Listening and Responding to your toddler...
As parents of toddlers, we understand that our number one parental duty is to make our children feel safe! After all, if they don't feel safe, they can't learn! We don't always understand why they might not want to sit in the chair and why they prefer the floor. However, when we take the time to show our understanding and not see it as behaving badly but instead about providing a sense of security, we also provide them with a sense of trust. A sort of... handshake that declares our trust in their decisions and that they can trust in ours. It's a dance of give and take that we parents do. Grandparents and other "seasoned" parents share words of wisdom saying, "Pick your battles wisely". I guess it takes about 18 years to feel like you might have figured this parenting thing out and then of course, it's too late to apply it to your own kids!
During today's class, I questioned my guidelines concerning "Drawing for Toddlers"...
Here is the previous information on this topic...
"Young children don’t approach drawing the way adults do. They use a different “system”. When a child asks me to draw a dog, I have no idea what sort of image they want. If I draw a dog in an adult fashion, they can’t use this information to make their own drawings (although they may find watching me entertaining). If I draw in a simple cartoon-like manner, I’d be giving them a formula. This is likely to set them up for failure because it’s difficult to remember a formula invented by another. And a formula does not help children teach themselves to draw."
-Ursula Kolbe
Rapunzel's Supermarket
We parents are so used to making our children feel "safe" with new materials, new places, and new people, that we sometimes forget to give our children time to take it all in, observe, and enter into dialogue when they are ready. I think we all should consider (myself included!) what messages we want to communicate to our toddlers when a blank piece of paper presents itself.
Do we immediately draw on it ourselves to indicate to the child that this is what you are supposed to do?
In our efforts to communicate safety as well as a "goal" for the experience, do we take away the opportunity for new ideas?
What might a toddler deduct from that action?
Will they understand that I can draw anything I want or will they understand that they should draw what Mommy drew?
I am asking these questions of myself and of you in hope that we both reconsider our meaning and how our children might interpret it?
The children had wonderful ideas about the "possibilities" of colored tape...- It rolls!
- It's sticky.
- I like to pull it.
- I like to pull it until I have a very, very long piece.
- It sticks to itself.
- I can make it aesthetically pleasing to myself.
- I can experiment with various sizes.
- I can use it for dramatic play! (This one was a surprise to even me!)
During class today, some of us began a conversation regarding the materials that are marketed as being for children. I often feel as though the media and certain kid friendly brands that claim to understand children are missing their mark! Think about what might draw a child into finding both success and joy in the creation of something new.A crayon vs. a pastel
dull scissors that don't actually cut anything vs. real metal kid-sized scissors that actually do cut
playdough vs. Clay....
I do love playdough and it definitely has an important place in a child's life but...
Clay is an all-together different experience!
Clay is from the Earth and connects us with our ancestors. Clay's texture can be changed in many different ways. It can be added to water or water may be added to it. Eventually, clay can be fired and used in many different ways.
Offering real clay to children communicates our deep regard for their rights as learners and for their competence as artists. It is an invitation into the centuries-old tradition of working with the earth.
-Ann Pelo
The Language of Art p58
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