Random Acts of Sharing

Here are some things I've bumped into lately that you might find interesting.

During the last economic down turn, I was selling Discovery Toys, my kids were preschool age and there was a big surge in family games and holding a family games night. Well there is a new kid on the block and family game nights are being reinstituted all across the country. Check out SimplyFun. I bought Farkel and Grabbage for our family fun night. "Liebrary" and "Kahootz" are look fun too and I have them on my wish list for combating cabin fever this winter! Check out the puppets too! Another thought: be prepared for a baby boom or boomlet in the next 9-12 months. Usually another outcome of an economic downturn!! Good for us in child related businesses.

The following activities are excerpted from Jump into Math: Active Learning for Preschool Children by Rae Pica (Beltsville, MD: Gryphon House, 2008).

For babies:
Making Tummy Time Fun Time
What do you do with a baby who simply doesn’t enjoy being on the tummy?
First, it’s important to acclimate an infant to this position as early in life as possible. Right from the start, following a nap or diaper change, two to three times a day, you should place him on his tummy for a brief play period. You can gradually increase the length of these periods as the baby becomes used to them. Also, whenever possible, lie on your back and place the baby facedown on your chest. This not only helps him adapt to this position; it will also give him a reason to lift his head: to look at you!

But even if tummy time didn't begin the day she came home from the hospital, it’s not too late to start! Following are some suggestions for making tummy time a fun time.

Get “down and dirty” with baby. Lie side by side with the baby and have a “conversation!” Coo and sing and make funny sounds. There’s no one else’s voice he’d rather hear. When the baby is ready to start lifting his head, you can also lie head-to-head with him. He’ll eventually lift his head and push up on his arms because he wants to look at you. You can make it worth his effort by making his favorite funny faces!
Tempt her with a toy. Place a favorite toy or stuffed animal just out of baby’s reach and encourage her to get it! Mirrors and rattles work well, too.
Circle the wagons. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends placing toys in a circle around the baby. Reaching in different directions helps develop the muscles needed to roll over, scoot, and crawl.
Give him a lift. If all else fails and the baby still fusses while facedown, place a pillow or a “boppy” under his chest, with his arms in front of him. Or lay him across your lap, raising one of your legs to create a slight incline. This will make it easier for him to see what’s going on around him and should stop the fussing. Then, as he develops upper body strength, he’ll no longer need the lift.
Remember: The policy is “Back to Sleep. Tummy to Play!”

ForAll Ages:
Relax!
Being Balloons. Breath control plays an important role in relaxation. When we inhale slowly and then exhale twice as slowly, we decrease the supply of carbon dioxide in the blood, thus slowing down the activity of the nerves and brain. To promote deep breathing with children, ask them to pretend to be a balloon, slowly inflating (by inhaling through the nose) and deflating (by exhaling through the mouth). You'll likely need to demonstrate this yourself first.
Statues & Rag Dolls. The ability to intentionally control muscular tension is also critical to relaxation. Adults do this by alternately contracting and releasing their muscles. However, because young children won't understand the terms contract and release, you can play a game called Statues & Rag Dolls. Before you being, talk with the children about the differences between statues and rag dolls. Then alternately invite them to pretend to be a statue and then a rag doll. This, as you can imagine, requires them to alternately contract and release the muscles. (Always end with the rag doll!)
Melting. Melting is a wonderful -- and fun -- slow-motion activity. Talk about the melting of ice cream cones, snow sculptures, or ice cubes. Then ask the children to pretend to be one of these things and to show you just how slowly they can melt.
Finding Creatures in the Clouds. This can only be a relaxation exercise if it doesn't become an assignment! If you send little ones outside to find creatures in the clouds, simply make it a suggestion and, perhaps, provide a blanket for them to lie on. If you join them in the activity, resist the temptation to turn it into a contest to see who can find the most creatures. Instead, lie beside them and quietly describe what you're seeing. And if nobody discovers any creatures, it's okay to just lie there looking.

