DOUBLE TAP TO ZOOM WITH PHONE OR TABLET TAKING YOUR TIME In the movie Star Wars, Obi Wan Kanobi says to Luke Skywalker, “You have taken your first step into a larger world.” This statement also rings true for us as we start our journey leading into the world of child-centered teaching. More than likely, you will not read this book and say, “That’s it! I did it! I’m so child-centered!” The journey takes time. It involves a lot of self exploration. We must examine the ideas, values, attitudes, likes, dislikes, etc, that we bring along with us. Becoming child-centered means questioning, reading, examining, challenging, and rethinking what we have always been doing. Take baby steps. If you do too much too soon you will get frustrated. If some of the activities and philosophical concepts presented in this book are new for you, do not start changing everything on Monday morning! Take your time. Don’t rush it. At the same time, if you find you are doing something right now that you just can’t believe you’ve been doing, and you say to yourself, “Oh my gosh I can’t believe that I do that!” and you want to stop doing it, then do just that, STOP it. Don’t feel guilty, just cut it out! If I continued to brood about all the years I said things like, “sit-still-be- quiet-hands-home-get-in-line-inside-voices-stop-running-get-out-of-the- water” I’d be miserable. I refer to my first few years of teaching, as “before I knew better.” Give yourself permission to change your mind. COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL 17