In the cooperative preschool in Seattle that Teacher Tom runs (together with the parents of the kids who attend), children are encouraged to take risks. ‘If I were the king of the world, I’d make every parent sign a waiver that said: Childhood is an inherently risky activity and I acknowledge this. I won’t hold anybody responsible for any injuries but myself and my kid,’ Teacher Tom says. This is a pretty good summary of his position when it comes to kids, play and development, and it’s one of the things we love best about him and his work: Teacher Tom doesn’t treat children like fragile objects, or lumps of clay to be molded, or wild animals to be tamed. Instead, he respects them. It shouldn’t be revolutionary, but it kind of is!

In his videos for ParentTV, Teacher Tom gives heaps of examples that illustrate how his approach works in practice. Kids learn their limits by pushing them. They climb trees, get dirty, build stuff out of other stuff in their junkyard playground and learn communication skills on the fly. They fall over, get hurt and recover. They hurt each other, take things from each other, and learn from it. Teacher Tom has legions of fans all over the world who have seen for themselves how these ideas give children the space they need to become adaptable, thriving, critical thinkers.

For the ParentTV book, Parents, this is the one thing you need to know, Teacher Tom wrote a chapter called The curse of the Thunder Burp Machine Gun. It’s not a Paul Jennings-style story about a kid roaming the neighbourhood with a gun that shoots the noxious gases of their own burps (although, Paul, you should probably write this disgusting tale, kids would LOVE it). Instead, Teacher Tom writes about a topic that is close to the hearts (and wallets) of parents everywhere: Toys, and why kids need far fewer than we might think. It’s particularly pertinent at this time of year when their apparently sought-after Christmas presents have already been abandoned. Sound familiar? 

Notable quotable:

Traditional playgrounds are too safe. When we build playgrounds like this, we teach children not to assess their own risk. When all the risk is built out of a playground, children get bored pretty easily.

Teacher Tom

We recommend this top video from Teacher Tom:

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We’ve got a lot of excellent videos on the ParentTV site, from a lot of experts with a lot of knowledge and understanding between them. While many people like to dip in and check out videos about what’s happening with their kids at the time, we also thought it might be handy to get our experts to give us just ONE piece of advice each – the ONE thing they want parents to know, above all else. Then, we put it all in a book! Sound interesting?

For a limited time only, all new subscribers to ParentTV will receive a free copy of Parents, this is the one thing you need to know, edited by ParentTV’s own Sam Jockel and Kerri Ryan. Click here to sign up!