Saturday, 8 June 2013

Curiosity

I took Joseph to our local gallery for the latest exhibition 'Curiosity' recently, and we enjoyed a wonderful couple of hours looking around and having lunch together. He was full of questions and ideas about the exhibits, and I felt amazed by him as he moved around the gallery sharing his observations. There was a cabinet of beautiful, colourful slices of rock and on the suggestion that we might see pictures in the shapes contained within them, Joseph moved around the cabinet reeling off all things he could see; a brain, a slice of meat, the sea and sky, a meteorite crashing into the earth, some mountains.

His mind and its creativity flow so effortlessly in a way that my own simply doesn't anymore after years of being trained to think and work in a certain way. I couldn't help wondering why we feel it so important to sit all these incredible 5 year-old minds down in a classroom to teach them phonics and have them memorise spellings, when they are capable of such natural brilliance and creativity. I felt so excited for his learning after our visit, learning powered by a little boys great ideas and nurtured in an environment where there is no 'right' way.


The more time I spend in Joseph's creative flow, the easier my own becomes.

 

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2 comments:

  1. sustainablemum8 June 2013 at 14:48

    You are so right. I remember a comment made to me just before my eldest reached school age about his curiosity, sadly it was made by a parent of three school age children. I couldn't help but feel sad that her own children had lost all theirs by being in school

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    1. Lou8 June 2013 at 15:29

      Thanks for reading. I remember so clearly being terrified to speak up in class at school in case I was wrong, and even in the gallery last week I noticed a couple of occasions where I felt self-conscious about something I was discussing with Joseph, in case someone over heard and thought I was wrong! I know I let go of curiosity because I was so concerned with giving the right answer and not looking stupid, but thankfully I am rediscovering my curiosity with children, and I hope theirs will never be quashed!

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