Literacy Lava is a FREE downloadable ezine from the Book Chook. It’s full of fun, affordable ideas for parents to interact with their kids and get them reading. Here’s a sneak peek at my article in the recent Literacy Lava.  Enjoy, and don’t forget to visit the Book Chook to get your full copy of this great ezine.

Exercising the Imagination Muscle

Everyone is born with an imagination. “Let’s pretend” games such as house, doctor, construction, or space aliens are a natural extension of a child’s burgeoning creativity. Kindergarten and the earlier grades foster these talents, but as a child grows, story time is inevitably replaced by spelling or multiplication tables. The imagination muscle is left to atrophy, and children want less fanciful games to play. Few ten-year-olds would be enthralled with a game of house, but will gladly spend hours in front of the tube with or without video games. But the need for imagination never goes away. As an adult, imagination can mean the difference between a getting a career with job satisfaction or a simply a job. Imagination is also a great resource for building family closeness.

Like any muscle, the imagination can be exercised. As it gains in strength, it doesn’t take away from other necessary brain activities, like memorizing the multiplication tables. In fact, it enhances learning. An imagination can even make geometry fun. Did you ever wonder what Pythagoras’ life was like? Why are spelling contests called “bees?” Basic history opens up a world of possibilities for a strong imagination. So how do you foster an imagination in your child and possibly an eagerness to learn?

Start Young

Children begin playacting at about the age of two or three. This is the best time to start fostering the imagination.

Older children should be encouraged to keep a journal. Writing down everyday occurrences may seem mundane at first. Your child’s initial entries may be nothing more than: Got up. Went to school. Did homework. Went to bed. If your child feels that he has nothing important to express, encourage him to write just a few lines about something he saw that day, such as the bus driver’s mustache or the pigeons flocking in the park. The writing is less important than the thinking about details of the day.

Younger children can keep a scrapbook journal. Scrapbooking has become an elaborate (and expensive) past time in recent years, but your child’s journal need not be fancy. A large book of blank pages (you can make your own), some markers and glue should do the trick. Help your child to relate in picture or collage an event in her life. Her first parade. A trip to the woods to see the fall colors. A soccer tournament. Glue in memorabilia such as movie tickets or class photos. Guide your child to focus on one event at a time, but let the memories and artwork be her own. Don't become too strict about archiving every event in your child's life. Rather use the scrapbook as a fun quiet time activity.

Keep it Simple

Not every child is a writer or artist. No matter. The best ideas are the simple ones. Wishing on the first star of the evening uses imagination. Hide-and seek too. Play word games: rhyming games or silly sentences for younger children, twenty questions or “I Spy” for older ones. Start a weekly (or monthly) family game night. The classics like charades, pictionary, or Scrabble are all great imagination boosters.

And read. Read together. Read everywhere. At the supermarket. On the highway. Tell your child he can stay up an extra half hour if he reads quietly in bed. Start a family book club. Invite some friends to read a new book every month and then have a get together to discuss it. Put on a favorite DVD with the sound off and the subtitles playing. Take turns reading the captions aloud.

Like any kind of exercise, toning the imagination is not easy. Sometimes it might even seem like work, but a child with an imagination is a child who can keep himself busy during a long car ride or a rainy day. Imagination helps to solve math problems as well as social conflicts. Imagination fosters a love for reading, an element of success for any career or lifestyle. And that makes the effort worthwhile. Imagine it.

Exercise Your Imagination!

Act out your favorite picture book

Create a scavenger hunt

Go on a safari in your backyard

Make up life histories for your stuffed animals

Build a fort out of blankets and chairs

Dance for no reason

Invent a gadget using recyclables

Make up a secret code

Imagine a new planet - what kinds of animals and

plants live there?

Think of ten jobs you would like to have