Preparing Children

"When we adults think of children, there is a simple truth which we ignore: childhood is not preparation for life, childhood is life. A child isn't getting ready to live - a child is living. The child is constantly confronted with the nagging question, "What are you going to be?" Courageous would be the youngster who, looking the adult squarely in the face, would say, "I'm not going to be anything; I already am." We adults would be shocked by such an insolent remark for we have forgotten, if indeed we ever knew, that a child is an active participating and contributing member of society from the time he is born. Childhood isn't a time when he is molded into a human who will then live life; he is a human who is living life. No child will miss the zest and joy of living unless these are denied him by adults who have convinced themselves that childhood is a period of preparation.

How much heartache we would save ourselves if we would recognize the child as a partner with adults in the process of living, rather than always viewing him as an apprentice. How much we would teach each other...adults with the experience and children with the freshness. How full both our lives could be. A little child may not lead us, but at least we ought to discuss the trip with him for, after all, life is his and her journey, too." - Professor T. Ripaldi

I found this quote on a blog by Lisa Sunbury about infants and toddlers which you can find here, and it got me thinking. How much time do we, as educators, spend “preparing” kids for the next step. Each grade from preschool through college professes to be preparing us for something. Kindergarten for first grade, first for second, middle school for high school, high school for college, college for work. By the time we are done being prepared for life, much of it has gone by.

Am I suggesting that children and, indeed, adults should disregard the future to focus entirely on the present? No, I think a certain amount of attention must be spent thinking about the future, but the word preparation seems to imply certain things about the future; the fact that we know what the future holds, for example, which we do not. Instead of shaping students to fit precisely into a narrow definition of what we believe the future holds, shouldn't we be allowing their natural shapes, their proclivities and curiosities to dictate, at least in part, what they will become, what they will learn and how? And if that is true, doesn't that mean that we should respect the varied and wonderful people students have already become, the people they are?

Shouldn't our lessons be aimed at showing them how to dream the future?

This kind of teaching and learning has to do with creativity, with awareness, and with attention, I think. Students should be trained to be aware of their own innate gifts, abilities, and limitations. Teachers should be trained to be aware of who their students are and attentive to their individual needs. Both should be working together to find a path towards a full and rewarding future.

In the best classrooms this is already happening, teachers are engaged in bringing out their students' best selves, but the classroom is only one area where growth and learning takes place. There are other environments, home and the playground, where learning can be fostered, and one of the best outlets for student creativity is through play, through movement, through the body.

Often, adults think of play as an activity that takes away from time spent doing worthwhile activities. What are those activities? Shopping? Work? Making money? Money to do what...

Play is an end in itself. Kids understand that, I think. They know that this is what it's all about, sprinting flat out after a ball, or the cathartic feeling that lifts their spirits after sinking a three-pointer, or the sense of community that comes with working together with a group of people towards a common goal, of playing with each other.

In a very real sense, kids know how to be... if we have the courage to let them.