B a r b a r a s h e r I l L u s t r a t I o n s b y r a L p h

T
Y P E S O F
A
T T E N T I O N
E
N C O U R A G E D
Open and focused
M
A T E R I A L S
None
D
I R E C T I O N S
While sitting all cuddled up with your child, play the game of Guess How
Old by letting her guess the ages of people and animals in your life, people
in the neighborhood, people on television, or even the characters in books.
How old are the Cat in the Hat, Big Bird, and Barney, anyway? How old are
the nearby trees? Make a guess. Explain why you think someone or some-
thing is young or old.
It might interest your little guesser that some of our winged friends
live for only one day, whereas trees can live for hundreds of years. If you
happen to have a tree stump nearby, you can show her how to count the
rings.
W
H A T
’
S
B
E I N G
L
E A R N E D
Children are learning that there is a progression of development and that
we all, even trees, have stages we go through as we age.
They also learn to pay attention to the details that give us a sense of
how old people or animals or trees are. This increases children’s awareness
of others and gives them other clues to notice.
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Attention Games
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How Do You Look?
Reading body language and facial expression is not a course one can take
at school, yet it’s a big part of our daily life curriculum.
I play this game with groups of children, and they can’t wait to have a
turn to make a face and movement that express an emotion. Try it with
your child or with the family at the dinner table.