Leave a comment discussing your ideals, thoughts, questions, or concerns, and what you agree and disagree with. Looking forward to learning with you!
Meet Christine- Our Music-Loving Momma. Mother to three, Christine and her two sons were recently named the winners of the Canada wide Munsch at Home contest, put on by the ABC Literacy Foundation and Honda Canada. Her winning story, Myles The Rockstar, highlights her innate ability to make reading fun for her children by involving them in the learning process.
What has your greatest success/honour/reward been thus far and how has it impacted your family?
Recently we had the honor of being named the Munsch at Home Contest winners. A challenge put on by the ABC Literacy Foundation and Honda Canada to promote Family Literacy so we (Myles, Aidan and myself) wrote a short story called Myles the Rockstar. We submitted it online and it turned out to be a hit with the organizers and Mr. Robert Munsch himself (I'm still not over it!)
Our prize was an amazing three days with Robert Munsch himself! We had Mr. Munsch over for dinner on a Thursday, and then got to spend the day with him Friday- first at CBC's Metro Morning, then at Aidan's school with all the primary kiddies and then at a private reading at the kids grandparents place with some of our closest friends and family. And then on the third day we got to go to Chapters and see Mr. Munsch do his thing again and the nice people from Scholastic invited me to read Myles the Rockstar to Mr. Munsch's audience (good times!).
The whole experience for me was
life
changing. Seeing my kids sitting
on our couch having bedtime stories being read to them by Robert
Munsch-"surreal"
to say the least. It was one of
those experiences that puts life into perspective and encourages you to
keep growing
with them, to keep doing fun things and just flow in what your family
does
naturally.
Describe your philosophy on child raising
STAY INVOLVED-I'm a "working Mom" who is currently enjoying Mat Leave. When I am at work a lot of the times my desire is to be with my little guys and now new little lady. When I am not at the office more time then not I am with them. I have come to the conclusion for at least the first 6 years of their life I will have the opportunity to be one of their best friends and establish a foundation of trust, loyalty and relationship with them, so we stay connected.
TEACH THEM TO TREAT OTHERS THE WAY THEY WANT TO BE TREATED-I've heard people refer to this principal as karma in our house it's called the truth. Aidan, Myles and soon Salome are coming to understand that it sucks to be treated poorly and they are learning to appreciate it and notice when people go out of their way to make their lives more enjoyable. We encourage them to be that person in the lives of others that has the potential to bring joy and alleviate pain-- not so they will be treated well in return because experience has taught me it does not always work out that way-but just because it is the right thing to do
ENCOURAGE THEM TO BE THEM. People Respecters? Yes!----People Pleasers? No! I am not trying to raise a gang of rebellious misfit children, I'm just trying to let them know that if others dreams of Medical School or Teachers Colleges do not work out for them or they simply decide against these options-it's ok! They have our permission to be musicians or athletes and hold uncommon jobs as long as they work hard at it and they know in their hearts that this is what is right for them and the generation that is going to come after them (yikes!).
And finally we do our best to let our KIDS BE KIDS.
How did
you develop this philosophy?
It's just the way we live- things that my husband and I try to incorporate into our everyday life, principles that we trust will make for Strong Kids and Healthy Adults that are rooted in our own personal experiences and our common belief system.
What specific
things do you do (as a mother or as a family) to encourage your children to
develop a love of learning?
We read, write songs (mostly rap), stories, surf the web together, draw, do flash cards, cook, exercise--we grow together...we just try to incorporate good habits and let them see us indulging in a good book or blog and they naturally copy. It's not fun to force kids to read but it is quite rewarding to see someone try to plop them in front of a TV for a moments silence and they chat with each other the whole time or pester the heck out of a person until they have a pack of crayons and some scrap paper totally voiding the children's programming appeal. I am realizing more these years are the years in life were we are getting a feel for their natural abilities and interests and I guess the next 18 years of life we will be figuring out how to sharpen their skills and make them the masters of the crafts they find fit.
This
amazing momma shares more of her writing at www.growinguptoronto.com.
I appreciate the nurturing philosophy. I think culture, art, athletics, schooling have its place and children definitely need to be exposed to all areas of life.
I think encouraging our kids to be themselves requires a lot of wisdom. Intrinsic motivation is difficult to teach so I feel a parent needs to push potential in their child, even if the child thinks its not what they want. I completely gave up on teacher's college after 3 years of rejection letters but with wise and encouraging parents, they kept pushing me to keep applying. I finally got accepted. The maturity to decide against options in life doesn't come until you are much older and I feel parents need to step up and steer their children.
Thirdly, as much as I appreciate crayons, paper, puzzles and active play I would never trade snuggling with my little boy while watching a few episodes of Elmo, Yo Gabba Gabba or some other visually mesmerizing nothingness for anything in the world.
How exciting to spend time with Robert Munsch!!! I love his books!
What a great idea to write a story together.
That will be an experience that you and your children will never forget!
Well done Christine!
What a fantastic experience! Your kids will have a different perspective every time they see or read a Munsch book! that's amazing. i admire your parenting philosophies. It's a challenging job, and I'm always looking to other moms for ideas and inspirations. thanks for sharing yours!
Christine - you lead a great parenting example. Love your thoughts above!
I heard you on CBC!! What an amazing experience that would have been - very cool!! And I enjoyed reading your perspective on parenting. I'm a new mom, learning as I go, and this series is a great way to get a different take on the whole thing. At the end of the day, every mom does what is best for them and their kids, and it's interesting to see the similarities and differences.