If your child has a constant questioning of “why” something happens, well you should give them an answer. Some weird questions they may ask might be “Why are flowers so pretty?” or “Why is the sky blue?” By answering your child’s questions, parents or caretakers take up a vital role in a child’s learning. Research has proven that the more motivated children are to learn early in life, the more likely they will be successful later. In Fullerton, there was a 30-year project known as the Fullerton Longitudinal Study, and this study as found out that children who were especially curious and enjoyed learning scored high on standard tests, were more likely to stay in school and were more likely to go to graduate school than their less curious peers.
As such, parents can play a vital role in influencing a child’s learning journey, which is essential for many children. Therefore, the most important thing parents can do to cultivate their child’s learning is to answer questions in a way such that the child feels satisfied and motivated to ask more questions in the future. One example is if your child asks you why they need to study, instead of saying “because I said so” you can tell him, “Because to get a job in the future you need to study hard”.
Currently, many parents are finding themselves being shot at with such questions every day. Most children are curious and love to ask questions. However, whether they keep that curiosity and keep asking questions depends on how their parents respond.
One way parents can promote learning is that instead of your child asking you the question you can ask your own questions. For example, if your child is playing with a magnet, ask what other materials can stick to the magnet. This takes awhile to get used to, however, it's helpful to your child’s learning.
Parents should cultivate their children’s learning habits through answering their questions wholeheartedly. Parents should also avoid “because I said so” type of answers as it can leave their children feeling sad and disheartened. With that said it is safe to say that answering your children does help to cultivate a better learning experience for you child.
References
Chaudhary, N. (2020, March 27). If Your Kid Keeps Asking 'Why,' Give Them an Answer. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/27/parenting/kids-asking-questions-development.html