What is your kid staring at?

What is your kid staring at?

Sometimes during the day I’ll notice a kid staring at something. Not just checking it out for a minute or trying to devise a way to attempt to take it apart, but staring at it. They are truly studying it and it can be anything from a fan, to a lamp, to a pillow, you name it and it’s been a victim of the stare. So, what does this mean? It could be a type of seizure that causes zoning out, but in my case I think it’s just that the child has found an object they have seen and never really observed. I have started exploring these objects when I notice this occurring. When I see a little one staring I go over, kneel down and try to figure out what is being stared at. Once I find the object I talk about it, spell its name, turn it on or off, touch it and talk about it being hard or soft, talk about the color, talk about what it does, ask questions if the children are old enough about how they think it works or what it does to see what they come up with, and then I say its name a lot for vocab. The kids love exploring the world around them and it’s on their schedule and pace.

My daughter has lately been obsessed with the floor fan and I normally keep it unplugged and in a corner to escape little hands and fingers. Today, I pulled it out and we all touched it, I took the guard off and showed how the blades spin making sure to talk about how much it can hurt a finger and be dangerous, we talked about how it was white (probably from paint was added by one kid, smart kid), talked about how electricity made it work and how it cools a room when on, we briefly turned it on and each got to feel the breeze before it had to be put away again. It wasn’t something I planned or in my schedule for the day, but I’m glad I noticed the interest and took the time to explore it with her and the other kids. They all loved to be little investigators solving a mystery!

Next time you see your kid really studying something, stop whatever your doing and go check it out with them. You may find yourself discovering things around you that you take for granted or facts that you had forgotten. You also are teaching your child that they can come to you with questions or when they are interested in something and making the world around them something to be continually explored! So, to close don’t be afraid to take the moments that kids offer and cherish every second because whatever you have to do can be finished later, a child’s mind is developing now!

Abby