Repetition Doesn't Have To Be Boring

When we repeat something, we learn it. Some people can learn something from hearing, reading or seeing it once, but most of us need a few tries.A wonderful educator once told me that all children can learn, it's just a matter of how many times each child needs to repeat a skill to have it fully learned. I love this outlook. It's why I will never say 'never' for any child for any skill.Repetition can sound boring because you're doing the same thing or learning about the same thing over and over, but there are lots of ways to keep it interesting. The key is to practice the same skill or learn about the same thing in as many different ways as possible.I love this article with 7 ways to teach your child to write their name. It's a great example of how the same skill can be taught in a lot of different fun activities that involve all of the senses.Learning about anything in a variety of contexts also promotes 'generalization,' when someone knows a skill well enough to do it in a variety of settings. This is a valuable skill for picky eaters who usually want their few specific foods in very specific ways.Activities:Try introducing a food in as many ways as you can think of: play activities, cooking activities, you-tube videos, books from the library. Learn about how it grows and different recipes you can make with it. Let your child touch the food at the grocery store and during food play activities. Do an art project with the food.After this kind of repetition, once kids are comfortable with a food in a lot of different situations, often tasting just comes naturally. It's the next step.So pick a food to learn about this week, have fun and happy food play!