Does an adventurous kid cause you trouble?

What is your most fantastic family trip?

Curiosity vs. Certainty

The world of a child is never short of amazing to the discovery of the new food, new games, new people, and the new environment.  Traditional schooling tries to tell the world is moving in the way of certainty.  In school, the children are taught a lesson and then given a test. They clearly know the subject contents in the syllabus, and there will certainly be a test.  After the kids pass the test, they will certainly move to the next upper grade. Who’s teaching the child what to do if a certain thing doesn’t happen? The world is moving in the way of giving you a test for you to get a lesson. The question is how to raise the children in a way that allows their minds are robust and resilient enough to survive in a world that is too loud, too cruel, too uncertain, and too fast to bear.  How to do this?

Traveling vs. Reading

Traveling is a great way to learn the meaning of adventure, inclusiveness, and a big heart.  Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go (T.S Elliot).  Vacation had become a routine for most families.  It’s not about posting great travel photos on Facebook. It’s about exploration, about seeking adventure with our curious minds.  As a way of training, you can allow your kid to responsible for the vacation to include arranging the schedule, destination, airline, accommodation, do the research, plan the itinerary, and estimate budget. Let them learn the failure when they are trying to solve interesting problems and build up confidence as well.
 
A man who is traveling a thousand miles learns more than the one reading thousands of books.  On the other hand, a man who is walking a thousand miles without learning is just a postman (proverb).  Seeing, learning, discovery, exploring from the adventure is a treasure.

Adventure vs. Security

The flip of certainty is curiosity and adventure. Children are curious creatures. Overprotective parents try to build the boundaries blocking the children’s imagination do them no good at all. Michelle was my friend.  She raised her first child and tended to think that anything could go wrong would go wrong.  She would do everything to keep her child safe, perhaps too safe:

• Kept the child away from dirt and mud;
• Played in the street was dangerous;
• Played outside was dangerous;
• Supervised play;
• Went out after school was dangerous;
• Not allowed the child to go off on his own unsupervised;
• Swoop in too fast when the child got into trouble.

It turned out the child to become:

• Unable to feed himself properly without others help;
• Crying and fussing to call mom when getting into trouble;
• Look fearful and hiding when met with strangers.

When she raised her second child, she managed to do something different. She allowed the infant to have more freedom to play and learn. The outcome is that the kid was more capable of solving problems with confidence.

• He could peel an egg at one year old;
• Willing to talk with strangers;
• Can settle problems independently when getting into trouble with other kids.

Does an adventurous kid cause you trouble? Yes, maybe. How will you make your choice?