Two families in the past two months reminded me that I need to blog again! After a two year hiatus, it is appropriate that my first blog back is about “time”.

It’s been 2 years since I’ve put up a post.

How do we ensure we, adults’, are not wasting children’s time? 

I am reminded that time is fleeting and we must not waste time on/in activities that do not serve the child at their current ages. We cannot hurry development nor can we teach a child to be older/ready sooner/faster. 

At Friendship Garden we are a play based and child led program. Research indicates that this is appropriate for this stage of child development.

Several weeks ago, I was watching, specifically, three children on the playground. They had taken hold of the child sized rake which was out with the purpose of raking leaves. As teachers we show the children how the rake works and how to be safe while using it. As researchers and observers we see the three children all together on one rake, “riding” it like it was a hobby horse. What coordination, cooperation and communication it took for this to happen and all three of these children are under the age of three!!

How many teachers would stop this learning activity and “waste” the children’s time on a “proper” leaf raking lesson? What would the children have lost vs what might they have gained? there interest was clearly in working out a collaborative activity which I applaud and whole heartedly support.

It’s good to be back at the keyboard sharing my thoughts with you!