Just in time for Christmas Break:

Ideas for Counteracting Boredom
Initially, a child who hasn’t had enough practice in self-sufficiency is going to need help generating ideas of things to do. When that happens, you can offer her choices, but keep it to a minimum of two or three so she doesn’t feel overwhelmed by the decision making. Point out that she has a new book waiting to be read. Offer to get her set up for finger painting. Or ask if she would like to help with something you need to get done – making cookies or raking the leaves, for instance. If none of these choices appeal to her, stay your course. If you assure her that you have every confidence she can find something to do, she may be initially stumped, but because she’ll want to validate your belief in her, she’ll find something.
Boston Globe parenting columnist Barbara Meltz suggests that a parent sit down with a child to brainstorm a list of activities the child enjoys. If you write them on slips of paper and put them in a jar, the next time he’s bored he’ll have plenty of ideas to choose from. And having helped create the list, he’ll take pride in it and feel empowered.
Boredom in the family car is too often cured with DVD players – an item I’d happily ban if I had my way! They promote the idea that being electronically entertained is more important than families talking to one another, and more important than taking in the surroundings, no matter how beautiful they may be. The next time you’re on the road with your family or child, fill as much time as you can with conversation. When that runs its course, play a game of I Spy (for example, “I spy something that begins with the letter f,” for field or flowers). Whoever guesses what the other person has in mind gets to start the next round. Not only does this draw attention to what’s outside the vehicle’s windows, but it also reinforces letter awareness. To promote color recognition and appreciation, challenge passengers to see how many green, red, blue, or yellow things they can find. And when the conversation and games run out, don’t be afraid of a little quiet time. It’ll give your child a chance to think or simply rest.
An age-old favorite for counteracting boredom in the outdoors is to find creatures in the clouds. But don’t make it an assignment! If you send your little one outside to find creatures in the clouds, simply make it a suggestion and, perhaps, provide a blanket for her to lie on. If you join her in the activity, resist the temptation to turn it into a contest to see who can find the most creatures. Instead, lie beside her and quietly describe what you’re seeing. And if neither of you discovers any creatures, it’s okay to just lie there looking.

Child Care Professionals and Parents: You need to hear this!

Have you signed up for BAM! yet? If not, why not? You can learn alot and listen to Child Development greats like this!

http://www.jackstreet.com/jackstreet/WMBK.elkind.cfm

Sing a Song of Thanksgiving

The countdown until we sit down to the turkey and all the fixin's has begun! And I wanted to take a moment to thank everyone who has graced my life this year with their love, support, good humor, helpfulness...know that I appreciate you as a blessing in my life. I also wanted to share this great article that I heard on NPR (my favorite source of news and information (inspiration too,sometimes). It's from their series, "This I Believe". I didn't know about this research but I have heard a couple of times that singing is important in our lives and I've always sung in church and around the house because I had some good examples: my mom and my Aunt Martha, both of them without really realizing what great gifts they were bestowing: read to me (on demand) and sang to me with gladness in their hearts. For the last few years that I have been working in child care centers, I have fussed about the fact that I don't see adults and kids singing together. Bev Bos (my hero in Child Development) said: don't sing to teach or for literacy but for the joy of it so that when that kid is old and in a nursing home and some other kids come and sing "You are my Sunshine" tears will roll down their wrinkled old cheeks. So here is the story and lets sing together with the ones we love this Thanksgiving....

Singing: The Key To A Long Life
by Brian Eno

I believe in singing. I believe in singing together.
A few years ago a friend and I realized that we both loved singing but didn't do much of it. So we started a weekly a capella group with just four members. After a year we started inviting other people to join. We didn't insist on musical experience — in fact some of our members had never sung before. Now the group has ballooned to around 15 or 20 people.
I believe that singing is the key to long life, a good figure, a stable temperament, increased intelligence, new friends, super self-confidence, heightened sexual attractiveness and a better sense of humor. A recent long-term study conducted in Scandinavia sought to discover which activities related to a healthy and happy later life. Three stood out: camping, dancing and singing.
Well, there are physiological benefits, obviously: You use your lungs in a way that you probably don't for the rest of your day, breathing deeply and openly. And there are psychological benefits, too: Singing aloud leaves you with a sense of levity and contentedness. And then there are what I would call "civilizational benefits." When you sing with a group of people, you learn how to subsume yourself into a group consciousness because a capella singing is all about the immersion of the self into the community. That's one of the great feelings — to stop being me for a little while and to become us. That way lies empathy, the great social virtue.
Well here's what we do in an evening: We get some drinks, some snacks, some sheets of lyrics and a strict starting time. We warm up a bit first.
The critical thing turns out to be the choice of songs. The songs that seem to work best are those based around the basic chords of blues and rock and country music. You want songs that are word-rich, but also vowel-rich because it's on the long vowels sounds of a song such as "Bring It On Home To Me" ("You know I'll alwaaaaays be your slaaaaave"), that's where your harmonies really express themselves. And when you get a lot of people singing harmony on a long note like that, it's beautiful.
But singing isn't only about harmonizing pitch like that. It has two other dimensions. The first one is rhythm. It's thrilling when you get the rhythm of something right and you all do a complicated rhythm together: "Oh, when them cotton balls get a-rotten, you can't pick very much cotton." So when 16 or 20 people get that dead right together at a fast tempo that's very impressive. But the other thing that you have to harmonize besides pitch and rhythm is tone. To be able to hit exactly the same vowel sound at a number of different pitches seems unsurprising in concept, but is beautiful when it happens.
So I believe in singing to such an extent that if I were asked to redesign the British educational system, I would start by insisting that group singing become a central part of the daily routine. I believe it builds character and, more than anything else, encourages a taste for co-operation with others. This seems to be about the most important thing a school could do for you.

