Hello reader,
I hope you are staying safe and hopeful during these uncertain COVID-19 pandemic times and if not please reach out for help😁😁.
I am passionate about children and as the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau posited, "children are inherently good and education is meant to reveal the goodness in every child." Learning is a continuous process hence good education is essential to the young ones. One author, one of my favorite Ellen White articulates in her writings that Jesus was ever a lover of children and the Holy Bible asserts that Jesus bade the little children to come to him because of such is the kingdom of heaven. As we embark on this interesting and adventurous journey about children, I hope you will join me dear reader as we seek to unravel holistic development in early childhood.
Today we are going to focus on LOVE, but again what has love got to do with children? Are they not loved already?
To avoid the suspense let us delve into the subject matter.
THE 5 LOVE LANGUAGES OF CHILDREN.
It is crucial to love your children and profound to actually speak their love languages! Communication is vital for any relationship to thrive and knowing how to communicate appropriately to your loved ones is a great blessing in any relationship. Love is the greatest of all virtues wherefore, it is a language that is essential for every human being to speak fluently.
The love languages are :
Physical touch.
Such children love to be cuddled, hugged and kissed. They are the type of children who love running after adults or parents for hugs, being carried on the lap and for kisses! Most of the time such children will exhibit characteristics of being touchy and clingy. They need someone they can lean on and vice versa thereby through this they feel loved a lot.
Words of affirmation.
Children whose love language is words of affirmation like to be showered with so much praise, admiration and appreciation ; for example, "good job Eden for helping with tidying up the toys, Hamilton you look lovely today and Marion I love you so much." These are but examples to mention a few. By speaking such affectionate words the children feel loved, cared for and supported in life.
Gifts.
These type of children appreciate presents so much, gifts literally warm their hearts and they should not be termed as materialistic because that is how they feel loved. For instance celebrating a birthday party for such a child and inviting friends who will there after give presents is a heavenly moment for such a child. Surprising the child with random gifts such as toys and clothes is simply telling them I love you so much!!
Quality time.
These children love spending time with those they love, and treasure such happy times. They love playing together with their parents / caregivers, going for outdoor activities such as picnics, parents attending their sports day at school to cheer them on as they play and later grab lunch with them to talk about the highlights of the day. They are storytellers and enjoy conversations a lot. Spending time with them is their highest form of expression of love.
Acts of service.
Sometimes these kind of children can be misinterpreted as lagging behind in their developmental stages but they simply just want stuff done for them. For instance, they want to be helped in common stuff they can do like dressing up, feeding themselves, running simple errands and tasks for them like getting their school bag and carrying it for them and picking them up from the school bus everyday even when the bus just stops outside their gate at home. They are helpful at home, school and anywhere.They are always willing to lend a hand in accomplishing tasks. They rarely disappoint when you want them do stuff for you. To them that is how they simply want to be loved.
The above mentioned and explained are the five languages of love.
It is my greatest desire that you will endeavour to colour your child's world by speaking the right love language to your son, daughter, sibling, niece, nephew or any child you live with or get in contact to. In return as they grow up they will pass it on to those they meet and grow up to become amazing and great adults.
Cherish the thoughts! See you soon!(Winks every last Sunday of the month 😜 ). Let me know your child, sibling, niece, nephew or any child you live with their love language.
Happy Madaraka day in advance!!!