Skip to main content

Grace

Image result for we hold children to higher standards than ourselves

Have you ever been so tired that you didn't wash the dishes in the sink before going to bed?
Or left laundry out for someone else to fold because you had other things to do?

So why are you expecting an exhausted three year old to put away his lunch dishes instead of just laying down on his cot like his body needs to? What possible way could fighting this need meet a goal for you or the child?

If we want children to grow into people who respect what their bodies need, and trust others to help them, what purpose does this serve? 

I want to be the early educator who can respect a child's humanity, who can understand that just because the clock says 12:10 and the schedule says nap time isn't until 12:45, the child's need for rest overrules this piece of paper. 

I want to be the type of person who can give a little grace and humanity to an environment that rewards quiet compliance. Because right now, we need a little more questioning of the status quo, and a little less adult ego.

I'll be looking for opportunities to practice giving a little grace this coming week. Who's with me?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Feelings

I saw an interaction this morning that stopped me in my tracks. A child, newly three, was crying because he had lost a toy in the car. Then he began yelling. Then kicking. The upset kept intensifying as his caregiver watched, not wanting to stop him from getting through his feelings (as she told another adult who asked if she could assist). She's surely been told somewhere along the line that accepting children's feelings means not stopping them. Yay!...But she's missing some follow -up. Children need to know that it's okay to be angry or sad or excited or whatever else they feel. But they also sometimes need help getting through to the calm after. An adult standing by, mute, communicates a lack of interest, not acceptance. The child intensifies, needing guidance and reassurance. The adult, so good - heartedly eager to accept the child as they are, remains unphased. The child cries out more for the centering that occurs when an adult they're attached to can initia...
Post a Comment
Read more

Well, Duh.

 Friday afternoon, I walked back into my classroom to a scene that is not unusual in any group of young children. One child had just hit another (both three years old), attempting to get a coveted toy. I walked over to the two, and as I always do, I looked at the crying child who had been hit and said, "Wow, it looks like Y is really hurting." Then, I recognized that wasn't the whole picture, and looked at the child who had hit (this time), who was already averting their eyes, and said, "It looks like A is hurting too." A turned around, stunned at my ability to perceive what was obvious to them. This time, at least. "Yeah!" They exclaimed. Y stopped crying and looked at A. I offered hugs to both, and attempted to sportscast what I saw. "A wanted that toy, and Y had it! Y didn't want to be hit." A looked at Y, and said, "Yeah, and I really wanted the truck, but I didn't want to hurt you." Both children found a spot i...
Post a Comment
Read more

STEMpede

If our nation's interest in early childhood STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) education were a genuine push for scientific thinking and literacy, it would probably look a lot less like this:                                                                 And a lot more like this: If we want to teach and encourage scientific thinking, we need to start with the classic: this scientific method. For those of us who haven't been in a science class for a while, this is the scientific method: 1. Observe or describe a phenomenon/Ask a question. 2. Do your research. 3. Create a hypothesis. 4. Test that hypothesis. 5. Did it work? If it did, go to step 6. If not, return to steps 2-4. 6. Draw your conclusions. For those of us who haven't been around infants for a while, people are bor...
Post a Comment
Read more