I’ve been doing this a long time.
So long that babies I babysat have babies of their own. Some of the children I first cared for in group care are graduating college; indeed a ‘baby’ I cared for in my last year of group care just went off to college a couple of weeks ago. And my first RIE babies are full-on teenagers now.
It goes quicker than I ever would have imagined.
I don’t say that to worry you, instead, I hope to inspire you…because the work you’re doing now, the time you’re spending letting children figure it out for themselves, the restraint you show when you sit with your child in their upset instead of leaning in to fix it…all the hard work that this Educaring Approach asks you to do…it pays off.
The good news is that it pays off immediately. Like when you watch your child make discoveries that you weren’t expecting, when they surprise you with their brilliance, and when they try and fail…and then succeed…this work teaches us to slow down and really see children for who they are, in real time. But it also offers the gift of longevity. Sure, your language shifts a little as children get older, and you may offer more direct teaching at times, but when the heart of this Approach is embedded in you and in them, when respect and consideration for your child’s point of view is an unconscious part of how you parent, the payoffs keep coming.
Have you ever wondered what this will look like on the other side? When you have your very own full-on teenager? Come hear Melanie Snell, RIE teacher…and mother for 4 teenagers… share her insights on what putting in the hard work now will offer you in a decade. She’s speaking (online) on Saturday, September 21st, from 2-3:30, as per usual, a recording will be available to all who register. Hope to see you there!