Who Moved My Cheese
Written by: Teresa Jacobs-Castano
As children are transitioning back to school or to another classroom/program, we want to support them and help them prepare for the expected changes that occur on the first day of school or pre-school. Who Moved My Cheese for Kids: An A-mazing Way to Manage Change and Win, written by Spencer Johnson, is a great children’s book that provides helpful suggestions to navigate change. In the book, four mice; Sniff, Scurry, Hem and Haw navigate their way through a maze to find magical cheese but manage the process very differently. As Haw, moves through the process of change he writes the following statement on the wall,
“Having Cheese Makes You Happy”
Haw’s handwriting on the wall starts by recognizing that when we are getting our needs met in a safe, familiar environment it feels comfortable. However, environments change, and this disrupts our sense of contentment. In the book the four mice eat all the cheese at the first station and have very different emotional reactions to their circumstance. Sniff and Scurry had been paying attention and were not surprised when the cheese ran out. Hem and Haw decide to wait for the cheese to come back and were afraid to go back in the maze. Haw writes the following statements when he finally decides to embrace the circumstances and change:
What would you do if you weren’t afraid?
When you stop being afraid you feel good.
The sooner you let go of the old cheese, the sooner you find new cheese.
Imaging new cheese helps you find it.
Smell the cheese often so you know when it’s getting old.
Move to the new cheese and enjoy it!
If we identify what changes may be occurring for our children, they will have less fear. Normalizing emotions associated with change will assist them in coping and allows us the opportunity to name what emotions they are experiencing. The more information we have available and can provide to children the less anxiety they will experience. We can help them get excited about the their new experiences. Like the handwriting on the wall throughout the maze. If children express that they are afraid of going to class or moving to a new teacher, we can help them feel safer by being with them when they meet their teacher or giving them examples of how emotions change over time. For example, the first day everything is new so all people get nervous, but after you go to the class for several days it won’t feel as new and you will feel different. When children have options and skills to manage their emotions, they will experience less fear and be able to visualize how they want to handle something. You might be able to help them imagine meeting new friends and visualize the first day being very exciting.
Talk with your children about noticing what they really like in the classroom and express how excited you are to talk with them about their day when you come and get them. These are all various ways you can help your children learn to manage change and develop coping skills to move through emotions.
Link to story time for this book: https://youtu.be/Qq0ADshJXFQ