Some kids are talkative, some are shy, some laugh a lot....mine climbs. You know, I used to freak out. He shouldn't climb this, that's not a toy. Now, I just control the environment. I evaluate: if he falls, what will he potentially hit? Can he really hurt himself? If he continues to climb this, will it break or damage the object? If I allow him to climb this object, will he try climbing similar objects in other homes? Maybe it's not how you'd do it, but it's how I'm doing it. Because climbing is inherent to my son's thought process. He climbs without thinking about it. I've watched him walk up the dresser with his feet while his body is on our bed (they are close together), while he's watching Sesame Street in our room. He climbs up on his sister's Intelitaner (a fancy Exersaucer type thing) and jumps onto the recliner. I'm trying to keep him from climbing the recliner. It seems to be a losing battle. If there is something high up, he wants to climb on it. He's begun to try climbing the handles on his dresser drawers. Obviously, I put the smack down on that.
I think about the child of a friend of mine. She's a chatter box. Ever since she was a baby, chatter chatter chatter. She started speaking sooner than most, and at almost three, she's quite articulate. Isaac seems to have a similar strength in balance and climbing skills. He has a lot of energy, and climbing pulls some of that our of him. So, when I can allow him to climb in the house, I do. The window thing is one of few that he's allowed in the house. If he falls, it's not far, and there isn't anything under him that he'll hit and hurt himself. The window sill is sturdy and can hold him. So, it fits the criteria I've set. He can only get up there by walking off the end of his bed, and so the chances of him doing this somewhere else are slim. At other's houses, where there is a banister, he has taken to climbing up the outside of the banister, using the edge of the stairs. I don't allow that either....but I have yet to see another kid his age (2.5) come up with that idea on his/her own. I would have, I'm a climber, too.
3 comments:
Seems perfectly reasonable to me. Our job is to keep them safe. The guidelines you've established for his climbing make sure he stays safe, doesn't trash the house, and don't restrict him just because he's being a child and not an adult.
Makes sense to me!
Thanks MaryP! I think highly of your opinion!
Ha!
My Isaac (2.3) climbs the outside of the stairs too. He has taken to standing on the arms of our couch, sitting on the kitchen table, and I'm sure he'd love to get to a window!
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