Homes Where Young Children Can Thrive, Especially During Covid Times
Our Homes Impact Cortisol Levels & Childhood Stress
It has become critical to design interiors that reduce cortisol levels and stress for both children and parents for better overall health. Coexisting with young children indoors during the winter months can be challenging enough, the pandemic makes this arduous. It is evident by the booming housing market, the uptick in home improvement projects and hobby materials, that folks are making changes to their home life.
Through my personal experience homeschooling my three children and current research, I offer you some ideas for creating enriching spaces that feel safe, protected and grounding in today’s uncertain world. It’s time to think out of the box, ditch what mainstream media defines as play.
I know, I realize that unstructured play with your recycling can appear crazy.
The pandemic is compelling families to rethink home life with young children, from how they learn and exercise to how they play.
Children are feeling the loss of social time, their normal activities, while adapting to school at home.
During these extraordinary times, children may no longer be as highly scheduled as they once were; this is cause to look at the benefit’s of unstructured play, natural surroundings and safe spaces. Young children are naturally curious.
I discovered that my children had to have times of boredom before they found the need to draw a picture, play an instrument or read a book. It is important to minimize access to screen time and give children access to raw materials and the space they need to flourish.
This should in no way means that you need to spend a lot of money to create these spaces or provide unnecessary amounts of traditional toys. Think about how we live as adults and translate this into children terms. For example, children feel empowered when they cut vegetables and fruit, they mimic parents by dressing, feeding and putting their baby dolls to sleep.
Children like to build and create and they also unwind by flipping through books, looking at pictures and reading. They love to move their bodies by dancing, jumping, running and trying a yoga pose, and they even like to “clean”.
Could these be the changes that young families needed?
Organic ideas for living with young children during these Covid times.
Studies Prove the Benefits of Unstructured Play
“The Power of Play: A Pediatric Role in Enhancing Development in Young Children does not include video games or computerized gadgets in its list of recommendations for play. Rather, it notes, ‘Real learning happens better in person-to-person exchanges rather than machine-to-person exchanges.’ It defines play as ‘activity that is intrinsically motivated, entails active engagement, and results in joyful discovery, and that includes objects (like traditional toys), is rough-and-tumble, takes place indoors and outdoors, with peers or alone, and involves make-believe.’ This type of unstructured play, which comes naturally to children, especially when they are deprived of distractions, ‘is not frivolous,’ the AAP (American Academy of Pediatricians) emphasizes, but ‘brain-building.’”
Unstructured play allows children make up their own games, invent imaginary worlds, explore hiding places, create their own version of art, build a free form city of of blocks or in other words not playing by a set of “how to” rules.
Play is essential for healthy brain development.
Play reduces obesity and associated diseases.
Play helps children manage stress and even recover from trauma.
Play helps families bond.
Play contributes to academic skills.
Sergio Pellis, Ph.D., an expert on the neuroscience of play notes that “play actually changes the structure of the developing brain in important ways, strengthening the connections of the neurons (nerve cells) in the prefrontal cortex, the area of the brain considered to be the executive control center responsible for solving problems, making plans and regulating emotions. Because unstructured play involves trying out different strategies without particular goals or serious consequences, children and other animals get to practice different activities during play and see what happens.”
Healthy Play Spaces Ideas
Simple, low, wooded book shelves, found at unfinished furniture stores or recycled from yard sales or online, help organize toys at child height. Line up books and add a few durable, soft textured baskets to house small toys for “decor with a purpose”, both functional and aesthetically pleasing. Similar shelving can be transformed into a child’s very own kitchen using their imagination, stocked with non toxic metal pans, wooden bowls, plates, spoons, a child size ceramic tea set and some cotton dinner napkins. Nothing compares to materials derived from nature. Here a child may find a baby doll bed as simple as a basket and a wool blanket.
Nothing compares to the benefits of exposure to outdoor activities but we can supplement and increase green time indoors for our children.
A child height wooden table dedicated just for exploring, creating art projects and inventing will create the space for hours of free play. Provide easy access to materials such as household recycling; basic art supplies such as colored pencils and crayons, water colors, non toxic glue, yarn, fabric scrap; items from the outdoors such as twigs, shells, leaves, sand, all organized in natural baskets or sturdy cardboard boxes. A table for fitting puzzle pieces, building with wooded blocks or pouring tea for a tea party.
“What is essential is to realize that children learn independently , they learn out of interest and curiosity, not to please or appease the adults in power: and that they ought to be in control of their own learning, deciding for themselves what they want to learn and how they want to learn it.”
