Imagine we were vivid
Your purples like silk scarves
Drifting through my aqua’s and blues
Of all the grey’s you wore,
Purple was always your colour

A broken window
A blind fool for concrete desire
My silly little perpetuity must restart
Your magic is gone for me
Vacant photos and memories
Troubled each night by your mendacity, I question myself.

Yo July

Preschoolers need creativity

When you give the opportunity for awesome to happen, it will. So much of our society focuses on toys that make a racket, light up and do god knows what else. When is there time for imagination when every toy has a set purpose? Our society needs to realize that we are sculpting minds. Imagination and creativity are too undervalued right now. Children need more open ended and un-defined materials. Materials that have no wrong use or wrong outcome. Materials with endless possibilities. Materials that lead to life long skills.

Paint- You can never paint a picture wrong. Colour theory is more important than knowing the ninja turtles names

Clay- Sensory to the max. Allows children to think and explore on a 3d level and to represent their own unique realities.

Loose parts- Children create the definition and use. I've been eating many pom pom ice cream cones lately.

Blocks- balance, stability, geometry....need I really say more?

We need to cut out the crap and stick with the old favs.

That'll learn ya!

So this is my first bit of course work for my E.C.E program. Learning about playground safety. When I was a kid the playground equipment was way faster, way taller, made of way more metal and wood and was considerably more bad-ass. I kind of wonder if kids are missing out on valuable lessons in learning from mistakes when the adults in their lives are constantly kid proofing everything and making it seemingly impossible to scrape a knee and learn from it. Me having to learn about the appropriate surfaces underneath playground equipment to remove all legal implications because your kid is a dumb ass is well...sad. I have to wonder if this generation will grow up with a pass-the-blame attitude and view lawsuits as the quick and easy go to way of getting what they want. Are we really protecting our kids or are we setting them up for a life of false entitlement and legal bills?

In my town alone I know of an 11 year old who jumped off of the top of a slide and broke his arm. His parents sued. It was all over the papers. The family was compensated and the slide has been removed. An 11 year old knows that jumping off the top of the slide is not safe. He didn't slip, he wasn't pushed...he jumped. Honestly, some of these kids might as well be raised by baboons.

No Dice

image from: http://bunnykissd.deviantart.com/art/Coffee-Rabbit-on-Pizza-Paddle-106727424

"It just has always seemed like he didn't want you unless he needed you. Every time the ****** pity party's in town he wants you to make it all better."-- James

You're exactly right.

And it seems to be a bit of a trend.