WISDOM BEGINS WITH WONDER

Tags: child education Davao school family. career woman Lifestyle Blog Lifestyle Blogger Lifestyle Blogger in Manila Philippines Meg Hernandez Meghann Hernandez Metro Mom Mommy blogger Mommy blogger in Manila Philippines

Women have long established their place in the community, going beyond the confines of home and family. To this date, they are strong forces which continue to bring innovation and growth in the society, more so among the children.

I honestly have great admiration for women in the academe who help carve out a better future for our country by educating our young ones. It takes a lot of passion, patience and dedication to put together an effective learning and development program that the youth can carry with them from childhood onward.

 

 

Thirty year-old working mom Careen Aleta Lim- Hao Bian is one of those who proudly enjoys a career in education. She graduated Architecture in UP in Mindanao and underwent a program on Early Childhood Education in UP Diliman. Now holding the position of Vice President for Operations for Stockbridge International School (formerly known as Tumble Tots Philippines-Davao), she handles all admin and operations issues in the school.

 

 

“When I joined the school, it was already 7 years in operation,” explains Careen. “It was God’s perfect timing because I needed to immerse myself in the family business and at the same time learn the ropes of being a first time mom. I am learning so much from my work while sharing the demands of our clientele being one myself. I used to tutor, teaching kids on a supplementary level really helped me to understand what the primary lacks so I am able to also see things from a different light. I have always loved children. They are so innocent and genuine. They are also remarkably so clever and unpredictable. It’s always a happy fulfilling time to be around them. Educating children is similar to parenting, you take on the hard role of responsibility towards imparting values and ensuring a positive learning experience every time.”

 

Learning starts at home

Careen expounds on the role of parents in child development.

“Studies have shown that the period from birth to six years old are the most crucial years in character formation and child development. That is why I believe early childhood education is very important. As parents, we have a brief but golden opportunity to ensure that we are building a solid foundation for our child. Its making the most of this little time, because they will not be babies forever. So it is important that we equip them with right values and attitude early on, while we can, while it’s easier to teach them. By age 6, character is already set.”

 

“Toddlers are explorers. The world is a wonderland for them — everything is new and exciting so our role is to fuel their curiosity constantly because every new experience can be made a learning experience. It doesn’t have to be a new toy or a new destination every time, just a little creativity and more passion. The role of parents is integral to the development of the child. How they perceive learning and study/education affects their educational attitude towards their children. A parent is the child’s first teacher and will forever be their mentor throughout life. Developmental milestones are naturally occurring, our role as parents is to provide a scaffold. According to some child development studies, just as scaffolding is put up to support the structure of the building as it is being built and gradually taken down as the building is able to stand on its own, a parent needs to provide the necessary support for a child to allow them to safely and productively explore and learn from their environment. As the child matures and develops mastery the scaffolding is removed or changed to allow the child to become more independent.”

 

 

“Early childhood education is not only a trend, it has become an apparent need. With k12, the age acceptance has already been adjusted. By age 6 or even younger, a child may be accepted in Grade 1 – provided he passed kindergarten. Our goal in the prekindergarten school is to inculcate the love for learning. Learning to love learning is more difficult and important than learning per se. In the character formative years of child development, it is important that the attitude is set for learning being the school as a happy place to learn. A school should stress-free environment where the child can grow and develop wholistically. The language of children is play, very common is the concern of parents when their child cannot talk but more often than not it is just the environment is not tuned to this milestone when the child is already ready to talk. What motivates the child to talk, when he is only left with yaya at home. He has no one but himself to play with. In school, he is delighted because he has constant friends to play with. Adjacent to a child’s developmental milestone is a teachable moment to impact behavior. You know they’re coming, oh no to the terrible twos! But it all depends on how you handle it and of course No two children are alike, each child is always unique. First, remember that there should be no labelling. If you’re already convinced your tot is terrible then chances are he will likely be molded into one. Second, don’t compare. Isn’t it frustrating to feel like you are not doing anything right with the second one? And yet, there are significant achievements you’re been missing because we focus too much on the negative. Third and last, invest in time with your kids. Nothing else and nothing can ever replace and is more important than a bonding time with your child. Listen, you would be amazed at how relentless they could be with their stories and finally say “for the love” because we are never perfect as parents but I believe it is our love for our children that makes everything right. The test of right way of raising, right peers, right way of discipline, right school, right environment is the heart of the mother.”