Reading Time: 3 minutes

For a year in Uganda, I taught a class at a local institution for early childhood education teachers. I’d haul in boxes of file folder games and bottle caps and flour for us to make playdough together. I’d bring along one of my kids to show them how the games worked, and we’d split up into “centers” for them to try out games involving clothespins and string and painting with water on cement. I wanted them to feel and smell and hear and taste how fun it could be to teach kids early math skills; to know how to read. In a country where it was still acceptable to cane children in the classroom, I wanted to show them that by getting kids excited about learning–rather than shamed–teachers cut their work in half. Why?

In teaching that class, I uncovered a core philosophy of mine. If kids can “catch the bug” for a subject when they’re young—having fun and being engaged—they’ll be self-driven to learn and experience that topic for the rest of their lives. 

(That’s the philosophy that informs the whole Spiritual Disciplines for Real Families series on this site.)

My nine-year-old showed me this comic strip yesterday, much to his delight. (My kids cannot get enough Calvin & Hobbes. I swear they’ve memorized every one. It is now part of my family subculture.)

life skills fun learning
(c) Bill Watterson

This touched on a phrase I’ve never been able to shake from my mind: What we learn in pleasure, we never forget.

When You Forget You’re Learning

Say a parent of yours loved cooking, pulled up a chair for you to help, let you place your hands in dough, spooned up tastes of sauce, asked you what you thought it needed. You likely didn’t think, Shoot. I’d better learn this, or I’m doomed to ramen and frozen dinners for the rest of my life. 

Maria Montessori pioneered methods of life-skills education that changed the way I parented. When I researched Montessori methods for my preschoolers, I learned you could make a small caddy of kid-sized cleaning supplies (I use essential oils, so was less freaked out about chemicals). They followed me around for a very limited, age-appropriate version of Bathroom Cleaning 101. Get this: They loved it. Spraying stuff down, conquering unseen enemies (“POOP germs are in there!”), making something look instantly better. After scrubbing the toilet, my oldest actually said, “That was easy! I could do this every day!”

Learning More than Chores

It inspired me to fill the other sink for my son when I was doing dishes, bubbles rising around us as we…had fun. (Who’d have thought?) I don’t want to cheat my kids out of the fulfillment that centuries of children have enjoyed: The respect, character, and honor of working alongside their parents, contributing to the needs of a family.

So I’m thrilled today to welcome Fun Kids Guide, who asked if they could share with you their incredible infographic to help you teach life skills for kids–and as a bonus, skills like problem-solving, critical thinking, communicating, collaborating, and creativity. Grab their full-text post here! This list covers skills like laundry, shopping, navigation, writing a letter, cooking, and getting organized. (Hmm. I have a few kids who might need help with that last one in particular.)

Got great ideas to teach life skills? Pull up a chair and join the discussion in the comments section. I’d love to hear from you.

fun kids skills learn play

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