I think I'm thinking in terms of activities that are too extended; 40 minutes rather than 10. But I'm not sure whether short, varied activities just encourage tiny attention spans. On the other hand, longer activities might be beyond the attention span of what is a little child.
Of course, this is too simplistic. Cause when we play blocks, we're engaged with them for the duration, but it can be building and destroying, banging together (music), putting in and taking out of containers, putting up on a higher surface, giving and receiving, maybe driving them around on a little truck and so on. So it's really a group of activities with a theme, kind of following on from where her attention is. This is the benefit of it just being me and her, rather than 1 adult with 6 children. So the whole notion of activities and changing them is just an artifact of group "education".
Friends and family often ask "what did you do today". Really, what is the answer? "Nothing". Cause that's close enough; played with Ellie, maybe had a bath, walked in the park, did some shopping, cooking, laundry, cleaning, tidying. Maybe got an hour to do things that interest me, maybe read a bit. Listened to music, the radio. Nothing that can really be considered an achievement, a self active in the world. No "projects". En soi rather than pour soi, if I remember my existentialism properly. Chiefly engaged in reproductive, rather than productive activity (feminist extension of Marx. Dorothy Smith, I think).
Unfortunately, all the projects that I can really get excited about involve me sitting for hours in front of the computer, with various books piled around and half a dozen windows open; documents, browsers, terminals, explorer. Reading, writing, thinking, developing. Not conducive to 20 minutes here and there.
For months now, we've been double spooning it in the morning-- I fill her spoon, and hand it to her, she mostly puts it in her mouth. Then I do another one, and she hands me back the spoon. And I feed her as well-- so she doesn't get too frustrated and dig her hands into the bowl. But try as I might, I haven't really been able to get her to dig the spoon into the bowl. She'll pick a full spoon off the side of the bowl. Today, for the first time, she took the spoon and repeatedly stuck it in the bowl, sometimes just throwing it on the high chair surface for the other hand to grab, but other times putting it in her mouth. I helped her a bit, turning the spoon round the right way. Gratifying.
I've also been bored with my activities choice, so I remembered some poster paints, and after breakie, with her still in the high chair, we did some art. 3 pieces of finger painting. She seemed excited by it, though she was getting annoyed at me trying to stop her from eating the paint.
Of course, this is too simplistic. Cause when we play blocks, we're engaged with them for the duration, but it can be building and destroying, banging together (music), putting in and taking out of containers, putting up on a higher surface, giving and receiving, maybe driving them around on a little truck and so on. So it's really a group of activities with a theme, kind of following on from where her attention is. This is the benefit of it just being me and her, rather than 1 adult with 6 children. So the whole notion of activities and changing them is just an artifact of group "education".
Friends and family often ask "what did you do today". Really, what is the answer? "Nothing". Cause that's close enough; played with Ellie, maybe had a bath, walked in the park, did some shopping, cooking, laundry, cleaning, tidying. Maybe got an hour to do things that interest me, maybe read a bit. Listened to music, the radio. Nothing that can really be considered an achievement, a self active in the world. No "projects". En soi rather than pour soi, if I remember my existentialism properly. Chiefly engaged in reproductive, rather than productive activity (feminist extension of Marx. Dorothy Smith, I think).
Unfortunately, all the projects that I can really get excited about involve me sitting for hours in front of the computer, with various books piled around and half a dozen windows open; documents, browsers, terminals, explorer. Reading, writing, thinking, developing. Not conducive to 20 minutes here and there.
For months now, we've been double spooning it in the morning-- I fill her spoon, and hand it to her, she mostly puts it in her mouth. Then I do another one, and she hands me back the spoon. And I feed her as well-- so she doesn't get too frustrated and dig her hands into the bowl. But try as I might, I haven't really been able to get her to dig the spoon into the bowl. She'll pick a full spoon off the side of the bowl. Today, for the first time, she took the spoon and repeatedly stuck it in the bowl, sometimes just throwing it on the high chair surface for the other hand to grab, but other times putting it in her mouth. I helped her a bit, turning the spoon round the right way. Gratifying.
I've also been bored with my activities choice, so I remembered some poster paints, and after breakie, with her still in the high chair, we did some art. 3 pieces of finger painting. She seemed excited by it, though she was getting annoyed at me trying to stop her from eating the paint.
posted by gregor at 11:12 pm
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