Child-led Play & Problem Solving
Forced Independence - Good or Bad?
Problem-solving skills in kids
"When children are deprived of both child-led and play experiences, they may struggle with higher-level thinking skills, such as coming up with their own ideas, problem solving, and other forms of creative expression."
-Angela Hanscom, Balanced & Barefoot
Unfortunately, it's often when I'm at my busiest (and most distracted) that my kids actually fully utilize their problem-solving skills... because those also happen to be the times I'm forced to be most hands-off. And like so many other parents, I'm sure, those are also the times I experience "mom guilt" the most, because their independence is forced -- likely the result of me having said something like "Sorry, I can't help with that right now because I'm in the middle of XYZ...."
But the coolest thing about it, and something I need to remind myself over and over, is that they NEED to build these skills, and they need to experience the JOY of solving a problem or coming up with creative work-arounds to truly understand what they're capable of without adult intervention.
Problem-solving skills in kids
"When children are deprived of both child-led and play experiences, they may struggle with higher-level thinking skills, such as coming up with their own ideas, problem solving, and other forms of creative expression."
-Angela Hanscom, Balanced & Barefoot
Unfortunately, it's often when I'm at my busiest (and most distracted) that my kids actually fully utilize their problem-solving skills... because those also happen to be the times I'm forced to be most hands-off. And like so many other parents, I'm sure, those are also the times I experience "mom guilt" the most, because their independence is forced -- likely the result of me having said something like "Sorry, I can't help with that right now because I'm in the middle of XYZ...."
But the coolest thing about it, and something I need to remind myself over and over, is that they NEED to build these skills, and they need to experience the JOY of solving a problem or coming up with creative work-arounds to truly understand what they're capable of without adult intervention.
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