Dates of Closure in  2012:

   May 28th – July 2nd thru 6th  -  Sept 3rd  -  Oct 8th 

  Nov 12th, 22nd & 23rd – Dec 24 @ 2p.m. & Dec 25

 Parent Parties

 Preschool Graduation – June 1st 11a.m.

  Happy Birthday

  Miss Monica – Infant 2 – 11th

 Gabrielle – Preschool East – 18th

 Soraya – Toddler 1 – 21st

 Varick – Preschool East – 22nd

 Christopher – Infant 2 – 22nd

 Miss Edna – 23rd

 Tatum – Preschool 1 – 23rd

 Christian – Preschool West – 24th

 Jennifer – Preschool East – 25th

 Charlotte – Infant 1 – 27th

 Currey – Preschool West – 29th

 Elijah – Toddler 1 – 30th

 A Message from the Director

              The birthday party for Dr. Seuss was such great fun! Miss Kim & Miss Lori organized the ideas & supplies; then everyone else joined in to  make sure the children had fun & success when attempting every game. By the looks on parent faces, you were having fun, too! The toddler parents are to be especially commended for how long you stayed at the party!  For us, these events are a reminder that young children still enjoy simple things & are easily entertained.  Before the party began, I saw several of the Preschool West children with their mouths hanging open in disbelief. “I just saw the Cat in the Hat in the hall!” “No, sir. The Cat in the Hat isn’t real.” Then there was another flurry of conversation as something skittered by their door again. “It is the Cat in the Hat!” “Is the Cat in the Hat a boy or a girl?” “It’s a cat!” At least they were occupied as they waited for the party to begin & parents to arrive. There were so many of you who participated with your child; we really do appreciate the effort & helping us to make the connection between school & home, teachers & parents.

 In classrooms around the center . . .

        If you know Miss April, you know she loves science! Her enthusiasm for science related activities easily transforms our children into young explorers. Each month on Wednesdays, Miss April visits a different classroom in the preschool wing with an exciting presentation. It all started in February. Miss April talked about charts and graphing as a scientific tool to show data and information. The students were busy graphing family members, checking their hypothesis of having more girls or boys in the class, and organizing themselves into a bar graph based on what kind of shoe they were wearing. Children tried to use their experience with charts in play and wanted to graph the number of boys and girls in the center. After finding out that there were a hundred and five children at Clever Kids, they decided to stick with the division of gender at the lunch tables within their classrooms.

 In March, the focus of scientific discoveries was Air! The children learned that air can move things, take up space, and that hot air goes up while cold air goes down. It was fascinating to watch them explore how air moved tissues around the room via a fan, and hear them giggle as they made the ping-pong balls float in the air using a hairdryer and warm air. With amazement they watched hot air fill a balloon and then soar to the ceiling only to cool off and float back down. Learning about the air turned out to be tasty too as the children sampled air popped popcorn.

 In the months to come we will keep you updated on the new experiments and discoveries Miss April has up her sleeve and in what fun way she presented them to the children.

 Week of the Young Child    

             The Week of the Young Child is from April 23 to 27 this year.  Starting many years ago, a week was  designated by the National Association for the Education of Young Children  (NAEYC) to acknowledge that early childhood is a unique period in children’s lives. There was a focus on educating the general public about what elements should be present in a quality early childhood program. They emphasized that programs for young children should not be designed to be “school.”  They also emphasized that teachers and the relationships they have with young children are the key element in creating a positive early childhood experience. This is the time of year that always seems appropriate to recognize how long so many of our staff members have been enriching the lives of our clever kids. In the year 2012, Deb and Nikki L. celebrate 19 years with Clever Kids. Iwona has been here 18 years with Michelle and Meg following close behind with 16.  Georgia has given us 14 years of service. And as you might have heard at your own dinner table, nobody cooks like our Edna has been doing for the last 13 years; it’s the longest she’s stayed in one kitchen! Jennifer and April celebrate 11 years and Heather 9. Monica M. arrived 8 years ago. Nicole and Lisa have been building relationships for 6. Sharon, Ava and Sue have accumulated 5 years in 2012. Nikki C. has been here 4 years, Kathy celebrates 3, with Kim and Ali close behind with 2.  Sometime during 2012, Lori , Monica T. and Amanda reach the one year milestone. Miss Kristen just joined us but already has connections with the closing room crowd in particular. We are grateful  to each and every staff member for the effort they put in to the relationships and the program they create throughout the center. We have a special dinner planned for our teaching staff on April 25 to honor them for their dedication to their profession in general & to Clever Kids in particular.

