The summer holidays are a great time for children to explore and experiment with creativity.
Suddenly, school is on pause and your child has all the time in the world to fill those sketchbook pages! There’s nothing quite as valuable for nurturing creativity as having the time and freedom to experiment and create.
To get the ball rolling, here are three simple ways to ignite that creative spark this summer:
- Get a Travel Sketchbook
Going on a summer holiday? Bring a sketchbook along!
There’s nothing quite as inspiring as a change in environment. Seeing new cities, beautiful landscapes, colourful sunsets, different plants and animals… all of these can provide endless inspiration for a child.
Drawing from life is an incredible way to practise creative skills. A huge part of art is learning how to look closely and analyse a subject – in fact, observational skills are almost as important as technical art skills. Sketching can also be a great way to ‘let loose’ and create lovely imperfect impressions of a place or object that catches your eye.
There are many lightweight, easy-to-pack art materials your child can take on their journeys (travel-sized watercolour palettes, brushes that hold water, coloured pencils, or even just a fineliner). And, as a bonus – it creates a lovely, personal keepsake of your holiday memories.
- Create Your Own Mini Artist Studio
Another easy way to encourage creativity is to give your child a dedicated space to make art over the summer.
It doesn’t need to be a separate room or a large area. A corner of the kitchen table, a small desk, or even a box of art supplies that’s easy to access can make all the difference.
Lay out a few materials they enjoy using and watch the magic happen!
Sometimes getting started is the hardest part. Making art feel accessible and part of everyday life can help children build a regular creative habit. You might be surprised by how quickly they begin filling pages with drawings, ideas and experiments once the materials are there waiting for them.
- Try a New Material
One of the best ways to keep creativity fresh is to introduce children to materials they’ve never used before.
Perhaps they’ve only ever worked with pencils but would love watercolours. Maybe they’ve never tried printmaking, oil pastels, ink, or collaging. New materials encourage children to think differently and often lead to exciting discoveries.
A great place to find inspiration is an art gallery. Spend some time looking at different artworks together and ask your child what catches their eye. Are they drawn to bold colours? Detailed drawings? Sculptures? Landscapes?
Once they’ve identified something that inspires them, see if you can help them explore a similar technique at home.
For some extra quality time, try learning the material alongside them or create a collaborative artwork together. Creativity is often most rewarding when it’s shared.
Looking for More Inspiration?
If you’re feeling stuck on finding a new skill or technique for your child to learn, why not explore one of our Summer Holiday Workshops?
At Cygnets, we teach real artistic techniques in a supportive and fun environment. It’s a fantastic opportunity for children to try materials they may not encounter elsewhere, from printmaking techniques to watercolour pencils, while developing their confidence and creativity.
This summer, our theme is Cities Around the World, with beautiful projects inspired by Sydney, Tokyo, New York, Mexico City and Rome.
We’d love to welcome your young artist along!
