Happy Friday

It's always nice to come home and just chill out with my son and partner. 

I've had quite a productive week this week - finished off the first draft of my forthcoming English learning book, managed to get this semester to take off smoothly, and started getting a grant proposal for my new research project ready. 

  

From this week, I've started teaching a new course at uni, which I'm very excited about, and so far my students seem very positive and to enjoy discussing and sharing their thoughts on the subject: 'contemporary Japan'. 

During the course, I try to incorporate some of the techniques that I've learned in the professional communication course that I'm taking every Tuesday night into my teaching as much as I can to see how it helps students' learning process.  I've already witnessed how apparently small things like remembering names, listening to students actively and responding to them with positive comments, can change the whole vibe. 

Running the course is a big thing and can be nerve-wracking, but so many things to be learned and so many good things to be brought about.

'Le Ballon Rouge'

I've been feeling under the weather for the past few days. Quite a horrible chest cold and sore throat. I still feel weak and cough occasionally, but with the help of family's love and good winter food, I'm starting to feel like myself again! 

Since my partner has been at home for his semester holidays, we've spent a really nice time just hanging out at home and watching old movies (some of them are very old - 1904! Some of them are the first films ever by Georges Méliès) snuggled up in a blanket together with hot lemon tea (great for your sore throat).

My partner was driving past a local flower shop and saw a red balloon there, which reminded him of a film he used to watch on rainy afternoons at school - 'Le Ballon Rouge' ('The Red Balloon'), directed by Albert Lamorisse in 1956.  So he brought home the movie for us, which was nice of him!  Our four year old son and I absolutely loved it. 

The film is about a young school boy who one day finds a shockingly beautiful red big balloon hanging on a street light. The balloon begins to follow him anywhere he goes and eventually he makes friends with the balloon. An interesting relationship ensues... 

It is such a beautiful, refreshing yet elegiac film that has an incredible power to imprint the story in people's minds. 

The first part of the film found here. 

Making more out of less

I just came across Masashi Kawamura's talk 'Ideas Worth Making' in TEDxTokyo 2012 (30/Jun) and thought I'd share his very minimal, beautifully crafted works with you all.  Enjoy.

  

Masashi K's website is here.   

'The Whole-Brain Child'

I just finished reading The Whole-Brain Child by Daniel J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson.  As being parents themselves, Daniel and Tina give us specific and vivid illustrations of how parents and parents to be can go beyond surviving in day-to-day moments with their children, and can actually help them thrive.   

In The Whole-Brain Child, brain is thought of as being 'social': it is a raw material that can be worked and re-worked, and thus has a tremendous potential for being navigated, trained and nurtured through awareness and human interactions.  In terms of parenting, this perspective could give many of us hope and power, as well as responsibilities, as it could allow us to see how we can actually impact the direction of how our children develop 'right now' and in the future. 

Certainly, brain is an exponential process (not an end result) with unlimited learning potential.  I have become more and more aware of this perspective through actually applying some of their approaches to my time spent with our four-year-old son, while reading the book.  

Whole-brain strategy #1 'connect and redirect', for example, works quite well for me so far and I think is a definitely useful approach to connecting with your children.  It has helped me a lot to deal with my son's (and my own) emotional waves coming from time to time in certain situations, like 'I- don't-want-to-put-the-socks-on' moment and 'I-don't-like-to-eat-dinner' moment.

With their 'connect and redirect' strategy, now I can see what is really happening in my son's mind, especially when he gets upset about something that doesn't make much sense to me.  Previously, I sometime felt like I spent much of my time just disciplining my son and not enjoying just being with him, but now I understand how powerful 'connecting with the right first' can be and how it allows children to use both sides of their brain in a more integrated, coordinated way.  And what is also great about using the approach is that parents can feel more in control of themselves, instead of being controlled by the situation or their emotions.    
Overall, really useful and readable book not only for parents but also for educators.  I totally recommend it and am glad I had the opportunity to read it now, not in 10 years time.  

Click here and here to find out more information about the book.