As
parents, we all know the value of spending quality time with our children. It is important for us all to find different
ways to interact with our children and to play with them. To play with
them, not just direct them while they play. Experts say that play is an important part of
learning, and I also firmly believe that playing with our children enables us
to build a strong bond with them and opens the lines of communication. How can we expect children to be able to come
and talk to us when they are feeling sad or when they are having trouble at
school or with a friend if we do not foster a comfortable relationship with
them. When children are young, they are definitely
very eager to communicate with their parents, and at this stage they like spending time with us. Let us make this time count! Here are some of the fun things that my three
youngest children and I do together:
Cook Together: I am a huge advocate of cooking with
children! Many say that children are
more likely to eat meals and snacks that they have taken part in preparing, and
I agree completely. Also, it is a great
time to teach young children about safety in the kitchen and nutrition.
Tell Stories: When my mother visits, she usually tells the
girls stories that she makes up as she goes along. As soon as they see her, they expect to get a
story out of her. I followed her lead,
and began to make up stories of my own some nights during story time. The
stories always include characters that are basically my own children. I just slightly alter their names (Yasmine becomes
Jasmine for example); I use these stories to teach them lessons or to address topics
that are of concern to our family. My
stories are usually pretty corny, and lack any real flow or story line but the
kids are hooked. Now, during story time
they always ask me to tell a story rather than read one!
Have a Dance Party!:
It is great exercise and the kids love
it! Dancing allows them to express themselves
and let off some steam. In the end
everybody feels great! I have many
priceless home movies of our dance parties which they love to send to their
grandparents and watch at home!
Sing!: I make up silly songs all the time! Pretty soon the kids join in and we all have
a great time. Some of those songs stick
with our family for months! Most times,
singing can even gently nudge a grumpy child out of a bad mood. They can never keep a straight face for long
once I make up a song about a mean face turning into a happy face!
Have a Jam Session!: My daughters love playing their drum and my eldest
daughter often composes her own little songs on her kalimba. She is very proud of her songs and plays them
for my husband and I all the time. It allows
her to use her mind creatively and build her inventive skills.
Go ‘Camping’: We dress up in our hiking gear, pack our
backpacks, get our flashlights out and walk through the make believe forest
(actually the hallway) to the camp site (actually the living room) and get in
to our tent (we make our own tent out of blankets but a real tent works out
great too!). Once in our tent, we tell
stories, read our pre-drawn ‘maps’, and do whatever else comes to our
imaginations (usually at some point, my children want me to be a dangerous bear
who tries to tear down the tent and drag kids into the forest lol!).
Decorate the
Windows and Doors: Recently,
after I ran out of space on the fridge, I began to display the kids’ art work
from school and home on the doors and windows.
They love it! As soon as we
finish an art project at home, they immediately ask me to hang it up. They like being able to look at their work
hung up all around the kitchen. It makes
them feel as though what is important to them is also important to me. The art adds color and vibrancy to my
kitchen!