Adventures in Early Childhood Development

Thanksgiving Gratitude…

November 17, 2011

Written by Grace Geller

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Thanksgiving and gratitude the same and yet different; each word expressing a concept which on the surface means the same thing and yet below the surface, something slightly different. We are thankful for things we have been given, we are grateful for gifts bestowed upon us.

For instance I am thankful for my family and I have and feel gratitude for the time we have together. Thankful is an action completed, gratitude is open ended. It is the opening of your heart to allow someone else in. It is the blessing you do not take for granted.

As a yogi, I work hard to greet each day for the blessing it is. It is difficult to stop the constant list that runs through my mind and stay focused on appreciating the moment for what it is, a unique gift, and perfect by in and of itself.

When my family was young, I loved and was thankful for them but I am almost positive, I didn’t truly feel grateful for them. There was a sense of entitlement. Of course I was going to have a family; of course we were going to live happily ever after. The business of raising a family took all my energy, leaving me depleted at the end of the day. Being a Super Mom or as my son likes to say “Tiger Mom,” was exhausting. Fevers, melt downs and broken limbs really through a wrench into all the things I needed to accomplish. My life was spent constantly looking ahead. I was rarely in the present moment. Like a ship piercing the water chugging steadily forward, never paying attention to the beauty in the wake created.

My family has grown and I have had good reason to stop where I am and see my life through wiser eyes. To look back with regret would be the same thing as barreling forward; you lose sight of the present. So I stand here with gratitude for the life I have: For the love of a good man, for the smiles of two beautiful children, a family who has supported me when I needed them most, friends and coworkers who enrich my moments, for the children’s voices which fill my senses, work that brings me fulfillment, for a country which nourished my spirit, for a meditation practice that keeps me centered when centering seems impossible. All said and done, I am grateful for the life I have.

Happy Thanksgiving

Peace & Light,

Grace

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Family Life, Updates

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How to pick the perfect holiday toy for your preschooler…

November 10, 2011

Written by Grace Geller

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It was Sunday morning and I spread the newspaper out in front of me as I settled in for a leisurely morning read with my cup of Yogi Tea. As I worked my way through the various sections, a colorful insert caught my eye. There it was the first official harbinger of the holiday season, a toy circular. Rather than toss it to the recycle bin (since my children have long outgrown the toy selections), I decided to look through the offerings.

There was page after page of colorful items destined to be used for a VERY short period and then cast aside; each toy coming with a price tag higher than the last, each one promising the very elusive “happy child.” Ohhhh… right there on those pages, that joy that comes when children first set eyes on this new toy, a toy which will surely buy you the title of “Best Parent Ever!” So you buy it and you give it to them. And it does. For one perfect moment your child is happy.

Then it happens, that perfect toy which sailed through the holidays is set carelessly aside amid complaints that “it is no fun!” They need a new, bigger and better version. Yep, that will make them happy… and the process continues in an endless loop. The problem with your toy selection can be separated into two groups. The first is the type of toy, and the other is advertising.

Let’s begin with the first category: The Toy. Many of the toys featured are intended to be used in only one way. And hopefully they will at least play with them for awhile, but even the neatest race track and car will become boring if they can’t change it up.  If it can only be used in one way, the novelty will wear off and they will become bored with it. (Most of all those lovely Disney toys fall into this bracket!)

Toys which have open ended features have greater lasting power. When I use the term open ended in reference to toys I am talking about toys which require your child to bring their own imagination to them.  An example of an open ended toy would be a general set of legos (not the kits per say, just the blocks) or art materials. Equipment or materials which do not have a defined outcome allow children to pick and choose the results. The possibilities are as diverse as your child’s own imagination. The more a child flexes their creativity muscle, the better they become at creating endless hours of exploratory play.

Open ended toys may not initially elicit squeals of delight but they do have staying power. You may have to sit with your child and role play how to use these types of toys for a time but the effort will be well worth it. Helping your child learn how to use their own creativity to create stimulating play will enhance skills that will serve them well in adulthood. Can the same be said about “Polly Pocket Tricked Out Concert Play Set,” “Charge Ups Charge ‘n Race Speedway” or “Rock Star Mickey?”

