativity, from the games they play with friends, to the bedtime stories to read at night, all while refraining from the mind-numbing forms of recreation.

When you train your kids to use creativity to have fun, you’ll save oodles of monies on toys that are trying to take the place of your children’s natural capacity to enjoy themselves. Do you think that if you never bought toys for your kids, they would have less fun? Are video games an integral part of a kid’s childhood? On the contrary, there are an infinite number of better things to do than to play with toys.  But before we go on, I want to be clear about something: All toys are NOT created equal. While the ones I’ve been talking about are meant purely for entertainment purposes, there is another breed of toy that is beneficial to your kid’s social health, and contributes to the enhancement of its creativity. These toys are made to embellish your child’s already imaginative propensity for creating, instead of being used as a replacement for it, and hindering it in the process.

Doing Instead Of Getting

Instead of concentrating on what toy to get your kid for his birthday, concentrate on what activity you think would excite him the most. Toys are a quick and dirty way to a fleeting happiness. Life is most rewarding when you are making something new by means of an activity instead of just being the spectator to one. The “toy” should be something that enables him to pursue a passion. If the activity is learning to rock climb, get him a harness with some climbing shoes. If you want him to become a songwriter, get him a guitar and two months worth of lessons. How about an actor or director? Get different costumes for him to wear along with a video camera.

Now, tell me that a DSi trumps acting lessons.

But without a goal, there is no purpose. The excitement of a new activity fizzles out from a lack of ambition to progress; there always must be something to work towards. Write down a clearly defined goal for each activity your kid partakes in. Put them up on a poster board in the common area of the house, and check them off as they are completed.

If it’s to become a musician, then he must write an entire song; words, chords, and melody. If an actor, then the goal should be to record a movie for the whole family to watch. Include a deadline for each goal to prevent laziness and procrastination. Sometimes it is better to set an incredibly short deadline than to spend too long trying to make something perfect; it keeps things moving and forces your kid to stay on his toes. The great thing about setting deadlines and goals is that your child won’t jump from hobby to hobby, sucking the life out of each activity as if it were a toy to be “played with” rather than something to breathe life into.

But be aware, the passion for mastering something lies in the process, not the completion. Treat each success as a secondary prize to the main purpose, which is enjoying the “doing” rather than “getting.”

Have you recently gotten a great toy for your kid that helps him/her pursue a passion?  Tell me below in the comments.

I have a TON of super fun activities and games you can do with your kids to help their creativity and conversation skills.  For every comment left here, I will post the activities and games in upcoming posts.  So get crackin’!