How do I see the world?
Pictures map experiences for us. They tweak the mind to remember important events and beauty. They capture a moment in time that will never be repeated. With a photo we can view things we may have missed when we first took the picture.
But why is this important for your student?
1) Children see things differently than their parents do. Pictures show what is important to them.
2) It teaches your child to focus on what is happening around them.
3) Helps your child to feel a connection with events in their lives.
For an example of how this works, take a look at your last vacation. What are your fondest memories of it? Would your children remember different things? I remember a fishing trip that I took with my parents. The most memorable part of it is the little lizard I played with for hours. I can still shut my eyes and see him crawling over limbs and rocks and snacking on bugs. He didn’t like the potato chip I tried to feed him. Want to make a bet that my parents would remember something different?
Another way that taking pictures will help your children is that they will begin to observe their environment more closely. They will take more notice of what is happening around them because they will want to take pictures. This helps them to experience their days in a deeper way. Training your children to be more observant is empowering in several ways. First off, the will be able to move away from things that do not seem right to them such as people arguing or someone playing with a knife in a mall. They may notice the little girl being picked up by a stranger and the child’s reaction. This could stop a predator from succeeding. They will notice beautiful things around them that we miss because we are too busy getting through the day. When they call our attention to them we are reminded of what is important.
As your child learns how to focus and balance their photos they will open a whole new area of exploration for themselves. This may lead to a future career or just enrich their lives! Home school children have the advantage of being able to discover what really inspires them.
Thanks for the advice! We’re nctreurly organizing our curriculum and school supplies. It feels like it’s time to get back to our lessons (having taken a whole week off after fair). Some days I feel like such a lazy mom because we don’t even look at our curriculum. It makes me feel better to read advice like yours. I know that the kids learn the most when they’re engaged in doing something rather than sitting in a chair and reading/listening to a lesson. Some days it’s just difficult to break that public school model of what school is supposed to look like and go with the flow that allows us to experience life and truly learn.
You are doing exactly what your children need to be great adults!