 Going to Kindergarten

             If your child will be leaving our program to go to kindergarten in August of 2012, you are going to want to mark your calendars for the graduation ceremony scheduled for June 1st beginning at 11:00 a.m.. All children from the Preschool North, East and West classrooms are welcome to attend with their family members.  You will get more details and reminders between now and June 1st, but we wanted you to get this on your calendar now! We know it’s a milestone for many of you having your first child, or maybe your youngest, enter kindergarten.

 Geodes

             Are you one of our geology type parents? Or are you married to one or have one as a relative? We are looking for geodes to use for the science centers in all classrooms.  If you can donate one or more, and demonstrate how to open them, we would love to hear from you! 

 Trike-A-Thon

 This is one event that the preschool classrooms look forward to year after year! What’s not to love about bringing your own tricycle to school and riding in circles with your friends?! The trike-a-thon is another event along the lines of the food drive that ended last month. We want our clever kids to know that there are other children out there and we are just part of a larger community.  Sometimes other children are lacking the same things we have, like food. Sometimes other children are not as healthy as we are and need to live for awhile in a hospital  That’s what the trike-a-thon is all about. It benefits the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital  located in Memphis, Tennessee. The hospital was founded in 1962 by the late entertainer, Danny Thomas when the survival rate for children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) was only 4 %. Fifty years later, the survival rate is 90 %thanks to research and treatment protocols developed at St. Jude’s.  Every cent raised by your donations to the trike-a-thon is sent to St. Jude’s. If your child is enrolled in the Preschool North, East or West classrooms, he or she is welcome to participate by bringing a tricycle from home. Pledge forms for tax-deductible donations will be available several weeks before the trike-a-thon begins with all the details about how to make pledges and when to collect the money.  Your child may bring a tricycle even if you do not get donations.  The trike-a-thon is scheduled for Thursday, May 10, 2012. In the week leading up to the event, the children learn about riding toy safety with a teaching program developed by St. Jude’s.  Even though we go through the lessons about trike safety, the big deal for a preschooler is bringing your own tricycle and riding in circles with your friends!

 Family Survey Results

 The family survey results are being used to continue the paperwork process for our re-accreditation visit later this year.  Each question allowed for a yes, no, or don’t know response. Some questions allowed for not applicable. In a few instances, a few respondents left the question blank. We wanted to share what we consider some key elements from the survey , starting with teacher relationships.

 There was a 98% “yes” response to having a good relationship with your child’s teacher and other staff; only 1 person answered “no.” 98% also responded “yes” to knowing that your child’s teacher takes good care of your child, helps your child to learn to get along with others, and is a good teacher.

 89% responded positively to the teacher sharing information about things that happen in the program and wanting to know about things the child is doing at home. 95% talk with the child’s teacher at least once a week or everyday if the child is a baby.

 When asked about disagreeing with how a teacher works with your child and feeling comfortable letting the teacher know and working together to find a solution that works for both, 82% responded “yes.” 9 respondents specifically indicated that they had never had a disagreement to work out, so answered “not applicable” (even though it was not a choice!) When asked whether we work with you to meet your child’s individual or special needs, and whether we help to get you set up with community resources when needed, 64% answered “yes,” 27% answered “no” and 9% responded don’t know or left it blank.  We think some of the responses were influenced by the fact that you do not consider your child to have special needs. We also think the compound question has some of you  thinking “yes” to one part but not the other.  Either way, we hope you feel that we do indeed work with your child’s individual needs as best we can within a group setting.

