It goes without saying that parenting means educating your child with the idea of him or her becoming independent and prepared for the society to live in. It is also more or less common that parents have a tendency to work to make both ends meet, thus all sorts of nannys and preschools often replace the parent in this important function. I know it is hard, the weekend or the evening seems like it is the time to spend for yourself, but I am calling you to spend time with your kids. They crave your attention, there is noone in the whole world like you for them and the "absorbtion" rate from you is going to be way much higher than from a random nanny. Here is what I try doing.
Spending Time with Kids
Talk to them, let them talk to you and listen. You will learn. I listened to my older kid since he started talking around 2+ and it is fascinating. We just take walks and talk. Often he would like me to tell a story and then would tell a story of his own, say about a whale or a snake. There used to be a time when he won't go to bed without a new story involving Bob the Builder characters, I think I could really make some money selling the stories my wife and I came up with. Now he knows way more than I do on a variety of subjects, and talking to him is also educating. I also cherrish the fact that he shares with me and I would like to keep it for as long as I can. Finally, tell them what you know but try forming it as a question so that they get a chance to think and find it interesting, e.g. what is lightning? how does the eletric power appears in the outlet? why the wooden log keeps afloat? and how hot is the Sun?
It may be the case that you are not into physics, no problem, talk about anything that interests you but make sure that the interest is mutual. Here is a couple of problems I drew and solved with my kid when he was 5+. Note they were not too difficult but he appreciated me taking time to draw in front of him, he suggested the colors, figure placements and word spellings, etc. In the end, he solved them all easily and we both left happy. One cannot really overestimate the importance of drawing or in general modelling the situation when solving math or algebra problems with kids.
Take them outdoors to do whatever. It is amazing how much interests them, how many detail they pick where everything seems "as usual" to us. My kids noticed the smallest caterpillars and worms after the rain, the shadows, they sniffed every pretty flower they saw, they looked at ants and tried catching the butterfly etc. etc. Just be there with them to share. Amazing thing is that I can even draw some of the things I have seen with my kids, as they are very well into drawing. Now I have never been but am still taking a stub :-).
Go in for some sport activity with them, always much more fun together. The key there I guess as in many places that they don't necessarily feel that you are much better than them and you praise them for anything they do well. Further encourage them that repetition and training will do its miracle job, and next time is always going to be better. This could be one of those places where you will need to learn perhaps even more than them.
As one of my friends uses to say "It is 10 pm, you put them all to bed and you realize, finally, you earned it, YOUR time, but then, an immediate thought to follow, like a cold shower, I cannot move to do anything for MYSELF, just fell right there and sleep." This pretty much describes exactly how I feel most of the time but then, as they say in Russia "there is 'I want' and then there is 'I have to'", so my wife has to finish her dissertation while I have to do the dishes and, for fun, write these pages.
