CHILDREN’S LITERATURE AND CREATIVE THINKING

Literary texts are directly related to ‘creative thinking’. Literary texts such as novels, stories, fairy tales and poems are, above all, the creations of the artists and are based on creativity in terms of features such as fiction, structure, content, language and expression. In this respect, children's literature is a gateway to ‘creative thinking’ for children. \nIn this study, the relationship between children's literature and ‘creative thinking’ will be examined. The relationship between creative thinking and features (fiction, structure, content, language and expression etc.) of children's literature texts will be revealed. The relationship between children's literature and ‘creative thinking’ will be discussed by giving examples from children's literature products such as novels, stories, fairy tales and poems. \nTo consider children's literature as a gateway to creative thinking is one of the necassites for shaping the learning processes in education towards creative thinking and for acting with awareness in this direction. In this respect, it should be one of the main objectives to develop children's creative thinking skills and competences through children's literature at all levels of education.