“This force that we call love is the greatest energy in the universe.”
Maria Montessori
Beyond food and shelter, a child’s most basic human need is for strong emotional connections. The essence of these connections is love. By helping young children to identify those individuals with whom they have established a strong, secure, loving bond we offer them a sense of security. The heart is the power tool which enables us to create and maintain these connections! Teaching to revisit the way they feel when they are together with those they love most, even when they are not physically present, is both comforting and empowering. When children feel supported by loving attachments they can build upon them and form what experts refer to as a “connected childhood.”
The Invisible String is an absolutely perfect tool for initiating a conversation with young children about these all-important social-emotional bonds!
“You don’t need to see the Invisible String. People who love each other are always connected by a very special String made of Love.”
“But if you can’t see it, how do you know it’s there?” asked Liza.
“Even though you can’t see it with your eyes, you can feel it with your heart and know that you are always connected to everyone you love.”
The Invisible String
Not only does evoking these “feeling memories” offer almost instant stress relief, it helps the children to connect to their hearts and move into a state of “heart-brain coherence”. This state of balanced awareness, calm and heightened appreciation is an optimal state for learning… rich with insight and creativity!
Just for fun… grab some fishing line and create an “Invisible String”- Board at home. Place a photo of your child in the center, linked by invisible strings to photos of all those with whom they feel a special loving bond! Add to and visit the Board frequently… paying a visit to loved ones, by closing your eyes, placing your hands on your heart and rekindling those all important “feeling memories”!