Why Focusing On Play Can Encourage Life-Long Learners

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This post is brought to you by our partners at Tinkergarten

We all want our children to be life-long learners, right?  We want them to have a spirit of curiosity, to always be excited to figure out how the world they live in works.

But sometimes having to be in charge of that can be overwhelming – where do you start?  How do you actually do it?  What’s the best option – do you always have to be the one facilitating?

Recently, I took my youngest to a Tinkergarten Class – and not only was it a breath of fresh air for me, but also for my son!

What exactly is Tinkergarten?

Tinkergarten is a series of classes focused on play-based learning and cooperative play held at a local outdoor community park.  Tinkergarten provides an opportunity to connect with and explore the great outdoors (in all four seasons!)

  • Each class is a guided experience, led by a Tinkergarten expert
  • Tinkergarten builds essential skills around empathy, collaboration, creativity, persistence, and problem solving – encouraging life-long learners.

life-long learners

I have to say that being outside for me was a wonderful change.  I work from home and that means I’m indoors most of my day.  Getting to be outside for an extended period of time and simply enjoy the outdoors was great for ME!  I also loved being able to simply explore with my son.

Life-long learners in progress!

The class I attended was led by an amazing instructor who took the time to know each child.  She led the class through different activities and stories.  We learned about Woodpeckers that day – and my son couldn’t get enough of the activity she provided.

Tinkergarten encourages life-long learners – so however that looked for each child was completely accepted.  Getting our hands dirty was okay!  Sitting in the grass was okay!  Watching the ants walk in the line and asking questions about why they were doing that was okay!

I love how relaxed the class was.  There was plenty of time for my son to truly engage in the different activities provided.  We weren’t rushed into the next thing.  The other thing I loved was that we were experiencing nature right where we were.  So often our play-based learning is inside – there’s something so powerful about being outdoors.

The other fantastic part of Tinkergarten is that I could connect with the other moms in the group.

Motherhood can be SO isolating – but this class provided a chance for me to talk with other moms who were in the same stage of life as I was.

If you’re looking to help encourage life-long learners and want the added bonus of connecting with other moms – Tinkergarten offers a FREE trial class.

Tinkergarten’s Spring session starts SOON! Join the movement of thousands of families learning outside together and enjoy some well-spent time with your kids. Meet other local families with children of the same age.