A Running Start by Rae Pica

Look for all the books I've mention on Amazon.com

but if possible buy them from The Bookworm!

In getting up to speed in the Child Development Field I've been keeping my eyes open for interesting material everywhere I go. Last evening I met with the great gals involved with the

local Jane Austen book club and The Jane Austen Society of North America. (Everyone involved with child development and education should take time to pursue their own interests!) The meeting was at our wonderful local independent bookstore: The Bookworm. So of course after my meeting I had to check out the bargin shelves and the child development section. I made a few good finds that I would like to share with you.

1. Graceful Parenting: Simple Advise for Raising a Gentle and Loving Child by Eve Dreyfus
   
2. Unplugged Play by Bobbi Conner - she has a radio program on NPR on Wedsnesday mornings at 9 a.m. (KIOS - 91.5 fm) called "The Parents Journal"
   
3. My favorite: "A Running Start" by Rae Pica Rae has been working with movement and learning for a long time. She advocates for lots of physical activity for young children because it's more developmentally appropriate than lots of academics. She has a website http://www.movingandlearning.com/ , a blog "The Pica Perspective", and a internet radio show: http://www.bodymindandchild.com/. This is really great you can listen to interviews with some of the all time greats in the field: David Elkind, Alfie Kohn, Lillian Katz, Jane Healy, and Dr. Stanely Greespan and loads more. The topics are wide ranging so you're sure to fine something of interest. We've got to keep child development people in the mix so that we can keep defending the right to childhood rather than killing it trying to give kids an education! I debated about using the word "kill" as it's rather strong and maybe too violent for the child care crowd but in my opinion so much done "for kids" (but really "to kids") in the name of education that kills their minds and their spirits and now that they've found 10 year olds with the arteries of a 45 year olds possibly their bodies too (see Rae's blog) I really don't think it's too harsh a word to use. What do you think?

Preschool Socialization in the News

Camryn Hollins, 4, left, reacts to Daniel Xu, 4, during a "Twiggle the Turtle" conflict resolution lesson at Bennett Family Child Care Center in University Park, Pa., Friday, Nov. 14, 2008. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Fitting in very nicely with my last post about "Co-Acting" the Omaha-World Hearld published an article on Saturday, November 15, 2008 about a study at Penn State regarding "teaching" socialization skills to preschoolers. The conclusion was what we professionals already knew: teaching academics without teaching kids to interact approriately with peers and adults will not make the child a successful student or a life-long learner! "Both skills are intertwined, said Penn State University psychology professor Karen Bierman, who led the new study."If preschools focus just on the facts - let's just get the letter knowledge in, let's just get the number knowledge in - they're really missing the engine that's going to drive the desire and motivation for learning," she said."

To read the rest of the article click here

Co-Acting

CO-ACTING: Functioning together in a situation.
Reference: Together We’re Better by Bev Bos

Preschool teachers/caregivers usually state that “sharing and cooperating” are “The Biggies” for socialization at ages 4-5. However, preschoolers can mimic these behaviors because they are real “people pleasers” at this age but they don’t really “get it” when we tell them to “share” or “cooperate”.
Realistically what we can expect from kids at this age is “co-acting” or functioning together in a situation.
Examples:
Building: you add a part and you add a part and you add a part and we’ll see what we get.
Games where you choose a partner.
Sitting on benches together (negotiating for space)
Games where you choose who goes next
Setting up situations where kids have to work together.
Group singing that puts kids in pairs & groups (Playmate, come out and play with me.)