 One question asked whether the teacher asks about things that are important to your family and then uses that information to help your child grow and learn. 79% answered “yes.” For the remaining answers of “no” and “don’t know’ it tells us that we need to be more clear in how we ask for and then use that information.  We have celebration surveys, personal histories and parent-teacher conferences to ask the question about what is important to your family and what goals you have for your child. We try to incorporate these things in to lesson plans and individual goals for your child in the classroom.  This percentage tells us that we need to be more clear in asking the question and in how we use the information.

 97%  of you feel that you are invited to take part in classroom activities and events and that you are comfortable with what your child is learning and how progress is measured. 97% have the opportunity to discuss what is learned, but only 83% receive written reports about your child at least twice a year.  This discrepancy might exist because daily or weekly notes were not considered “reports” or that some parents choose not to meet with teachers at parent-teacher conferences.  Conferences are offered twice per year, which include a written report, twice per year in every classroom starting with the toddler rooms.  In fact, some of the classrooms have sign-up sheets posted right now!

 Only 73% responded “yes” to knowing how progress information is kept confidential. This tells us that it should be clearly added to the parent handbook that all children’s records are kept confidential and only shared with staff that need to have access. If an outside agency requests information, that has to be requested in writing and  written permission from a parent is also required.  79% feel that we help you get to know other  families and encourage you to support each other.  Parent events are offered to allow the connections between families to occur. The compound question might have had respondents focusing on the “support group” part that takes on a whole different meaning..That might also have influenced a 62% response to  the question relating to the program helping  parents learn about community resources that can “help” your child and family.

 We are happy to note that 94% feel respected by the program staff and that your contributions are valued. With that and  having the 98% response to having good relationships with the teachers, we feel that we are seen as doing a pretty good job!

 

     Dates of Closure in  2012:

May 28th – July 2nd thru 6th  -  Sept 3rd  -  Oct 8th 

Nov 12th, 22nd & 23rd  -  Dec 24 @ 2p.m. & Dec 25

Parent Parties

March 2nd  from 4-5:15  -  Dr. Seuss Birthday Party for toddlers thru preschoolers

Preschool 1 – March 16th 3 pm – 4 pm

Happy Birthday

Miss Sharon – Infant 1 – 3rd

Miss Amanda – Toddler 1 – 8th

Miss April – Preschool West – 8th

Miss Nicole – Preschool 1 – 10th

Caelo – Preschool North – 10th

Aven – Toddler 1 – 11th

Zach – Preschool 1 – 13th

Jackson – Preschool North – 23rd

Miss Kathy – Preschool East – 24th

Aiden – Preschool North – 24th

Laila – Infant 1 – 25th

Kayla – Preschool North – 27th

Omie – Infant 2 – 31st

A Message from the Director

  Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

The 2012 Food Drive is over and what a success it was! You helped collect 2,352 items for The Action Center in Lakewood. From tuna to tooth brushes – your donations benefit many Jefferson County residents, including many children, with financial difficulties. This year we learned that if you add a little competition to the cause, results surpass the wildest expectations.

            There were only winners in this competition! Thanks to you, all the parents of Clever Kids Learning Center, our community received a wonderful gift of food and personal items and our children learned that there are people in need of food. We would also like to thank the parents of Kayla, Blaise, Isabella, Dexton, Tatum, Graham and Miss Deb for delivering the boxes of goods to the Action Center.

            Now to the competition.  We all know the totals per classroom – the bragging rights go to Preschool West – but many of you requested (no, not the recount) the break down per child in each classroom.

Preschool 1 – 33 items per child                    

Preschool East – 30 items per child

Preschool West – 27 items per child  

Preschool North – 23 items per child

Toddler 2 – 14 items per child

Infant 2 – 13.8 items per child

Infant 1 – 13.5 items per child           

Toddler 1 – 12.3 items per child

            I think the next time we have a Food Drive we will need to look into an extra storage facility!

            Thank you again for your extraordinary effort to raise this HUGE amount of food!

  In classrooms around the center . . .

