Seeing Children Do More with Less

08/24/2017

Seeing Children Do More with Less

I have learned over the years that my medicine is words. Healing can happen through words, and I have to remind myself that this gift is not only enough; it is everything to me.
Kaitlin B. Curtice, author of Living Resistance

"Imagine not offering babies any toys until they find their hands for play," Deb Curtis writes in her book, Really Seeing Children. "My mind started spinning as I heard Janet Gonzalez-Mena describe this approach used by the Pikler Institute in Budapest, Hungary, where they have documented over 75 ways that babies learn to use their hands for play.

"This is such a different emphasis than what I often see in early childhood programs and homes in the United States. Babies are regularly surrounded by colors and images on walls and fabrics, along with toys that beep, rattle, and flash...

"I have a wonderful collection of open-ended materials...Although I am always thoughtful to avoid over-stimulation, as well as to ensure the materials encourage children to be the inventors of their work, the story of the Pikler babies and their hands challenged me to rethink my practice...In my desire to give children all they need to grow and learn, am I giving them too much?"

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