Page 22 - Silver Lakes July 2021

TODAY'S CHILD

WIDENING

OUR CIRCLE OF

COMPASSION

By Nicoleen Davies,

Director Life Talk Forum

lbert Einstein made this profound and are kind. And this is not only to be practice their gross motor skills through

statement and never have those directed at other people. We need to include climbing, jumping, running and throwing,
Awords been more relevant. animals, the environment and our world. and their fine motor co-ordination when
they pick a flower or a leaf.
A virus has shown us that we need to If they do not learn to be kind and care
appreciate our families, our health and about the earth, now, imagine the future Through repeated exposure to the
our livelihoods. We all saw images of how they will be living in!! environment, they will start to see the
the world started to heal when we were all cycle of life – leaves changing colour
stopped and forced to take a breath. The These teachings can begin from when they and falling, a flower bud opening, a bee
world our children lived in less than two are tiny toddlers and later they will be easy to gathering pollen, rain falling to nourish
years ago is vastly different form today. reinforce. And, by sharing these experiences the ground and the changing position of
with your children and seeing their joy or the sun as the day marches on. They will
Raising children is a multi-faceted, full- excitement, you may learn to appreciate the start to develop an awareness of their
time, ever-changing job. Change is gift that is our world, our home. natural world.
constant, new challenges evolve all the
time and the unexpected can become a The outdoors - a crucial playground Every one of these things is an opportunity
reality. There is so much we need to teach to stop and look, and talk about the
them. Small children learn through interacting moment and appreciate it.
with their environment. Generally, it is a
We focus on teaching our children to read tactile experience, hands on, where they This fosters the five stages of development:
and write, to learn various skills but, critical get to touch, smell and move about. awareness, knowledge building or
to their development process, is teaching gathering, appreciation, learning to love
empathy and kindness. Being outdoors helps children develop and acting to protect.
their spatial orientation, their knowledge
We have a responsibility to raise human of their bodies in relation to the The more they learn about their natural
beings that care, have empathy, appreciate surrounding physical space. They get to physical world, the more they will

20 INTRA MUROS JULY 2021