Children need to express themselves,

what better way to do that then through art!  Free choice art is by far my favorite studio activity. We hold Open Studio Sessions each week for people of ALL ages to come in and create whatever they want. The kids, however, always amaze me with what they come up with. We have had all manner of items from miniature coffee shop dioramas to giant robots and everything in between!

It is interesting to me to watch their minds work. Some kids come in with an idea in mind and go straight to work gathering materials and working out problems as they build their creations. Other kids come in and just go wild collecting supplies. They fill trays with all types of items, handfuls of beads, yarn, bottle caps, and more. Then they take it all to their table to see what they can come up with. Still other children come in and are overwhelmed by the supplies and they tentatively walk around looking at each bin, touching all of the objects, but not selecting anything. Eventually the pick one or two items to test out. They take them to a table and turn them this way and that until an idea sparks and they get to work. Some children are speed artists and can finish 20 projects in one session leaving with bags of their own creations. Other children are highly focused and can spend the entire session on one item.

There is no right or wrong way, and each child is working to express their own creative desires in their own way.  To me this is the most amazing part of my job. To watch these little minds at work...
As we grow we tend to lose that ability to just cut loose and create, but here is a little secret. More often than not, the adults who accompany these children become engaged as well. Many times they will end up either working with their child or even working on a project of their own, letting their own creativity out to play!
 What can you come up with? Feel free to leave a comment letting me know what happened when your creativity came out to play. Pictures are welcome as well...