Most of my offerings are memories of a woman of a certain age – I warned you of that in the beginning. Some are of things I notice or I think are of interest. The replies I get mostly are from those nearer my age I connect with. ATTENTION: this one is for those out there who now have children either from baby age to maybe teens. My first piece was about how I was told to be careful when I went out, given a time to be home, and then sent forth. Times are different now and I know it. I also know that the skill of being responsibly independent has to carefully taught. Along with many articles that abound now, here are my opinions.
School is my milieu, and it strains my mind to think how to make it happen on line in an unsure situation. Just remember. What appears as failure sometimes is learning a new skill. Success takes practice. Babies don’t give up walking after the first plop. We offer smiles and a finger to hold and help them try again. I think I would help even the youngest to set a goal. This is what I want to be able to do. Write numbers 1 – 10. Read a page by myself. Answer a thought question in a complete sentence. Their idea of success may not match ours. Forward progress is what counts and is a life skill. Good teachers will take a mix of students and go from there.
I don’t know when Stranger/Danger started. Unfortunately, it’s a fact to be considered. To recognize the signs, one needs to know what safety feels like. Yes, I do know the word “grooming”. Aware of that is part of your responsibility. Children need to know and have the opportunity of practicing social behavior, especially when distancing is a part of everyday life. Opportunities to talk to adults on appropriate topics, looking others in the eye to show you are engaged, and using please and thank you help make contacts more meaningful. You have the gift of being maybe the only example of what trustworthy adults are like.
We all long for time alone. Think how you like to be able to wool gather or take yourself somewhere to be in a different place. Find one little way to provide freedom even with a mask. For peace of mind, a WSJ article listed five tech gadgets to help get in touch with your children when they are out of sight or pinpoint where they are. Even with back up attention, those children feel independent. A neighbor five houses down let her 4 1/2 and 2 1/2 walk down to my house to return a bug box while she watched. They rang the doorbell, moved back to end of sidewalk, and we did the exchange. Then they ran back home calling, “We did it”
Take a moment to think about yourself as an adult. Growing up what were the events that help you now tackle the unusual life of starts and stops and changes since the first of March? What skills do you call on when dealing with people under stressful conditions? How can you build these foundations into your child’s life? This year is a one of growth. Doing it right just may take a little more thoughtful purpose. Wherever you go, you start from here.
Point your kids in the right direction. When they are old, they won’t be lost.
Proverbs 22:6 The Message
Let Me Tell Ya 