Inside Skills are Survival Skills

My children have the uncanny ability of very randomly asking a question or making a statement that flips my perspective on something. The other night, as she was getting ready to fall asleep, my daughter said “Mom I have an idea for the Inside Squad. I think you should make them be animals. Like Curiosity could be Everly (our pet bunny) when she’s exploring a new space, and Perseverance could be a baby bird learning to fly.” Strangely, up until that point I hadn’t actually made the connection that humans aren’t the only living creatures who exhibit many of the skills we included in the inside squad.

It’s not just humans that have these abilities, these skills. Many creatures have many of these skills, because they help us survive. They help us as we interact with ourselves and others, and adapt to change. For animals, this can often be the difference between life and death. If a baby bird doesn’t learn how to fly, they will not survive. A chameleon’s ability to change its skin to match its surroundings is an adaptation (adaptability) that helps it survive. In today’s world it may not be a life or death situation for us to become adept at these skills, but it will certainly help us enjoy life more fully. Doing the exercises in the book with your kids, and making “inside skills” a part of your conversations at home will help them out in the real world, in much the same way that lionesses teach their cubs to hunt with playful practice.

In that spirit - how about a little playful practice with your kids? Can you name an animal for each inside skill? There are no wrong answers, remember: the conversation is more important than whether you get them all “right”. Seeing and being able to name traits in others (even animals) can help us identify those things in ourselves.