[Affolfembonge]

there are many things you can do with the kids that will boost their intelligence, even without spending time researching on the computer. give the class a daily dose of "meditation" play. let them dream in class, but do this collectively. let the kids sit on the floor over a mat or blanket, teach them to focus on their visions and ideas that come to them, and at the end of the exploration, let them draw what they saw. share these pictures with the class, and once a month, with the parents.

your class is headed for uniqueness

[dWSOj26H]

as i've mentioned before in the forums, im a preschool teacher and i would love to try some relatively simple experiments with my 4 and 5 year olds. does anybody have any ideas or a website to point me to.

im not looking for a link to a preschool site with science projects. i want something new. im trying to push the envelope here and do something that hasnt been done with children this young before. i want to get these childrens minds right and teach them about simple concepts from theoretical physics, quantum physics, physics, or any other cool sciences . i already have one idea in mind involving only the use of the mind and visualization, but it seems a little out there and i'm hesitant to start with that one.

i look forward to your responses.

[orgagsUpsepsy]

dave,

if i may call you that, i too am an instructor, however, i work with adults in a community college setting. i teach developmental mathematics (up through introductory algebra) to people who either forgot it, or didn't learn it in the first place. needless to say, i've seen first hand how our educational system has failed to prepare our youth for tomorrow. but, thats an entirely different subject.

first, let me applaud you for your desire to "jump-start" these youngsters. participating in these forums is one thing, but bringing the lessons learned out into "the public" is entirely another thing. tread lightly my friend...

second, let me agree with you on the concept of teaching youngsters these advanced concepts. while in college pursuing my b.s. in engineering, i was good friends with a brilliant mathematician who said repeatedly that "advanced mathematics and theorems should be taught to younger children". he went on to explain that "kids" were not conditioned like teenagers and adults to think a certain way, vis-a-vis what we "do" to our kids in school. they are more open and are able to comprehend so much more than we give them credit for...

with that said, let me offer some advice. first and foremost (and i really don't need to say this), understand your audience. they are young children, and far too many have already been "conditioned" by video games, etc. however, you are correct to tap their imaginations! i think you will be amazed at what is uncovered. i would suggest using space pictures, videos, etc. - anything to "open their horizons". so, i think you are on the right track with the "mental" work, but if i may, i'd suggest stimulating their imaginations (which is probably what your after). open their minds to a world they really don't know about. and, in my humble opinion, this is best done through imagery... maybe even pull a "magic trick" now and then - ever heard of a psi wheel? well, there is a perfectly good scientific explanation for why they turn. but, i guarantee, you will capture their attention!

now, i understand your "objection" to using regular "pre-school" science projects - i too share similar ambitions of teaching concepts learned here, just with older students. i would say, put a twist on these experiments - expand them. again, i would say that these children are much more astute than we give them credit for...

with that said, i've seen some silly experiments on kids shows from time to time that, with expanded "lecture" and "discussion", could really blow their mind... like the "vortex" experiment using two 2 liter bottles, water, and tape. i think anyone could use that visual to explain chakra energies...

so, unfortunately, no i don't have anything at the moment - however, i will keep this in mind and, of course, share anything that i come up with, if you'd like...

good luck sir! teaching is a very difficult job, and i appreciate the work you're doing!

art

[Drysnyaty]

art sees to have elucidated some great conceptual ideas for you, i'd like to add an idea: how about letting them watch an expanding (or contracting) fractal pattern video? many are easily found on 'youtube'.

-mark

[Drysnyaty]

sorry, dave, i forgot to say one thing. remember, you can plant little seeds, little germs of ideas, knowing they may not germinate for many years. maybe a tender look, a smile, maybe think of just helping each child feel that they have a special, personal friend and confidante. a great oak from the tiny acorn doth grow, especially if the seed is love.

thankyou for caring!

