The 'Power of Growth' in Origami Play (Part 2) | Helping Parents Stay Energetic

Good evening, this is Mizuka.

I am a dad spending every day with my wife and our two daughters, who are almost 5 (in middle nursery school) and 1 year old.

I live a life where I unravel the little snags of daily life with children by writing on note.

The 'Power of Growth' in Origami Play (Part 2)

Well then, today is a continuation from last time,

and I would like to organize the 'power of growth' in children that can be seen through origami play, under the title 'The Power of Growth in Origami Play (Part 2)'.

Previous article below

💡To summarize the 'power of growth' in origami play in one word?💡

As a summary of the previous article,

when a child is playing with origami,
their 'creativity' and 'geometric sense/spatial awareness' are being nurtured right now!

if you can just remember that much, that's OK, was the conclusion.

Let's continue from here~~!

[Second Half] The 'Four Invisible Powers of Growth' That Are Hard to Notice Unless Put Into Words

🧘③ Concentration and Perseverance🧘

When working on origami, children repeatedly challenge themselves, thinking, 'It didn't go well, but let's try folding it again.'

This process is not just play, but can be considered a valuable experience that cultivates the ability to focus, the ability to use trial and error, and the ability to see things through to the end accordingly.

By playing with origami, 'concentration' and 'perseverance' are fostered.

In other words, it can be said that this is 'the ability to see tasks through to the end,' 'the ability to use trial and error,' 'the ability to focus on a task,' and 'the ability to approach goals in small steps', right?

🤝④ Communication Skills🤝

When children make origami, they naturally think, 'I want to show Mom and Dad' or 'I want to give this to a friend.'

Through this experience, it is thought that they can learn the ability to convey their own thoughts and feelings and the joy of interacting with others, and gain experience in teaching and accepting things.

In fact, it can also become an important place to foster the foundations of communication, can't it?

Through origami play, "communication skills" are nurtured.

In other words,this means "expressiveness" and "communication skills," as well as the "ability to enjoy interacting with others," and can also be called the "ability to teach," "ability to help," and "ability to accept feedback." right?

💡 Once again, how would you summarize the "Power of Growth" in origami play in a single phrase? 💡

If we organize what we have covered so far,

when a child is playing with origami,

they are currently nurturing their "creativity," "geometric sense and spatial awareness," "concentration and perseverance," and "communication skills"!

If you can be conscious of that, that's a good start, I suppose.

Connection to the Future

The "four invisible powers of growth" nurtured by origami play that are hard to notice unless put into words.

① Creativity ② Geometric sense and spatial awareness ③ Concentration and perseverance ④ Communication skills

Now, let's take a step further and think from the perspective ofwhat kind of future these powers will lead to for children.

What kind of growth in children does it involve,and what kind of life situations does it connect to?

🧑‍🎓 The near future: How does it connect to academic and social life as a student?

【Academic Aspect】

• The "geometric sense and spatial awareness" cultivated through origami will likely become the foundation for geometry problems in math and science, and 3D expression in arts and crafts.

• "Concentration and perseverance" is considered to be useful for steady, repetitive learning such as practicing kanji, calculations, and studying for tests.

[Social Life Aspect]

• The experience of enjoying origami with friends is thought to lead to an attitude of cooperation and mutual support among peers.

• The experience of teaching others, such as saying "fold it like this," is useful in situations involving explanation or presentations to friends, leading to confidence in self-expression and communication.

• The "ability to innovate" and "attitude of taking on challenges" have the potential to blossom in situations where one expresses their own ideas, such as independent research projects or school festivals.

👩 The Future Ahead: How does it connect to a happy life as a working adult?

[Work and Challenge Aspect]

• "Creativity" is demonstrated in situations involving new projects or problem-solving.

• The "ability to use trial and error" and "ability to try again after failure" will likely be a great support when facing work or new challenges.

• "Perseverance" becomes useful in situations where one continues to put in effort, such as long-term projects or certification exams.

[Life and Human Relations Aspect]

• The "sense of ingenuity" cultivated through origami leads to the ability to create one's own sense of comfort in daily life, such as in cooking, tidying up, or hobbies.

• "Communication skills" will enrich relationships with colleagues and family, serving as a foundation for building trust.

• "Self-efficacy," built by accumulating small successful experiences, becomes a feeling that "I can do it," which supports an attitude of enjoying life positively.

The time spent folding origami right now,

supports learning during student years and interactions with others,

It becomes a strength that will support them throughout their adult lives.

I feel like I've begun to see that kind of connection.

Because children are surely accumulating 'the power to connect to the future'.

What are our children playing with? How are they playing? These are things that we parents surely think about at least once every day.

We gather various information, feeling reassured by thinking, 'Oh, so this kind of play is good!'

Or, we immediately start feeling a bit uneasy again, wondering, 'Wait, why was this play good again?'

We might try to force ourselves to be convinced by saying, 'Well, it'll be useful in various ways in the future, right! Everyone recommends it!'

Just when we think we've had that moment of clarity,

when we ourselves are sleep-deprived or lacking in patience, we might reach a point where we think,

'As long as they play quietly without making a mess, anything is fine!'

Don't you often feel that way too?

Honestly, I have quite a lot of those moments myself.

But when we carefully look at the strengths nurtured through origami play in this way,

we realize that children are surely accumulating 'the power to connect to the future' through their daily play.

When we parents look at our children playing,

By being able to feel a solid connection to the future and
remaining in a state of peace of mind,

"You folded that origami so well."

"That's an interesting idea," and

you gain the composure to gently scoop up those moments.

I believe such a virtuous cycle exists.

I hope this note, in which I thought about the 'power of growth' in origami play this time,

will lead toincreasing the time you spend happily and peacefully with the child in front of you.I hope it helps.

I will continue to summarize other types of play in the future.

↓ I reflected on my experience of posting on note for about a month.
If you are facing note in your own way but are feeling a little tired, please take a read.

↑ This is an article I wrote a little while ago where I thought about various things regarding children's happiness.
Please take a read if you'd like.