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National Children’s Month: Kid-friendly activities to help your child thrive

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Barbie Salvador-Muhlach

<p>MANILA -- November marks National Children’s Month in the Philippines, during which all sectors in the society are mandated by law to celebrate, empower and recognize the young as the most valuable assets of the nation.</p><p>It’s a tall task, when you think about it: We, as adults, are responsible for raising well-rounded individuals. It may help though to follow a number of Montessori-inspired principles that would simplify the process of helping the young ones transition into self-led, self-reliant beings.</p><p>For starters, here are a few activities you can try so you can expose your kids into an environment that is conducive for learning.</p><div><strong>1. Give them chores</strong></div><p>For some parents, giving unwavering service to their kids means they are doing their job. I know of a few who even bathe their children who are already pushing their teen years. While I understand that this may be a form of bonding for others, we must be reminded that our goal is to usher the little ones into independence.</p><p>One way to do that is actually assigning them chores. For toddlers, you can teach them to clean up spilled milk for example. Elementary kids can be tasked to help set the dinner table, while older kids can start cooking rice. It’s not just about getting yourself handy little helpers around the house, but about preparing your kids for practical life.</p><div><strong>2. Take a sensorial trip to the park, the museum or a Christmas light display</strong></div><p>According to the Montessori way of teaching, children are able to make sense of their world through their senses. This is why it is paramount to engage all senses in various experiences as much as we can. Art Island in Cubao, Quezon City and Pasay City’s Dessert Museum are just two examples of visually arresting places you can visit where they enjoyably learn about shapes, colors and sizes.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/11/16/kid-friendly1.jpg"/><figcaption>The Dessert Museum at S Maison. <em>Photo provided by author</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>You can also take advantage of the holiday season and bring them to various light and sound shows like the Gallery of Lights in Ayala Triangle, and Tunnel of Lights in Pasig City’s Frontera Verde.</p><p>Looking for cheaper options? Look no further than your garden or a nearby park. Take them away from their phones and gadgets and bring them closer to nature. You can even bring along a magnifying glass to help them see the foliage better, or a jug of water so they can take care of the plants. Or you can opt to just give them some quiet time to sit still and appreciate the environment so they can learn to live in harmony with the earth.</p><div><strong>3. Encourage pretend play at Kidzania</strong></div><p>Montessori is a method of education based on hands-on learning and you can apply that philosophy by tapping into your child’s imagination.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/11/16/kid-friendly2.jpg"/><figcaption>Children listen to a firefighters bell as they get to try out being a firefighter for a day at the Kidzania at the Bonifacio Global City. <em>Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>Pretend play at Kidzania is a perfect example to do that. With realistic and child-sized props and costumes, your kids can enjoy a number of role-playing activities across various real-life industries. Some of the real-world jobs they can pretend to take on include careers in aviation, media, fire-fighting and more.</p><p>This experiential form of learning enables them to make sense of the world around them, and build the physical, mental and social skills they need.</p><div><strong>4. Bring them to a safe space for purposeful physical movement</strong></div><p>Another way of learning is through physical movement wherein your kids can better understand how to control their bodies. The key element though is to make every movement purposeful and connected with a mental activity.</p><p>Inexpensive activities that can be applied at home include dancing to music and performing action songs. Parents of older kids (10 years old and up) who are looking for more physical challenge can also enroll them into sports classes.</p><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/B3CN-j5pidi/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12" style="background:#FFF;border:0;border-radius:3px;box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15);margin:1px;max-width:540px;min-width:326px;padding:0;width:calc(100% - 2px)"><div style="padding:16px"><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:row;align-items:center"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;flex-grow:0;height:40px;margin-right:14px;width:40px"> </div><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:column;flex-grow:1;justify-content:center"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;margin-bottom:6px;width:100px"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;width:60px"> 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style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;height:12.5px;width:12.5px;transform:translateX(0px) translateY(7px)"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;height:12.5px;transform:rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px);width:12.5px;flex-grow:0;margin-right:14px;margin-left:2px"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;height:12.5px;width:12.5px;transform:translateX(9px) translateY(-18px)"> </div></div><div style="margin-left:8px"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;flex-grow:0;height:20px;width:20px"> </div><div style="width:0;height:0;border-top:2px solid transparent;border-left:6px solid #f4f4f4;border-bottom:2px solid transparent;transform:translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)"> </div></div><div style="margin-left:auto"><div style="width:0px;border-top:8px solid #F4F4F4;border-right:8px solid transparent;transform:translateY(16px)"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;flex-grow:0;height:12px;width:16px;transform:translateY(-4px)"> </div><div style="width:0;height:0;border-top:8px solid #F4F4F4;border-left:8px solid transparent;transform:translateY(-4px) translateX(8px)"> </div></div></div><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:column;flex-grow:1;justify-content:center;margin-bottom:24px"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;margin-bottom:6px;width:224px"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;width:144px"> </div></div><p style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:17px;margin-bottom:0;margin-top:8px;overflow:hidden;padding:8px 0 7px;text-align:center;text-overflow:ellipsis;white-space:nowrap"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B3CN-j5pidi/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;line-height:17px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">A post shared by The Bouldering Hive (@bhiveph)</a> on <time dateTime="2019-09-30T12:03:32+00:00" style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:17px">Sep 30, 2019 at 5:03am PDT</time></p></div></blockquote><div><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js" type="text/javascript"></script></div><p>Looking for something out of the ordinary? Bring them to the Bouldering Hive in Makati City which introduces them to climbing.</p><div><strong>5. Give them a strong sense of culture</strong></div><p>To help the kids grasp that the world is larger than their homes and classrooms, parents out to give them cultural lessons. Start by teaching geography through maps and globes. And you can also bring them to cultural landmarks like Intramuros or Fort Bonifacio.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/life/11/16/kid-friendly3.jpg"/><figcaption>The Rizal Monument at Rizal Park in Manila. <em>Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>Another great option is Luneta Park in Manila, at the monument of Philippine national hero, Jose Rizal. Perhaps it is just fitting that for us parents who are trying to raising thriving children, bring them to the same man who once said that, “the youth is the hope of our nation.”</p>

<p>Here are a few activities you can try so you can expose your kids into an environment that is conducive for learning.</p>

Here are a few activities you can try so you can expose your kids into an environment that is conducive for learning.