This is blog is meant to share fun ideas that nurture learning and the positive emotional connection between you and your child.
As a stay at home mom and former teacher, I enjoy teaching children. Through my education and experience I have gathered knowledge about how children learn and have fine tuned my personal philosophy on education. Always willing to share what I know with other parents, this is my first attempt to share ideas with a large group of people. That would be all of you reading this. So if like many parents you are looking for ways to nurture your child’s development this blog may interest you. I intend to post ideas and resources to help with all kinds of learning needs.
There is no right way to parent or teach. I personally believe the most important thing we can do for our children is to spend time with them. Discovering the world together is not only a great way to bond, but it also gives your child a fundamental framework from which all of their scholarly learning will build upon. Everything we learn is related to concrete, real, hands on experiences we’ve had. Taking a walk in the woods, for example, may seem small but children are actually building necessary schema to understand things to come. They need these sensory experiences. The brain needs somewhere to connect new information and ideas. These real life experiences are that foundation. Whenever possible choose the most natural experience. If you want to extend their learning- read a book about the topic, create a craft, role play, make up a song. This blog will help you with extending a learning experience. I will share some of my ideas, but truly there are endless ways! By doing all of these wonderful things with you, you are also helping to connect with your child, creating the bond that will carry them through their lifetime.
For the at home activities- I highly recommend that if your child is not into the activity, do not force it! You really want to keep it fun and positive. Another important aspect of learning is emotion. The brain can not separate emotion from learning. Our brain biologically seeks pleasure and tries to avoid pain. If a learning experience becomes forceful or a negative experience, the brain will make emotional associations that shut down learning. Learning occurs easily when a child feels safe, good about themselves, and enjoys what they are doing. If you feel like the topic is important, try again another day when your child may be more receptive or change the way you go about teaching the topic. There is no one more qualified than a parent to nurture a child’s learning, because of the unique, innate, emotional bond we have with our children. Trust your instincts and teach with love and your child will learn from your guidance. Have faith in your own abilities and the abilities of your child. We are all a lot smarter and capable than we realize!
Enjoy the journey!
~Sheana
To learn more about some of the things I briefly talked about regarding how the brain learns, The Art of Changing the Brain by James E. Zull is an excellent book.
What Empowering Parents to Teach is all about
This is blog is meant to share fun ideas that nurture learning and the positive emotional connection between you and your child.
As a stay at home mom and former teacher, I enjoy teaching children. Through my education and experience I have gathered knowledge about how children learn and have fine tuned my personal philosophy on education. Always willing to share what I know with other parents, this is my first attempt to share ideas with a large group of people. That would be all of you reading this. So if like many parents you are looking for ways to nurture your child’s development this blog may interest you. I intend to post ideas and resources to help with all kinds of learning needs.
There is no right way to parent or teach. I personally believe the most important thing we can do for our children is to spend time with them. Discovering the world together is not only a great way to bond, but it also gives your child a fundamental framework from which all of their scholarly learning will build upon. Everything we learn is related to concrete, real, hands on experiences we’ve had. Taking a walk in the woods, for example, may seem small but children are actually building necessary schema to understand things to come. They need these sensory experiences. The brain needs somewhere to connect new information and ideas. These real life experiences are that foundation. Whenever possible choose the most natural experience. If you want to extend their learning- read a book about the topic, create a craft, role play, make up a song. This blog will help you with extending a learning experience. I will share some of my ideas, but truly there are endless ways! By doing all of these wonderful things with you, you are also helping to connect with your child, creating the bond that will carry them through their lifetime.
For the at home activities- I highly recommend that if your child is not into the activity, do not force it! You really want to keep it fun and positive. Another important aspect of learning is emotion. The brain can not separate emotion from learning. Our brain biologically seeks pleasure and tries to avoid pain. If a learning experience becomes forceful or a negative experience, the brain will make emotional associations that shut down learning. Learning occurs easily when a child feels safe, good about themselves, and enjoys what they are doing. If you feel like the topic is important, try again another day when your child may be more receptive or change the way you go about teaching the topic. There is no one more qualified than a parent to nurture a child’s learning, because of the unique, innate, emotional bond we have with our children. Trust your instincts and teach with love and your child will learn from your guidance. Have faith in your own abilities and the abilities of your child. We are all a lot smarter and capable than we realize!
Enjoy the journey!
~Sheana
To learn more about some of the things I briefly talked about regarding how the brain learns, The Art of Changing the Brain by James E. Zull is an excellent book.
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