Imagination is more important than knowledge!

A few weeks back we hit the Discovery Museums in Acton again. It was a beautiful day and they had giant bubbles going outside. The kids loved it.

Then we headed inside to the Children's Discovery Museum. This is designed for toddlers to age six. Last time we were there in the winter, I felt that C. was just on the edge of being too old for it. Well, now she definitely is. After about 15 minutes, she declared she was bored. I couldn't believe it. She had outgrown this adorable little place we had been coming to since she was a toddler. And when I looked at her, I saw the transformation was complete. It was slightly jarring, to say the least. I told her she had to deal with it for a bit longer, as much of it is perfect for G. He loves the Ball-Track room and Rainbow room, and was content to spend quite a bit of time there. But, as I watched him play, I saw we were getting "the look" from quite a few other moms, and after awhile, I realized it was because they thought G. was too old to be there! Now, the rooms are quite small and can feel quite stuffy and claustrophobic when it is crowded. And as I looked around, I realized he was so much bigger than the other kids. But he's only four!!! (The girls behind G. in the bubble picture are both 6 years old!) In fact, when we ate our picnic lunch outside at the tables, some moms were stunned to realize C. and G. are only 6 and 4 - they thought they were 7 or 8 year-old twins! Anyway, after lunch we headed over to the Science Discovery Museum, and that's where the action was.

This museum is so much fun for the kids. Lots of hands-on activities about the weather, sound, water movement, magnetism, and much more. I really have to resist the temptation to make them stop and *learn* about what they are touching and seeing. Sometimes it seems like they just run around in a haze, grabbing and banging on whatever they see without stopping to think about what they are doing. But then I saw a wonderful poster on the wall. It was a picture of Albert Einstein and quoted him - "Imagination is more important than knowledge." I stopped and realized I was caught up in the idea that they should be showing me that they were learning something, just so that I could feel better about myself - it had stopped being about them and had become about me. As soon as I backed off, they were perfectly fine and had so much to talk about after we left.



It was a wonderful day and we can't wait to go back. It's obvious to me that my kids do have incredible imaginations and that this will lead to knowledge. Sometimes it is hard for us grown-ups to back off and let kids just be - we're so caught up in facts and figures and fears about their futures. I really want C. and G. to learn, obviously, but I also don't want to go to museums with clipboards and worksheets to fill out. Hopefully, homeschooling will give them more breathing room to explore with complete freedom. At least, as much as their uptight mother will allow!