Rules in playing with your children.

One of the mom bloggers I just knew suggested that I should write and actually share some of the early childhood education knowledge I learnt from the Peachgrove playcentre and the playcentre association itself. Thanks to Nadiah Sidek (currently in Nebraska, USA), who gave me this idea.


Thus in this entry, I would like to share the unwritten rules in playing with your children in order to raise their self-esteem. These rules are sort of "unwritten" as we as the playcentre members need to have these rules in mind.

Rules in playing with your children/ or even with other people's children:

• Play is children's work- Children learn and make sense about their environment through their experinces in playing. Never discourage your children to play as you might stop their curiosity and that's not helping their self-esteem either. (kalau anak2 sepah2 pun, takpela sbb diaorg sedang belajar tu, nanti ajar2la diaorg kemaskan mainan diaorg)
  

•  Play with them, relax and enjoy it- You'll learn more about your own children if you just spend some quality time together and getting actively involve in your their play. (kdg2 ini susah juga sbb kita sbg ibubapa ni banyak tanggungjawab lain. tapi kalau dpt luangkan masa 1/2 jam pun, dah cukup) 
  

•  Be aware of each child needs- If you only have a child (yg baru anak sorang tu), you won't have much problem in giving your attention. However if you have more than one, you definitely need to be aware. Treat each child individually. (jgnla banding2kan anak2 sbb mereka mempunyai karektor tersendiri)

• Messy play is okay-  I myself was not really comfortable with messy play but as I learnt that they learn more with messy play, I've accepted this. (budak2 kalau lg kotor lg seronok diaorg main kan?)

•  Sit down or crouch to their level- Why? Adults are big and if we want their attention, we need to sit down beside them or crouch to their level. (kalau dah anak2 kena mendongak bila nak dengar cakap kita, kesian kan. Jd apa salahnya kita tunduk sikit atau duduk.)

• Help children to do things for themselves- We want our children to be independent right? So, just let them do things for themselves. You can assist when they say they need some help. (kalau untuk baby tu benda ni tak boleh apply. Ini untuk yg berumur 2thn ke atas)

• Use your own special skills and interests to create a special moment- All of us at least is good at something like cooking, gardening, playing music, sewing etc. It's good to teach your children about your own skills and interests. (saya suka ajak anak2 dara saya buat cupcake, muffins atau apa2 benda yg senang di dapur. Yg kakak (nak masuk 5 thn) mmg suka menolong di dapur dan skrg yg adik (2 1/2 thn) pun dah pandai cakap "I want to help mama".)    
  

(source: Welcome to Playcentre-Playcentre Waikato Association)

Here are two photos of my daughters when they are playing:

 

P/S: I've written an entry about playing before. If you are interested to read, look for this title:

"How to play with your children without spending a fortune!"