Getting dressed Support your child on the sidelines with corrections if clothes are on backwards or socks are on wrong feet Practice school routines For example: Packing and unpacking bags Refilling water bottles Going to the bathroom unassisted Getting ready to go somewhere on a schedule Putting on, taking off, and hanging up coat and Read More
Blog
I Can Do It Myself
Sometimes the best gift you can give your child is the ability to step back. Supporting children to become self-reliant can be tough for caregivers for multiple reasons, not the least of which is that you can always accomplish tasks faster for them! However, developing independence is huge for school readiness. Teachers often mention self-sufficiency Read More
Starting Kindergarten with a Smile
Is there a 5-year-old in your family? If yes, chances are that child has just headed to kindergarten. Some children sail right into new experiences, places, and groups of children, but there are others who take things a little more slowly, or who have expectations of kindergarten that don’t match up with reality. Even in Read More
For All of Alaska’s Children
I recently was asked if Best Beginnings provides any services outside Anchorage. This person knows Best Beginnings because her child receives books from Anchorage Imagination Library, a program of Best Beginnings. The answer is YES! Our mission statement says “Best Beginnings is a public-private partnership that mobilizes people and resources to ensure all Alaska children Read More
Legislative Update
Many thanks to advocates all over Alaska who helped ensure the needs of young children and their families were not forgotten during the legislative session that ended at midnight Wednesday, May 18! Again this session, Best Beginnings worked with the five other members of the Alaska Early Childhood Advocacy Group* to push for a state Read More
Books About Early Writing
Little Red Writing by Joan Holub (Preschool, School Age) This fractured fairy tale is filled with wordplay and puns while also teaching story structure. We might think we know what happens in this tale, but we’d better make sure to stay on the story path, so we don’t get lost. ▸ Get it at the Library Read More
Ways to Build Early Writing Skills
Reinforcing pre-writing skills can be (and might already be) part of you child’s every day. Have pencils, washable markers, chalk, crayons, and paper where your child can reach it. If you can, have a child sized table for writing and art projects. Talk about the shapes of letters. Practice drawing shapes Encourage your child to Read More
Early Writing
It can be surprising the first time you see your child trying to scribble to imitate how adults write. Scribbling is one pre-writing skill that prepares for your child to learn how to formally write. Generally, children progress through drawing and scribbling before they are able to write strings of letters and made up words. Read More
A Simple Way to “Go Blue” Every Day
Did you “Go Blue” on April 1? April has been designated Child Abuse and Prevention Month, and thousands of Alaskans participated in Go Blue Day to call attention to our state’s high rate of child abuse and neglect – and what we can do to support families and lower that rate. But concern about this Read More
Ways to Prevent Child Abuse
There are lots of things we can do to prevent child abuse. From growing and learning as parents, building our children’s skills, and strengthening our community, here are a few things you can do to help. Reinforce your child’s body awareness Empower children to make decisions about privacy and encourage them to say “no” when Read More
