The rain wouldn't stop us from having a great day celebrating Easter! We had a visit from the bunny, face painted, and "hunted" for eggs. It was egg-cellent fun! We wish all of our AoCS families a long, safe and fun Easter weekend!
Infant Two pulled out their mirror from our educational curriculum, Frog Street Press, today. The babies loved looking at their reflections. They smiled and giggled and even pointed.
Check out the following article from Pathways.org on why mirrors are good for babies:
Want a toy that will keep your baby entertained and that is also good
for their development? Put your wallet away, because you probably
already have this in your home: mirrors! Yes, that mirror hanging on
your bathroom wall can help your baby’s development!
Why do babies like mirrors?
Babies love faces! Babies especially love the faces of their parents
and caregivers, but they also enjoy seeing all types of faces whether
they are in books, faces of friendly visitors, or you guessed it – in
the mirror!
How can playing with mirrors help my baby learn?
Mirrors are a great way to help babies explore. Try holding baby in
front of the mirror. They may even reach out to touch the “baby” in the
mirror. Eventually, they will learn they are seeing their own face and
start to recognize their reflection.
While looking in the mirror with your baby, you can use this chance
to help develop their vocabulary! Say the different parts of the face as
you point to them on your face and baby’s. If you are in front of a
bathroom mirror with baby, that is a great place to respond to baby’s
babbling and make noises with baby. The extra echo makes it even more
fun!
A mirror is also a great way for baby to practice visual tracking.
Make silly faces at baby in the mirror and see if they imitate you or
make a different face back. Get siblings involved too for fun, bonding
time!
Do I have to spend all day in front of the bathroom mirror?
No, of course not! There are small mirrors made for baby to play with
and even toys that have a mirror built-in. Make sure the mirror is
unbreakable before giving it to baby. If there are any chips or cracks,
do not give the mirror to baby as it may not be safe. Baby will enjoy
playing with their mirror on the floor, in their high chair, or even in
the car.
Keep in mind that games you already play with your baby, such as peek-a-boo, can be extra fun with a mirror!
April begins our annual Green Our Scene month. Monday we will open up our recycling centers. This is a great opportunity to teach our children how to reduce, reuse, and recycle. Check out the article below on easy ways you can do your part!
Recycle—don’t just toss everything in the trash. Lots of things (like
cans, bottles, paper, and cardboard) can be remade into either the same
kind of thing or new products. Making new items from recycled ones also
takes less energy and fewer resources than making products from brand
new materials.
Just about anything in your home (or office or school, etc.) that
cannot be reused CAN be recycled into something else. You'd be amazed
what can be done with a recycled product! A recycled soda bottle, can be
made into T-shirts, combs, or hundreds of other plastic goods that can
be used for many years. Even your brand new computer case might be made
from ordinary recycled plastics. And paper products can take on
different forms as well; an old phone book or coloring book might become
one of your school books or a notebook.
Your recycling mission is not impossible! In fact, it is very simple:
Don't throw away anything that can be recycled!
Here is a list of things you may be able to recycle
Aluminum cans
Cardboard
Electronic equipment
Glass (particularly bottles and jars)
Magazines
Metal
Newspaper
Paper
Plastic Bags
Plastic Bottles
Steel Cans
Writing/Copy Paper
Yard Waste (leaves, grass)
Just ask your local recycling office (city, county, or state) about what can be recycled.
Now isn't that easy? There is so much that YOU can do with very
little effort. And the best part is you will probably save yourself a
lot of money while you are at it!
This week we are learning about Nursery Rhymes in Toddler One. Many of you might know the first verse of this common rhyme...
Jack and Jill went up the hill,
To fetch a pail of water.
Jack fell down and broke his crown,
And Jill came tumbling after.
But who knows the second verse?
Up Jack got got and home did trot,
As fast as he could caper,
To old Dame Dob who patched his knob,
With vinegar and brown paper.
There are even more verses after that. Since Toddler One was exploring this rhyme that mentions vinegar they mixed it with baking soda for a cool science experiment. It bubbled and fizzed and all the kiddos thought it was super cool!