Toddler 2

            Water play is always an attention grabber for toddlers.  It arouses the senses and is far more than just a simple pleasure for them.  Water play is good for children’s physical, mental (cognitive), and social-emotional growth. In sensory play there is no right or wrong way to play. When children pour water, they are improving their physical dexterity and eye-hand coordination. By playing with others in blowing bubbles or washing baby dolls, they develop social skills. At the same time, they use their minds as they explore why certain objects sink in water and others float.  Children learn concepts such as empty/full, before/after, shallow/deep, and heavy/light in a hands-on way. Children learn new words that go along with water play, such as funnel, surface, float, and strain.  During the month of February, our theme  was focused around families.  One of the activities that we presented to our toddlers was an opportunity to give baby dolls a bath in our sensory table.  We provided warm soapy water, sponges, cups of various sizes and plastic baby dolls.  Some toddlers stayed for a minute while others stayed for twenty minutes or more…imagine that!

Preschool East

            Throughout February, we focused on the theme Friends and Family. During “Family Member”  week, our class hosted a family party and invited their parents. That morning each child brought in a fruit from home and helped to prepare a fruit salad to serve as a snack. The party began with the story The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn. It told about a little raccoon that kept his mother with him always by holding her kiss in his hand. This story lead to a family project in which the parent and child traced their hands to cut out and glue together on paper. Paper hearts were added and we learned the hand gesture for “I Love You” in sign language. It was fun to share a story, an art activity and a snack with our parents. Thank you to the Preschool East parents for your participation!

Preschool North

            February was all about friends and family. We focused on the social/emotional developmental domain by talking about and showing the action of sharing. The children really enjoyed making cupcakes to share with their Preschool East friends. They also enjoyed the slimy texture of making goop for our friends next door. The children also had a lot of excitement around  exchanging valentines and having their parents come for breakfast.

 Toddler 1

            In February our families come together with the school to participate in a school wide food drive benefitting the Jeffco Action Center. To prepare for this, our class decorated our collection box with magazine cut outs of various foods. Each toddler was given  the opportunity to work with glue bottles and/or glue sticks to foster the development of their fine motor skills. During the week of the food drive we saw tremendous effort put forth by our families. After day 1 of the food drive, Toddler 1 had a tally of 4 cans. The families of our class noticed this and really put forth effort to collect a total of 98 cans! Each day, the toddlers were encouraged to help their parents place the cans they brought into the box. The older toddlers counted the cans they brought. Thank you parents for your participation and support!

Preschool 1

            In the month of February, Preschool 1 talked about family. We focused on the people in our family including pets & things that we love. The children really liked the activity that dealt with identifying different family members. From this theme we were able to focus on physical, social and emotional development. With physical development they cut with scissors and squeezed the glue out of the glue bottles. For the social and emotional development we talked a lot about feelings and caring for others. The children also liked talking about the different types of pets they had at home. Another thing we talked about was our feelings with a focus on love. That made the whole room seem more caring because a lot of “I Love You’s” were heard.

            The canned food drive was a great success! Our classroom alone brought in 464 items! Thank you to all the parents and kids for the support. Another big thanks to Dexton and his mom Tiffany, and Tatum and her mom, Toni. They helped take the 2,352 items that the whole school collected over to The Action Center in Lakewood. 

We will be having a parent party Friday, March 16th from 3:00 – 4:00. Hope you all can join us.

Infant 1

            February brought snow and a lot of interest in outside activities. We brought snow inside to explore; many touched it and a few even tasted it. The children also were fascinated watching the bunnies hop around in the snow.

Infant 2

            The children have seemed to make a great adjustment with Miss Michelle returning from maternity leave. With that being said, Christopher and Freya have been busy using their large motor skills climbing on the climber. Omie has been pointing to the fish and a teacher will respond to her with the sign for fish. (Your right hand  waves back and forth while moving forward a few inches) She will then try to use the sign language as well. The teachers catch the children’s attention by singing songs. For instance, Natalie will bounce and clap while Ben, Gianna & Alison will flash a big smile and take it all in. Nathaniel has been exploring the toys around him with his mouth, using his sensory skills to mouth them and feel the different textures. Chloe has been adjusting to the new environment around her and has been building up her muscles as she is  learning to roll over. 

