it's amazing...

that when you take pressures off a child, his life and your become easier! yesterday was a no tears day. i moved k's potty back into his bedroom, and he had no problem sitting on it! and this morning already, he went potty twice...on the potty! he says "oops!" while he does it though, so that's kind of funny. but already he's doing better OFF the program than he was ON it.

learning about everyday things is the same too. he learns so much, and it's not even close to forced. kids these days are forced into so much...piano and dance before they can walk, 3 different languages before age 8, and the pressures of sports, not to mention educational pressures. so many parents are focused on getting their child ahead and ready for school that they aren't allowed to be children! there are actually workbooks for parents to teach their kids skills that used to be taught in school! now i'm not talking about reinforcement packets for the 3rd grader that is behind in math and needs some extra support...i'm talking about alphabet worksheets, math, counting, matching, etc. for 2-3 year olds. this is where i'm torn. as a teacher, i should be happy that kids are learning at such a young age. but at the same time, i don't think that sitting down with paper and a pencil at the age of 2 is an appropriate way to learn.

a couple weeks ago, k ran up to me with a letter magnet in his hand. "mommy! B!!" i was fully prepared to tell him the correct letter, when i saw that it was indeed a B! it's probably 2 weeks later, and that's still the only letter he knows for sure, but i'm ok with that! i'm not going to sit him down with some worksheets when he can be out in the world learning about it! he loves his books, and loves to be read to. we have a look and find book, which is his favorite! there are lots of animals, and he loves making the animal sounds. yesterday he learned that birdies say "tweet!" he practices his sounds all the way to the zoo, and then roars at the lions! at this age, that's how i feel kids should learn! today in the book, he saw a heart next to a lion. "was dis?" he asked. i told him it's a heart, and that he has a heart too! i showed him where his heart is, then asked him where it was. he poked his belly a couple times saying "is here." then he giggled because i think it tickled.

i am amazed every day trying to see the world through his eyes...