A dear friend of mine recently gave me a subscription to Wondertime, a Disney Family magazine. Wondertime celebrates a child's love for learning, and in addition to their publication, they have a great website full of additional resources.
I recently spent some time browsing their website, and found a channel all about Creative Parenting. I love this topic because I believe that effective parenting is creative parenting. Kids are ever-evolving creatures, and in order to keep up with them, we have to be experimental, innovative and resourceful.
Although my son is only 9 months old, I read this Creative Parenting article with excitement, 5 big ways to help kids love books. My undergraduate degree is in English, and reading is my favorite hobby. I don't imagine that I'll ever push a sport or career onto any of my children, but I fear that I am going to force books down my kids throats to the point that they are burning them by the time they flee the nest. I simply want my children to love books (and magazines and blogs and reading, reading, reading) as much as I do. So this creative parenting article excited me to no end.
Here are the five tips:
- Make it an experience for all the sense.
- Engage in a spirited debate.
- Write a book of your own.
- Find out what else the library offers.
- Get everybody involved.
One of my fondest childhood memories is of the publishing center at my elementary school. My school converted an oversized closet into a mini-publishing workshop. It included all the materials necessary for covering and binding a homemade book. I remember feeling so confident as I left the publishing center with my newly bound book in tow. And when I think back, "publishing" my book was so simple and easy. What a great way to encourage a child's creative spirit and self-confidence.
The public library is another one of my favorite childhood memories. Today when I walk into our local library, the smell alone takes me to a place of storytime daydreams. How splendid! I decided to check out the offerings of our local library, and I was pleasantly surprised. Once a week they offer Baby Laptime for babies and their guardians. It's simply a 20-30 minute session of singing songs and discovering age-appropriate books, and it is completely free. I couldn't be more enthusiastic about exposing my little man to the library at such a young age. Not to mention, the library is one of the most fantastic places on and for the earth – it is recycling and education at its finest – I'm in heaven!
Many hugs to my dear friend who shared this wonderful magazine and website with me. I hope you all find it as delightful as I do.
Ali Hooper is a midwestern girl livin' in the 'burbs with her boys (hubby, baby, puppy). Once a School Counselor (now Editor of Homeschool Bliss), she whittles away her time blogging about the not-so-sunny side of motherhood at non-maternal instincts (though she loves showing off pictures of her adorable son at her family blog, The Hoopers).
Photo by emilywjones
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