Preschool West

            February was full of fun!  As we celebrated friendship, everyone contributed a recipe for our friends and family cookbook.  The children got to experiment with amounts and numbers.  Often using their hands and fingers as measurements, we converted them into cups, teaspoons or tablespoons and so on.  Asking children their favorite foods was very predictable—mac and cheese and chicken!  Although the recipes were about the same food, their ingredients and directions were very different!  Some recipes were very detailed and started from getting the dead chicken in the yellow package from the grocery store to cook. Others were emphatic about the technique and gave directions like “cook, cook, cook it like a dog!”  I am sure that parents enjoyed this activity as well as the children did!  The children also practiced counting and numerical order as they competed in our canned food drive.  It sure did bring out the competitive spirit in everyone.  We were so happy to be able to feed hungry families—and that made the entire center a winner!

Butter Braid Pastries for Sale

Order forms will be available for these flaky pastries starting on March 14th.  The order forms and payments are due to the main office by March 23rd. Frozen Butter Braids are delivered to Clever Kids at 3:30 on March 29th. We traditionally sell these pastries in the fall and spring, and they are well worth a taste if you have never had them before!  Pastries sell for $12 each and can be stored in your freezer for several months.  They make a great breakfast treat and  even a welcome dessert! Order forms will have details about collecting checks and deliveries.  Ask your family, friends and co-workers, too! 

Five teachers tell you what preschoolers really need for next year.

By Ellen H. Parlapiano, Scholastic Parent Child Magazine

If your child’s preschool years are coming to an end, your thoughts are probably turning toward kindergarten. But is your child ready to move on to the “big” school? What skills do kindergarten teachers expect their new students to have? To help answer those questions (and ease your mind), we’ve asked highly regarded kindergarten teachers from around the country to share their insights on helping your child gain the right mix of kindergarten-readiness skills.

The skill sets they are looking for might surprise you. Because of the national focus on improving education and meeting standards, you might think that it’s most important for children to enter kindergarten knowing their ABCs, numbers, shapes, and colors so they can keep up with the curriculum. While teachers would love children to come in with some letter and number recognition, they don’t want you to drill your kids on academic skills. There are equally — if not more — important readiness skills that set the stage for your child’s learning. Raising an eager learner is the goal, and it can be achieved easily through play and day-to-day activities.

What follows are the top readiness skills that kindergarten teachers look for.

Enthusiasm Toward Learning
“I look for those qualities that prime children to be successful in school,” says Kim Hughes. Does the child approach learning enthusiastically? Is she eager to explore and discover? Does she ask questions, take initiative, and persist when tasks are difficult?  “Parents can set aside a little time each day to investigate the world with their preschooler and answer those endless questions,” says Sandra Waite-Stupiansky. As you drive or walk along in the park, point out your child’s surroundings — the different trees or the various birds at the feeder. Demonstrate how things work. “You’ll help your child develop beginning science skills — the ability to form a hypothesis, test it out, and come up with new questions and theories,” Waite-Stupiansky explains. “The more kids notice, the more curious they’ll become. And we’ll be building on that curiosity in kindergarten.”

Solid Oral-Language Skills
“Children need wide background knowledge about their world and the words to go with it,” says Lisa Mosier. “I want to know where they’ve been and what they can talk about.” You can help build language skills by taking your child to many new places and giving him words and descriptions for what he is seeing. At the zoo, explain, “There’s a tiger. See how he has stripes and looks different from the lion?” Mosier says these experiences have a huge impact on literacy. “If you’re reading a book about zoo animals and it says ‘Look at the tiger,’ and you can’t tell the difference between a lion and a tiger, then you won’t have the background knowledge to help you tackle the word. When children come to words that they don’t know, they won’t be able to make a good guess because it isn’t in their vocabulary.”

Research shows that one of the best predictors of later reading success is a well-developed oral vocabulary in kindergarten. “PreK kids are learning vocabulary at the rate of five to six words a day,” says Waite-Stupiansky. “It’s just amazing how they will retain words if you use them several times in context and conversation.”  Most important, always keep the focus on fun. “Relax, and enjoy your children,” Mosier says. “Read, play, and go places. And talk the whole time you’re doing it!”

