Eye-2-Eye

by Carrie Wells
I decided Lydia & I would make Valentine's Day robots today. I had in mind what I wanted Lydia's robot to look like, but I also wanted to give Lydia the freedom to design her own robot. So I cut out a whole bunch of pieces to build "my" robot, gave them to her with a blank sheet of paper, and allowed her to glue them together as she wished. Here's Lydia's Valentine's Day robot:

Wow, that was not at all what I had in mind! Lydia used the pink piece like a hat and the rectangle as a face. She turned the smile upside-down and made the arms, legs, hands, and feet look all crazy. Here's what I had in mind when I cut the pieces out:

So, the simple lesson learned is that it's great to let your children be creative. We shouldn't set boundaries regarding art and creativity ~ Let them use their imaginations!

But then I thought some more and realized that there is a much greater lesson here. I told Lydia we were making robots. In Lydia's mind, what she created was a robot. I was inclined to tell her where to place each piece to make a "real robot" (according to my definition), but I stopped myself. I was reminded that everything in life is about perspective. From Lydia's perspective, she made a robot. From my perspective, I made a robot. Our robots look very different, but we are calling these works of art the same thing: robots.

I'm sure as she grows and matures, we'll encounter this same situation many times - where my idea of a clean bedroom is different from her idea. My idea of a good birthday gift is different from her idea. My idea of staying out late is different from her idea. My idea of a good college major is different from her idea. But she's her own person with her own ideas...and even when I disagree, I hope I can remember our robots and smile...and find some way to place our ideas alongside one another.

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Whole Wheat Play Dough Valentine Cookies

by Carrie Wells, Ed.D.

Whole Wheat Play Dough

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

2 T oil

1/2 cup salt

1 c water

gel food coloring (in your favorite colors)

I did not set out to make a "healthier" play dough. I just happened to be running low on regular flour, so I decided to try using whole wheat flour. We began by measuring and pouring all the ingredients in a pot on the stove set to a low temperature.

I let Lydia sit on the counter to help mix the play dough. If the mixture seems a bit sticky after combining everything well, just add a bit more flour until you get the right consistency.

Allow the play dough to cool to room temperature. I let Lydia choose the colors, and we made four different shades of play dough. I learned afterwards that it may have been easier to combine the food coloring with the water and then mixed it all together, but when you add the food coloring later on, you can work on hand-strengthening activities.

When we use play dough from a can, I do not allow Lydia to mix all the colors together. The great thing about homemade play dough is that kids can combine all the different colors, and then you can just dispose of it after. To celebrate Valentine's Day, Lydia used different heart-shaped cookie cutters to make Valentine's Day "cookies."