Do this before that 10 ways to raise your toddler into a genius
1) Develop imagination before developing logical thinking
Two year olds have a rough grasp of what is real and what is imaginary. It therefore becomes easier to make them think outside the box because they are not yet limited by logical restrictions. As they grow older and go to preschool we as parents can use this ability to develop and nurture their imagination through the school years and all the way to high school where flexible and creative thinking will be essential. Imaginative role play or pretend play are the classic ways to foster this way of thinking.
2) Encourage physical development before mental development
Giving importance to play before academics is actually a way to boost their academic performance. A number of studies have shown that physical exercise which can be as simple as walking to school helps children concentrate better in class room. In his book “Spark, The revolutionary new science of exercise and the brain” Author John D. Ratey says that unfortunately our culture treats mind and body as different entities but he argues that in order to keep our brains at peak performance, our bodies need to work hard. In an example he gave in the book, a school by the name of Naperville Central High School had students who were struggling with english literacy and were asked to attend extra classes. The school decided to experiment the student’s performance by engaging them in vigorous exercise before class. This experiment showed that the group that engaged in the exercise improved reading comprehension by 17 percent and the group that did not exercise improved only by 10.7 percent. Hence its only crucial that we as parents stress on the importance of play and physical development and not just on academics and mental development. The next time you planning an outing with the kids think park / playground before malls and also sports coaching before enrichment coaching classes.
5) Play with ordinary puzzles before watching tv or playing on smart phones
No matter how many studies show the ill effects of screen time on the developmental growth in young children, it has become increasingly challenging for parents to keep kids as young as 2 years old away from smart phones and tablets. In the book Failure to Connect, Jane M. Healy, Ph.D., an educational psychologist says that when children are watching tv are actually thinking of other peoples ideas and solutions to problems rather than thinking of their own. More and more exposure to screen time is leading kids to become passive. Regularly playing with ordinary puzzles will help children think independently on the possible solutions to a problem. A way to encourage this could be that they get there allocated screen time if they are able to first solve the puzzles. Parents can join them for the motivational boost and this could also help encourage a positive child led interaction with their parent.
6) Become their play mates before becoming their friends.
It goes without saying that a loving family time creates confidence in kids. Parent’s support and frequent interactions creates confidence. Avoiding comparisions with siblings or friends will create a sense of trust and reliability with parents. Encouraging them to take minor decisions such as choosing to drink from green cup or blue cup will install a feeling of independence. Alongside that kids relish it when a parent becomes a child themselves when playing with them. Parents playing pretend with kids or make believe games or playing dress up with well thought out props will keep kids engaged in this interaction as they costume themselves into pirates, doctors, princesses, policeman etc. As they grow older and we as parents would want them to look out for us when they need to talk. They will later have the confidence to confide in us as their friends if we have developed a relationship with them in their early childhood years first as their play mates.
It goes without saying that toddlers, preschoolers and kids of all ages need an ideal number of hours of sleep every night but getting them to sleep early will further improve their quality of sleep for the night. According to Marc Weissbluth a paediatrician and the author of best-selling book Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child says that “when a child sleeps is probably as important or maybe more important as how much they sleep,” According to research findings, when researchers were asked to put their kids to bed earlier than normal for five straight nights on an average they slept more each night. Another study showed that sleeping earlier boosted their short term memory, working memory and attention spans. Another study suggested that kids who were put to bed earlier at age 2 had lesser problems with attention spans and aggression issues when they turned 8 years old. So focusing on sleeping earlier in the night will have a better effect on their overall sleep quality.