-mark

[yQvpyNt3]

hey dave,

very cool idea,
maybe you can try some telepathy experiments...
check out rupert sheldrake his site: http://www.sheldrake.org/onlineexp/portal/
a lot of examples thee. how old are the children?

greets,
Unknown

[note from moderator: since these are preschool children, i don't believe they will be able to do these cell phone and other computer tests. but the tests are pretty neat anyway]

[Emunsesoxmete]

heya dave, its really nice to know there are caring teachers out there willing to take a new bull by the horns. and being a mother of 6 kids, i appreciate that immensily! and i think the very best thing you can do for their beautiful little minds is to let them know that they can indeed think for themselves. through acknowledgment of their own originality of creative thinking on how it all works, they can discover how they play a unique and irreplaceable part in the harmony of the universe. children are extroidinarily intuitive already, and for the most part seem to un-learn alot of their gifts in society and school. i think making them feel and believe in their strength to speak out and be themselves is the greatest job a teacher can do.

an idea that comes to me is to maybe show them how everything works perfectly and harmoniously together in nature, as well as humans place in it all. for example, the processes of photo-synthesis or how the sun's energy feeds all life, and the different aspects of each species and eco systems, how they work one upon another with each other, and move it on out to space and the universe. i like mark's idea of showing them fractal images, and i like the idea of showing them hubble images, and there are dvds out there with just these images one after another with music in the background. stargaze i and ii, visions of the universe, are fantastic!!! then maybe have them color their own pictures, maybe in a circle shape, on their own expressions of how they feel the harmony of nature, and how they feel connected. maybe ask them questions and let them discuss together about how the sun makes them feel on a warm day, and what they think when the squirrels are playing, etc...you get the idea. its so great to see kids allowed their own freedom to be and just express together!

thanks dave for caring to bring about the new scientific discoveries on the harmony of our world and the universe to our kids!

love and peace,
michelle

[dWSOj26H]

thank you all for the support and the suggestions. i do like the idea of using fractals in the class, or perhaps even crop circles. i think i'll have to print out some pictures and put them by the easel and see if it inspires some new creativity. i'll be sure to take pictures of any extraordinary art and share them.

that telepathy idea sounds fun and interesting. it sounds like something i'll have to research some more before i give it a go. the hubble pictures sound great as well. if we do a space theme, i'll definitely keep that in mind. earlier this year they built a large space ship out of many boxes and aluminum foil. they made their own control panel and seat belts without any teacher direction. unfortunately the first day we moved the ship outside(because it was sooo big it wouldnt fit in the class anymore) the wind blew it to pieces and ruined weeks of hard work.

one thing i would love to teach the children, if nothing else, is that their minds are more powerful than they realize. not too long ago i came across something called cloudbusting. i had never heard of it before, but it grabbed my interest. google it for more info. basically, you use your mind to dissolve clouds. i have tried it myself with limited success. i have heard that children have an easier time than adults, so i'd like to try that out one day too.

thanks again!

dave

[Cabinanteerip]

cal poly dave--


like others, i commend you on your desire to do hands-on teaching these young minds.


some ideas came to my mind:


1)a simple seed-planting project with the use of pyramids v.s. control plants.


2)another simple plant project with already-sprouted plants and watering them with control water v.s. microwaved water that had been nuked, then used (cooled down, of course). watch what happens to the microwave-watered plants. shocking, i'll tell ya.


3)magnets are awesome things to play with. use magnets of various sizes and you can do all sorts of experiments with them. you can demonstrate the magnetic fields by having the magnets below a flat sheet. you can have the kids play around with the magnets and getting the feel of the repulsion/attraction of them. you can explain that the basic repulsion/attraction forces of the positive/negative is the basic energy that drives the entire universe, etc.


4)simple sterling engines are fun things to play with that demonstrates the principles of heat/energy transfers; also, those glass domes with spinning "paddles" that are painted white/black that spin when put in the sun--that can be fun, too.


i have done one simple experiment with magnets that demonstrates the counter-rotating fields that these magnets create, so feel free to pm me and i can share it with you. it's a simple, easy-to-do project that is entertaining.


since you appear to be in california, i highly suggest that you go to this awesome place where there's a good couple of a dozen exhibits that engage the imagination of kids while demonstrating scientific principles:


http://www.nevco.k12.ca.us/imaginar.htm


it's an awesome place and even i learn things every time i go there. if you decide to go see it, let me know and i'll take you to there and to lunch on me.


