by Lindsay Cahill Lord
I wanted to send an email of gratitude to all the teachers at Sweet Clover Nursery (SCN). I've mentioned this specific story to a couple of teachers, but it occurs to me that this really is a sentiment that is across all of your wonderful teachers and assistants, even if I've only personally stopped to see it a couple of times.
I'm a first-time parent (and I'm also a little older than average for one!), which as you know can be a scary thing to be. Normal stages in my daughter's development have absolutely terrified me. And honestly, as a result, I was a little late giving her some freedom to grow and explore. I am constantly grateful for the experience, expertise, and care of the teachers at Sweet Clover. When my daughter was in Rosebud, Miss Jean recommended books to me that I've really leaned on to overcome parenting worrying; Miss Jung gave me welcomed advice on the introduction of table foods and on how to handle my daughter’s first cold!
More recently at Sweet Pea, Miss Nolwenn has really invited open and regular communication, and she makes you feel like your family and your child are always her primary focus (when I know that in reality, we are one of many children in the classroom.) When my daughter had an injury at school a few weeks ago, after the second status update phone call to me from Miss Nolwenn, I found myself reflecting on how I am fully comfortable with and trust the judgment and experience of the SCN teachers with my daughter's safety and care. Which is a big leap for me, as I would previously obsess and panic over everything.
I wanted to share a story that illustrates this, and how it positively impacted how we have since changed some of our home activities as a result:
A few weeks ago, I pulled into the parking lot to pick up my daughter in the after-care program (at the time). I spotted her right away up on the play structure, and I admit that I completely panicked. She's too little to climb up there! She can't climb those stairs! She can't possibly get down by herself! My first instinct was to come flying out of the car and run and scoop her up. And I had to make myself pause and watch for a bit, and I am very glad that I did. What I observed (after my initial heart attack) was that an adult was standing right there. That she was carefully watching the three children on the play structure. That I could see her talking them through their climbing, and giving them guidance when they got stuck. And I watched my daughter crawl up and down the structure three or four times, each time she carefully chose her footing and descended down first. Since she's usually a daredevil, I can only assume that what I was observing was the result of lots of guidance received on finding her footing and taking her time. I saw that she was confident and practiced in her movements, and you could tell she was having lots of fun.
At home, I rarely brought my daughter to the playground because I believed she was too little and it was too dangerous. She loves to climb, but I would only let her be carried up to the slide and go down it while being held by me with both hands. The Saturday following this particular pickup day, I brought her to the toddler playground in Northfield Falls, where she climbed and ran all morning. By the time we left, she could take herself up and down the stairs and ramp and go down the slide on her belly without any intervention from me. We now go to the toddler playground every weekend, and I swear she gains new mobility and balance each time. I would never have been brave enough to take her if I hadn't had the opportunity to watch the SCN teachers and carers interact with her outside while on the play structure. I am so grateful for that. I learned a lot in that one observation about trusting her to govern her own movements, but also about being present for safety and guidance without impeding her ability to learn.
The experience that the teachers and carers have in educating children meant they already knew all of this, which is what I observed that day at pick up. But I am so grateful that I could benefit from it as a parent. When we enrolled her at SCNS, I knew that you all would teach my daughter lots of things, but I never imagined that you would teach me as a parent as much as you have. I am so very grateful for that and for all of you!