Advertising: What can you say about advertising? The whole point of advertising is to convince you and your child that you need to have their item to be truly happy. I don’t know about you but I have never owned an item that has made a difference in my happiness quotient for any significant amount of time. Some items have made my life more convenient, but nothing has made me happier. Our children are defenseless against the titans of advertising. They do not have the ability to discern truth from fiction when all of their senses are being assaulted at the same time.

It might be time to drag out those board and card games and settle in for some family fun, because the T.V. set is about to get even more dangerous. Soon you might even be convinced that your seven year old needs an electric car to be happy!

Peace & Light,

Grace

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Early Childhood Education, Family Life, Updates

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Fall and ADHD in the Preschooler…

November 3, 2011

Written by Grace Geller

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The days are growing shorter and cooler and more and more of our activities tend to focus us indoors, especially if we have an older child who, more often than not, has homework.

Today’s children spend an inordinate amount of time indoors.  Think about it…..  A good portion of their time is spent is school, a few to several hours in structured activities and still more time completing homework and project assignments. Children barely have any down time to design and implement their own play, while outdoors.  The lack of contact with nature has become and will continue to be a grave problem for the development of creativity, environmental studies and the health and well being of earth’s inhabitants.

Children need the opportunity to play outside daily, a reality which is swiftly growing into impossibility. As children’s work days become longer and more structured, the ability to come in direct contact with nature has been compromised. The result:  The frequency of children exhibiting “ADHD like” behaviors is on the rise. A recent study on children diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyper Activity Disorder has found a link between children’s routine play settings and the severity of their ADHD problems. Those who regularly played outdoors with lots of green grass and trees had milder symptoms then those who regularly play indoors or in built outdoor environments. In other words if children are not given the opportunity to create their own outdoor games or just run free in a natural environment their symptoms may actually become worse.

ADHD aside, the same holds true for all children. As we gravitate closer and closer to a sterile environment, we run the risk of creating disharmony within our own children. Our young children are experiencing increasing difficulty feeling calm in their own bodies. It behooves us all to look at our schedules to find time for our children to be free of our antiseptic, overscheduled environment. That may mean that schools and teachers will have to cut back on the ever growing mountain of homework assignments and allow time for children to play when they get home from school.

Perhaps if our children played outside every day after school for one hour, they would be better able to focus in school and on their homework, thus allowing teachers to accomplish more in class, eliminating the need for an abundance of homework.

We all need to simplify our lives for the well being of our children. Multi-tasking has gotten way out of proportion and life’s scale has tipped to one side. Time to remember what all that multi-tasking was for….to create a better life for our children. Simplify, your children will thank you for it.

Peace & light,

Grace

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Early Childhood Education, Family Life, Updates

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Costumes, Frights and Some Sugary Delights!

October 27, 2011

Written by Grace Geller

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It was a lovely day not a cloud in the sky,

When all of a sudden I saw with my eye

A parade of creatures some scary some not,

Till the school filled up with a nefarious lot

One by one they came tumbling on in,

till it was bats in the belfry and various Tales Grimm.

“What’s happening here?”  I let out a wail

trying hard not to step on the aardvark’s tail.

“You want to know, what’s the matter?”

Boomed a voice, sending all of the creatures a scatter…

It’s a day of Tricks and maybe some Treats,

“Not to worry” said she,” I’ve got this lot beat”

They’ll all settle down and stop running round

‘Cause monsters have soft spots for stories I’ve found

Hay for arms and a floppy red hat,

She settled them down on the fall colored mat.

One by one they quieted, enchanted by prose,

Though a few of them were sitting, just playing with toes

As I turned around once and looked back twice

I could see that the scene was turning out nice.

They were just little children dressed for some fun

What’s wrong with me?  I wondered

How had this all begun?

I guess I’d forgotten how to have fun.

So I gathered my things and tipped toed on out

I didn’t want to be such a cantankerous old lout.

I flew to the north where the pumpkins do grow

And filled my mind with a colorful glow,

I’ll be back by Wednesday as most of you know!

Happy fall!

Peace & Light,

Grace

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Family Life, Updates

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