There is nothing better than training the kids from a young age to look after their clothes. Folding socks and clothes are a practical life activity for children that aims to develop concentration, coordination, independence and order. The folding socks activity also helps the child become independent by doing daily chores of life and instils a sense of confidence in them. “The first essential for the child’s development is concentration. The child who concentrates is immensely happy.” – Dr Maria Montessori.
In my experience with the needle as a child, I remember the focus I felt immediately, which encouraged me to stay in a task longer. The key to any success starts with concentration. Maria Montessori says: ” The life of the spirit prepares the dynamic power to daily life and on its side, daily life encourages thought by means of ordinary work.” -The child in the family, page 31
With children and families spending most of their time at home in our current crisis, this could be an opportunity to help children develop some of these life skills.
1. Peeling the carrot.
Fruits and vegetables are an important part of the diet for children. They provide many of the vitamins and minerals needed to establish and maintain the healthy functioning of the various parts of the body. Let me show you how to peel the carrots first.
2. Ironing the handkerchief.
The best way to introduce our kids to ironing is by helping them do their laundry. Also, please take this opportunity to interact with them and have a bit of fun. Folding laundry could be turned into a social event for our son or daughter and us. Get them their miniature board and iron so that they could iron beside us. Let them begin with handkerchiefs, then proceed to other clothes such as a shirt, trousers, skirt, and dress as they master the skill.
3. Assemble a flashlight or other battery operated.
Children love to learn basic knowledge about how a flashlight, remote control, alarm clock, or mouse work. They also get to practice fine motor skills as they screw and unscrew the cover. They also know the basic introduction to batteries, that batteries have a positive and negative terminal. This appealing and straightforward activity achieves all of these goals.
Scrapbooking is a great way to create something unique and keep it with us for the rest of our lives. We scrapbook everything about the leaf we learned for the past four weeks during our Culture online. Scrapbooking is a favourite pastime amongst kids worldwide because it allows them to make something that they can keep and test their creativity. With all the available digital data and technology, there is something about having a physical copy of something that one creates.
Culture studies about leaves their colours, shapes, and naming each part of a leaf. Children’s interaction with paint to emphasize the leaf’s veins is always a success! Learning about plants, where children can observe changes as the seeds begin to sprout and grow over time and record their observations on the recording sheet!
Our young child has probably seen or heard about farm animals even if we live in a city or the suburbs, miles from the nearest grazing cow. Perhaps we’ve sung “Old MacDonald Had a Farm” or read a story featuring sheep, ducks, and horses. It may sound like simple toddler fun, but learning this vocabulary at a young age helps our child develop savvy pre-academic and social skills.
Kids who do chores learn responsibility and gain important life skills that will serve them well throughout their lives. Chores were the best predictor of which kids were more likely to become happy, healthy, independent adults. Doing chores also helps kids feel like they’re part of the team”. Pitching in and helping family members is good for them and it encourages them to be good citizens. Simple life lessons like cleaning the toilet would have great benefits.
Asking a child to use a spray bottle to clean the mirrors exercises their gross motor skills. They have to rely on their sense of balance as they make significant arm movements to ensure water covers the glass, using their hands to clamp down on the spraying mechanism all at the same time. Children’s faces lit up every time they were successful, seeing the water splash on the mirror! They seemed so proud of themselves! We know how much they all love working with water, so this was a favourite activity in our environment.
