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Lights, Camera ... Imagination!
The Mind Is a Child's Best Toy
By Kelly Burgess
The Lasek children of Richland, Pa., don't need much direction to keep entertained. Nick, 9, Monica, 7, Matthew, 5, and Martha, 1, have rich imaginations that can turn the most mundane environment into a magical landscape. The secret? Their mom, Margaret, has never had a television in the house. Instead, she encourages them to play with toys that don't rely on batteries or computer chips.
This, according to many experts, is the ideal environment for a preschool-aged child. June Oberlander is retired now, but taught kindergarten for more than 30 years, raised two children and wrote a seminal book for the parent who wants to stimulate a child's imagination, Slow And Steady Get Me Ready (Xulon Press, 2002), now in its eighth printing. When Oberlander was raising her children, television was much less common. Instead, parents used simple items and games to guide their children in play.
"I wrote this book for my daughter after she had her first child," says Oberlander. "She was never even interested in babysitting then, after establishing herself as a successful dentist she had a baby. All of a sudden she realized she had no idea what to do with the child so she called and this was my answer. She has three now and they're all doing very well in school and are wonderful, creative children."