BurnAliveIntoTheBlues

theanimalblog: This Gentoo penguin appears to be walking on...

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 22:01:12 +0100

This Gentoo penguin appears to be walking on water, leaving behind a trail of water - giving the impression he is using a jet pack. Picture: Paul Souders / Barcroft Media

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Wed, 27 Feb 2013 16:37:41 +0100

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Mon, 25 Feb 2013 14:55:51 +0100

nature-madness: Baby Sloth | Asirap

Mon, 25 Feb 2013 14:54:51 +0100

nature-madness:

Baby Sloth | Asirap

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Mon, 25 Feb 2013 14:51:04 +0100

(via fuck you :), letter, letters, photo, photograph - inspiring...

Sun, 16 Sep 2012 20:02:43 +0200

(via fuck you :), letter, letters, photo, photograph - inspiring picture on Favim.com)

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Fri, 31 Aug 2012 09:39:40 +0200

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Fri, 17 Aug 2012 17:55:19 +0200

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Fri, 17 Aug 2012 16:01:55 +0200

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Mon, 11 Jun 2012 10:38:25 +0200

ageofpretending: Narnia, Hogwarts,...

Wed, 30 May 2012 14:03:31 +0200

ageofpretending:

Narnia, Hogwarts, Oz

http://weheartit.com/entry/27588660

vert-fonce: Lost? (by glenrichards)

Wed, 30 May 2012 14:00:21 +0200

vert-fonce:

Lost? (by glenrichards)

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Thu, 24 May 2012 10:29:53 +0200

"Puoi andare dappertutto ma non ti allontani da quel che hai dentro."

Mon, 21 May 2012 13:48:11 +0200

“Puoi andare dappertutto ma non ti allontani da quel che hai dentro.”

- Massimo Bisotti. (via ancorainpiedi)

knowledgeappliedispower: whatthekluck: Teach them to do it...

Mon, 21 May 2012 00:12:35 +0200

knowledgeappliedispower:

whatthekluck:

Teach them to do it for themselves.

When our daughter was 15 months old we enrolled her in survival-type swimming lessons via Infant Swimming Resource.   Maybe you’ve heard about this - children as young as 6 months old learning to roll in the water and float? (See more about ISR here).

We had a marvelous instructor who on the very first day, after seeing the fear in our eyes, said to us:

“If you don’t believe she can do it, then you should leave now. Because I know she can. She needs to know that you believe in her.”

That struck a chord right away. She was exactly right. If we didn’t think she could do it, what were we doing there?  I admit I wanted to snatch my daughter out of the water at the very first sign of discomfort.  What I didn’t consider was that my behavior was sending clear signals to my daughter that I didn’t think she could do it.   Of course as parents we wanted to protect her. The goal of these lessons was to enable her to float, saving herself, if she ever accidentally fell into a body of water. Did we want to sabotage her success?

We trusted in the instructor and in our little girl, and cheered them on through the entire process (which admittedly was at times difficult to observe). At the end of 7 weeks, my daughter completed the course by ”falling” off the edge of the pool, fully clothed. After sinking down into the water, she immediately rolled over and floated. At 15 months, she did this all by herself.

I realized that my children are more capable than I give them credit for.

Allowing children to do things for themselves is integral to the traditonal Montessori methodology.  A a very young age Montessori students participate in practical life exercises that enable them to do various things for themselves. This includes what we might consider mundane tasks like getting dressed (buttons, snaps, zippers), cleaning up (washing dishes, sweeping, mopping, laundry), baking, and *gasp* cutting with a knife. This is done for various reasons. Read more about it here.

Our daughter made banana bread in class yesterday. She had been watching other children do it. She knew not to touch the materials or the oven because she had not yet had a lesson, but she was very interested. The spark in her was ignited. First she was given a lesson on it by her teacher. Then she partnered with an older student (5 years old) to watch and assist. After a few weeks she is doing it all by herself.  She just turned four.

At home she is delighted to help prepare meals and fold laundry. She can dress herself, brush her teeth, comb her hair, and toast her own waffles. She sweeps the floor, and cleans up her own messes. She is showing her younger brother how these things are done. Without the experience with the swimming instructor,  I would still be “protecting” my kids from things that they are clearly capable of doing.

It just goes to show you - if you believe in them and show them the proper way, they can do it for themselves.

Forever Reblog

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Mon, 21 May 2012 00:10:15 +0200

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Mon, 21 May 2012 00:06:42 +0200

tomesawayfromhome: Does this image contain: A. The perfect...

Mon, 21 May 2012 00:06:00 +0200

tomesawayfromhome:

Does this image contain:

A. The perfect answer to every kid who asks “Why are we reading this book? What could I possibly have in common with these fictional people?”

B. Interesting typography

C. What could be a classroom-worthy poster

D. C. S. Lewis firing on all cylinders, as per usual.

E. A deceptive link (thumbpress.com) that distracts (and should be ignored) from the actual link to the creator (thereadables.tumblr.com)

F. All of the above.

(hint: the answer’s F!)

"Saper essere solitario è fondamentale per l’arte di amare. Quando sappiamo stare da soli, possiamo..."

Sun, 20 May 2012 12:14:41 +0200

“Saper essere solitario è fondamentale per l’arte di amare. Quando sappiamo stare da soli, possiamo stare con gli altri senza utilizzarli come mezzo di fuga.”

- Bell Hooks. (via anunbrokensmile)

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Wed, 16 May 2012 20:48:15 +0200