From a young age, my son was very interested in numbers. By a year and half, he started to properly identify different figures. I always say it was the influence of Sesame Street, which was the only show he watched until he was almost four years old. That, and we lived in an apartment building when he was young, where he enjoyed finding and pressing the floor numbers in the elevator.
With a spirited three year old and a six year old under one roof, many conversations these days involve talking through our feelings. For those of you that have experience with these ages, you know with them, come a range of emotions. From happy to frustrated and sad to excited…all sometimes within a single hour!
With school out for the next couple months, I thought it would be beneficial to share some tips for keeping kids motivated to read over the summer break. While there is lots of time to spend at the pools and water parks, inevitably there is also down time to cool off and this offers up the perfect opportunity to pick up a book!
As the school year comes to an end, I am once again trying to come up with way to recognize my son’s classroom teacher. This year, I feel like we won some sort of jackpot, with an educator that challenges my child to be his best self and to produce his very best work. While I feel like there is no way to truly repay her for all her hard work and dedication, presenting her with a thoughtful gift is a good start.
With summer break around the corner, I am already anticipating having both kids home from school and daycare for several days. Therefore, I am starting to compile activities that keep them busy, having fun and maybe even learn a bit. Like most children, mine are big fans of stickers–especially my 3-year-old.
If you follow me regularly, you know that I have a slight obsession with children’s books and promoting literacy. Growing up, my mom would say “Readers are Leaders” and I truly believe encouraging children to pick up a book and read is more important now than ever. That being said, I always note the importance of finding books that interest the child in order to develop their connection to wanting to read more often.
So it is the day after Easter and the remnants of the holiday lay around the house. In particular the plastic eggs seem to be in every room. With the kids home from daycare and school for one more day, we emptied any candy that remained into bags and put the plastic eggs to use before packing them away until next year.
With Spring Break in full swing and the travel season upon us, I thought I would share a little trick I’ve been using for years when traveling with my kids. Actually, I even use it every time we go out to eat or for coffee as a group. It is not life-changing by any means, but as I have learned as a parent, any tip to make life even a bit easier is a good one.
In my continuing literacy series, I am switching the focus from babies and toddlers to the emerging school-aged reader. This year, my son entered the first grade and is honing his reading and writing skills each day at school and during his nightly reading. It’s also the first time he was introduced to the spelling test. Like most students, each week there are a new set of words he needs to master when it comes to reading and spelling.
One of my favorite parts of Valentine’s Day are the cute, pastel conversation hearts. The sweetheart candies with cute messages like “Be Mine” and “Kiss Me” were part of my childhood, with my mom gifting us a box each year for the holiday. I have continued the tradition and get one for my kids every year. What I also love about the candy hearts is that they can be used as several learning activities for toddlers and kids alike.