Women Who Care Hears About Learning Readiness Essentials
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Jackie Gorski-jgorski@timesuniononline.com
Area women recently learned how to become a more caring community for all children through learning readiness.
Dr. Dana Winters, executive director of the Fred Rogers Center, presented six necessitates for learning readiness during United Way Women United’s Women Who Care event Thursday at The Vic downtown Warsaw.
Winters said it came from the most obscure chapter of a book that made no sense Rogers, of “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood,” cowrote in 1983 called “Mr. Rogers Talks With Parents.”
In the book in the chapter on TV, Rogers listed the six necessitates for learning readiness, but never went back to them again.
Winters thought the necessitates for learning readiness were amazing and started reading everything she could about it in the archives of the Fred Rogers Center.
The six necessities are important, not only for children, but also for parents, helpers and community members, she said.
The first necessity is a sense of self-worth.
Winters said for the first time ever, this time last year, the United States declared a national emergency for young people’s mental health.
Winters said she has worked on a college campus for 25 years and this is the worst year she has ever seen from her students. Her seniors were first-year students when the COVID-19 pandemic shut schools down. They had one normal semester of college and it was in their freshman year.
There is an article Rogers wrote where a teacher was quoted saying her students didn’t have any self-worth because they tied their self-worth to what they did as opposed to who they were.
“This isn’t going away,” Winters said.
Right now, young people are struggling to find their self-worth because the older generations are also struggling to find their self-worth.
“But we don’t get to declare a national emergency for us,” she said.
Learning self-worth has to come from somewhere, so it has to start with adults so they can build it up in young people and children. It starts with relationships and coming together like Wednesday’s event. It only happens with relationship with others, she said.
The second is a sense of trust.
She said anything is mentionable if you’re willing to talk. Developing a sense of trust in a child starts with adults being able to have a sense of trust in other people, as well, and talk about what is mentionable so it becomes more manageable in the support of others.
The third necessity of learning readiness is curiosity.
Winters said studies show curiosity declines after a certain point because the structure and instructors of formal school doesn’t always align with natural curiosity.
Adults have to model curiosity for children and embrace the idea of never stop learning and never stop looking for things.
The fourth necessity of learning readiness is the capacity to look and listen carefully.
This requires people to slow down and be present in the quiet moments of life, to listen to another person. Slowing down is “one of the hardest things we can do,” she said.
The inner needs are the same now as when Rogers was alive and Winters said people have to slow down to acknowledge those needs.
The fifth necessity is the capacity to play.
Winters wondered how often adults allow themselves the chance to play, to get dirty and to play with their kids.
Play is how people learn to solve problems and interact with another person, she said. It’s a natural part of “what we do.” Winters said adults should play more.
The last necessity of learning readiness is times of solitude.
There is a difference between a time of solitude and being lonely. The difference is knowing you have a trusted person on the other side who can tell the difference for you, too, she said. She said it’s OK to be quiet with yourself.
She said children may self-exclude from an activity because they need that moment to be alone. She said that’s OK.
Winters asked how adults can help children and young adults. She said it comes from adults. They have to model what is OK. They have to embrace that childhood is a time for setting a foundation for the six necessities so when they get older, it doesn’t seem like so much of a struggle.
During Wednesday’s event, attendees also learned about:
• United Way’s Winter Warmth Bags. It is the second year for the bags.
United Way President Darren Bickel said United Way is partnering with area schools to make sure no one is cold waiting at the bus stop during winter. Bags can be filled with scarfs, hats, gloves, chapstick, a pack of socks and a pack of underwear. Bickel said United Way hopes to fill 400 bags.
Filled bags have to be returned to United Way by Dec. 14.
• After Thanksgiving, Bickel said United Way is going to come out with its final round of its stragetic plan and United Way is going to do an electronic Bright Future Survey for people to fill out. It will allow community member to express their readiness to create change and willingness to volunteer in United Way projects.
