one small step at a time

After my mud story, I thought I would share this great article. In contrast to Julians latest 'macro change' post, this is a 'micro change' post- it definitely changed the constant restrictions I was placing on my children. Ever aware of copyright, I actually called Growing Child. They said, "post i- just give us credit. So here it is:

"Grandma Says" is a feature of Growing Child and we encourage you to > send your comments to: GrandmaSays@GrowingChild.com
DO YOU HAVE A RECIPE?
I swear this is a true story, told to me by another early childhood educator. A preschool teacher was visiting a neighboring preschool, known for its excellence. The visitor watched the children playing outdoors with some very messy material, mixing, stirring, and molding. She went closer and asked the nearby teacher what the children were playing with. The teacher replied, ‘Mud.” ‘Oh,” responded the visiting teacher. ‘Do you have a recipe for that?” Now, I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I would want my children taught by an adult who needed a recipe on how to make mud! And yet, I fear, this is what we are coming to. The world that adults are trying to create for many young children is so sanitized and structured, so controlled and contrived, that the sheer joy of mucking about on their own is not available for many kids. In the opinions of many of today’s adults, children’s play materials are only valuable when they come in boxes for recommended age groups, sanctioned with solemn statements about the learning objectives contained within. There are no health or safety hazards, and most of the possibilities for play are clearly pictured on the box, including images of just who should be playing with the toy. In fact, if the children must live up to their parents’ dress codes of maintaining an immaculate appearance, these are the only kinds of play that are left for them. Having made my fair share of trips to the emergency room when my children were growing up, I do not minimize the need for care in keeping children safe, and of adult responsibility for supervising their play and activity. Children’s judgment is not well developed, admittedly. But I feel strongly that many of today’s parents are taking this responsibility to the extreme, so that childhood freedom and exploration are in serious jeopardy. Parents who would protest loudly if they were accused of depriving their children may need to re-examine the number of restrictions they place upon them. The deprivation of which I speak is the opportunity to initiate, to play freely, without some well-meaning adult interfering or suggesting tidier alternatives.The interference comes when adults decide activities are too messy, too noisy, too risky, too fast, or too silly; in short, too child-like. The disapproving attitudes that suggest that going down the slide head-first or mixing up a little mud are inappropriate actions serve to deprive children of making some discoveries that are their right to make.I am well aware that the world for my grandchildren and all today’s children has already shrunk their boundaries, as real dangers in communities must be recognized. I am simply urging that we not deny > them all the pleasures of childhood, in our pursuit of an image of childhood that would require a recipe for making mud.
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