A couple hours before each musical lesson our kids would play with their building sets like Playmobil, Lego and Construction Blocks.  They would create entire worlds of buildings, ships, airplanes and plot lines to go with every creation they put together.  At their music lessons we noticed our children were playing more creatively, flowing with the music and were hitting the notes better than ever before.  What we discovered was that their time of “play” was actually helping them increase creativity and hand-eye coordination with their musical instruments.

By building with small pieces and fitting them into different shapes they were increasing motor skills that helped them when playing their musical instruments.  Playmobil Toys and Lego Toys became fun ways that helped our children develop.  Now many of them continue to play instruments.  Just as importantly, however, many of our kids went into fields of study that demanded them to think creatively in order to solve difficult problems.  Some are in marketing, law, medicine and even politics.

We strongly believe that “play” developed our children early to look for challenges they can solve that similarly resembled the “challenges” experienced when using imaginative toys.  What stories can you recount when your kids used “play” to grow developmentally?

Christmas is almost here and it has always been a big deal in our family. Especially now that many of our children have grown up and are married in different states, we always look forward to everyone coming home. But, we always have a long list of gifts to get and no time to do it. Not to worry, we have just the solution for you.

For the next 15 days we’re offering 30% off one product everyday! These are our most popular products that your kids are sure to love the moment they unwrap them! Here’s the first gift:

30% off Wedgits on Wheels!

Kids are moving up and rolling out with Wedgits on Wheels. This 60-piece set of translucent Wedgits includes four custom wheels and hub assemblies that kids build into their own mobile creations. A sample instruction guide is included for wheel, hub and frame assembly suggestions.

Don’t forget to check out tomorrow for the next deal!

Experiences Build Willingness To Explore

Today’s bible of child-rearing is “The Baby Book” by William and Martha Sears, which trumpets “attachment parenting.” You wear your baby, sleep with her and attune yourself totally to her needs.  Mom’s today don’t have the time, let alone the resources to make this dreamworld a reality.  In fact, this approach causes a significant impairment to the child when they develop. They think they should be the focus of your attention, because that’s how you raised them.  A child who is the total focus of a parent has more difficulty relating with other children and struggles to find their identity when they are not the center of attention.

Love Goes All The Way

Is all the love and caring a mom could give enough to raise a child? A strong environment filled with love is the bedrock for healthy childhood development.  A mother’s primary objective when raising a child is to create an environment that is stimulating and promotes the healthy growth of the mental, physical, emotional and spiritual aspects of her child.  We all know the saying, “hurt people, hurt people.”  If your child grows up in a loving environment their sense of self and treatment towards others will be positive.  They won’t be grabbing for everything they see because they don’t have a void that love should have filled.

Ask Others For Help

Seek those around you who will be able to apply positive developmental behavior towards your child.  It takes a lot to raise a child, and a mother or father are the not the only parental figures a child should receive for successful developmental.  Consider care givers, grandparents and relatives, or close friends to give your child a healthy perspective on life even from an early age.  Let them discover how others view the world, but ensure that you trust the people you entrust speaking into your child’s life.  Because like reading at early childhood gets implanted so do the words and actions they perceive.

Be Their Biggest Cheerleader

Create a culture that believes in the best for your son or daughter.  Tell them how much you think they are going to change the world.  Let them think they are the best at everything.  Children have gotten too desensitized already.  They don’t need a “reality check” at four years old.  Keep encouraging them to go for it, even if they aren’t necessarily the best one on the team because they don’t know what they really want to pursue yet.  It’s a time of exploration for them and the best thing a parent can do is give them the praise that thy need to try new things.

Let them fail forward by exploring various areas of learning: arts, reading, sports, outdoor, technology and math.  It’s the best thing they can take away from growing up, even more than information.  The world changes around them, but their self confidence should never be taken away from them.

Tip #1 : Read Out Loud

When I was pregnant with our first child twenty some years ago, I searched and read a lot of books about how to raise a smart and happy child.  I wanted to find out what is developing in his/her little life of his/her first 12 months, the second year, the third year and so on. What I found out was that in every book I read they suggested reading out loud.  When you communicate what you are reading audibly the vibrations, thoughts and words get into the air and create an environment for exploration.  You should start even before the child is born because the environment you create for the child is extremely important to how well and how quickly they develop.

Tip #2 : Start Reading Early

There is no such thing as too early to read to the child. In fact I discovered the earlier the better. So we read to our unborn children whatever book we had on our hand – you wouldn’t believe what we read to our kids!  We read our children books on science, anatomy, bones and even medical text books (my husband was starting medical school).  So he would read them out loud, even while he studied!  What you read to your child gets embedded into their subconscious mind for their life.

Just as important as what you read to your child, is how you read it to them.  The tone of your voice, emotion and expression used all have an impact on the child’s development.  Most of all they will learn to love reading at an early age, which will stick with them throughout their lives. Granted, not every child will love to read. So, as a parent we need to make reading fun and not boring and especially never using it as a punishment.

Tip #3 : Make Reading Fun

When they are young, they would do anything for you as long as it is enjoyable and fun and interesting. They depend on you to guide and teach them. They don’t know with a little bit of mom’s creativity, they develop their own creativities that last a life time through reading!

My daughter wrote short stories when she was in elementary school. She loves to read and write, even now. Whenever and wherever we go for vacation, we always look for the closest library for books. But as they get older they bring their own books.   We have tons of great children’s books that will help you find fun ways to get your children reading too!

Tip #4 : Find a Time and Stick to It

Schedule a set time each day designated just for reading.  We always chose 5PM because I could read to them before dinner and my husband could come home and read to them as well.  Vary what types of books you read to your child, fictional and non-fictional – in addition to medical text books we would also read books on poetry as well as fiction.  One of our favorite fictional books to read our kids was If You Give A Mouse A Cookie.  It’s important to keep a balance with types of books so your kids don’t lose their ability to dream but also have a healthy perspective on reality when they need to apply that dream in the world.

What tools did you use to get your kids reading?  Let us know!  We would like to share them with the rest of our readers if it’s really good!  Thanks for reading “From Mom To Mom” and come back for more tips next week!