If you feel like you're working yourselves to exhaustion with new and different art activities every hour of the day to encourage your child's creativity, relax. You're probably already encouraging your child's creativity without realizing it. Simply recognize that developing a child's creativity goes hand-in-hand with other developmentally appropriate practices, says Brittany Birken, an expert in early childhood creativity.

"By reading to your baby, you're promoting her development of language, communication, literacy, creativity and thought processes," says Birken. "By stacking blocks, you are promoting her development of math, probability, language and imagination. The most important thing for parents to do is to enjoy interactions with their child. This promotes a strong sense of self for your young baby and promotes creative thinking because she feels safe and supported in her exploration and play."