Your child and his or her teacher get to connect with each other on a daily basis through playing and learning. Did you know that there are simple activities that you can do on the way home from school or on the weekends that can help you connect with your child? It can be summarized in one word: PLAY. Here are some simple ways to play and connect with your child.
10 Ways to Play and Connect
1.Hide and Seek
Kids as young as 2 can begin to play this favorite. Start off by
hiding yourself and having them try to find you. Or hide a favorite
stuffed animal and look for him/her together. Give a hug when the
person is found – or chase back to a certain spot!
2.Buzz Hug Game
A “buzz hug” is a snug hug that is given with a gentle shaking and buzzing sound.
3.Dancing or Marching to Music
Create your own special dance – or just play some fun music and
actually get up and dance with your kids.
4.Playing Music Together
This can be a fun way to bond! Put on some music and get instruments
out and play along, or even better, play real musical instruments and
create songs together.
5. Floor Play
Sometimes doing a simple activity like a jigsaw puzzle, or a stacking game together on the floor can be all a child needs toconnect.Open-ended toys like blocks, cars and trucks, and dolls provide many ways for your child to direct the play and you to follow their lead – something kids love!
6.Walking Outside
There’s something about being outside together, especially out in a
natural area, that is good for the soul! Try exploring a new park, a
local pond or boardwalk, or even just follow a trail that you haven’t
been down before. Your child will pick up on your sense of adventure
and exploration and you’ll get some fresh air and sunshine!
7. Baking/Cooking
If you haven’t done this yet, start easy by making pancakes from batter
that only needs you to add a couple of ingredients, or a pre-mixed
muffin mix. Your child will love learning to stir and pour and
especially enjoy the tasting!
8. Car Play
Even when you’re on your way somewhere, you can take time to connect. Onetime loves playing I-Spy in the car, or a game where I
say the first line or two of a nursery rhyme and he fills in the last
word. e.g. “Humpty Dumpty sat on a….?” “Wall!” “Humpty Dumpty had a great….?” “Fall!”
9. Imaginative Play
One of the toddler and preschooler’s favorite forms of play. Join in
his/her play by being a willing participant (be a firefighter too!), a
helping character (become the mechanic when the train breaks), or a
subordinate (be the patient when she’s the doctor.)
Remember to follow your child’s lead, ask questions like “Where should we go next? What should we do next?” and get on his/her level when playing. 10. Sing Songs Together
Sing favorite songs in the car, while walking to school, in the living room after dinner, or before bedtime.
We were thrilled to once again welcome The Southern Academy of Irish Dance to come perform for our students to celebrate St. Patty's Day! They wore beautiful costumes and danced to traditional Irish music. The students were memorized at the movements. They sure are very talented dancers! Some volunteers even got to practice along with them. What a fun morning!
This March we challenged our families to get creative, roll up their sleeves, and make leprechaun traps for St. Patty's Day. And boy are we blown away with the results! We can tell a lot of hard work went into each trap. All entries are so unique and special. I don't think any leprechaun will be able to stay away! Be sure to vote today and tomorrow for your favorite trap. The winner of the FREE WEEK of tuition will be announced on Wednesday. Thank you to each family who participated. We hope you had fun spending family time together.
This trap features free hot air balloon rides!
Who can resist a lucky charm wall?
Free coins here!
The clover is disguised as a floor but will trap the leprechaun in the jar!
The signs read "definiately not a trap" and "totally safe for leprechauns". HA!
A beautiful, eye-catching box of gold!
This one comes complete with a gold slide into the hat trap.
A pipe cleaner cage will drop down and trap that pesky leprechaun.
This isn't a mouse trap...it's a giant leprechaun trap!
What a cute idea to use pretzel sticks for the ladder!
This trap has flashing lights and everything!
What an awesome lego bridge!
The floor of this trap is sticky so no leprechaun will be able to escape.
The rainbow ramp is SO COOL!
Holy leprechaun trap...super cool!
The gold stepping stones are a genius idea!
We love this "free gold" felt banner.
The beautiful rainbow will disguise this trap for sure!
Who wants lucky charms?!
This MASSIVE trap will catch even the biggest leprechauns!
This trap is hockey themed and the Predators flag hides the false bottom.