The Ability to Listen
Children’s literature is a rich resource for expanding language. “We expect parents to be reading to kids every day,” says Jayne C. Isaacs. “I can tell which children have been glued to the TV or computer for hours at a time. When we read them a story and ask them to tell us in their own words what they liked or remembered, they’re unable to do so.” Besides fostering vocabulary and comprehension, reading develops the attention skills necessary in a kindergarten classroom. “Listening is a key part of school behavior,” Isaacs notes. Students must be able to concentrate on what the teacher is saying, listen carefully for directions, and tune in to the sounds in letters and words.

“The more animated you are as you read, the better you’ll focus your child’s attention on what she’s hearing,” says Armando Argandona. Use different voices for the characters. Promote critical thinking by asking questions like, “Why do you think that happened?” and “How would you feel if that happened to you?” and “What do you think will happen next?” Engage kids by inviting them to clap or stomp when they hear a rhyming word, and letting them finish sentences in familiar stories. Books with rhyme and repetitive refrains (like those by Mother Goose and Dr. Seuss) help kids predict what’s coming and detect consonant sounds at the beginning and end of words, which fosters phonemic awareness—the ability to hear and break down the subtle sounds in words. Your child won’t be able to read the word “cat” until she understands that it actually has three sounds: “cuh,” “ah,” and “tuh.”

 The Desire to Be Independent
Encouraging self-help skills is an important step to preparing your child for kindergarten. “It’s amazing how many kids come to kindergarten not knowing how to hang up a jacket,” says Argandona. It might be quicker for you to do it, but “independence is critical for helping your child adjust to school,” he emphasizes. Teachers expect children to:

• Get coats on and off and hang them up
• Follow simple two-step instructions such as “take off your boots and put on your sneakers”
• Go to the bathroom and wash their hands
• Blow their nose and cover their mouth when they cough
• Fasten and unfasten simple buttons and snaps
• Eat neatly and pour into a cup
• Open up a juice box and get the straw in.

“Some children are so dependent on their parents that they expect the teacher to do these things for them,” says Hughes. “But when you have 20-plus kids in the room, it’s hard to worry about wiping noses!” However, she notes that tying shoes is a developmental skill that often doesn’t come until the first grade. If kids can’t yet tie their shoes, Hughes suggests sending them in slip-ons or sneakers with Velcro fasteners.

The Ability to Play Well with Others
Your child will need your assistance refining essential social skills such as sharing, compromising, turn-taking, and problem-solving. “Children are naturally egocentric at this age, and we don’t expect them to be able to share everything,” says Waite-Stupiansky. “But by the time they reach kindergarten, they should be able to express their feelings in words and begin to understand that two people can use the same thing at the same time.”

If you and your child are building with blocks and he reaches for one you’re using, Hughes suggests you first encourage your child to ask, “May I have the block?” Then model sharing by saying something like, “I’m glad to share my block with you.” When you notice your child sharing with others, celebrate it by saying, “I’m so proud of you. It’s really hard to share your favorite doll, but you were able to do it. Good for you!”

On play dates and park outings, stay within earshot so you can help kids problem-solve when conflict occurs, Hughes recommends. If your son gets in a power struggle over a toy and can’t seem to work it out, step in and say, “It looks like we’re having a problem here. What can we do about it?” Encourage him to come up with possible solutions, offering your own suggestions, if necessary. “Help kids understand the feelings of others,” says Hughes. “I want them to know when a friend is sad by looking at her face and seeing that her mouth is frowning or her eyes are crying.” This nurtures compassion and empathy, values that are prized by kindergarten teachers.

Strong Fine-Motor Skills
Your child’s hands must be strong enough to master coloring, cutting, pasting, and holding a pencil — fine-motor tasks that kids use every day in kindergarten. “By week one, we’re already writing a letter of the alphabet,” says Argandona. “If kids can’t hold the pencil correctly, they will fall behind.”

To hold the pencil the right way, kids need to develop the small muscles in their palms and fingers. Hughes suggests giving your child a pipe cleaner and some Cheerios (or similar, colorful cereal) to make bracelets. “It requires you to pinch with your fingers,” she explains, the same motion needed for grasping a pencil. Or ask your preschooler to mist your houseplants with a spray bottle, an activity that boosts both writing and scissor skills. Scribbling in clay with fingers is a fun alternative to doing it on paper and especially helpful for kids who are resistant to writing and drawing. (A child can practice cutting the clay into small strips too.)  “Offer writing utensils in a variety of sizes and shapes,” advises Hughes. “Some people think that fat pencils are easier to hold, but that’s not always true. For a child with weak hands, a smaller, shorter pencil might be easier to manage.”

