Moments Like this...

Moments like this I feel so content. I step back and I watch, I observe the children playing, being,  and belonging. I feel so strongly that moments like this are the right of EVERY child, no matter the family structure, race, or economic circumstance. Every child deserves the chance to just be.. to just play..... TO- JUST- BE..

Moments like this only happen if we see the value of stillness, connection with nature, and connection with each other.  If we understand that SOMETHING does not need to be happening, but that something IS happening, we will welcome moments like this.

  If we are able to ignore the urge to push and prod the children into play that looks more meaningful to us, we can relish in the moments that make up days like this.

Just as it is important to reduce the color and distractions on the classroom walls, it is also important to reduce the mental distractions, allow time for silence, reflection, and connection to simmer and grow.


Moments like this allow the brain the time to ponder the wealth of information it has received. It is a time to make meaning where none was before.

To respect these moments:

•  We back-up, we back-off, we do not intrude. 
•  We plan for large blocks of unstructured play. 
•  We create an environment full of nooks and crannies to gather or be alone. 
•  We ensure that the children know that their ideas are good enough. 
•  We, ourselves reflect out loud in order to model the act of rethinking a past experience. 

So the next time you see a child so deep in thought, or seeming to be "just laying around" remember, this is a very important part of their play, a time to digest, a time to ponder deeper, a time to LEARN.

-Lakisha Reid 
Owner/Educator 
Discovery Early Learning Center 
www.facebook.com/Discoveryearlylearning