One of the most wonderful and joyous parts of being a mother of a toddler, is watching her explore the world and take in new experiences. In “Coffee with Karine” we are looking at the third aspect of a #LearnForward family: creating shared experiences.
A child spends 7800 hours at home and 900 hours at school in a single school year. Home is critical to creating lifelong learners.
Parents have this amazing invitation to cultivate wonder in their child’s eyes.
Many people have asked my parents, “how did you do it?” They had four children in five years and now they have 12 grandchildren. Ours was a busy home and all of us have gone on to create full lives with education, careers, and family.
One of the secrets is creating shared experiences that are sensory, engaging, and joy-filled.
Let me share a story. For the first 10 years of my life, we called Southern Alberta home. In those years, I remember digging in gardens in the spring, camping together in the summer, playing in a sandbox, and swinging on swings in the fall.
But, a really fond memory that comes to mind as I consider shared experiences is my mom’s winter treat: homemade play-do. Each winter, once or twice, she would get her big pressure cooker pot out (just because it was big enough) and she would whip up a pot of play-do. I remember, it was always light pink or light blue. It was warm. It was a treat. We gathered around the table to play.
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We rolled, stacked, moulded, and patted. We revered the play-do, we didn’t waste it and we didn’t ruin it. It lasted in a tupperware for weeks.
My parents didn’t have lots of money. They didn’t have much time. We played. We played together. It was simple.
By facilitating shared experiences parents foster curiosity, connectedness, and a thirst to explore.
I realize I am raising my children in a completely different culture and the ethos of our society may be fundamentally different. But, I’m an idealist.
The toddler is awake and I am pretty sure that there will be many aspects in the day, but one or two will be exploring with some “togetherness.” I wonder what shared experiences we can create today: a craft, a hike, or baking some muffins? Something that works for her at this stage and grounds her in “togetherness.” A whole-hearted experience of the world lights children up!
Brené Brown continues to be a mentor of mine. I am allowing her words to seep into my experiences of the world with my family. I hope she finds her way into your #LearnForward family.
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What memory will your child have of experiencing the world together? Will it include laughter, creativity, and dance? How can I nurture that in my own life?
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