Hoping our kids learn important lessons through lecture is a fruitless strategy.All your kid really gets better at is tuning you out.
I’ve learned (especially with ND kids), introspection is a more powerful teacher.
But ND kids tend to avoid introspection. Their self-consciousness and inner critic make it something they want to avoid.
We can get around that, however, by engaging curiosity.
Learning to ask questions in a way that compels them to think about it.
The answer ultimately comes from within them so there’s little resistance to it.
It also helps them practice stopping and thinking, self-awareness, problem solving, etc.
All those executive functions you’re eager to help them exercise are so accessible to you.
When you utilize teachable moments to encourage reflection with questions like,
“When did you decide that was true,” or “How is it useful to believe that?”
You open your child up to their own inner world. The place they’ll find the greatest source of strength.
They’ll need it while navigating this world that still has a lot of learning to do.
We’ll get there, together.
