Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/supporting-spiritual-development-in-the-early-childhood-classroom/5025388/
In her book “The Spiritual Child,” Lisa Miller of Columbia University highlights the importance of spirituality in child development. She summarizes that children who have a positive relationship to spirituality:
- are 40 percent less likely to use and abuse substances;
- are 60 percent less likely to be depressed as teenagers; and
- have significantly more positive markers for thriving including an increased sense of meaning and purpose, and high levels of academic success (Miller).
As education continues to emphasize the importance of a “whole child” approach, emerging research indicates that spirituality is an important element to consider. If the role of a teacher is to prepare children for successful lives, making room for spiritual development appears to be a crucial piece.
Spirit and Spirituality
In order to do this, we need a definition of spirit and spirituality that is separate from religion and religious education. Leanne Hadley, whose work supporting children in crisis has been groundbreaking for both religious and secular professionals, uses this definition when she is working with children.
“Spirit is the thing within us that makes us us. Spirituality is the way we connect our ‘inner us’ to everything else, including other people’s inner ‘usness.’”
This understanding helps us think creatively about how to approach spirituality while ...