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Many children follow the relatively straight path from Point A to Success. For them, this path goes through the educational process relatively smoothly and these students are able to excel. Our children are arbitrarily placed on this same road that is generally believed to be the best route for all kids.

Unfortunately for our kids, this path is filled with pot holes. If they try to continue on this path, there will be some who arrive at success, although they might be a little battered and bruised. For most, they will hit a pot hole and be thrown off the path and get lost. Who knows if they will ever find Success?

But, if our children, with the help of parents and teachers, are aware of the dangers and are allowed to take detours, they will excel. They may arrive at Success by way of Points F, J and L but they will arrive. They just need to learn to swerve when they come to bumps along the way. And we need to let them.

What are these bumps? It may be sitting still, or keeping hands to self, or being silent during a test, or being placed into a high traffic environment, or …the list goes on. And from the outside, it seems like detouring might be taking our kids in the wrong direction. The thing is, our kids excel on these side paths. Let’s face it! Our kids are just wired differently. They don’t learn well in a traditional, sit-quietly-at-your-desk-and-listen environment. They do much better with off-road, following a rabbit trail, exploring their environment, type learning.

Let’s think about this for a few minutes. What is growing up all about? Well, for one thing, it is to give us time as parents to figure things out as we go. But primarily, it is to prepare our kids for adulthood. We all want our kids to grow up and be healthy, happy, successful adults. Now what does successful mean? It doesn’t necessarily mean wealth, but it does mean that as adults, our kids can excel, make a good living, and maintain jobs they enjoy. And what are employers looking for? They want people who are self-starters, who think outside the box, who have innovative ideas, etc. This is who our kids are!

As parents, we need to swerve as well, as we forfeit traditional ideas of how our kids “ought” to be and learn to embrace who they are. They are “fearfully and wonderfully made.” Our attitudes and responses to our child’s uniqueness and creativity will contribute mightily to achieving peace and success in our homes.

Prescription for Learning is dedicated to helping families identify strategies for success – in both children and parents. We will be talking a lot about what children need and how parents can meet those needs.

Brenda Risner, MS

Executive Director

Prescription for Learning, LLC                                             

www.prescriptionforlearning.com