Children learn by doing things. Sometimes this means that children get messy and dirty while they are learning. Let them play, discover, learn, and get dirty. They are washable, and they will learn skills that will enhance their lives. Learning through play makes and education fun and memorable.

If you are a perfectionist, the previous paragraph probably gave you chills to think about, so bear with me and keep reading.

The main issue you have with letting your children play and get messy is that you don’t want to deal with one more mess. My children have daily clothes that they can play in and get dirty in. They wear clothes they can paint in and play in. If they get really dirty, and let’s face it – boys can do that easily, they just drop their dirty clothes straight in the washer. It is really not a big deal if they play outside and get dirty.

When they get messy inside when painting, doing crafts, or cooking, we work together to clean up any mess that is made. We wash hands frequently. We use aprons. We wipe counters and sweep floors. Really, with team work, it does not take long to clean up.

The rewards of their creative play are many. They are engaging different parts of their brain when they are doing creative activities. They are learning about the world around them and how things work. They are learning that somethings do not work as they think it will. They learn science and math concepts through messy playtime. They relax and think about the deeper concepts you have been teaching them.

If you do not let your children have messy playtime, try it this week. Let me know how it goes.

Your Zone Mission today is to declutter the Entryway.

Your Home Blessing for today is to declutter paper and magazines.

My menu plan for Thursday is chicken stir fry and veggies.

Have a wonderful day!