Keep Kids Creative Week

Keep Kids Creative Week was started in the fall of 2003. Bruce Van Patter created this holiday to encourage kids. He is an illustrator and author who specializes in inspiring kids to use their ideas. He's worked with nearly 100,000 school age children and has lots of "field" experience, not only with creative  writing but understanding what motivates kids. For two years he wrote an online column for a national parenting organization, providing activities for parents to do with their children.

Here are some activities to get you started:

1. Cloud Shapes: Look at the clouds and see what shapes or objects they represent.

2. Read Aloud: Sit and read with your child. Ask questions about the story. Have him give you his      interpretation of the story.

3.Scavenger Hunt: Look for objects in the house. For older children play "I Spy" using descriptions of the object to be found. 

4. Invent a World: What imaginary place will your child come up with?  

When rootin'-tootin' Daddy the "horse" is eyeballed by some rotten rustlers, it's all the kids can do to keep him out of the big lugs' lasso. What follows is a quick detour through a rodeo, a trip across a circus high wire, and a near-miss in the Rockies, till the kids don Mounty gear and capture the bad guys for good. A celebratory parade at sundown leads the kids and Daddy back home into Mom's waiting arms. 

Imaginative Jack describes the kind of house he would build--one with a racetrack, a flying room, and a gigantic slide. Jack's limitless creativity and infectious enthusiasm will inspire budding young inventors to imagine their own fantastical designs.

What could have been a quiet afternoon at home turns into an adventure for Jimmy and his dad. Their couch turns into a boat! The staircase becomes a mountain! And blankets become a cozy hut, just right to cuddle inside. The one thing they don't have to pretend is how much they love one another.