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Wednesday, January 30, 2013

How to Start a Playgroup!

Have you been wanting to start a playgroup, but you're just not quite sure how? Here are a few pro tips that'll get your playgroup up and running that everyone will want to be a part of!

Set a Date

Set an exact day and time you will have playgroup regularly. It's important to consider nap time and meal time.

Advertise

Ask other moms in your area if they want to join in! Invite mom's you meet at the park, local grocery store etc. It's smart to be inclusive and invite everyone to increase your social group! Everyone wants to be included and mostly not everyone will show up every week.

Organize

As soon as you get a steady playgroup going and get an idea of whose a permanent participant, make a schedule that'll organize the rotation of who will host playgroup each week of the month(s).

Activity

When it's your week to host, have some type of activity planned. This provides structured learning and interaction. It can be simple or more elaborate. Either way, the kids will love it!

Snacks

The easiest way to approach snacks is to have everyone bring a snack they have in their pantry and share it at playgroup. That way it's not stressful for the host to have to worry about feeding 10 kids. When everyone pitches in, there's enough and a variety!

When It's Your Week-Be Prepared

A great way to reduce craziness and mess is to designate one room in the house to playgroup. This way the mess is manageable, clean-up is easier, and kids aren't running everywhere!

Have Fun

Last but not least, have fun, relax, and enjoy the company!

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Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Resource Spotlight: Resources for Infant Educarers Approach

Resources for Infant Educarers Approach (RIE), is a non-profit organization that was founded by Magda Gerber (infant specialist and educator), Tom Rorrest (M.D., and pediatric neurologist) in 1978. The guided idea behind this organization is when adults respect and care properly for their infant that the infant will develop into an independent, and well-adjusted individual. The services offered by RIE are many different training opportunities for parents and childcare professionals to learn and participate in the RIE approach.

The first part of the RIE approach is to encourage both parents and caregivers to show respect for the baby's experience. To explain more specifically about this approach here are some techniques of the RIE approach.

Talk with your infant. RIE approach is to encourage ongoing communication with your baby. Tell your charge before you do it. For example, "I'm going to go get your binky, hold tight." This type of approach demonstrates respect for the infant and helps the child to develop predictability.

Don't be quick to fix your infants charge as they being to fuss or cry. Crying is a way baby's communicate. It expresses how they feel or what they want. The approach for this is to acknowledge your baby's emotions, and not jump right into soothing, but rather listening to what they're expressing to you.

Just ask if you're not sure what your baby wants. The RIE approach for this is to ask what they want. This is another way of showing respect to them. If you feed your child and they're still fussy, ask "Are you still hungry?" If they reject food, then perhaps ask, "Is your tummy not feeling well? Are you gassy?" Burp them and continue to ask them questions to discover why they're upset. By doing so, your child feels safe and understood.

Opt for self-directed play. The RIE approach encourages parents to have your baby lead in the play experience. Magda Gerber said, "Infancy is a time of great dependence. Nevertheless babies should be allowed to do things for themselves from the very beginning." More clearly the meaning is let your baby do what interest them, allowing them to become frustrated when they fail at something, and support them as they learn for figure things for themselves.

There are many different ways to incorporate the RIE approach into everyday interaction with your infant. RIE approach offers practical ideas for creating a respectful relationship with your infant.

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Monday, January 28, 2013

10 Ways Nannies Can Organize A Child's Toys

Do you have a nanny? If not, this article is useful for you too! Toys are constantly used and the place area can get messy if it's not organized! Here are 10 easy steps to store toys in an organized and functional manner.

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1. Store Toys Low- It is that children important can easily fetch toys, so they don't get frustrated and feel they need to climb to reach.

2. Use Bins and Baskets - Arrange a series of bins and baskets to contain overflow of toys.

3. Store Same with Same - Organizing toys of the similar thing in it's own container, provides an easy access to what toy(s) the child is looking for. This method is also helpful with making clean-up time much easier!

4. Keep Shelves Secure and Safe - Prevent top-heavy tip-over shelves by anchoring them properly and not storing too much on them. This prevents future injuries of children climbing to slung-over shelves that aren't fully secured.

5. Make Favorites Easy to Find - Most children, especially toddlers usually have their choice of toy(s). By keeping these few toys easily accessible to the child, they'll most likely not make a mess with several toys, because they have their favorites and aren't compensating for them.

6. Put Away Special Occasion Toys - Messy toys like bubbles, dough, glitter should be used under adult supervision and is best stored where it is not a temptation for the child. By doing so, when you plan special times for the child to explore these toys/activities, the tone of excitement is much greater.

7. Make Clean-up Part of Your Regular Routine Together - Children can expect something if it's routine. Making clean-up a regular event after playtime helps the child to understand cleaning up is part of the playing and shows they're responsible for cleaning up after themselves.

8. Designate Toy Containers in Common Rooms - Sometimes it's effective to have toys in certain rooms other then the playroom. By having one bin for a different room is effective for corralling toys while keeping them separated from the playroom stash.

9. Stuffed Animal Hammocks - It is common for toddlers to have a kingdom collection of stuffed animals and plush toys. But, they probably just have a few favorites. Toy hammocks are a great option for storing because you can easily put them in and put several in. It's important to place the hammocks where reckless play isn't encouraged.

10. Label Everything - Even though your young age child may not read, labels are still the most useful organizational tool for you. It's not easy to remember which toy goes in which bin, but labels are the easy fix for that! Labeling with both words and pictures is very effective! Both labeling types also promotes word recognition.

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Friday, January 25, 2013

Book Review: Animalia by Graeme Base

School age: 2nd grade +

Developmental Skill: Cognitive and reasoning skills are important in all areas of development. This helps children to thing independently, increases vocabulary and builds self-confidence as they solve problems.

Book Review: This alphabet book has extravagant, colorful illustrations. Each alphabet syncs to an animal that performs actions that start with the same alphabet letter. As an adult I found this book to be fun - It's a book for the whole family to enjoy!

Activity: Help you children find the hidden objects in the pictures. This is a great book to do with children of all ages because they can find new things each time. Besides the words listed on the page, look for other objects that start with that letter in the alphabet. When you're done reading, play the ABC game with objects around your house. Take turns finding objects that start with 'A', 'B', 'C', etc. This can be a fun game for the whole family!

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Playgroup Craft: Paper Plate Peacock

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Peacocks are my most favorite bird, and when I found this craft idea I was very excited! This is a great playgroup activity along with reading the book, "Three Hens and a Peacock" by Lester L. Laminack.

Instructions to make the Paper Plate Peacock:

Step 1: Paint top of the paper plate with green watercolor paint. I recommended to use liquid watercolors from Oriental Trading. They work really well with this craft and they last for years and years longer then standard dry watercolors. After, paint random blue strips with the water color. It blends very well and will look something like this. Then let the plate completely dry.

Step 2: While waiting for the plate to completely dry make the body/head of the peacock. The outline is mimicked after a bowling pin. Then cut out!

Step 3: Next, add the details to the peacock body! A beak, 2 wiggly eyes, 4 cocktail toothpicks, variety of sized sequins for the spots. First apply one large gold sequin then glue smaller sequins directly on top. The sequins are a great option for the spots because they are shiny and pretty just like peacock spots!