Child Perspective » baby-proofing

Lowering the Child’s Bedroom

Emily — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 13:39:36 +0000

When adjusting your child’s sleep habits, don’t forget to consider the bedroom. Spend some time sitting in your child’s room and looking at it through the child’s perspective. Apply these general questions to the bedroom:

Is the space simple, clean, and beautiful?
Is it peaceful and serene or busy and stimulating?
Does your child enjoy being in her room during the normal activities of the day?
Are items (books, toys, clothing) thoughtfully organized for the child?
Can your child complete age appropriate tasks independently? Bedroom tasks might include: dressing, putting away clothes, making bed, putting dirty clothes in a laundry hamper?
Can your child access age appropriate activities independently?

These questions will shed light on whether her bedroom really feels like her bedroom. The first step to your child feeling comfortable in the space is developing a sense of ownership and control. Your little one loves to have control. Give it to her in the appropriate times and you will battle less. Guaranteed!

Making the bedroom her bedroom:

Encourage your child’s comfort and independence in her room during the daytime.
Provide easy access to the essentials (bed, clothes, books, toys)
Invite her participation in creating a desirable space.
Play music and have a dance party in there.
Create happy memories in the bedroom (fun and relaxing).

Let’s look at the specifics:

Bed

Can your child get in and out of bed independently? Consider placing a small futon or mattress on the floor, even for a baby. It will be just the right height for your child to get in and out of independently when she is old enough to move around. This is true for all furniture, try to offer something child-size. Once you have made the bedroom safe, it is more interesting to move about it freely rather than be confined to a crib. (Note: Our babies slept in co-sleepers and then mattresses next to our bed until the early stages of potty-training were complete, then we moved the mattress into their room. It was a smooth and natural transition.)

Walls

Hang a mirror at eye level for your toddling child or just above the mattress for your infant’s pleasure. Children love to look at themselves and this is age-appropriate and healthy! They are able to learn so many things, including simply being “ready” to go (clean face, combed hair). If your toddler or older child can check her own face and hair, it removes you from a possible battle. Just encourage her to look carefully in the mirror to see if she is ready to go. Another step toward independence.

Do you have beautiful art hanging in your child’s room? Take advantage of the young child’s extreme sensitivity and expose her to beautiful art (focus on art with other children, animals, or nature and avoid popular media images). Hang these at eye-level, to help strengthen her sense of belonging and inclusion.

What else can you do to create a comfortable sleeping environment for your child?

Your key to success begins with creating regular bedtimes and an enjoyable relaxing routine. Find some ideas below from the series Quiet Night, Happy Night:

Guide to a child-friendly kitchen

Emily — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 04:46:26 +0000

My children are always clamoring to see what’s happening in the kitchen. Why? Because kitchens are inviting. And, my family happens to spend a lot of time in ours. Food is much more than just a practical need in our house. Both my husband and I enjoy the creative aspects of cooking and choose to feed our children healthy and tasty food.

I heard the call early on to make our kitchen more child-friendly. Missing the appropriate children’s activities, I was often holding a toddler while also trying to chop, cook, and maneuver hot pans. This didn’t work. Plus, my kids have always been eager to help, which is a trait that I like to encourage.

The many ways to prepare a kitchen to be more child-friendly varies greatly according to size, needs, age of children; so please just consider this list a launching point.

Tips to make your kitchen more child-friendly:

make a work-space for your child, with either a child-sized table or sturdy stool to safely use the counter space (see picture at bottom)
store silverware, plates, bowls, glasses, and napkins (at least a few sets) on a low shelf or drawer
store snacks and a small pitcher with water on a low shelf in the refrigerator
store a few other activities (art, play dough, etc) in the kitchen so the child can be nearby even when not interested in cooking
provide cutting board and child-friendly knife to be used under supervision

Understanding your child’s zing will help you to create the most inviting, purposeful kitchen space. Your child’s participation in the kitchen is an important step toward shaping his interest in contributing to the household in a meaningful and productive way. As you are considering how to improve your kitchen space, remember, the best way to encourage your child is to help him to feel successful. Big mishaps or stern correction might discourage the child from trying these activities in the future.

Below is a list of some activities, depending on interest and ability, that will entice your child into the kitchen:

age appropriate space for your child (bottom drawer full of non-breakables for the 14-month-old or small table for the 2.5-year-old)
setting the table (outline the place setting on placemats so child can learn appropriate placement)
helping to clear the table after a meal
washing some fruits and vegetables
small, simple chopping jobs
washing a few dishes
loading or unloading portions of the dishwasher
measuring and mixing ingredients

How has your child asked to participate in the kitchen? What have your responses been to these requests?

