Middle School Teaching Units

When we are picking out Christmas presents for children it can be difficult to decide exactly what kind of toys to buy. I am a really big fan of the educational type toys and games but we have to remember that imaginative play is just as important.

I have to admit that the educational toys make me feel better about buying the gifts. I like to know that while my child is playing he is learning. After all that is what children are doing when they are playing. They are learning and perfecting skills. It is very important that our children learn and improve their reading and math skills, even when they are not at school.

These are not really the only skills that they will need in life though. We can’t forget about promoting our child’s imagination because that is really just as important as the rest of it. While it may seem like they are just playing and that there is not really much going on there are some important things that they are learning.

While they are playing with those Transformer toys and making up conversations and events they are really learning how to play out scenario’s in their head. This is something that we all have to do in life. (Playing out scenarios, not playing with Transformers) It is imagination that allows us to play out different scenarios in our head and try to predict what will happen with the choices that we make.

Without our imagination then we would not be able to predict outcomes. It takes imagination to realize that if say something cruel to a co-worker that they will react to it with hostility. Or if you give them a compliment that it will likely improve your working relationship with them. (An office appropriate compliment of course) It is your imagination that allows you to see into the future and predict how you believe they will react to what you say or do.

This is only just one use for your imagination and playing out scenarios in your head. You also need it for your problem solving skills. Most of the time when you hear people talk about problem solving skills you also hear about logical at the same time. While you do need some logical thinking that is definitely not all you need. When you have a problem you have to be able to dream up in your head how you are going to fix it, what the benefits will be, and any adverse effects the solution may cause.

It does not matter if you are a mechanic, a doctor, an engineer, or an office manager. Every action you take to solve a problem is going to require using your imagination to see how your solution will correct the problem and what adverse side effects it may cause.

So this year when you are picking out gifts for the kids this year try to remember this. It is our job to teach them and make sure that they are learning. So we want to make sure that they are learning all of the skills that they need. This means they need some educational toys and us reading to them and school. It also means that they need some stuff that is just plain fun to let their imagination grow with them.