The "Kid App"
Posted on February 18, 2014 by Daniel Brown, One of Thousands of Life Coaches on Noomii.
How we as teachers, parents, mentors and life coaches understand children at their deepest level. A guide to intuitive communication with young people
My wife likes to joke that she has the “Dan App” meaning that she gets me on levels no one else does, not even members of my birth family. Because this app, she can meet me on deep levels, soothe my fears, champion my abilities and generally be a strong support through the joys and challenges of life. My prayer is to be the same for her.
For those of us who have been around children, professionally or otherwise, we have the “Kid App”. This gives us the rare ability to understand them on soulful levels and earn their trust as those who love, guide, respect and encourage them. There is a sure-fire way to know if you have the “kid App”. If kids naturally gravitate towards you, you have it. You might notice this form of magnetic attraction at family gatherings, social events or just meeting the offspring of people who have either dated or married into your circle of friends and family. Out of nowhere, some 9-year-old might sidle up to you and engage you in a conversation which takes you down some intriguing and unexpected avenues. You in turn will find yourself talking to them as if with ba peer. Never in that “talking down” voice adults use with kids. But as equals and as someone who is wholeheartedly interested in what young people have to say. Once connected, it is an awe-inspiring experience to hear insights of deep wisdom coming out of small bodies.
This is not a fluke. I have been in many circles with kids in both traditional and alternative settings. The first was in a tipi where I discussed such diverse topics as survival issues, Native American culture and animal habits with kids as young as six. In my classroom, I would share ethical dilemmas taken from the news headlines (like the Rodney King episode as it unfolded) and present them to my 5th graders who would then share astute observations of their own.
My niece followed suit. At age nine, her heroes, Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears were both in the news, melting down and behaving badly for all their tween fans to see. Lucy (not her real name) was curious why so she and I spend an afternoon weighing the price of fame and media adulation. In the course of the conversation, I don’t recall “teaching” her anything. She understood in her own way and even offered them her admonition to get their acts together.
She reinforced that when you give kids a chance they surprise you. When you have the “Kid App”, you’ll never surprise them.
