The Painting

We went to a performance the other night. During intermission we were out in the lobby looking at a painting. I asked the kids (Rachel, Megan, and their cousin Kate) some questions about it. Things such as what they thought the picture was about and what was their opinion of it? Why did the artist use those colors? What message do you think the artist wants us to get from this work of art? (OK, so I might not have gotten to that one.) One of the questions led to a discussion about the large sun in the painting and the fact that the person depicted was not really that close to the sun. I asked them why they thought that. Kate made the obvious statement that you can't get that close to it because it was too hot. The way she said it also let us know that her six year old brain knew that was an obvious answer and that I should have been able to figure that out without asking them. I almost laughed out loud. But, I didn't (although, her father did). Sometimes things like that happen and you can have even more fun with it. So, I asked if they could think of any other reasons. (I also like to extend ideas whenever possible.) Megan came up with the idea that the sun is made of gasses and they could hurt you if you got too close. Kind of fun to explore the mind of a child. Kind of fun to learn/be reminded of what you know in an everyday setting. After all, I think most of what we learn is applied in an everyday setting anyway. So, we might as well learn it that way. I also think it's fun to find out what my kids know by the ever probing question. Wouldn't it be a great world if everyone kept questioning enough for us to continually be learning?