Are you telling kids to share and cooperate or do you say "get a partner" ?

A link you need

http://www.1112.net/lastpage.html

A Message from Bev Bos

Hi Fellow Child Care Professionals,
I received this message from Bev Bos on Friday and wanted to share. In all the centers that I've been in and out of in the last 10 years or so.... I too have been concerned about the lack of singing and fingerplays and chants in programs..... it's not just about language development, which is very important but about the emotional connections too. I've highlighted in red the passages from Bev that I thought were most meaningful. Feel free to comment on what spoke to you.


---------- Forwarded message ----------From: "Bev" <bevbos@turnthepage.com>To: Date: Fri, 7 Nov 2008 16:30:54 -0800Subject: A message from bev bos
Dear friends, One of the issues we have been talking about for a few years now is how we tend to get things out of order when it comes to working with young children. Going back thirty years ago I used to caution adults about this very thing when I would say, “We put kids on two-wheelers when they should be on trikes and we put them in Trans-Ams when they should still be on bikes!” It was a line that would always get a lot of nods in agreement and a few laughs but in all this time I don’t think we progressed very far. One area where this is glaringly true is in language and literacy development. Michael and I have hammered away at how children are thrust into the literate world with exposure to letters and such at earlier and earlier ages. The assumption being that the second a child cracks open a book they then begin their journey towards becoming a literate and articulate human being. But as educators like Barry Sanders, author of “A is for Ox,” remind us -- orality has got to come first before literacy. I love the way he describes it -- “literacy fits over orality like a glove” and “orality thus serves as a necessary and powerful foundation for the construction we call literacy. Children need to hear language in order to learn language.” Those of you who work with young children would probably agree with me when I say how shocked I am at how many kids don’t know any of the nursery rhymes or fingerplays like the ones our parents or teachers taught us. Their language is often just a repetition of the things they’ve heard on TV or at the movies rather than coming from another live person. That’s the beauty of fingerplays and stories -- to use Margaret Read McDonald’s words who described it as “the gift of shared imagination.” What’s missing today is the intimacy in early language development that used to begin for the child at their mother’s breast or during bathing or diaper changes when what some folks describe as “mother-ese” would gently guide the child down the path toward becoming a literate person. Unfortunately, for far too many young children’s their first exposure to spoken language bursts out at them from a crib-side monitor or in the repetitive jingles of commercial TV. Our concern about this growing “out-of-order-ness” was the driving force behind the decision to publish the book “Chants, Fingerplays & Stories” a couple years ago. We wanted provide people with a resource for learning or re-learning something we felt very strongly about. At the very least we were determined to get them down on paper as a way to preserve them. And at best we thought that maybe we could somehow slow down their disappearance from young children’s lives. Never did we imagine that the reaction from teachers and parents would be as positive as it has been. But now there’s another problem. Many of you have suggested we make a recording of the chants and fingerplays -- especially since some of them have a definite tune or musicality to them. Thus began a pretty lively debate between Michael and myself. My immediate reaction was not to do it. Just like with our music CDs, my hope is that folks would listen to the CDs and learn the songs then sing them rather than letting the kids listen to a CD. I was relying my years of experience working with young children that reminded me that CDs don’t stop when a kid wants to say something or add something to the song -- they just keep blazing right along. Besides, I also know they would rather hear your voice (in person) than mine coming out of some electronic gadget. So, as with the music CDs, I feared it would be too easy to just “pop in” a chants and fingerplays CD and have the kids listen to it. Michael was just as adamant that we should do it. He said that part of the charm and fun of doing chants and fingerplays is in how they sound. And, if not being able to feel comfortable in singing them for not knowing the tune is keeping them out of the lives of children then we need do something about that -- now! I had to admit that sometimes I’ve heard myself say after hearing a new chant “Oh, I’ll never remember how that goes by the time Monday morning rolls around.” So now, after all this time, I’m officially here to say -- he was right. So for all you folks that have bought the “Chants, Fingerplays & Stories” book you can now purchase an audio CD that covers the material in the first half of the book -- all the chants and fingerplays. For the stories at the end of the book -- you are on your own. Read them aloud at first, if you must, but do try your best to learn them and tell them, too. Below you will see the links for the three new products that are now available to you. If you already have the book you can purchase just the CD. Or, you can purchase the Book and CD together. You can even purchase the Book by itself, too. Thanks to all those of you that pestered me about making a recorded version of the book. Here it is -- I hope you like it and I hope these wonderful little nuggets of orality make their way into the lives of children for generations to come. Love, Bev

PS - Just a word of thanks to those that attended our recent "Good Stuff for Kids" Conference here in Roseville CA. Despite the rain it was wonderful to have you here with us. We hope all of you had safe travels back to your loved ones and thanks again so much for coming -- we hope to see you again sometime soon.