Daughter comfortably washing dishes, while standing on the Learning Tower.

See tips for the other rooms in your home here:

Kid-friendly bedroom

Emily — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 17:21:29 +0000

To follow up from the previous post about baby/child-proofing your house, this article will focus specifically on preparing the bedroom for your child’s success, independence, and sense of belonging.

First, spend some time sitting in your child’s room and looking at it through the child’s perspective. Apply these general questions to the bedroom:

Is the space simple, clean, and beautiful?
Are items (books, toys, clothing) thoughtfully organized for the child?
Can your child complete age appropriate tasks independently? Bedroom tasks might include: dressing, putting away clothes, making bed, putting dirty clothes in a laundry hamper?
Can your child access age appropriate activities independently?

Let’s look at the specifics:

Bed

Can your child get in and out of bed independently? Consider placing a small futon or mattress on the floor, even for a baby. It will be just the right height for your child to get in and out of independently when she is old enough to move around. This is true for all furniture, try to offer something child-size. Once you have made the bedroom safe, it is more interesting to move about it freely rather than be confined to a crib. Note: Our babies slept in co-sleepers and then mattresses next to our bed until the early stages of potty-training were complete, then we moved the mattress into their room. It was a smooth and natural transition.

Clothing

Are her clothes stored in a way so that she can access them? Young children do not hang clothes well on hangers. Drawers or cubbies work best. Do the drawers glide open and shut easily so that she can be independent with this? Is the dresser stable and secure on the wall? Place the clothes that she will use most often or can choose independently toward the bottom (in easy reach). If your child is able to see her clothes, she can begin to pick out her own outfits. Usually this starts by giving the young child a choice between two pairs of shorts, two pairs of underwear, two different shirts, etc. Encourage this! It’s a small, simple step to allow her to participate in a meaningful way. Don’t worry about color coordination and style. Children often have their own clear sense about this.

Consider creating a dressing corner, as described by Lisa Nolan at Confessions of a Montessori Mom.

Walls

Toys

I have many thoughts about toys, but will keep it limited for the purposes of this broader article.

Can your child reach all of his toys easily and safely? Are the toys beautiful, purposeful, and engaging or interactive? Avoid toys that perform while your child watches. You want to encourage him to be actively engaged, not a passive observer waiting to be entertained.

Look for more thoughts on toys in these related posts:

What other things have you done to prepare your child’s bedroom?

To “proof” or “ready” the house for baby?

Emily — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 03:14:45 +0000

Getting the house ready for a baby is a natural preoccupation for parents. Yet, this idea of “baby-proofing” is inherently misguided. Merriam Webster states the definition of “proof” (transitive verb) as: able to resist or repel. Is that really what we are trying to d0 with our house? Resist or repel it from the baby? I propose that we use the term baby-preparing or making it baby-friendly. After all, Merriam Webster defines “prepare” (transitive verb) as: to make ready beforehand for some purpose, use, or activity.

Parents do need to take the necessary precautions to make the home safer, such as: covering electrical outlets, securing wires, locking some cabinets, etc., but we also need to create an environment where the growing child can have a strong sense of belonging. Gates, locks, restrictive devices, and the endless “no!” don’t do that.

Parents can be so concerned about safety that they keep their young children confined in restrictive devices, which cause other problems when overused (underdeveloped muscular coordination, strength, and the processing and integration of the senses). By preparing the environment in a meticulous way to be safe and appropriate, your child can explore the environment and their emerging independence in a safe and productive way.

In full disclosure, I am not only a Montessori teacher, but also a Montessori enthusiast. Dr. Maria Montessori was a genius and her theories on children absolutely brilliant! One of the cornerstones to Montessori is the “prepared environment”. Regarding this she said:

The first aim of the prepared environment is, as far as it is possible, to render the growing child independent of the adult.The environment must be rich in motives which lend interest to activity and invite the child to conduct his own experiences.

It’s important to organize your home so that the child can be independent and successful, always keeping health and safety in mind. It is also important for the space to be beautiful and orderly from your child’s perspective. Is there child-size furniture in the rooms? Is there artwork displayed at the toddling or walking child’s eye level? Are books within reach?

Get down to your child’s height and walk (or crawl) through your house. How do things look? Is it an inviting environment? Considering your child’s current zing, are there ample opportunities for exploration and practice. Is the house cluttered with toys that go mostly unused?

I offer specific suggestions for how to make your house (room by room) more child friendly, beginning with the bedroom and later how to choose and organize toys for purposeful engagement. If you are interested in reading more about preparing your home environment and appropriate toy choices for your little ones, then go ahead and subscribe by RSS feed or e-mail to receive those updates as soon as they are published.