Scatter-brained and grateful
I was wondering why I've been feeling so scatter-brained lately. Some might say to me sarcastically (but with love, I'm sure ;P) "just now?!"
I basically work in three seemingly different organizations. Sometimes I feel like they contradict the other. One job is all about technology. The other is waaaaay on the opposite side of technology that it practically runs away from it. And the third kind of embraces both. I'm a special education technology teacher and school technology coordinator in one job. In another job I'm a guide of sorts to families and children to enjoy play in local nature. I like to think of myself in that role as a host of outdoor shenanigans. In the third, I help my husband run our very own toy company. Whew. That's why I'm so tired. That's why the house is in constant disarray. Sorry, Ma. But the kids are clean, clothed and fed, so there's that, haha.
There is one clear thread though, that connects them all:
They all kind of allow me to practice my philosophy of how children should learn and play.
My role as a public school educator is the area that ironically limits me the most in practicing how I would ideally teach. If I had all the time in the world, I would use a mix of (my understanding or "take") of the Floortime and Reggio Emilia approaches. I like the idea of connecting where the child is at, honoring their interests and using that as a starting point for learning. I like the idea of being a guide rather than a teacher. As an educator, I really believe my students have as much to teach me as I may teach them. I would want a child to come to their own conclusion on things with little intervention on my part. I would of course need to be knowledgeable of developmentally what they should know or understand. But I would just want to be able to guide them in the direction to give them a feeling of accomplishment and independence at learning something new. The time constraints of a traditional school year, of administrative and parental expectations, heck, of life in general are not really conducive to my ideal approach to education.
In my other life, as a that "host of outdoor shenanigans" I come closer to how I would like children to learn. Because the classes I host involve whole families - its a "mommy and me" type situation - I get to share this kind of "trust the child" and "let them guide the play" philosophy with them. And almost without fail, in my limited time doing this, I can almost see the parents sigh with relief. As a parent of some non-conformist and out of the box thinkers, it would be a sigh of relief for me too! I love offering an invitation to a specific activity and then having it be okay if some kids fully engage and others, well, engage in their own way. As parents, when do we really give that kind of freedom to our kids? Honestly!?
With our toy company, the purposeful simplicity of our non-conformist, organic, free-flowing blocks really give children a chance to play without instructions. Some adults might not "get" our toys. It might even be uncomfortable to see our toys and not immediately know what to do with it. I say, let the kids figure it out. Give them time. Their child might find something to do with it immediately. Others might take longer to figure out what to do with it. Most of the time, your child might surprise you with what they turn these wooden stones and pebbles into. A potato? A car? A frog? It's almost like a Rorschach test of sorts. It is all amazing. It is all play. And it is all learning.
Did this post get anywhere? I guess this is the beginning of my winding road of drafts and daft :P
Love,
Erna
I basically work in three seemingly different organizations. Sometimes I feel like they contradict the other. One job is all about technology. The other is waaaaay on the opposite side of technology that it practically runs away from it. And the third kind of embraces both. I'm a special education technology teacher and school technology coordinator in one job. In another job I'm a guide of sorts to families and children to enjoy play in local nature. I like to think of myself in that role as a host of outdoor shenanigans. In the third, I help my husband run our very own toy company. Whew. That's why I'm so tired. That's why the house is in constant disarray. Sorry, Ma. But the kids are clean, clothed and fed, so there's that, haha.
There is one clear thread though, that connects them all:
They all kind of allow me to practice my philosophy of how children should learn and play.
My role as a public school educator is the area that ironically limits me the most in practicing how I would ideally teach. If I had all the time in the world, I would use a mix of (my understanding or "take") of the Floortime and Reggio Emilia approaches. I like the idea of connecting where the child is at, honoring their interests and using that as a starting point for learning. I like the idea of being a guide rather than a teacher. As an educator, I really believe my students have as much to teach me as I may teach them. I would want a child to come to their own conclusion on things with little intervention on my part. I would of course need to be knowledgeable of developmentally what they should know or understand. But I would just want to be able to guide them in the direction to give them a feeling of accomplishment and independence at learning something new. The time constraints of a traditional school year, of administrative and parental expectations, heck, of life in general are not really conducive to my ideal approach to education.
In my other life, as a that "host of outdoor shenanigans" I come closer to how I would like children to learn. Because the classes I host involve whole families - its a "mommy and me" type situation - I get to share this kind of "trust the child" and "let them guide the play" philosophy with them. And almost without fail, in my limited time doing this, I can almost see the parents sigh with relief. As a parent of some non-conformist and out of the box thinkers, it would be a sigh of relief for me too! I love offering an invitation to a specific activity and then having it be okay if some kids fully engage and others, well, engage in their own way. As parents, when do we really give that kind of freedom to our kids? Honestly!?
With our toy company, the purposeful simplicity of our non-conformist, organic, free-flowing blocks really give children a chance to play without instructions. Some adults might not "get" our toys. It might even be uncomfortable to see our toys and not immediately know what to do with it. I say, let the kids figure it out. Give them time. Their child might find something to do with it immediately. Others might take longer to figure out what to do with it. Most of the time, your child might surprise you with what they turn these wooden stones and pebbles into. A potato? A car? A frog? It's almost like a Rorschach test of sorts. It is all amazing. It is all play. And it is all learning.
Did this post get anywhere? I guess this is the beginning of my winding road of drafts and daft :P
Love,
Erna
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