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Smart
Thursday, March 03, 2011 by Jeannie Fleming-Gifford
Can you make your child smart? If you're like me, you already know your child is brilliant. BRILLIANT. I knew it the moment I saw her.
Okay, I may be a bit biased.
Have you ever thought about what traits/skills/strengths your child is born with versus those they will learn?
In infancy, babies just seem to learn skills. Most of this growth is evident through physical skills such as grasping, rolling over, sitting independently, pulling up, and eventually taking those first steps.
Cognitively (thinking skills), there is a lot going on too. You can see this in a baby's ability to make eye contact, their smiles in response to interactions, coos and other verbal communications. Then there are those first words.
With toddlers, learning seems to explode. There is walking and talking and a host of other skills that are visible. During this time, it is most easy to see that children can acquire skills based on what they have been taught.
It's impressive to hear a toddler rattle off their ABC's or count to 10. Is this really evidence of being smart or simply a good demonstration of rote memorization (the ability to recall information after sheer repitition)?
When it comes to building a smart kid, I'm thinking it's more about HOW kiddos learn than WHAT they learn.
Think about it. Isn't it more important to know how to solve a problem? Life's questions aren't always solved by facts and figures.
In the high tech age in which we live, information is available. Everywhere. All the time.
What we need to be teaching our children are skills that will enable them to find answers.
How?
Encourage discovery.
Know that there is ALWAYS more than one solution.
Provide ample opportunities to experiment (open ended play vs. play that is focused on one goal).
Celebrate creativity (it's OKAY if your child does things differently/takes a different path).
Sure, it's fun to show off a toddler who can count in Spanish (thanks "Dora!"). But at the end of the day, I'll take a child who can think outside the box and will know the world's answers are much more than facts and figures.
That, to me, is one smart kid.