~seth

[ufUUZCnc]

i know it sounds simple, but kids role play naturally--as i'm sure you well know. i remember doing it a lot with my brother, friends and cousins. my mom taught elementary school and had a children's book of plays that my cousins and i found. we put on our own production--no adults needed--and we had a blast creating the costumes and the scenes (lots of blankets and chairs--ha!).

i can see role playing helping us all to not get "stuck" in our stories (reality illusions) in which we are both the audience (observer) and the actors/actresses.

you could maybe encourage awareness of their world, now moment and the divine intelligence in everything by having them imagine what it would be like, and then act out, being a caterpillar creating a cocoon and then emerging as a butterfly. imagine being a tree or a leaf on the tree starting out as a bud and eventually falling to the ground in the autumn. go from the tiniest ant or bug out into the cosmos--and play. it's fun to watch what emerges. kids don't need scripts--just a little mustard seed...

loved the flying saucer!

penny

[satthackacibe]

hi all...

i have been a preschool teacher for over 17 years now. i love this question. here are some of the 'lessons' i do with my group of kids.

when we cover the 5 senses... i always teach about the
6th sense, or intuition. i tell them about their '3rd' eye, hidden in their forehead. i have them close their eyes, focus on a lost or hidden object, and 'see' the object with their 3rd eye.. omg..they love it and usually locate the item.
put a blindfold on them and have them use their 'sense' to find the door or table etc...(stand by in case they stumble!)

when a classmate falls down or gets injured, the other children run over, rub their hands together and direct healing energy into their friends booboo. they have learned about energy balls and can 'throw' them to one another.
the funniest thing ever was when a bunch of the boys were into star wars. we all became 'yodas' and sat around in 'meditation'... then we learned to use "the force"...the kids were trying to move objects without touching them, using...'the force'... i was hoping it would work, but to no avail. we keep trying though, and the kids love it.
teach the concept of twinkle twinkle little star...what you say is what you are !! read and watch the little engine who could. and don't forget...oh the places you'll go, by dr. seuss.
i always ask the kids what they dream about and....you can sneak this in...ask them what was their name when they used to be big. you'll get some fun answers.
i could go on and on. kids are great.
take care!!
tracy

[orgagsUpsepsy]

this post is probably deserving of its own thread, but is so closely related to dave's, that i wanted to include it here.

as mentioned before, i am a community college instructor (at the #4 ranked cc in the country, oh yeah!) - i teach developmental mathematics. i went out on a limb today and spoke with a colleague about the value of meditation for focusing. we both agreed that the main difference between students who succeed and those who don't is that ability to focus. i am of the opinion that to help students (who want it) to focus, that we could teach them about quieting the mind, again, essentially meditation.

unfortunately i had assumed that she was experienced in this - she wasn't. but she was very encouraging and supportive of this idea. she even called me a hippie.

so, my question to the members of this forum, is have any of you had experience in "teaching" meditative skills to other people? i certainly am no meditation guru, but wholeheartedly believe in it, because i have personally seen the results in my capacity to learn, etc. in addition, i realize there are inherent risks in undertaking such a task...

i settled on the idea of trial with several of my students this semester (those who are interested and suffer from test anxiety), and if there is success, i feel comfortable enough to present "workshops" - 10 to 15 minute presentations in other classes next semester. again, i am no expert and have never done this before, but the motivation and energy is there, and i believe under the right circumstances, with the right people, magical things can and will happen.

any feedback would be greatly appreciated, up to and including links to websites, other information, etc. i know the tm guys have great videos on you-tube with testimonials - but i'm not really trying to teach a "technique" - i believe meditation (quieting the mind) is personal, and therefore, subjective...

david wrote in another thread:
the law of one series said it about as plainly as ever: "there is no 'right way' to meditate." thank you in advance!

art

p.s. - if i am incorrectly relating focus and meditation, please let me know!!!

