With a second child, it has become more important than ever for Hugo to spend some time playing on his own.
At the moment, he does it a tiny bit but usually if we are home, he is constantly demanding that I play with him, whether that is running around on his hobby horse or building towers of blocks.
We think that play is completely natural to children and to some extent, it most definitely is. Every single thing Hugo does throughout the day is a form of play, from brushing his teeth, to squishing his food, mopping the floor or swinging from the kitchen bench. He plays to learn, understand how things work and replicate what he sees us doing.
However, I have made the mistake of sitting him in front of a pile of playdough and expected him to just know what to do with it. He doesn't and in fact, needs me to demonstrate how it's done. So as I form a ball, or roll a long worm or cut it into a particular shape, he watches and learns. From there, he can replicate and expand thanks to his own imagination. Without that initial input from me though, he loses interest almost instantly.
I remember reading about the Montessori approach at one stage and was struck by one of the sentences I read. It was about following the child's lead and letting them play alone. In order to insure the children learn as they play, the toys are designed to make it clear when it is being used incorrectly, thus leading the child to discover the correct way of using it.
With playdough, there is no right or wrong way but as I sometimes struggle to think of what else to do with it besides a ball or a worm, it's understandable that Hugo wouldn't have a clue either. We are both learning (or re-learning) to play.
I am also trying the approach of limiting and rotating the toys that are accessible at any given moment. The idea being that too many choices are overwhelming and don't necessarily encourage active play.
This morning, I set up his little tea set on his table and we spent a while preparing and drinking imaginary cups of tea, pouring water, adding sugar and milk, stirring and so on. We also offered tea to some of his toys as I thought he might enjoy doing that on his own later.
Well, lo and behold, a little bit later, when I was changing Eloise, I spotted Hugo quietly serving tea to his hobby horse. I had to smile (and give myself a little pat on the back).
If I'm completely honest, I don't find many of Hugo's current games and toys particularly exciting but if a little more effort from me means that he will learn to play on his own more and rely less on other forms of entertainment (ie. technology), then, I am quite prepared to make that effort.
And anyway, that little tea party we had was rather lovely.
At the moment, he does it a tiny bit but usually if we are home, he is constantly demanding that I play with him, whether that is running around on his hobby horse or building towers of blocks.
We think that play is completely natural to children and to some extent, it most definitely is. Every single thing Hugo does throughout the day is a form of play, from brushing his teeth, to squishing his food, mopping the floor or swinging from the kitchen bench. He plays to learn, understand how things work and replicate what he sees us doing.
However, I have made the mistake of sitting him in front of a pile of playdough and expected him to just know what to do with it. He doesn't and in fact, needs me to demonstrate how it's done. So as I form a ball, or roll a long worm or cut it into a particular shape, he watches and learns. From there, he can replicate and expand thanks to his own imagination. Without that initial input from me though, he loses interest almost instantly.
I remember reading about the Montessori approach at one stage and was struck by one of the sentences I read. It was about following the child's lead and letting them play alone. In order to insure the children learn as they play, the toys are designed to make it clear when it is being used incorrectly, thus leading the child to discover the correct way of using it.
With playdough, there is no right or wrong way but as I sometimes struggle to think of what else to do with it besides a ball or a worm, it's understandable that Hugo wouldn't have a clue either. We are both learning (or re-learning) to play.
I am also trying the approach of limiting and rotating the toys that are accessible at any given moment. The idea being that too many choices are overwhelming and don't necessarily encourage active play.
This morning, I set up his little tea set on his table and we spent a while preparing and drinking imaginary cups of tea, pouring water, adding sugar and milk, stirring and so on. We also offered tea to some of his toys as I thought he might enjoy doing that on his own later.
Well, lo and behold, a little bit later, when I was changing Eloise, I spotted Hugo quietly serving tea to his hobby horse. I had to smile (and give myself a little pat on the back).
If I'm completely honest, I don't find many of Hugo's current games and toys particularly exciting but if a little more effort from me means that he will learn to play on his own more and rely less on other forms of entertainment (ie. technology), then, I am quite prepared to make that effort.
And anyway, that little tea party we had was rather lovely.
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