Large wall maps and reference posters are Informative Art, another example of “decor with a purpose”. When at a child's eye level, it can be a subtle source of information. Framed posters of local birds, trees or fish add a beautiful visual reminder of the natural world around them. The same is true for table top globes, plus they are hands on.
Give children the uncluttered space from mainstream toys, provide raw materials to spark imaginary play, cultivate creativity and invention.
Allow for open uncluttered floor space sufficient enough to move freely, dance to music, build blanket forts and foster imaginary play. A space sufficient enough to construct a cardboard house or a fort. Nearby, provide floor baskets filled with musical instruments, dress up materials and wooden building blocks. A spring rod and curtain mounted in a doorway at child high creates an instant stage for a puppet show.
In your kitchen, make provisions for children to be part of the food preparation experience. Nothing encourages children to love fruits and vegetables more than when they are equipped with the proper tools to peel and chop with real food. Incorporate a small child height table to stand at or a safe stool to stand on to be close to the action. Children also have fun cleaning, they enjoy helping out and feel pride in their accomplishment. Supply a spray bottle filled with water and a wash cloth, watch them go to work. Children can easily manage a kid size broom, brush and dust pan.
It has become more important than ever to foster self direct play, encourage children to explore, create and invent through play.
Benefits of Natural Surroundings
Studies led by University of Illinois researcher Frances Kuo, Ph.D., provide solid evidence linking time spent in natural surroundings to an increased ability to focus with ADHD. https://www.additudemag.com/green-time-natural-adhd-remedy/
“It might be interesting to see if parking your child in front of a window with a nice view to do homework makes a difference versus doing homework in a room without a view. For most kids, natural views aren’t too distracting. But reactions differ, so I would say try it for a few days to find out.”
Frances Kuo, Ph.D.
Why then can’t these findings be applied to all children? We can all benefit from more green time.
“There must be provision for the child to have contact with nature; to understand and appreciate the order, the harmony and the beauty in nature”. Maria Montessori
Safe Spaces
Surrounding children with natural elements further reduces stress. Images of nature such as animal prints and landscapes offer a focus for moments of contemplation.
100% smooth cotton bedding feels soothing and helps control body temperature while sleeping, along with a natural filled pillow to create a cozy nest. Have fun making DIY lavender filled pillows and spraying lavender essential oil on bedding to aid in a child's relaxation for a sound sleep.
It’s a must to keep these relaxing rooms free of technology, allowing a child to unplug and unwind. To end each day flipping through books, drifting into their own thoughts and, with encouragement, express gratitude for what the day had offered.
When a child's bedroom is organized and decluttered, we reduce stress by lowering cortisol to create a sense of calm.
To foster good health in a child’s bedroom, it’s a must to keep furniture and finishes synthetic free so as to not off gas toxins into your child's sleeping environment. Use natural wooden furniture (beware of lead paint on yard sale finds and toxic finishes on store bought furniture), wool or cotton rugs and lightweight cotton window treatment.
Introduce house plants to increase air quality by adding oxygen into the air, filter toxins and adding a natural view that may not be possible out a window. Being responsible for their own house plants, is fun, nurturing and educational. Plants are living things and require your child to be responsible. Allow your child to select their own plants, paint terra-cotta pots and care for them with a small metal watering can that is easy for them to handle.
When selecting wall paint with a child for their room, emphasize the importance of calming colors that foster rest and relaxation. Consider blue which evokes feelings of contentment, spaciousness and comfort due to being the color of the sky and ocean as well. Symbolically, green represents the power of nature and life, as such it is considered to be the most natural, relaxing, calming and balanced color. Purple stimulates the part of the brain related to creativity, and at the same time it has a calming effect. Pink represents the continuity of living beings as well as femininity, it is relaxing, warm and evokes feelings of peace.
Calming areas are more important than ever during these Covid times, when families are constrained to coexist and claim their own space.
Like adults, children need a quiet space tailored to their likes and preferences to take a break and recharge. This is most often but does not have to be, their bedroom — a dedicated space that is not cluttered and away from the distractions of high traffic. Children love the feel of natural materials in cozy bean bags or a pile of pillows and a comfy blanket. A homemade tent creates a safe, sheltered spot and a creative DIY project for you and your child. Drape a strand of fairy lights nearby for a relaxing visual element. This area should have a few items that are comforting, engaging and calming, such as stuffed animals, books and supplies for doodling. In addition, calming music is known to reduce cortisol levels and lower stress. Experiment with different styles of soothing background music to drown out unwanted noises and stimulation.
“Music’s beneficial effects on mental health have been known for thousands of years. Ancient philosophers from Plato to Confucius and the kings of Israel sang the praises of music and used it to help soothe stress.”
American Academy of Pediatrics