[Bromikka]

i am not a parent or teacher, but will relate what occured to me as a child.

schools today are heavy on maths and sciences first, followed by language and history, while art and music take a back seat. children are conditioned out of using the right brain and most education is left-brained. creativity takes a back set.

how many adults were told as children they couldn't make a living with art, music or poetry?

that happened to me. i loved music classes and never skipped them, because the energies were wonderful. it would always lift me up and allowed me more ability to understand the sciences and maths. sciences were my second favorite classes.

anyway i am a result of the left-brained teachings and have great difficulty with my creative side. there are moments of clarity, but they are few.

i remember fourth grade. the teacher played guitar, and a few days a week she would take it out and we would sing.

in second grade, we had a music class and the teacher would play piano and we would all sing. on more quiet days with the same teacher in "homeroom" would pass out pages to color. i didn't know it then, but it was sacred geometry. i'm not sure if she was aware of this, but most of us loved coloring these and we would figure out "new" ways of folding paper to make things like a paper blowfish. after you fold the paper, you blow into one corner and it puffs up. i wish i could remember how to do that. lol

so anyway, i think the best gift of all to share, is to encourage children never to allow themselves to be educated out of right-brained, creative endeavors. while science and math is important, creativty and an open mind can greatly enhance these studies. i think i read somewhere that einstein would dream of things, write them down upon awakening, and not even realise what he had written until later.

teach them it's ok to make mistakes. the story of ivory soap is a good one. the worker went to lunch and left his machine running. when he returned to his work area and realised his mistake, he feared reprimand and allowed the soap to go out. later on people kept asking about the soap that would float and wanted more.

there's a video about the same subject on ted.

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/66

sir ken robinson makes an entertaining (and profoundly moving) case for creating an education system that nurtures creativity, rather than undermining it. with ample anecdotes and witty asides, robinson points out the many ways our schools fail to recognize -- much less cultivate -- the talents of many brilliant people. "we are educating people out of their creativity," robinson says. the universality of his message is evidenced by its rampant popularity online. a typical review: "if you have not yet seen sir ken robinson's ted talk, please stop whatever you're doing and watch it now."

[carline]

hey i am glad you are doing this. i think the thing i liked the most was when teachers were empathetically personal with me and helping each person individually. even though this is not a project i always remembered the class where the teacher was loving and tried to give us experiences that tied in with our recretional needs at the time along with learning things that are actually important as humans.

maybe show interest in everyone individually showing them what they are good at in life and working on what they have a hard time with making them feel warm and secure.

so awesome you are open to this.. so awesome. best of luck.

[yQvpyNt3]

so, my question to the members of this forum, is have any of you had experience in "teaching" meditative skills to other people? i certainly am no meditation guru, but wholeheartedly believe in it, because i have personally seen the results in my capacity to learn, etc. in addition, i realize there are inherent risks in undertaking such a task...

i settled on the idea of trial with several of my students this semester (those who are interested and suffer from test anxiety), and if there is success, i feel comfortable enough to present "workshops" - 10 to 15 minute presentations in other classes next semester. again, i am no expert and have never done this before, but the motivation and energy is there, and i believe under the right circumstances, with the right people, magical things can and will happen.

any feedback would be greatly appreciated, up to and including links to websites, other information, etc. i know the tm guys have great videos on you-tube with testimonials - but i'm not really trying to teach a "technique" - i believe meditation (quieting the mind) is personal, and therefore, subjective...

hello,

try contacting a meditation group close to you, they will have very skilled meditators for sure who will be interested in the project.
in the law of one they said there is no right way of meditating but there are some basic techniques which are all the same in the different meditation traditions. even ra spoke about them.

the following is a quote from the law of one session 49:
questioner: is it better, or shall i say, does it produce more useable results in meditation to leave the mind, shall i say, as blank as possible; let it run down, so to speak, or is it better to focus in meditation on some object or some thing for concentration?

ra: i am ra. this shall be the last full query of this work time.

each of the two types of meditation is useful for a particular reason. the passive meditation involving the clearing of the mind, the emptying of the mental jumble which is characteristic of mind complex activity among your peoples, is efficacious for those whose goal is to achieve an inner silence as a base from which to listen to the creator. this is an useful and helpful tool and is by far the most generally useful type of meditation as opposed to contemplation or prayer.

