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

Let Children Be Children ...and play with JUNK!

Let Children be Children........ and play with JUNK!!

When I was a child we played with JUNK, I mean real JUNK. We had toys, I'm sure... Just none so beloved that I can remember them.

We had the freedom to roam and to collect. Oh man.... the collecting was just as much, if not more fun, than the "play".

We took our tasks so seriously, we all actively and collaboratively set out on great adventures to find just the right piece of JUNK to build our "club house" or "hide out".

We raided the back dumpsters of the strip mall that backed up to our neighborhood and drug all kinds of treasures through the lot, up the road, and into the woods, our very own jungle.. where we could plan and plot and PLAY



I don't remember many fights, I don't remember much sadness.. I do remember the feeling of FREEDOM, ADVENTURE, CREATIVITY, BELONGING, LEADERSHIP, POWER, and CONNECTION that I felt as I played with JUNK.

These feeling are what made me who I am today...

Who am I today? you ask...

A person who provides these same JUNK FILLED opportunities for children so that they may feel the same feeling of ADVENTURE, CREATIVITY, BELONGING, LEADERSHIP, POWER and CONNECTION that I felt as I played with JUNK

Social Support

At Discovery ELC we work tremendously hard on social-emotional skills, for it is the most important foundational skill for young children. One of the keys to social-emotional health is having the ability to communicate your perspective, feelings, and ways of thinking. This is HARD for children, especially in the midst of conflict, while tired, hungry, thirsty, or a myriad of other times. Let's just agree, that it's HARD for children.

It is hard for adults to accept just how hard this truly is for young children. We expect children to have the ability to talk to us, or their friends. We expect them not the "meltdown", cry, call names or hit. What we often don't do, is see things from their point of view, model the appropriate way to behave and give them tools and support them as they calm down to a place where they can collect their thoughts and the ability to listen/communicate. We often share in their frustration with a healthy dose of our own.

What we do at Discovery is practice putting ourselves in their shoes " How must he/she feel in this moment"? We separate the child's behavior from the child's feelings and after securing the safety of all involved, we address the feelings that cause the behavior. Dealing with the behavior without addressing the root cause will not produce a child who is in touch with their emotions and is able to regulate themselves and appropriately solve conflict.

Here is dialog taken while two really good friends play together:

Henry and Max sat playing on the rug.

Max began to build with blocks.

Henry stood up to walk away and steps really close to Max's structure.

Max says HEY!!!

The Structure falls.

Henry laughs

Max- "STUPID HENRY!"

( When children hit or call names, that means there is something they want to say that they are not able to communicate in the heat of the moment)

Kisha- I see that Henry's foot hit your structure and knocked it over and now you are upset. Did you want to say you are frustrated? (replacing "stupid Henry" with his true feelings.. stupid is a go-to because it's easy and does not cause him to do the hard work while he is still upset)

Max now feels heard. Henry trusts that he will be heard because I did not jump to punish him for knocking over the blocks, or for laughing, he was able to observe my calm demeanor and ability to listen.

Max- "No, I wanted to say, I don't like it when Henry laughs at me. I don't like it Henry, do you understand?"

Henry stops laughing and passes Max a block seeming to offer to help him build it back.

They begin rebuilding together.

I could have told Max, " Oh, Henry didn't mean it!".. or " Stupid is not nice, be nice!" but none of these things would have validated his feelings, given him the tools and permission to express his feelings. It would also not have held Henry accountable to his part in the conflict. I believe Henry did not knock the structure down on purpose, but it seemed like the issue for Max was the laughing after, so that is what we addressed. The passing of the block was Henry's nonverbal communication to Max. Max seemed to understand and accept the gesture, so my work there was done. Lectures or the feeling that things should be fair and equal only undermines the natural process. In nature, things are organically unbalanced. * Notice I did not force an "I'm sorry" This only teaches a child that they are not in control of their feelings and that when forced, they should lie about how they feel in the moment. the passing of the block was Henry's authentic "I am sorry" and it was enough.

This is just one of the many many times we work to build these skills in children. Remember it's not bad behavior. it's children trying to navigate their emotions and feelings while sharing a space with others. They are developing the skills.. we as the skilled adults have a duty to help them along.