‘It is vital that when educating our children’s brain that we do not neglect to educate their hearts’ – Dalai Lama
From my days in the classroom, I can relate to this beautiful quote.
We can teach a child to read and write but that is only educating the academic side. It is imperative to educate a child’s whole self – academic, physical, spiritual and emotional. There are many different ways to do this and it has been incorporated in the Australian Curriculum. There is time for physical activity set aside each week – however not enough to suffice the 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity each day. There is time for spiritual development – even if this is not in the form of religious classes, it is in Ethics classes or buddhism classes that are now popular at my children’s school. And to educate the emotional side of our children – their heart – this is actually developed long before school. Emotions and emotional intelligence are first learnt on a mothers knee. Empathy and love are formed through bonds with mothers and fathers from birth. Thankfully, these teachings do continue at school through circle time and other PD activities that happen. The school community is testament to how much they are focused on the heart and developing the emotional side of our children. It is also very much based on the teacher your child has.
Thank you Dalai Lama for spreading the wise words of educating the whole child.