Article Link: http://stage.exchangepress.com/article/a-manner-of-speaking/5007925/
One of the things I enjoy most about my job is the opportunity to visit early childhood programs. Roger and I have had the pleasure of touring many centers across the country; but what I enjoy much more than a tour is submerging myself for a few hours in the life of a center. I like to be there with no direct responsibility (although I come up with all sorts of viable reasons for being there) - just the license to enjoy.Do you give yourself opportunities to do just that? To hunker down in the middle of a group of four year olds and enjoy what's happening? For my birthday I gave myself a morning in a nearby program - my pretext was taking photographs for the magazine. (You are welcome to borrow this pretext any time you want. It enables you to interact with the children about what you are doing, gives you an excuse for being there, allows you to distance yourself behind the camera when you want to be forgotten, and provides you with vivid reminders of what really was happening that day.)
Here are some of the things I took away with me ...