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"I believe by staying curious and enthusiastic about the world ourselves, we will help our kids be openly curious and enthusiastic," blogger Samantha, from 'Walking Outside in Slippers,' told Bored Panda.
"When we visit museums as a family, for example, I always ask lots of questions and my children do the same. When we travel, my husband and I demonstrate excitement for the new sights, experiences and even food. This is an amazing world, and I want my children to always appreciate that," she said.
Bored Panda wanted to get Samantha's take on how some parents could approach their kids' disinterest in certain school subjects. "I figure my kids won't love every assignment at school. That's just how it goes. I still loathe math. But I try to help them power through school homework assignments they don't want to do," she shared with us.
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"I will sit with them and we go through it together in case they have questions. If they hate the task, there's a good chance that's because it doesn't come easy to them (like me with math!). And there will definitely be a special sweet treat of their choice at the end," she revealed some of the strategies that she uses.
The mom also opened up about the homework situation in her family. "My daughter who is 6 has much more regular homework than my son who is 10. Most of her homework is on a tablet, though, which makes it easier to knock out. I make sure she completes her assignments, but fortunately she has gotten pretty independent about doing the homework herself," she said.
"My son's teacher usually only assigned homework if there was something he didn't finish in school. Which I am grateful for because I hate homework!"
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The TIL community has been a powerhouse since its founding in late December of 2008. It has a very high bar on quality, and demands that people post verified information, backed up by sources. If it’s iffy, it’ll get weeded out by the moderators and the community. Reputable sources are king, as far as the ‘Today I Learned’ sub is involved.
However, underneath all the fact-checking lies something even more important—the desire to learn, no matter how young or old the person might be. TIL is all about sparking curiosity in people, helping educate them, and proving that the world is far more complex, bizarre, and interesting than we tend to give it credit for in our day-to-day lives.
Recently, Alan Castel, Ph.D., a UCLA psychology professor and the author of 'Better with Age: The Psychology of Successful Aging,' spoke to Bored Panda about people’s curiosity, cognition, and how to maintain the sharpness of our minds as we age.
"Our awareness of our own cognitive ability and knowledge is called metacognition. Often as we get older, we are more aware of what we know, what we don’t know, and also what we are most interested in. I think being selective can be important so that we can focus on remembering and being curious about what interests us," he told us.
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"Also, having some sense of awe is also associated with curiosity, happiness, and life satisfaction, while also making us care more about others and the world in general. I think metacognition and awe can make us more curious about the things that are important to us, especially as we get older," the professor shared with Bored Panda that a sense of awe can, in fact, make us happier.
"Research shows that physical exercise such as walking can improve brain function and memory, and being socially connected has widespread benefits for the brain," he noted that moving lots and having an active social life helps our minds.
"Thus, it is likely a combination of things that keep us sharp, such as being physically active, talking to people, reading, being connected, and remaining curious about things that are important."
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