What’s That Got to Do with Homework?

A little boy sat on the floor in the living room, surrounded by tiny wheels, spindles, springs, clock hands, and an empty casing…what a mess!
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Or was it? 

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That little boy was my father. Grandma told me that nothing mechanical in the house was safe from his curious fingers. They came to an agreement, he could take anything apart, as long as he put it back together and it still worked.
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So there he was, taking the clock apart, putting it back together, who knows how many times? And, of course, the toaster, the vacuum, even that new fangled contraption, the radio. Fiddling with the car and building his own ham radio would come later.
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Grandma didn’t have a name for it, but Dad was in Flow, that wonderful thing that happens when we are fully immersed in a challenging activity we enjoy. Time slips away, our whole being is involved, our attention completely engaged. We stretch our skills to their limit and beyond. We can think better, process information more quickly, be more creative, but not stressed. Dopamine and other neurochemicals surge. 
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William Stixrud and Ned Johnson, co-authors of The Self Driven Child, say that flow is like an all natural, totally safe, performance enhancing drug for the brain. Going into flow frequently literally “sculpts” the brain so this superpowered state is ready for us to access when we need it, not only for our passions, like Dad’s drive to take things apart, but for other challenges we face, like studying for that big test or learning those French verbs.
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So maybe Grandma was on to something. Making time and space for our kids to pursue what they love, to get into flow, can also prepare them to do well on the stuff that we as parents think is important, like finishing that algebra homework or the essay that’s due next week.
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Do you know when your child gets into flow? Maybe it’s legos or playing baseball. Maybe it’s running, baking, drumming, or scaling a climbing wall. Maybe it’s one thing right now, and it will be something else next week or next year. It may not have anything to do with homework directly, but encouraging our kids to follow their interests and get into flow regularly will help them learn about themselves and what they enjoy while it also helps them develop brains capable of superpowered learning in flow.
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What’s a little mess compared to that?
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Here’s to more resilient wins at home and school,
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Anne 


PS Want to help your kids have less stress and more success at home and school? CLICK HERE to get a copy of our book, The Resiliency Toolkit: A Busy Parent’s Guide to Raising Happy, Confident, Successful Children.