Einstein said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge." It is my imagination and curiosity against their craftiness and what a science lesson for my whole family as we plan, predict, observe and record the results! Cheri Fuller in her book Motivating Your Kids From Crayons to Careers encourages us to help our children create a lively curiosity: "Curiosity is an ingredient that carries a child's learning far beyond the 3 Rs. So keeping curiosity alive is critical to motivation and the learning process."

I agree with Cheri. On my wall in my classroom I had a quotation from Emerso that put it a little differently: "We love to wonder and that is the seed of science." That quotation was a daily reminder to me that my room, my lessons and my demeanor should create a sense of wonder. It worked well for me and it can, with practice, work well for anyone.

The most important thing that a teacher or parent can do is to show their own sense of wonder and curiosity.

Excitement creates excitement. Learning should always be exciting for there is so much to learn! Did you ever see someone who was laughing so heartily that his or her laughter became contagious? Did you and others find yourselves laughing as well even though you didn't know what was so funny because it felt good and it was okay to? Learning can be like this. A teacher or parent can excite students to learn by their own enthusiastic behavior.

The best place for children to be inquisitive is in the home. As soon as they can talk they begin to ask thousands of questions and this is a criticial stage in their learning development. As a parent one must be careful not to discourage them by being annoyed by so many questions. If you respond enthusiastically to their questions you will have provided them with a feeling that their efforts are worthwhile and you will have gone a long way towards building their confidence and establishing a strong foundation for future learning..."We love to wonder and that is the seed of science."

I remember well the day many years ago when my youngest daughter at age four was intently observing an ant hill in our yard. She was hunkered down and watching the ants go about their busy work. They came out of the anthill going this way and that way, all with a purpose. Soon she began to see that they were hard at work bringing dead insects to the colony and carrying debris and sand out. She watched this activity for over twenty minutes! I knew her little mind was working and I wanted to jump in and start explaining things from my teacher/parent point of view, but I resisted for she was attending to a greater teacher than I will ever be.

Dr. Arnold Gessell many years ago had encouraged "Lead your child into nature. Teach him on the hilltops and in the valleys; there he will listen better. But in these hours of freedom let him be taught by nature rather than by you...Should a bird sing, or an insect hum on a leaf, at once stop your talk. Birds and insects are teaching him."

The squirrels are teaching me this winter and I am learning. It is an infectious lesson as the rest of my family gets involved and places their bets on the squirrels. For me it is an enjoyable challenge. At my age I still love to wonder.