Talk about marketing your child care business..... check this out!!!!

http://childrensfarm.localplacement.net/


I remember when I did a big slide show to present at an orientation meetings and fundraising presentations. That was high tech then and it really impressed but having it available 24/7 to anyone, anywhere..... I couldn't have imagined it!

Does your child care program have a web presence? Do you think it should?

Status Report on Child Well-Being

The good news is educational attainment is on the rise. More parents are reading to their children and setting limits on T.V. viewing. Hooray!!! You can read the whole 32 page report

http://www.fcd-us.org/usr_doc/EarlyChildhoodWell-BeingReport.pdf

One of the best resources for parents who want to read good books to their children is Jim Trelease and his "Read Aloud Handbook". http://www.trelease-on-reading.com/

Mr. Trelease retired from public speaking this year and his retirement letter is published on his website. He states the "the No Child Left Behind" act was the biggest disappointment of his career. His whole letter is an interesting read. http://www.trelease-on-reading.com/trelease-retirement-letter.html

What's your favorite children's book? I'll publish my list of fav's soon.

Jan Brett is Coming to Omaha's Bookworm

Jan Brett is one of my very favorite authors of children's books. My favorite Jan Brett book is "Armadillo Rodeo" but "Hedgie's Surprise" and "The Wild Christmas Reindeer" follow close behind. Go to Jan's website and click on Hedgie's Book-a-matic and answer the questionaire then Hedgie with tell you what book would be best for you. Mine was "Beauty and the Beast."

On Novemember 11,th from 5-7 .m. Jan Brett will be at the Bookworm(8702 Pacific StreetOmaha, NE 68114 Telephone: 402-392-2877). Her new book is called, "Gingerbread Friends" and it is the 10th anniversary of her version of "The Night Before Christmas". Go to the Bookworm website to find out how to get your book signed by Jan Brett.

http://www.bookwormomaha.com/store/

Maybe I'll see you there on November 11th.!

REAL WORK FOR KIDS

In today's Daily Exchange (http://www.childcareexchange.com/index.php) there was an article about Real Work for Kids with Challenging Behavior. It echoed my own thoughts and experience on this issue. When I was raising my daughters I felt it was important to include them in all the tasks of running our busy household from the time that they were able to make a contribution.
So they put toys away, helped fold towels, washed the window on the storm door at the level where they breathed on it and placed their hands when looking out, etc. I probably started giving them "jobs" sometime during the year they turned two. My guiding philosophy in this was "never do anything for a child that s/he can do for him/herself'". The one caution I had was not to make a child my servant. I never asked them to do things just to save me steps in a job that was "my task". If I did ask for help in something that was "my task", I made sure that I answered in the affirmative when they asked for help or I picked up some of the slack for them at "their tasks" if I had a little extra time. That way they knew that we were a team, working together for the good of the family and we could depend on each other for help.
Giving children real work at home and in the classroom is a real way to develop self-esteem and self-confidence. When children feel confident and competent, they are better at tackling problems on their own without frustration and/or anger. They have accomplishments to be proud of and they don't need our cheap praise and constant recognition to keep them motivated and positive.
I especially liked what the article said about not giving praise if you have given a job due to behavioral issues. "Challenging behavior children were not given treats or stickers. They weren't put on a point system. And most importantly they were not praised for their work. Before you fall completely out of your chair, let me explain. Children that are "in trouble" all the time don't feel worthy of praise, plus they don't deserve praise. Why should we praise children for doing what they are supposed to do to fit into society? Sometimes when you praise these children, they will set out to prove you wrong."
I see this in Centers alot, trying to praise a child into positive behavior. I'm sure that many of my child care co-workers have thought that I was very stingey with my praise but I'm also sure that I had fewer behavior problems and more cooperation in my groups than most other providers.
Read the Article by Linda Ranson Jacobs and let me know what you think.

http://mail.google.com/mail/?hl=en&tab=wm#all/11d61e2e04ff29dd