Prior to retirement, Dr. Sally Goldberg was a colleague of mine. We ran various workshops together at the YMCA, Bookman's Bookstore and in mom's groups. The majority of our workshops were early childhood literacy-focused but we shared numerous other interests including the topic of self esteem.

Dr. Sally had come up with an idea years ago that included a fish net, clothesline clips and artwork. She called this highly affordable project the "Educational Display Kit."

During her parenting coach days, Sally coached various parents on the need to build a positive home environment. She would state that "misbehavior" is often "misguided behavior" and would offer tips for redirecting negative child behaviors. One of the ways to do this, Sally believed, was through the self esteem nets.

By hanging the net in a central location in the home, the artwork and drawings can be displayed. Any time visitors stop by, the net can be pointed out and the parent can draw attention to the creativity, colors, hard work put in, etc.

When Dr. Sally retired she passed a large portion of her educational materials over to me. Today I decided to hang an art net and begin testing out this project with my daughter. Immediately she wanted to know what was going on. What was the net all about? Why were we hanging it up? What would go on the net?

We hung two of her recent paintings on the net and as soon as she realized what was happening, she asked if she could please create more.

We pulled down her big box of coloring items and she set out to create more pieces for her net:

So far, so good. The net certainly seems to have boosted her self esteem right from the get-go. I imagine it will continue to reinforce the 'mood' as we add art pieces during the holiday season.

This could be done at home or at school. Preschool teachers might also like the idea of hanging a Classroom Net, proudly displaying their student's work.

Thank you for the idea, Dr. Sally. You may have retired but your lessons and insights live on.

ABOUT the Author:

Shara Lawrence-Weiss is the owner of Mommy Perks, Personal Child Stories, Early Childhood News and Resources and Kids Perks. She has a background in education, early childhood, nanny work, published freelance, marketing and special needs.