There! You are thinking about a white bear right now.
As much energy as you’re putting in not to think of a white bear, you can’t help yourself but think of one.
It’s a paradox which we as parents and teachers often bind ourselves with. We might tell a child who presents with hyperactivity to sit still, not to move. Consider the child for a moment, all she can do is think of moving.
The best case scenario is that the child will sit still, but that’s where all her energy is going to go. she will have to focus one hundred percent of her attention toward the task of sitting still. She will not be able to learn, listen, or be productive.
And, as time goes on, she will move. She will have to move, just like you just had to think of a white bear. She might get in trouble for fidgeting and moving, but she will have to.
Wouldn’t it just be better if we would allow children to move in the first place? Children are meant to move. Movement helps all children learn better. Shouldn’t we stop demanding that children stop thinking of a white bear?
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