Please remember…
I’m little, in everything. My fingers are small, my hands are small, my legs are short and my attention span is short.
I learn best by wiggling and exploring my environment. I NEED to touch everything. I NEED to move around. This is the way I was created.
Please remember…
My emotions are all over the place. I can feel frustration, anger, sadness just like you, but on a quicker scale and without explanation. I want you to understand that I’m not being malicious or experiencing these emotions just to make you upset. My mind is trying to take everything in, all at once, and I simply can’t.
Please remember…
keep things simple for me. I can’t follow very many directions all at once. Please don’t expect me to listen for very long and PLEASE don’t expect me to sit still. Please remember that I am still developing my vocabulary and I may not understand everything you say to me. I also will have difficulty communicating to you the way I am feeling or what I need. Give me the language so I can grow.
Please remember…
I am young. I am easily over-stimulated. I get tired after all the exploring I do. I get tired when too much is expected out of me. When I get tired, I get cranky. I When I get cranky I am in fight or flight mode and literally CANNOT follow directions, learn or be expected to communicate with my words. I need proper rest in order for my body to rebuild itself and for my brain to be still.
Please remember…
I need boundaries. I really do. When I test you I’m not trying to be mean. I want you to discipline me appropriately and teach me right from wrong. I need this from you. Please be sure to be consistent. Consistency is the key to my learning about everything around me and the way I need to behave for safety and out of respect for myself and others.
Please remember…
I am egocentric. Between five and six years of age I will begin to realize that there are other people in this world, but right now EVERYTHING revolves around me. This is how I’m wired, it can’t be changed. This is why boundaries are so important. This is why I need you to provide a safe environment for me. This is why I need you to love me and care for me unconditionally.
Please remember…
I need to feel secure. I may not want to snuggle up with you during story time. I may not want to be enveloped in a huge hug. On the other hand I may want to sit in your lap or be your shadow all day long. Either way please help me feel secure. Figure out a way to meet that innate need in the best way possible for me. If I don’t feel secure I cannot learn, I cannot function.
Please remember…
that there will be some days where my choices will not be the best. This does not mean I am bad. This simply means that I need more guidance or that something may be going on in my little life that is affecting me in a big way. Please talk to my grown up. Don’t demean me. Please show genuine concern for my emotional and physical well being.
Please remember…
that I have only been on this earth for a few years. A few years compared to your many. And I’ve been walking and talking for even fewer years. Be patient with me. Teach me. Love me. Discipline me appropriately. And always remember I. AM. LITTLE.
