Pi Day wouldn’t be complete without PIE for lunch. Mini chicken pot pies are a perfectly balanced and delicious lunch that most young children really like. I often cook my own because I can make sure that they are super healthy by controlling the fat and the kind of chicken that is inside. Many home […]
I bet you already use the ASL hand gestures for some directions. The sign for “up” is a finger pointing up and the sign for “down” is a finger pointing down. These signs are useful for an infant who wants to be picked up or put down and allows them to tell you so without […]
Pi Day is a wonderful opportunity to reinforce some calendar concepts with the children. On Friday during circle time or large group, use 3.14 to explain that even though months have “names” and days have “names” they also have corresponding numbers. January is the first month of the year – so we call it “1.” […]
If you begin signing with the infants in your care you may want to explore this website a bit. The site is definitely selling a product but in my opinion, you don’t really need any more than what is available for free. There are videos showing babies signing, examples of how to teach the signs, […]
On Friday, prepare a beading activity that asks the children to create patterns of 3 – 1 – 4 The older children can create their own and the younger children can extend some examples you have prepared. Take long laces or strings and tape the ends to the table leaving the tails free for beading. […]
The following comes from the NAEYC position statement on Developmentally Appropriate Practice with Infants and Toddlers DAP with Infants and Toddlers, Ages Birth – 3–3 The earliest years are all about relationships. Infants and toddlers crave and develop attachments to the special people in their lives. Depending on how parents, early childhood educators, and others […]
On Friday, prepare the snacks in groups of 3s, 1s, and 4s. Put them in small bowls or little cups in those very specific quantities; for example, 3 crackers, 1 cheese stick, and 4 slices of banana. Have each child find one bowl with 3 items, one bowl with 1 item, and one bowl with […]
I really like soft blocks for infants and toddlers. Often, these are designed so they fit directly into the small hands of the youngest children. They can get them into their palms and then directly into their mouths for easy exploration. The ones below are also made in a safe plastic, so they can be […]
Guess what is coming up this week? I know you know because I wrote about it last year around this time…. Pi Day Yeah! So, each afternoon I am going to write a little something-something about ways you can explore Pi Day with your kids on March 14th. Even the youngest children will explore this […]
Someone posted this video on my facebook page recently and it made me so happy. I watched it about 10 times and then reposted it for more people to see. http://vimeo.com/86239189 Since March is dedicated to all things Infant & Toddler, this video reminds us that even the most mundane and even irritating life events […]