the type of meditation which may be called visualization has as its goal not that which is contained in the meditation itself. visualization is the tool of the adept. those who learn to hold visual images in mind are developing an inner concentrative power that can transcend boredom and discomfort. when this ability has become crystallized in an adept the adept may then do polarizing in consciousness without external action which can effect the planetary consciousness. this is the reason for existence of the so-called white magician. only those wishing to pursue the conscious raising of planetary vibration will find visualization to be a particularly satisfying type of meditation.

contemplation or the consideration in a meditative state of an inspiring image or text is extremely useful also among your peoples, and the faculty of will called praying is also of a potentially helpful nature. whether it is indeed an helpful activity depends quite totally upon the intentions and objects of the one who prays. in buddhism there are 2 main meditation methods, samatha and vipassana.
samatha is the thing you probobly need because it's totally focused on concentration. and enables somebody to increase his concentrative power.
there are many guides and practices but i really recommend you to contact a meditation group close to you and ask some advice... check [please email Unknown for the url] for sanghas close to you.

greets,
Unknown

[Emunsesoxmete]

the law of one series said it about as plainly as ever: "there is no 'right way' to meditate."

dear art, i respect what you are trying to do with adding meditation as part of the curriculum. fantastic, and about time. that is something that would be truly beneficial in soo many respects. but, i think, personally, that it really doesn't have to do with using any techniques at all, as you pointed out in the quote above, or even giving thought about some professional opinion, but rather just allowing them their own quiet space and some time to find their own natural ways to focus. maybe supplying some meditative music, like hariprasad chaurasia, and trusting them, that within that space, that they will grow naturally into focus on their own terms. in other words, i don't think you need to make it complicated at all, just keep it chill and simple, and through that freedom of allowing them, and trusting them to indeed find their own abilities that way. i dunno, it seems to me that they would love it and get into it that way.., the only requirement would to sit in silence, possibly with their eyes closed. i think kids need to feel supported in their own individuality, therefor bringing about willful effort, responsibility and satisfaction in themselves.

wow, let us know how all that goes, i am anxious to hear, and again, i love that great fantastic idea of yours!!!

all love,
michelle

[orgagsUpsepsy]

no real progress to mention yet, but an update nonetheless.

in talking with some colleagues, the main "driver" would be focus and concentration, as "meditation" may be looked upon unfavorably in my particular situation... it pains me to write that.

one thing i do know about meditation is that it requires a quiet mind, with intent. these are certainly two "things" that most students lack - the ability to monitor and control their thoughts and simply the intent, the motivation to learn in the first place. for intent, one of the best things i do is focus on "entertaining"/learning as opposed to teaching. capture imagination.

case in point - in one of my classes simple geometry is integrated into the cirriculum. in the past i've pulled it out separate and taught it at the end. this time around i am looking again to teach it at the end, but with more emphasis on "sacred geometry", etc. its a risk, but worth taking, again, if i can capture the imagination of a few and inspire them...

i like what ya'll have said about not "teaching a way", so to speak. i may try to illustrate what isn't a focused mind, rather than what is...

i also thought about tying in various "supportive elements" - diet, hydration, rest, etc.

anyway, thank you all for your responses. cal poly dave is working on the young ones, i'm trying to work on some of the older. now if we can only get some of middle school teachers to do the same (i personally think that is where we "lose" our kids...).

take care,

art

[dWSOj26H]

this week, my college classes started up again and on the first day, one of my teachers led us through a guided meditation. she didnt call it that, but i know meditation when i see/feel/hear it .

at first she had us relax with deep breaths and let the tension go. then she had us go back to our favorite elementary classroom and had us remember sights, sounds, smells. we also were told to look around at our friends and the teacher. then she told us it was time to leave this class but that we could go back anytime.

next we were told to go back to our least favorite classroom and do the same thing. afterwards we were to sketch one of the classrooms and describe what we saw and experienced.

i thought this was awesome being able to do this in the middle of class. and on the first day no less!

i should mention that this was for a child development/education course and the purpose was to remember qualities we liked and didnt like about teachers and classrooms.