Parent and Friend
A lot of people say our kids need us to be their parent and not their friend. “There’ll be plenty of time to be friends when they are grown up.” But why waste all those years when we could have been friends? My teenage daughter Sophie says if we want to be good friends with our older children, we have to start when they are young. “Parents can’t just turn around and say, ‘Now you’re an adult, I’m willing to be your friend.’”
Being a friend doesn’t mean we spoil our kids so that they’ll like us. That’s not what friendship is all about. So how can we be a good friend to our children? I’d love to hear your thoughts!
This is a photo of my young adult daughter Imogen. Not so long ago, we went for a drive to the lake together. Imogen was in the driver’s seat as usual. I like being her passenger. I can relax and enjoy the journey.
Imogen and I are always chatting about things that are important to us. We listen and help each other. We share ideas. We support and encourage each other. And we enjoy each other’s company. We are best friends!
A Fantasy Adventure!
You might know that Imogen has just published her first novel. It’s a fantasy adventure called The Crystal Tree.
The Crystal Tree combines many of my favourite things but in particular my love of fantasy adventures, and my passion for music! I’m a musician myself, and the chance to make music a big part of a story was just too good to pass up. Also, I kept writing ‘magician’ instead of ‘musician’, and that’s a huge part of the reason why my magic system is based on song. Also, it just seemed cool to me.
If you haven’t already done so, why not check it out? It’s available on Amazon as a paperback or Kindle ebook.
Art Documentaries
My girls and I enjoyed watching Private Life of a Masterpiece, a series of art documentaries. Episode 10 is about James Whistler and his famous painting of his mother. While we were watching, we learnt a few things about Whistler’s life:
When Whistler heard his mother was travelling from America to come and stay with him in England, he rushed around his house and removed all evidence of the wild life he was living. Why did he do this? My girls and I discussed the possibility of his mother having controlled him as a child. Did she make lots of rules? Did Whistler rebel when he got away from her? Was he afraid to reveal his true self to his mother even when he was an adult? Rules and control. Unschooling conversations can begin in unexpected ways!
We enjoyed all the episodes in this series. You might enjoy them too. A warning: They contain varying degrees of adult themes. Most art documentaries do!
Classical Music for Kids
Do you like the music of Ralph Vaughan Williams? His Lark Ascending is one of my favourite pieces of music. My daughter Imogen performed one of his songs, The Watermill, at a concert, and sister Sophie filmed it!
If you or your children would like to know more about this British composer, there’s some interesting info and radio shows on the Ralph Vaughn Williams page of the Classics for Kids website. Lots of other composers to get to know and enjoy too!
An Explanation of Classical Music
While I’m talking about music, have you watched this Ted Talk? Imogen says it’s one of the best explanations of classical music she’s ever heard.
A Podcast
Imogen and I chatted about classical music in episode 30 of my podcast, Creativity: Why Classical Music Isn’t Enough.
Maths Puzzle Website
Do you and your children enjoy maths puzzles? You could take a look at the Which One Doesn’t Belong website. The aim of each puzzle is to find possible reasons why each of the four things in each set might not belong.
What’s Your Maths Story?
Do children need workbooks to learn basic maths? No. All they need is a family. Perhaps you’d like to read my post Why Kids With Families Don’t Need Workbooks to Learn Basic Maths. And then you could share some of your own family’s maths story!
I hope you find something useful in this week’s bits and pieces post!
So how was your week? Did you discover anything interesting? Did you have lots of joyful moments with your kids? I’d love to hear what you’ve been doing!
