Children need to be exposed to many things as they are growing up. As parents it is important to let them explore different types of activities and interests. We need to encourage these interests and not trivializethem in any way (even if they don’t make sense to us).Our children are going through a process of exploration and must be able to make choices and learn for themselves where their true passion lies.Sometimes this means entering your child’s world and coming to a better understanding of what their interests are and why they are interested in that specific item or items. Sometimes it means knowing your child well enough to encourage them to try something that they may not have thought about trying in the past because they did not know anything about it. For example, encouraging your child to try chess because you know that they love to play games that require thinking and logic and then finding them opportunities to play chess if they do find that they enjoy the game.
It is also important to let your children into your own world, helping them to understand what you are passionate about and why you are passionate about these things. It helps to have them involved in some of the activities that you are involved within so that they can understand and see that being passionate about something is a good thing and can truly make your life more meaningful.
For some kids you will have to be persistent and continuous in your encouragement as they may be slower to find a passion for themselves. As parents you have to be vigilant in encouraging your child to continue trying their best to find what will make them happy.
Some questions you should ask yourself include:
- What am I passionate about?
- What is my child passionate about? What are their interests and why are they interested in them?
- How can I do a better job at sharing my passions and interests with my children?
- How can I be more encouraging of my child’s interests?
As you begin to answer these questions you may find it necessary to revisit them over time as your answers and definitely the answers about your children will change as you all change and grow.
In researching this topic I came across a few sites that I thought that I would share with all of you:
- http://www.teachkidshow.com/teach-your-child-to-be-passionate/
- http://www.education.com/magazine/article/Helping_Kids_Find_Purpose/
Today’s task is for you to answer the above questions as well as review the above articles. What are your thoughts regarding this topic? Make a list of your passions and share them with your spouse/partner/friend. Talk about these passions and talk about how you can share these passions with your children. Once you have completed these tasks, come back and share your thoughts with the rest of the group.
If you are so inclined please leave your responses in a comment below or link to a blog post if you are going to commit to joining me on this journey so that others can learn from you as well. Good luck with day 20 and I look forward to your thoughts and comments!
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