Forgot Quizzing Her Everyday ?

Ever thought of  quizzing  your child? I was very much interested once, though she sometimes answered  'Manmohan Singh' instead of 'tiger'.

Yes, I mean nothing but asking questions to your lovely and talkative child. But I know the child asks you hundreds of questions everyday. You always get irritated on her complicated questions and call them meaningless or nonsense !! Why the crow is black? How the cow got four legs? See,they are not meaningless,but what else  would we do if we don't know the answer !!

But we, parents are to be inspired on the stories of the American Indian boy, who won the first prize in the worldwide quiz competition,conducted by the National Geographics!

When the child starts to hear and learn, train her to answer your simple questions such as; The colour of a crow ?Name your country ? President of America ?...??

Though the child wont catch the meaning of your questions initially, the child gets the images slowly when it sees a crow,watches the map of your country or the picture of  Mr.Obama. Our aim is but giving initial inspiration !! Allow the child to be on your laps for a limited time, when you browse on the net.

There have been some 'quiz competitions' between I and my child. Sometimes I am the quiz master and sometimes she is. Thanking her pre-school magazine for introducing an interesting story on quiz competition. It was there we started, I remember. Let it be retold shortly for your child.

"The fox,little Pachu could not win any game in the forest festival. The last item was the quiz competition. He decided to win it anyway ! The fat bear Dhimman was the quiz master. He told the bear that he would supply him enough honey,if he helps. Though first opposed,the bear admitted it on honey matter. The bear taught him only the answers in its order,as the lazy fox suggested. Dhimman got more than enough honey. But when the quiz started, the quiz master forgot the order of the questions on the influence of honey. He asked; which is the largest land animal? Pachu answered 'frog'. The bird laying largest egg? 'elephant'. One that lives in water and land? ostrich. Poor Pachu..the whole forest was laughing at him".

Start with a similar story and see your child becoming excited ! Your simple questions might inspire him to the world of encyclopedias and the mysteries of  the universe !! You can win yourself  when he becomes a great one as a scientist or a professor or a civil service officer in future.  

Festivals And The Children Of The Country

We,all of us,Christians,Hindus,Muslims and every children of the village were waiting for the festival days of the temple. We were familiar with every god and goddess of the temple! Thanking Uncle Pai and Amar Chithra Kadha, for colouring our childhood days with their stories !!

None of  the adults are eagerly waiting for a festival. Festivals are always for children than for adults !! Innocent children can enjoy its virtual reality than any grown up person can. Every festival is a festival of colours,of  light,of sound and most are related to a story or legend of the glorious past. No wonder, why they are the festivals of the children and for the children.

 Christmas is especially a festival for children as it is the 'Happy Birthday' of their beloved Jesus Christ. The birth and childhood days of the saviour of the world is a melodious song for them. It takes them to the centuries of Roman empire and its past. The children sit for hours in front of the cribs. They are in the fantasies of the world created by the shepherds and three 'kings' ! Lights glow everywhere and their Xmas trees shine gloriously. Christmas cakes are the birthday cakes of their little Jesus and they are waiting for the moments with uncle Santa Claus.

I wonder,how nice is the role of children in keeping the communal harmony of a diversified country like India! Children compel their parents to hang stars even in non-christian homes! In 'Onam' festival seasons children of every community compete themselves to make the most beautiful 'pookkalams'. Everyone celebrates 'Holy' in north, which is the festival of colours and 'Dassara' in south,which is a festival of light. I recall what Pope John Paul II remarked on his visit to India that 'the future of  India is with her children'.

Let our children know the legends or 'ithihasas' related to every festivals or celebrations. They should know that the childhood days of  Lord Krishna was not different from that of  Jesus Christ. It  makes his visions broad, brilliant and suitable for the society.   It will make the child to love the country as a whole and the past as a part. Yes, a child and the one who knows the human history cannot discriminate one man from the other !

        

A Magic Cube And 'my' Logic Sense !!

It was one of the greatest faults I made in selecting toys for her !! The fault is but simple. This time I bought nothing but a magic cube. It looked like a cage filled with attractive colours. I convinced myself that she will enjoy the cube! In my boyhood days,nobody had bought a cube for me. I don't know why they didn't buy. Perhaps  this 'toy' was not familiar then . But now I suspect that, old people had more discriminating power than today's people including myself  have!

 As a student in high school classes, I had learnt by-heart many  meaningless formulas including 'a cube','b cube' and even 'a plus b whole cube'. Thus the memories of cube were associated with the shouting faces of my mathematics teachers. I was taught how to find the volume of water kept in a cubical vessel. But no teachers asked me to solve a cube,even when I was in my degree mathematics classes! But now every kindergarten children keep a cube with them!!

I have read everywhere that a cube is a good gift to children,remarking that it awakens the logic sense of  children. So, as a father it was my duty to introduce brilliant toys to my child. But I was sure that she is not going to solve it in the near future!!

When she got it with her,she was very happy,turned it here and there,enjoyed it or its pattern of colours. She learned to call it a cube,counted the number of stickers as I suggested,named each colour and recognised each face to be a 'square' and most the facts her mathematics teacher mrs.Shyla  and g.k teacher mrs.Sheeba taught her. I suggested her, you should solve this cube later,by arranging each colour on each face. She responded ,'how'?

