Greetings my people,
So glad to have you stop by. It's been a fun time, here in Knewville; however, it's been a learning experience, too. Oh, my...that's the perfect segue into the topic of which the title of the blahg eludes..."learning experience!"
To le point. (I bet you didn't didn't know I was fluent in the French word "le") Indeed! My son, while in pre-school, had an assignment: make a poster with a picture of your parents/grandparents and tell us about them. This, they would then share with the class and parents in a happy day of frivolity and cheer at the years conclusion.
My son, the one mentioned in the previous mentioning of sons, told the world, my wife, his mother, God bless her, was kind, liked to snuggle, and was YELLOW. Met with many snickers and laughs from the other parents who were premature in their antics, as their children, and turn, would soon come. I digress. I'll leave out the comments he made about me, since my wife makes a perfect example. Mine would only be unwanted crumbs in the shadow of hers.
So, my wife, Nina, is certainly not yellow, but compared to me and my slightly pinkish skin tone, she is. My son, the sponge, absorbed that information, processed it and spit it out for all to see and hear. Which incidently was really funny. My wife's eyes grew, her head tilted, her back straightened as a nervous smile creased her lips. "He thinks I'm yellow? I am not yellow!" So funny.
Now, take for instance children's books. A book that entertains does nothing more then entertain. Sesame Street, Sprout, and all the other children's programs seem to dedicate themselves to education of all sorts, numbers, letters, literacy, values and character. Are they wrong in doing so? No. They get it! I say, save "entertainment ONLY" for later when the kids transition from sponges to brick walls painted with repellants of all kinds.
Have you ever heard a child say, "I'll show you!", or "I can do it!" or "Why? Why? Why? Why?" They naturally want to learn and teach and show. With regard to our children. Why then, wouldn't you teach them when they are primed and probably more condussive to learning than any other time in their happy little lives?
It's because of their spongy ways that I have decided to give children what they so naturally want and need...something...anything...other than to just entertain, though entertained they will be. I try as best I can to teach character and values along with a little something else, like, for instance, the name of 29 trees in The Tree With No Branches.
Sure, it's great fun to entertain a child and watch them giggle or laugh, but done so with some wonderful absorbable nugget they could use for a lifetime seems to be more than simply fun. Go ahead and entertain them, but don't just entertain, teach them while you do it.
As you were,
Johnny Knew