Busy Mamas

Several months ago I wrote a post about things a preschool teacher (my mom) wished parents knew to help make her job easier. I had posed the same question to my daughter’s preschool teacher to see what her list would be. Not surprisingly, she gave me a more sanitized (less pet-peevy and more educator-friendly) version of tips. Here, in its entirety, is the list provided to me by her teacher:

1. Encourage your child to do things by and for themselves. (Not a problem here, from as far back as I can remember, my daughter insisted on doing everything herself – at an excruciatingly slow pace. Funny though how now when her brother is getting attention she has suddenly lost the ability to do things like put on her shoes or toothpaste on her toothbrush by herself.)

2. Don’t overload your child. Choose activities wisely. Allow lots of free time for creative play and join in sometimes. (Do you think the teacher would approve of my daughter’s 3-hour marathon viewing sessions of the complete works of the creative ensemble cast of the Backyardigans? She’s certainly not being overloaded. And I occasionally like to join in with her…yeah, I’m passed out on the sofa next to her, but I’m still joining her.)

3. Appropriate boundaries. All children need to know what they may and may not do. (My daughter may not smoke or drink. I am quite clear about that and she knows it. My house, my rules.)

4. Parents are the role models. What you do at home is important - we see you as your child’s first and most important teacher. (According to my daughter, my husband and I are doing a fine job of guiding her. She made this quite clear one day when she asked me, “Why are you and Daddy so bossy to me? When I get older do I get to be the boss?” Yes, when you have kids you can boss them all you like.)

5. Keep teachers informed about important things going on in your child’s life. (Like how she feels that life is so tragically unfair that she has such bossy parents?)

6. Read wonderful books together. (We do, but I’m getting really sick of reading the same three princess books every night. What about one of the 300 other books on your shelf once in a while??)

7. Talk as you go about your normal everyday chores. (Does “bossing” them count?)

8. Listen to your child. Acknowledge what your child is saying. (What if all your child wants to talk about is butts, farts and doo doo? How do you acknowledge that constructively?)

Tags: preschool, School, suggestions, teacher tips