Today we hear from Lara from Peaceful Learning on the importance of the early years.
Did you know that your brain reaches 80% of it’s final weight by your second year of life? 80%…let that sink in. There’s a whole lot of energy that goes into building the brain and for good reason too. At that age, we are building the foundations that will set us up for the rest of our lives. Our brains are like sponges, soaking in the world around us, figuring out whats good, whats safe, developing that curiosity for learning and intrigue about the world.
However, dependant on the environment, will depend on just how curious we are. In order to have any sustained period of learning and attention, we first need to create a safe, nurturing environment for our children. Their basic needs must be met; hunger, thirst, sleep, health and warmth. We must also fill up their daily love cup, give them our time and attention so that they feel loved, seen and heard. Why is this important? We are setting them up for a life of success by showing them that they are worthy of peoples time and attention, that they are deserved of love and respect.
Academic learning is great however, it’s not a requirement for building the foundations of a successful life. A child needs to know their sense of self, give them opportunities to make decisions for themselves and space to problem solve so they can be confident human beings without your presence. Sit back and observe more, see what your child is really doing, what learning is happening? Can you bring more experiences for them to add onto what it is that they are already interested in? We are all born with innate curiosity and, as we get older, school and our structured lives slowly dampens this curiosity. Keep it alive by allowing your children unstructured free-play where they can experiment and explore their toys without instruction.
If your child has a ball and they choose to roll it down a ramp instead of kick it, let them. See what happens, perhaps they will show you a new way of interacting with a ball that you had not even thought of. By keeping this curiosity alive, you will set them up for a life filled with adventure, experiences and a life-long love for learning.
Need some guidance on how to implement this? I would love to help you guide your child. Feel free to email me lara@peacefullearning.com or give me a call on+442081919551 for a no-cost consultation.
Lara Ritson is the founder of Peaceful Learning, a worldwide holistic nanny agency and parent consultancy. Holistic meaning nurturing every aspect of a childs development. Being a nanny and teacher who used respectful care to connect, positive guidance and role-modelling to lead the child to success, and child-led learning to sustain intrinsic motivation to learn she can honestly say it really works! It gives her goose bumps to think about the success stories she has witnessed over the years. She looks forward to connecting with you and helping you on your parenting journey.