Songs are threefold. They have a rhythm (the beat, like the beat of footsteps), the melody (the mood that touches our soul) and the lyrics (the meaning of the words). The first one – rhythm – plays right into the work of earliest childhood with its focus on movement, rhythm and the body. Nursery rhymes…
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As shadows fill my ev’rywhere,
I offer up this whispered prayer.
I’m grateful for this wondrous day,
Because, you know, I loved to play!
I twirled and laughed and stomped my feet,
And then I stopped to have a treat.
Everyone views inbreaths and outbreaths differently. The important thing is to go between them in a rhythmical sequence so the little children aren’t caught holding their breath. These are all metaphors, of course, but excellent ones for understanding children and what causes overwhelm or meltdown, and also joy or exuberance. For me, freeplay outdoors is…
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Transition times are essential to be aware of when coming into rhythm. I remember a mother telling me it took seven minutes to get out to the car. Transitions need to be a planned part of the day’s rhythm, rather than caught-off-guard, in-between-times. Children usually don’t like transitions. They like to do what they are…
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Why do we find nature so calming and soothing? Waves on the shore? Water babbling over stones? The wind billowing the curtain? An inchworm progressing slowly up a blade of grass? Here we find that Nature is our best teacher for de-stressing. Variation within sameness calms and soothes us. This applies especially to children. What…
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