Beyond activities, crafts and resource. Let's take advantage of this exceptional circumstance as parents to leave a positive mark on our children.
Surely you are going through a period of lack of control, perhaps it all started as if it were a regular vacation, with the children waking up late, playing all day, taking the opportunity to watch movies, etc. You gave yourself time to carry out activities that are usually relegated and you managed to fulfill the routine of the day, in some order.
But now, as time at home lengthens and outdoor options and activities are limited, it is increasingly likely that both children and their caregivers will begin to feel overwhelmed, fatigued, and of course, bored!
And most likely you have been inundated with publications that offer a thousand activities and resources to "cope" staying at home. The pedagogy of María Montessori teaches us the great capacity of children to adapt to the most adverse circumstances, but Do adults have the same ability?
The reality is that this situation is more difficult for adults to bear than for children. For this reason, we have chosen these 3 tips that will help you change your perspective a bit and enjoy the wonderful opportunity that it gives us.
1.- Reconnect with your children
It's completely normal to feel worry or anxiety right now, give yourself the opportunity to recognize these emotions without attachment. They prevent them from dominating your day, remember that now We have a very valuable resource that money cannot buy: weather.
To feel better, it is highly recommended to minimize constant exposure to outside information and focus on reconnecting with yourself and also with your children.
Observe them, without judging, leaving your mind blank, surely you will find things that you did not know about your children or discover an interest that until now you did not know. Are you sad, nervous, agitated, in a bad mood, etc? … It is also an occasion to teach him to observe himself. If you can, write down everything that catches your attention.
As Robert Fulghum said, “don't worry because your children don't listen to you; They watch you all day."
When you dedicate time to conscious observation of your children, you will undoubtedly discover those behaviors or actions in which you can improve as a parent. Since our children always look for the key to interpret reality by looking at the faces of their parents, with whom they have a bond of attachment.
2. Set goals
It is often overlooked that being parents requires constant training that goes beyond covering the material needs of our children. Now is the perfect time to focus our minds and set goals and objectives as parents.
These goals, more than compensating for the period of school inactivity, should be focused on working on building self-esteem and values, creating a suitable environment where your child feels loved.
Take the opportunity to learn about the Montessori philosophy, emotional education, multiple intelligences or any topic related to being parents and the development of your children Investigate, explore, learn! Create your own challenge for yourself, whichever you choose will have a strong impact on your family, for example:
- Strengthen table manners.
- Develop your multiple intelligence skills.
- Spend more quality time with my children or on a more advanced scale play actively with my children.
- exercise together
- Improve your diet
“This is a great time to take care of ourselves. If we put in enough effort, we can come out physically fitter, mentally more stable, energetically stronger, and spiritually with more potential."
– Sadhguru
We owe ourselves to another mission almost as important as saving lives and that is to share quality time with our sons and daughters, shouting: creativity to power!
3. Routines and spaces
The very routine of getting up and getting ready for school has changed dramatically. There will be children who continue to get up at the same time, others who take the opportunity to sleep a little more and even those who are not willing to take off their pajamas all day. Faced with uncertainty, Perhaps your children's daily question is what are we going to do today?
Read again: Benefits of adopting the Table of Routines in our home.
Surely they used the time they were at their school to carry out other activities, first of all, give yourself a break! During this time at home, it is not about filling every minute of the day with activities for your children, on the contrary, the free play as long as possible, since it is from this that children grow and develop more naturally and healthily. A good way to stimulate free play is to have the play spaces prepared and put on relaxing ambient music to help the fluency of the game and the concentration of the children.
TIP: Designate places and times during the day to practice some type of relaxing activity: meditation, yoga or resources for children and adolescents on mindfulness.
Instead of looking for entertainment for them while you do your day's tasks, choose those in which they can participate, for example, cleaning the home. Remember that doing home activities is so important that in the Montessori model there is a specific learning area for it: "practical life" so if you are looking for Montessori activities at home, the simplest, cheapest and easiest to add to your routine is without a doubt this.
TIP: Be patient and remember that it has its own rhythm! It does not matter if he cuts an apple while you have already finished the entire salad, remember that the goal is for him to participate and collaborate with the activity at his own pace.
Finally, try to increase the amount of physical activation within your routine and do not forget that screens are like today's bread and tomorrow's hunger, that is, you can solve a momentary need that will later ask you to pay a price expensive, such as hyperstimulation, few hours and poor quality of sleep.
It is curious that until now we have not realized that children are wonderful, resistant, resilient, collaborative, supportive, imaginative, patient, affectionate beings and that we still often treat them with threats, shouts or punishments. They don't ask for much. They settle for little. They just need us adults to be able to understand them, to speak to them with respect and to dedicate a little of our time to them to show us how wonderful they are, curiously, in many cases, more respectful, patient, supportive and resilient than the adults themselves.
alvaro bilbao