Basic Letter and Number Recognition
Kindergarten teachers believe that it is their responsibility to teach kids letter sounds and how to write, but they do hope incoming students can recognize most letters by sight. They also hope children can count to 10, identify numbers 1 to 5, and know some shapes and colors.

But teachers don’t want you to quiz your child or use workbooks, flashcards, or phonics kits. “So much learning can happen without quizzing or sitting down with a pencil,” says Isaacs. The lessons unfold naturally as you and your child sort Legos by color or shape. Your daughter practices counting as she doles out pretend cookies for the dolls in her tea party. Your son builds letter recognition while scrambling alphabet magnets on the fridge.

“Every outing is a spontaneous opportunity to learn,” Isaacs adds. Play guessing games like, “I spy with my little eye something with the number 3.”

Coming Soon

Discipline and Limit-Setting: Birth to 12 Months

 In order to follow rules and understand limits, children need to develop self-control. Self-control is the ability to cope with strong feelings and stop one’s self from doing something that is not allowed. Developing self-control begins at birth and continues throughout childhood. Young children learn self-control through interactions with peers, parents and other loving adults.

Babies and Self-Control

Babies are not born with self-control. However, they begin developing self-soothing skills-the beginning of self-control-in their first months. For example, many babies learn how to soothe themselves by sucking on a pacifier or finger. This helps them cope with waiting while a loved one gets ready to feed them. Babies are also learning that they can’t always have everything they want:

A 9-month-old grabs the television remote. He is happily pushing buttons when his caregiver gently removes it from his hand and puts it on a bookshelf. She says: “The remote control is not a toy, sweetie. But how about this instead?” She gives him a toy with buttons to push and doors to open. This baby is learning about self-control because he has to accept a substitute toy-although his caregiver made sure he could still explore with his hands.

What You Can Do to Nurture Early Self-Control:

·                      Help babies learn to soothe themselves. Babies have different ways of calming down. Some need lots of physical contact, such as rocking or hugging, while others like being swaddled or put down for a minute to get a break from interaction. Some babies are soothed by your singing while others need to suck to calm themselves. By trying different things to help babies calm down you help them learn to soothe themselves. You also teach them that they can rely on you, which makes them feel safe and secure.

• Find ways to keep yourself calm. Hearing babies cry can be very stressful and frustrating. It can make you feel worried or even powerless when you want to help a baby feel better but nothing is working. When you feel this way, it’s best to put the baby down somewhere safe (like a crib) and take a few moments to calm down. When you are feeling calm, the baby is more likely to feel calm too.
• Teach babies what they can do, not just what they can’t. If a 10-month-old is throwing a toy car in the house, gently take it from his hand and give him a soft ball instead and show him a place where he can throw it. Over time, experiences like these help him learn right from wrong. And remember, at 10 months, babies are not able to remember rules so you will probably have to keep doing a lot of distracting and redirecting in the months to come.
• Comfort babies. Sometimes caregivers are concerned about spoiling a baby-doing more for her than she needs. If a baby is crying, it is often because she needs you to help her calm down because she is having a hard time coping. Babies need your love and comfort. This helps them grow up to be secure and confident children.

In order to follow rules and understand limits, children need to develop self-control. Self-control is the ability to cope with strong feelings and stop one’s self from doing something that is not allowed. Developing self-control begins at birth and continues throughout childhood. Young children learn self-control through interactions with loving adults and peers.

Young Toddlers and Self-Control
Toddlers express their strong feelings loud and clear. “No!” becomes a favorite word. Toddlers can also become frustrated easily because there are still many things that they want to do but cannot. Here is an example of how toddlers learn self-control:

A 15-month-old tosses his toy truck across the room. He starts to laugh at the big crash it makes. When his caregiver calls his name in a not-happy voice, he turns with a surprised look on his face. “No throwing trucks,” she tells him, and hands him the truck. “You can push the truck or roll it.” He throws it again and looks at his caregiver to see what will happen. “The rule is no throwing trucks. I am going to put this truck away for a little while. Why don’t you try throwing this soft ball instead?” He cries for a little while but, when he sees he is not getting the truck back, he happily starts throwing the ball.

