Why do children need "labor"?

On Labor Day, we need to think seriously about labor education. The significance of labor education has been discussed a lot, and the school has also carried out a wealth of activities and courses. However, some parents still have misunderstandings about labor education. Today we rethink labor education from three questions --

There is no doubt that labor is conducive to the physical and mental health of students and to the all-round development of students. However, labour education is not just a curriculum in schools, but also requires support from families. However, many parents may still have doubts about labor education.

Is labor education all about farming?

Take, for example, a primary school on the edge of the third ring road in Chengdu. This primary school covers a small area, but for more than 10 years, the school has been committed to deepening labor education, excavating school labor education resources, and building gardens, orchards, vegetable gardens and pastoral gardens on campus, as well as labor classrooms such as carpentry workshops, pottery rooms, and metal workshops. In school, children will learn to practice spring ploughing and sowing, summer harvesting, picking fruits, and even digging lotus roots in ponds, which make children very happy.

But such labor courses did not make parents happy at first. It turned out that nearly 60% of this school was a migrant child, and the parents said: "I am farming in my hometown, I have a hard time coming to the city to work, just so that my children do not want to farm, I did not expect to send it to your school in the city, you still teach him to farm?" I say I can cultivate land better than you. ”

Parents, you are wrong. Schools teach children to farm and you teach them to farm, but they are completely different. First of all, we will teach children scientific planting methods, from seed selection to ploughing to sowing to management to harvesting; secondly, we will teach children structured labor skills, such as ridges, we will sort out the labor steps of "pulling the line and fixing the distance, sprinkling ash along the line, opening shallow ditches first, digging deep ditches, and leveling the van surface", so that children can practice step by step, experience the sweaty labor process, feel the hardships of labor, understand that the fruits of labor are not easy to come by, so as to guide children to understand the hardships of parents and thank their parents for their efforts. Respect your parents.

Therefore, dear parents, what we are doing is labor education, focusing on education, not simply letting children work and suffer.

Does labor not affect learning?

The famous educator Sukhomlinsky believes that "the wisdom of the child is in his fingers", and labor and learning are equally important for the healthy development of the child's physical and mental health.

First, labor can promote the combination of children's hands and brains. In the specific process of labor, the thinking signal is transmitted from the hand to the brain again and again, and from the brain to the hand, so that the result is that "the brain teaches the hand, and the hand also develops and teaches the brain."

Second, labor can improve children's thinking ability. In continuous labor, children can think and use their hands, from observation to imitation, and can actively find ways to deal with problems when they encounter problems, and improve their ability to solve problems.

The picture shows the children of Quanxing Primary School in Chengdu at work

Third, labor can promote the development of the brain. Studies have shown that labor, similar to low-intensity aerobic exercise, has a positive effect on both the brain and the heart. In the process of labor, not only physical efforts will make children feel satisfied, but the understanding of creativity and intellectual factors can also make children have a strong sense of satisfaction.

Therefore, letting children work will not only not affect learning, but will be completely conducive to children's learning.

With such a wealth of modern tools, is labor still useful?

In fact, the common daily life work such as clothing and quilting, cleaning and tidying is indispensable in our lives. Through these labors, children's self-care ability can be greatly improved, and their awareness of self-reliance and self-improvement can be improved. The ancients said, "Why sweep the world without sweeping a house", this is the truth.

Working with their children is conducive to forming a good parent-child relationship. In the process of working together, parents and children feel the process of working together, especially the joy of overcoming difficulties together, and the sense of accomplishment of completing a certain task together, which is a kind of "common growth". For example, parents and children work together to complete the cleaning to bring a clean environment, and make meals together to bring delicious meals, which are happy and beautiful family memories, which is conducive to creating a good atmosphere for the family.

Children with good working ability are more likely to have good interpersonal relationships, and good interpersonal relationships are also an important basis for promoting children's physical and mental health. After developing good labor habits, children naturally have a better understanding of the labor of others and respect the results of others. The child's psychology is healthier and better, which is also very beneficial for the child to live in harmony with the surrounding classmates.

The family is the best training ground for children to participate in labor practice, in the process of promoting labor education, how should parents do it specifically? Some tips for parents -

Break down labor tasks into small plates. Parents should give clear instructions to children's labor tasks, and match the child's age characteristics and labor ability. For example, you can't give your child the general task of "you go and clean up your room." The child is faced with a large room and has no way to start. We can tell our children first, we will make the bed today. After that, one more task for the child is to clean up the desk. Similarly, have instructions for your child to clean up his desk or make sure he has learned the basic methods and steps of cleaning up his desk. Then arrange to tidy up the bookcase, clean the room floor, etc.

Patiently accompany children to develop good labor habits. When children have just learned a certain labor skill at school, they are very excited to come home and are willing to practice. But from the perspective of parents, it may be different. Taking primary school students washing socks as an example, parents will find that children who have just learned to wash socks may have used a lot of water, their clothes are also wet, and they have not washed their socks, at this time, anxious parents will say: "Go away and walk away, I will wash it." ”

In fact, in doing so, parents deprive their children of their right to work and deprive them of the opportunity to grow. At this time, parents should put a handle on the child, help him hand soap, and even help him pull the cuffs to help the child complete the first washing of socks. After a few days, when the child is excited and unwilling to wash the socks again, parents should encourage the child more, sincerely praise the child's labor results, praise him for making more progress than the previous time, and let the child be interested and confident to continue practicing. In this way, under the supervision and companionship of parents, children will gradually develop good labor habits.

It is necessary to establish a good family style of advocating labor. Parents should set an example. Parents are the child's first teacher, and a good family style is the best education for children. From the fine traditions of the Chinese nation, we deeply feel that Confucius's diligence and frugality of "extravagance is not grandchildren, and frugality is solid", the diligence of "rising at dawn and sweeping the court away" in the "Zhu Zi Family Training", and the truth that parents "teach by example is more important than words". We must take a clear-cut stand against all the erroneous concepts of unearned gain, coveting pleasure, and advocating sudden wealth. Therefore, parents should lead by example, do their own work, take the initiative to undertake housework, actively participate in volunteer service, etc., so that children know that everyone has to work, everyone has corresponding family responsibilities and social responsibilities, and labor can create a better life.

Participate in children's labor education in various forms. First, you can participate in labor skills display activities organized by schools and communities, etc., and work with children to show labor skills and understand the spirit of labor. The second is to actively participate in the school's labor curriculum, bring their own professional skills into the school, actively communicate with the school, form a synergy, and promote the better and healthy growth of children. Third, you can take your children to observe and understand their own work situation, let children understand the characteristics of their own professional labor, and understand the social value of labor. (Author: Xiao Hui, Labor Education Teaching and Research Fellow, Chengdu Academy of Education Sciences)

Source: People's Education