Review: ‘The Pondering Preschooler’

The Pondering Preschooler by Kristi Groth and Wanda Jarchow ($5.95, 116 pages, Pondering Preschooler) and The Pondering Preschooler: Faith & Fruits by Wanda Jarchow ($5.95, 94 pages, Pondering Preschooler).

Preschoolers are full of questions about the world. Now, we adults, with the help of these two books, can turn the tables on them and get them to thinking with some of our own questions.

The first Pondering Preschooler focuses on questions that range from the mundane to the whimsical: What song do you like to sing the most? Would you rather ride on a train or on a motorcycle? What is your favorite thing to put on bread? Who is someone you could talk to about everything? If all the food you ate had to be the same color, what color would it be?

As the introduction says, the idea is to get preschoolers to “share their ideas, opinions and thoughts” in order to help them as they grow up into unique individuals. Thinking about their answers and giving them also helps young ones develop their mind, creativity and emotions.

The second volume gets preschoolers to think about questions of faith, but several of the questions are accompanied by answers hoped for and Bible verses to back up those answers. For example, the question “If your brother or sister were to hurt you, what would you do?” is followed by the comment “The Bible says we should not try to get even, but be kind to those who hurt us,” with a citation of 1 Peter 3:9 (“Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing”). That allows the adult “an opportunity to share truth,” according to the introduction.

“The early years are so very important,” Wanda writes. “This is when the spiritual cups of children are ready to be filled.”

Best to fill them with truth from the Word of God, and get them thinking about it.

And thinking is what these two books are all about.

Wanda Jarchow is a member of Samaritan Ministries.