How Parents Can Inspire Kids to Love Learning and Stay Curious

Wed, 27 May 2026 08:30:00 -0700

Kids are born curious.

They don't need to be taught how — they need adults who know when to get out of the way.

From the moment children can reach and grab and ask "why," they are already learning. The impulse to explore, probe, test, and question is as natural as hunger. The problem isn't that kids lose curiosity — it's that adults, often with the best intentions, interrupt it.

Parents, teachers, coaches, older siblings — most of us have a habit of stepping in to teach, redirect, or "help" at the exact moment a child is figuring something out on their own. The lesson lands, but the spark dims a little each time. What kids need most isn't a better curriculum or a smarter schedule. They need adults who recognize that curiosity is already running — and who resist the urge to take over the wheel.

Key Takeaways

Model curiosity by asking questions, exploring answers together, and showing that learning is part of everyday life.
Create simple parent-child learning activities that feel playful, low pressure, and easy to start today.
Support motivation by focusing on effort and growth, helping kids feel safe to try and improve.
Encourage engagement by following your child’s interests and letting them help guide what to learn next.

UNDERSTANDING CURIOSITY-LED LEARNING

Curiosity-driven learning is when a child’s questions lead the way, and learning happens because they genuinely want to know. That matters because curiosity is a basic element of cognition, so feeding it supports how kids think and grow. Your role is less “teacher” and more steady guide who shows up consistently.

When kids...Read More

Maximize Your Limited Practice Time

Sun, 26 Apr 2026 18:10:00 -0700

NOTE: This post is intended for intermediate to advanced players. For a novice still building a basic motor pattern, too much variability too early can disrupt the ability to acquire a basic swing motion.

THE WEEKEND GOLFER'S SNAG

Most golfers don’t have as much time as they wish to practice improving and maintaining their games. Even if you do, the approach in this post can optimize your time spent elevating your skills. More benefit in less time—right on!

How you practice is a major key to maximizing your time and gains. You can "juice" your productivity when you do get some practice time in. How? Assuming you’ve made a wise decision as to what to practice, the answer is: involving yourself actively in each repetition.

GO ALL IN

Your practice can and should be an active process. By active I mean engaged. Being more deeply engaged usually leads to greater awareness of what you are doing in the moment. In being fully engaged and present on each repetition, you generate greater understanding (and skill).

Problem solving is an excellent way to be and stay engaged. Practice is more effective when you repeat the process of problem-solving rather than simply repeating a movement. By making each repetition a problem-solving exercise, you assimilate more of the movement you’re practicing.

Research shows that introducing variability can significantly accelerate learning the time it takes to acquire a new motor movement by slightly varying the movement. This keeps your brain more engaged throughout the learning process. Only subtle variations are needed to achieve a greater gain in less time. Simple. And awesome.

You could, for example alter one parameter per shot---ball position, weight distribution at address, tempo, intent (e.g., "hit a low fade" vs....Read More

Gerry Benton Golf

How Parents Can Inspire Kids to Love Learning and Stay Curious

Maximize Your Limited Practice Time