Time well spent

In all honesty I don’t watch a lot of television, mainly because I don’t have cable but also because Netflix is enough for me. However, the other day I was watching television with my friend and saw the new LEGO commercial. When it first started I thought how much it sounded like the Montessori philosophy of helping children to help themselves and the more I watch it the more I knew it was worth sharing with you.

One thing that we really work on in Montessori is to help children to be able to do things themselves. Now this might mean that coats get put on upside down, shoes are on the wrong feet, and messes are made, but the sense of accomplishment that those children feel when they do it makes it all worth it.  A great example of this is when I was in college and babysitting a two year old. The child wanted to make cookies and I was more than willing to do so. I started to get out all the ingredients and noticed how interested he was in it all. I asked if he wanted to help and together we measured, mixed, and baked. Now there were probably a few egg shells in the cookies, a little more sugar then the recipe called for, and took 45 minutes longer to make but the excitement I saw on his face when the cookies he made were out of the over made it all worth the time and effort.

I challenge you to let your children do things on their own every day. Yes it will take longer and probably not be perfect but allowing them to build that confidence is, in my opinion, worth all the time in the world.