KidWatching

In graduate school I read about a method of child observation called "KidWatching".  It's pretty self-explanatory in that it involves observing children's behavior in a natural setting and recording those observations using various coding techniques.  I absolutely love KidWatching in my own home.  Watching my children play is one of my very favorite things to do, and I learn so much about them when I drop everything and just focus on being in the moment as an observer.

Today I watched as Davis played on a pile of plywood that was stacked in the backyard.  Derek had put a tarp over the pile, and there were lots of puddles on it from the rain we got last night.  I stood and watched as my son splashed and jumped and laughed, testing his physical limits and erupting into fits of laughter each time his little body got sprinkled with the cold water.  Watching my child discover things -- about his body, his environment, about other living things -- is one of the greatest pleasures of being a mother, and the fact that he was having a blast doing it was just icing on the cake.