Peek into the child’s world

The curiosity of a child to learn about the world around is natural and abundant. Children naturally ask questions even before they can form proper sentences. They take in our answers and integrate them with their worldview. At this age, because of more sophisticated language skills, children become more articulate about their thoughts and ideas. This provides us with a novel opportunity for the very first time. We get to peek into their inner worlds with the help of language.

If we engage with the thoughts of our child, may it be thought about the real world or imaginary, we get to:

• Learn how their worldview has been shaped so far
•  Probe them with questions which give us and them more clarity
•  Course-correct them whenever necessary (refrain from calling the child’s thoughts good/bad)

When we have open, patient, curious conversations with our child,  it sends a message that the child, their thoughts and emotions matter and are valuable. It encourages the child to be their unique self and builds the foundations of self-worth, self-esteem, self-confidence and self-respect.

Note: It is crucial for us to be curious, gentle and patient and absolutely non- judgemental while we engage with our child. (stay tuned for upcoming post on discipline and boundaries)

Activity:
Engage with your child in long conversations. Make sure you ask questions from a curious space. Avoid telling or teaching things to the child directly. Ask questions with the intention of knowing more about the child’s thoughts and emotions instead. Notice how difficult or easy it is for you to hold this space of curiosity for your child. (This space of curiosity is precious since it holds the possibility and space for the
child to flourish naturally.)