What does your child’s passion for animals, airplanes, or sports have to do with kindergarten readiness? Well, when your kiddo becomes obsessed by something, it means they want to talk about it, read about it, play games involving it. Following your child’s interest not only sparks their thirst for knowledge and interest in learning (and Read More
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Ways to Get Sensory
Ways to engage your child’s five senses: Talk about your different sense together and practice using them Try a sensory warm up (i.e. rub your hands together before playing with mud, playdough, etc.) Spend time outdoors to experience sights, sounds, smells, and textures Look for experiences that use multiple senses together Be aware if your Read More
Let’s Get Sensory!
This month we are challenging you to up your sensory play! Without a doubt, your family already plays together in a way that stimulates your child’s senses of taste, touch, smell, hearing, and sight. When children use their senses while playing, there is a greater potential for connections to be made between experiences and new Read More
Books About Early Math
Lia & Luís: Who Has More? by Ana Crespo (Preschool) Anyone who has a sibling knows the experience of making sure things are equal. Lia and Luís are twins who share and play together, but every so often they have a conflict. Today they wonder which twin has “more” of their snack. They use different Read More
Early Math Activities
Here are some suggestions for practicing math throughout the day. Counting Teach the concept of one when shopping or playing with objects Have some fun with counting songs and rhymes Predictions and Estimating When waiting in the car while a caregiver goes into a store, ask your child to guess how many people will come Read More
Ways to Practice Early Math
Literacy and math have a lot more in common than you think! Here are ways you can nurture the foundations of math. § Count everything together all day long § Name shapes (i.e. STOP signs are octagons because they have eight sides) § Create patterns together § Play with building blocks and puzzles; with preschoolers, also play board/card games Read More
Let’s Talk About Math!
Ever thought: “I’m not a math person”? No matter your confidence level, you can still teach your child early math skills. Young children are able to learn more complicated things than you realize. Numbers are only one part of the equation. Children don’t need calculus, but they do need to learn about counting, patterning, comparing, Read More
Activities to Help Prevent Child Abuse
These activities aim to teach body awareness, social emotional skills, communication, and helping others. This is part of our series on National Child Abuse Prevention Month, as we explore the steps parents can take to help build protective factors that prevent child abuse. Babies Body Awareness | Birth-6 months Babies discover different body parts and become Read More
Books that Prevent Child Abuse
These book recommendations are part of our series surrounding National Child Abuse Prevention Month. By teaching children about consent, body awareness, and safety we can better protect them from abuse. C is for Consent by Eleanor Morrison (Toddler, Preschool) This book follows expert recommendations about letting kids make their own decisions regarding physical affection. The book Read More
Springtime Playtime
It looks like we can finally stop asking this question: “Is it Spring yet?” With spring-like temperatures across the state (low 50s in Anchorage, low 20s in Utqiaqvik, and 50s in Juneau), it’s time to think about getting kids outside for warmer weather activities. Did you know the new “Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans” says Read More