It was just for time passing I started to 'play' with the cube yesterday. I convinced soon that it was not just time passing! I could do nothing with that 'simple looking' cube. I was felt ashamed of my logic sense. I was also tensed on the psychologist's quoting- 'not only the environment but also heredity (!) determines a child's ability'.   It took at least half an hour for me making only one side single coloured. It was not possible,even to make two sides single coloured simultaneously. I knew that I am not the one to solve it completely !!

I tried to convince myself  that it is not possible to solve it. I searched on the  encyclopedias and collected many valuable facts . This Rubik's cube was introduced in 1974 by toy makers. It is the largest sold 'toy' since then!!!!
I could also see lengthy algorithms explaining its method of solving,none of which are easy for beginners to follow. Then will anybody explain me why it is the largest sold toy?

But children are always interested in it or in its colour pattern or in its movements or in something else and it may be the logic behind it!! However I recommend this magic cube, because it can inspire a future architect, a future mechanic,a future problem solver or a future' problem maker' !!

Only Child Is But Not a Lonely Child

Why everybody asks Mrs.Neena to have one more child ? Are they worried on her single child ?
My wife's name is not Neena. But I have to consider  the  facts and go through the same problematic situations till I have one more child ! Read only if you are the father/mother of a single child.

Nuclear families have been the trademark or necessity of the modern world! As the working class becomes more 'workaholic' or dedicated,it is difficult to be concentrated in building up a large family. Many families determine themselves, the number of children to be one only. We cannot blame them on their decision,as there are many facts beyond it. The cases may be different from one to another. It may be economic,cultural,social or medical problems.

The working class of Indians in abroad or in Indian cities are on their own problems. The inter-cast married ones are afraid of the future of their children. In countries like China,women have no right to be pregnant more than once! In some wealthy western countries,people have not enough life-time to enjoy life!! But often,the parents of a single child are felt guilty on their decision,when the society blames them on the loneliness of  their children. Such children are sometimes pointed out to be introverts or problem makers.But I strongly disagree with these.

An only child is not a lonely child. A family with only one child is as beautiful as a single flower. Such single children are also  lucky in the sense that they get the maximum care from their parents. It is easy to mould such a single child into a great one as their parents wish. What and only what the child is denied in his early days is that his house is not a 'children's park' at all.

Now a days loneliness is not a problem for children, as there are many social sites,internet  programmes or video games to be involved in,but there should be a strict monitoring. The presence of grandparents or cousins or playmates make them happier. It is usual that every children felt neglected at some time.They complain that 'dad is always with the computer' or 'mother is not playing with me'.

 Though enough care is necessary,it should not be more than enough! It will spoil the child. Women,such as non-working mothers of single children would be conscious of it. The children should not have provided with more toys or dresses or nothing else. But give them enough initial inspiration.Your child will be as powerful as Indira Gandhi, the former prime minister of  India and the ever seen iron lady of  the country.     

Have You Selected Valuable Toys For Your Children?

Now a days there is no complication in buying a toy for our beloved children.People have enough money to spend comparing with those in former decades.Toys are available in different colours,shapes and sizes,varying in cost from high cost Indian made or Japanese made toys to low cost but attractive Chinese toys.The world of toys grows in high speed and even faster than the growth of emerging Asian markets.Thus every layman is able to buy toys from anywhere.

However as a brilliant father or mother you have to think about the intrinsic value of the toy you have selected.The toy selected by you may be colourful,attractive and suitable for the age of the child.But I ask you about the strategies you have kept in mind,when you select a toy so as to make him/her a brilliant and outstanding one in future!!Let me share my own ideas with you.Toys have both aesthetic and intellectual values.As the aesthetic value helps him to enjoy the beauty of the world around him,the intellectual value helps him to discover the unrevealed facts in the universe.More over,toys have social values too,which helps the child to adjust with his surroundings.

I believe that the first five years make a child best performer in life.Thus as a brilliant parent,you should be well prepared in selecting toys too.A toy you are buying for him should have an intrinsic value whether the toy is cheap or costly.Thus you can introduce building blocks or cubes or cross-words in proper years.It is necessary that you should find some time to spend with him in his games with these bright toys.

Let me conclude with my own experience with a pack of toys.One of my cousin's daughter was presented a set of small and beautiful Chinese toys of wild animals.She kept it for two or three days with her and left it somewhere.Keeping this in mind,before buying the same set of toys for my own child,I had taught her many facts about wild life such as Giraffe is the tallest and Elephant is the largest.Then she was eagerly waiting for getting it and by two or three days,she was able to say that Zebras and Giraffes are found in Africa.Just to introduce Africa to the three year old child,I used a world map downloaded from the net.There were many animals in the set which were not known even to me!We together searched the internet for many days and identified most of them.This also helped her to use the mouse of the computer herself.Even after one year she is interested in playing with and knowing them.Thus the set,which costs only Rs.225 became a most valuable one for both of us.Any of us can guide our children with a toy,if we are able to find an intrinsic value in it,keeping in mind that our guidance is a necessity in forming a future citizen.