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Parent's View, Children's View
As a parent, it is easy to forget that childrens activities may look different from a childs perspective than from the adults. Here is an imaginary story of what participating in gymnastics class, a popular childrens activity, looks like from parent and child perspectives. The characters are Mom, George, age 5, and Amy, age 3. Our story begins as Mom has just piled the kids into the car after Amy cried until Mom found her leotard and George let the dog out.
“So, now we are probably going to be late and Ill have to search for a parking place,” fumes Mom.
George starts to think, “I wonder how long we will get to jump on the trampoline today. Maybe we will even get turns on two different trampolines.”
Amy is thinking, “I dont cry anymore when I go into class by myself, and the teacher calls me first when I sit down and wait for my turn on the balance beam.”
They are arriving at the gym now. Everyone hustles out of the car, races across the parking lot and into the crowded lobby. The kids rush to put their shoes in cubbies and Mom makes her way to the front desk to pick up their color-coded nametags. Shoes off, nametags on, George and Amy deftly weave their way through the crowd and into the gym. Mom tries to collect herself, muttering as she steps over a child putting on shoes and looks for a seat. “How is that woman over there reading a book with all this noise?” wondered Mom.
Mom wanders toward the window that looks into the gym and sees George swinging gleefully on the rope. Team girls are warming up on the floor, one class is moving around the edge of the competitive floor in an orderly line on their way to the balance beams. Another class is sitting while the teacher explains a parallel bar skill. More class kids are climbing, rolling and cartwheeling down a long obstacle course.
Mom wanders to the other window and sees Amy standing on the low parallel bar, reaching for the high bar and swinging down with a smile of satisfaction.
When classes are over George and Amy come through the door proudly showing off the stamps on their hands. Shoes and coats are put on quickly and they head home.
Mom pauses for a moment to appreciate the satisfaction her kids are feeling and notes that all the car time, parking, and lobby noise are worth it.
