By Meredith Carlton, Head of School at Beacon Academy, a faith-based Montessori preschool and Acton elementary and middle school.
Our school’s mission is to “inspire every person who walks through our doors to find a calling and change the world.” There is no question that the world is changing, and with the rise of technology and AI it is changing ever faster. How can we raise our children to BE agents of change in the world, not just impacted participants?
Here’s a quick list of the things parents can do to help their kids prepare to take on the world:
1. Let them play.
Active free play is how children investigate their world, form connections in their brain, and learn to navigate relationships. Play is grounding, fulfilling, and essential for healthy human development. Unfortunately, studies show that children in today’s world do not play enough! Insufficient free play can result in reduced physical health, mental health, and intellectual capacity. Don’t forget to let your child (and teen) play!
2. Teach them to do things themselves.
Children are capable of a lot more than we give them credit for. A two-year-old child is capable of putting away her toys, an eight-year-old is capable of doing his own laundry, a thirteen-year-old is capable of making a doctor’s appointment. We do so many things for our children that they can actually do for themselves. One of the best ways to prepare them for self-sufficiency is to teach them how and then give them opportunities to practice.
3. Ask more than tell.
Questions are powerful, and encourage critical thinking and problem solving. If your young child spills something, rather than say, “Go clean that up,” you can ask, “What’s the best way to clean that up?” If your school-aged child comes to you with a social issue they are experiencing at school, rather than telling them what to do, ask, “What do you think you should do to solve that problem?” If they can’t think of anything, consider offering some options: “Do you think x or y would be better?” Asking rather than telling empowers your child to solve their own problems and gain confidence in their decision making.
4. Harness the power of habits.
The habits we develop shape our future. When we teach our children how to build habits, they learn to be the masters of their own destiny. For small children, this looks like teaching a habit, and then enforcing it every time until the child does it without thinking about it (e.g. Let’s say the habit is making the bed. (1) Teach how to do it: This is how to make a bed. (2) Give it a place in the routine: Always make the bed before breakfast. (3) Practice: Make sure that the bed is made before breakfast every morning until it becomes second nature to the child.). With older children, you can teach the process of building a habit and the important role habits play in determining our character and future. (I highly recommend James Clear’s book, Atomic Habits)
5. Celebrate creative problem-solving.
Creative problem-solving is the precursor to innovation, and the ability to innovate is essential for success in an automated world. Children are naturally creative problem solvers (a prime example is my toddler who will push a kitchen stool through multiple rooms to reach something on a high shelf!). The tricky part is helping our kids keep their amazing ability to think outside the box. One way to do that is to celebrate when your child solves a problem–even if it’s not how you would have solved it. If your son patches a hole in his jeans with neon duct tape, rather than change it out with something nicer, just smile and say, “Wow! That’s a really creative solution!” To actively encourage creative problem-solving, ask questions like, “What is another approach you could take that would get a different result?”
Learn more about how Beacon Academy’s innovative approach to education teaches children from pre-k through 7th grade to take charge of their learning, their future, and become world changers at beaconacademync.org.
*Sponsored by Beacon Academy
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