Cultivating Gratitude in Young Children: A Thanksgiving Reflection for Parents It’s almost time for Thanksgiving, when families of all shapes and sizes across the country gather together. As we prepare to celebrate the harvest and our many blessings, we fill our tables with delicious food, laughter, and love. While the holiday is often centered on […]
Tiny Thanks, Big Hearts: Teaching Gratitude at Thanksgiving Read More »
Preschool is the training ground for friendship—on the playground, at the art table, or even in the play kitchen. In childcare and daycare settings, children practice sharing, turn-taking, problem-solving, and caring about others’ feelings on a daily basis. Those everyday moments build social-emotional skills, and sometimes even friendships, that last a lifetime. See these moments
Together We Grow: Nurturing Solid Friendships in Early Childhood Read More »
Helping Toddlers Handle Tantrums Parents and early childhood education teachers have all been there: watching a toddler suddenly melt to tears over the toy they can’t have, the fact that their sandwich was cut ‘wrong’, or at the mention of coming inside from playtime. Tantrums are a normal part of early childhood development, but knowing
From Meltdowns to Milestones Read More »
That Big First Day This is a momentous occasion–your preschooler is preparing to take the plunge into kindergarten! It’s a day filled with excitement, curiosity and yes, a few nervous butterflies in both you and your little one’s stomach. Whether your child has been home, a preschool or another childcare setting, you want their first
Prepping Your Little One for Their First Day of Kindergarten Read More »
The Power of Solo Play If you’ve ever watched a preschooler go full-blown mom-mode on a pretend baby, or build a block tower only to gleefully knock it down moments later, you’ve witnessed the magic of independent play. Independent play isn’t solely about keeping kids busy in order to give a parent, caregiver, or daycare
Encouraging Independent Play in Preschoolers Read More »
Pacifiers are a helpful comforting, self-soothing and anxiety reducing tool. The Mayo Clinic actually supports that pacifiers can be helpful in calming babies while parents are otherwise occupied—such as while shopping or driving. As your little one gets older, thinking about the ‘binky-break-up’ can often feel like, well, a messy break up, instead of an
Leaving Pacifiers Behind Read More »