Welcome Readers :)

Welcome readers !
Thank you for visiting 'Inside the child' and hope that your time spend reading my blog is educational. It includes my thoughts and approach to a child, based on the Montessori educational philosophy that emphasize on independence, freedom within limits and learning concepts of working with materials hands-on, rather than by direct instructions.

My favorite quote by Dr. Maria Montessori “There is in every child a painstaking teacher, so skillful that he obtains identical results in all children in all parts of the world. The only language men ever speak perfectly is the one they learn in babyhood, when no one can teach them anything!”
As a Children's House Montessori teacher, it is my pleasure to share my experience with children of ages 2 1/2 - 7 yrs old, and how small little things makes a big difference. Enjoy reading. Thank you.

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

When tough becomes easy :)

Some social behaviors of some children can be very challenging and tough to deal with, day to day. Every year, teachers get a new group, new challenges and new experiences. And, that is what makes my job filled with excitement- both good and bad.
What I realize is that nurturing a child is not possible by one person, it requires the whole family, friends, teachers and circle of trustworthy people around. And, this is what I keep telling my co-workers at school - communicate, communicate and more communication ! Well, yes, if everything is going good with your child then you have different prospects, life is easy and you are very lucky !
It is tough when your child gets easily excited and challenged by other children in the classroom or in a friend circle. Montessori philosophy defines the relation between a child and the environment as sensitive periods. It is a series of stages that a child goes through from birth to 6 years.

Age Sensitivity
Birth to 6 years The absorbent mind: the mind soaks up information like a sponge. Sensory learning and experiences: the child uses all five senses - touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing - to understand and absorb information about his or her environment.
1.5 to 3 years Language explosion: a child builds his or her future foundation for language.
1.5 to 4 years Development and coordination of fine and large muscle skills, advanced developing grasp and release skill spawns an interest in any small object.
2 to 4 years Very mobile with greater coordination and refinement of movement, increased interest in language and communication (they enjoy telling stories), aware of spatial relationships, matching, sequence and order of objects.
2.5 to 6 years Works well incorporating all five senses for learning and adapting to environment.
3 to 6 years Interest in and admiration of the adult world: they want to copy and mimic adults, such as parents and teachers.
4 to 5 years Using one’s hands and fingers in cutting, writing and art. Their tactile senses are very developed and acute.
4.5 to 6 years Reading and math readiness, and, eventually, reading and math skills.


See, during 3-6 years child is sensitive to the behaviors of adult. They want to do whatever adults do. So, most of the challenging social behaviors we deal with children are coming from adults. Well, the tough question is where do they see all that hitting, kicking, shouting and using bad words when parents don't do any of those things ! Could be anything? Our plan of action should be instead of wondering where the behavior is learned, we should concentrate on how to stop this behavior in a child. Few steps to make the tough easy-

First step -
Communicate expectations with a pinch of love. Tell the child that you love him/her when you are mad at him/her. Be absolutely firm and strong in drawing your expectations to your child, but please, do not forget to tell your child how much you love him/her in between. Try hard to throw your anger away and reach out to your child with your arms wide opened, with your mouth full of soft spoken words of expectations. Children are smart, they see through you, they see your love and your anger at the same time.

Second step -
Create various activities. You know your child the best. Keep your child focused with different activities, sport or music !

Third step - 
Take help. Reach out to people who may know better than you, who are more experienced. Teachers, friends and family and even a simple stranger like a librarian at your library will give you few tips !

Fourth step -
Be in love. No matter how frustrating things are at your work, your personal life or at your social circle, do not loose faith in love. Let your eyes speak love. Let your child see that deep down you believe in love and that he/she is a part of it.

Fifth step -
Patience.

Cheers ! Stay happy :)



Friday, February 22, 2013

Baby Bullet

I went to a friend's home yesterday. It was so good to spend some time to play with her 10 months old baby boy. In the process, my friend offered me to feed some fruit to her little one. I was delighted to feed him the banana puree. She handed me this small little oval shaped container with tiny little spoon. I was looking for which brand is the baby food (just my curious mind). And, she said it is home-made !

It was amazing to see how simple it is to make the baby food at home now. She said it took her few minutes to blend fruits in the blender and store it in the fridge for days. It is fresh and ready to eat. The best thing about Baby Bullet is, it comes with tiny containers and spoons, just ready to go. And, I am sure these fruits would be consumed by babies before they get spoiled.

I remember, when I was an assistant for the infant group at a Montessori school in 2007, parents would bring popular brand's little bottles of fruit puree. I wondered, if one can do this at home ! Well, when you are rushing for work early morning and figuring out what to remember to take for the baby for the day care, it can become crazy to make fresh food everyday.

Baby Bullet does it for you. CLICK to see how simple the process is !