(ARA) - How would you rate your child on creativity? Imagination? Self-expression?

For some, these critical components are the basis for developing good social skills. Parents search for play groups to expose their preschoolers to other children and later register them for a variety of extracurricular pursuits to broaden their horizons and skills.

Others are more concerned with academic readiness because they believe this translates into superior performance at school. They read constantly to their children, take them to museums, and expose them to a wide variety of cultural events.

While the methods may vary, the desired outcome is the same: success -- personally, academically, and professionally -- for their children.

Creativity is simply the ability to express yourself in your own unique manner, whether through art, language, music, or fantasy. Through self-expression, children can convey their ideas and feelings about whatever is happening in their world. A preschooler might express his sadness or anger by drawing a picture using dark colors and bold strokes. An older child might write a story about someone experiencing something similar to what is bothering her; for example, moving to a new town, parents divorcing, or birth of a new sibling.

“Play is to early childhood as gas is to a car,” say Kathy Hirsh-Pasek and Roberta Michnick Golinkoff in “Einstein Never Used Flash Cards.” Allowing a child’s imagination to blossom is as simple as letting them express themselves through good old-fashioned play. Whether it’s learning to problem solve by “selling groceries,” demonstrating self-expression while pouring tea for their favorite dolls, or concentrating on sliding down a pole to race to an imaginary fire, young minds need frequent opportunities to freely express themselves.

And the good news: it’s the process of playing that is important to growth, not the play itself. “Playing is a kind of experimentation, a way of stretching the boundaries without thinking about either rewards or punishments,” notes Ruth Shagoury Hubbard in “A Workshop of the Possible.” “The pleasure of the doing itself -- the process -- is the goal when we play.”

Stephen Chernicky, founder of Lilliput Play Homes, the premier designer of distinctive play homes for children, concurs. “We offer a wide variety of quality play homes to appeal to various levels of creativity and curiosity. We have the traditional Princess Cottage and the more elaborate Cotton Candy Manor, with outdoor balcony and porch, interior sponge painting and simulated hardwood floors. But we also have the Sassafras Castle with its hidden room accessible only through the fireplace, and the Olde Firehouse, complete with fire pole, official hose, and working bell. We are experts when it comes to creating FUN!”

Creative play:

• Permits children to explore new experiences safely
• Gives them opportunities for social interaction
• Allows room for intellectual growth
• Provides necessary physical exercise and growth
• Helps them develop self-esteem

All children can and should learn how to tap into their own creativity,” says Torie Seeger, a senior program specialist at the Early Childhood Education and Training Program of the State University of New York at Albany. “Some of them simply need more opportunities and more guidance than others.

By encouraging and nurturing children’s growth in self-expression through art, language, music, and fantasy, parents make a vital investment in how their child performs in school now -- and in adult life later.

So the next time your son or daughter invites you to see their latest artistic creation, asks you to help them play dress-up, or wants to sell you some produce, smile and remember the Whitney Houston song, “Greatest Love of All”: “I believe the children are our future, Teach them well and let them lead the way . . . Let the children’s laughter remind us how we used to be.”

For more information on distinctive play homes for children, visit www.lilliputplayhomes.com or call (724) 348-7071.

Courtesy of ARA Content