200205_Beginnings
In his book “Play: How It Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul,” Stuart Brown writes, “Joy is our birthright, and is intrinsic to our essential design.” However, it is probably obvious to many people, now and before this devastating pandemic, that joy been put on a back burner in many classrooms around the country. Joy, as an important priority, has been taken over by the anxious drive to get young children ready for upcoming high-stakes standardized tests.
Thank goodness we have educators like Kristin Eno and Richard Lewis. They both prioritize joy, wonder, poetry, art and music when they work with children and they don’t forget about how important parents are in this equation.
On the afternoon of Wednesday, December 9, 2020 I had the delightful opportunity of taking part in a conversation with Richard and Kristin. The discussion became so exciting that we decided on making plans for a part two. But that is still in the works. For today, here is part one of Living by Wonder: The Imaginative Life of Childhood. After listening to our talk, you can view one of Kristin’s studio lessons for the preschoolers that she works with at Beginnings Nursery School at the bottom of this post.
Wonderful discussion about “wonder.” Nobody talks about the nature of children’s imaginations the way Richard and Kristin and Eno do. So much to think about! Thank you.
I agree with you Steve. They suggested doing a follow-up discussion that focuses on ways to question children to support their wonder and imagination. Keep your eye out for this part two. And thank you for your response!
Part two is just as fascinating as Part one…which wasn’t easy to do.
Thank you, Renee.
Steve, that’s what happens when two brilliant educators and thinkers, Richard Lewis and Kristin Eno, get together!