Young toddlers still lack self-control and don’t have the memory to remember rules and limits. You help them develop self-control by patiently repeating rules and gently distracting them with another activity.

What You Can Do:
• Stop the behavior. For example, firmly take the child’s hand and tell her in a serious voice: No hitting. Hitting hurts.
• Help the child calm down. When a child breaks down, he is telling you he cannot cope. When you comfort him, you help him learn how to eventually soothe himself. Keep in mind that some children need space to calm down. Creating a safe place where children can take a break-where there are soothing objects like stuffed animals, pillows, books-can be very helpful.
• Label the child’s feelings. This makes her feel understood and helps her calm down. You are so angry that Paolo took your toy. It’s okay to feel angry. But you cannot hit. Hitting hurts.
• Offer appropriate ways to express feelings, such as using her words if she is verbal, or other strategies such as drawing a picture about her feelings or hitting a pillow, if this is acceptable to you and her parent(s).
• Help the child solve the problem. For example, go over to Paolo together and ask for the toy back. Use a timer to help the children take turns.

What You Can Do to Help Young Toddlers Begin to Cope With Limits
Provide guidance and intervention that is appropriate for you toddler’s age and stage.
1. Stop the behavior. For example, firmly (but not angrily) take your child’s hand and tell her in a serious (but not angry) voice: No hitting. Hitting hurts.
2. Label your child’s feeling. This makes her feel understood and helps her calm down. You are so angry that Paolo took your toy. It’s okay to feel angry. But you cannot hit. Hitting hurts.
3. Offer an appropriate way to express feelings. Show her what she can do to express her angry feelings, like jumping up and down or stomp

Kids N Cars: Never Leave Your Children Unattended in Your Vehicle, NOT even for a minute!

Kids ‘N Cars^TM is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to pursue a greater level of public safety by informing people about the dangers of leaving children unattended in or around vehicles. People leave children unattended in vehicles more often than is widely publicized, and the results are often deadly. Kids ‘N Cars’^TM database, the only one of its kind, includes more than one thousand cases where children were left unattended in or around vehicles.

Below are just a few examples of what has happened to children who were left unattended in an automobile:

* Heat stroke that led to permanent brain damage and death.

* Climbed out of a car seat and shifted the car into gear.

* Carjacking – the car and the children.

* The vehicle can be set in motion by unattended children.

* Power control activation by curious children that can lead to strangulation and other loss of life and limb.

In 1999, 27 children died of hyperthermia (heat stroke) because their parents left them locked inside the passenger compartment of a vehicle.

* Never leave children alone or unsupervised – not even for a minute.

* Never leave car keys where children can find them.

* Always lock cars so children cannot get into a car unsupervised. Unlocked cars pose serious risks to children who are naturally curious and often lack fear. Keep the doors and trunk of cars locked when parked in the garage, driveway, or near home. Parked cars can be deathtraps for kids.

* Crawl around in your family vehicle and look at everything from a child’s perspective. Where are there potential problems? Do the automatic power windows controls “pull” to go up rather than being “pushed”? Does your vehicle have transmission or brake interlocks?

* Teach children about the dangers of a car. A car is NOT a toy. In fact it can be as dangerous as a loaded gun, but weighs over two ton.

* Arm children with facts. They must understand that a vehicle is used for transporting people from place to place; it is NOT a playground.

* Car trunks become a tempting, secret place to hide, and a quick and easy place for abductors to make children disappear.

* Practice escape techniques so that if children are trapped in a car trunk, they know how to get out by yanking the tail light wires, kicking out the brake light fixture and signaling for help by waving or banging on the trunk and screaming.

* If a car has a trunk release in the trunk’s interior, make sure the children know how to use it and have them practice.

* Never leave rear seat folds open. This should prevent children from climbing into unlocked cars and finding their way into a trunk from the inside.

* Install an inside trunk release.

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