Right after the Holidays or after your Children’s Birthday can be an excellent
time to start teaching your children the benefits of helping the less
fortunate people. Sometime children become very selfish. They have
a roof over their head, plenty of food, and over abundance of toys. At a young
age most children have no idea that there are many children out their that have
much less than them. After the holidays and/or Birthday is the perfect time
to begin teaching your children about this fact and explain to them how they
can help.

Why not have your children help you gather up their old toys and take them to
a shelter where their old toys get plenty of use and make children smile again.
This will teach your children that they can make a difference. Not only that it
will keep them from taking their good life for granted. It will teach them that
giving to others not only makes the other children happy, but it also makes them
feel good as well.

Tips for Teaching your Children to Give

Have your children give the same amount of their older toys that they
get new. This gives your children an actual figure to work with. Plus,
it keeps them from having their toy boxes over-full .

Keep a Family Blessings Journal. One things that this entire
process teaches your children is to be more thankful for what they have….
to appreciate it all. Keeping a Family
Blessing Journal can aid your children in remembering what all they have
to be Thankful for. Plus, it is a great way to look back at your wonderful life
in writing.

Top Image by Mr.
Kris

Today I’m just going to get into projects that have to do with physical attributes.
Tomorrow I will get into the feelings and senses attributes.

But, the concept of "everyone is different" can
be hard to teach to a child without some hands-on projects. So, without further
ado…..

"All About Me" Preschool Activities

Me Puppets

In this project you will be assisting the children in Making "Me Puppets".
Me puppets will help you reinforce to the children that everyone is different
in the physical sense. You will need 6 inch paper plates to use as faces, popsicle
sticks or tongue depressors as the holders. Also, get out some yarn, markers,
crayons, child safety scissors and glue to finish off the "Me Puppet".
Let them put on a puppet show.

Self-Portraits

Give the kid some art supplies and let them draw pictures of themselves. Give
them a list of easy descriptive words and let them chose the words that most
describe themselves. You can even have pictures next to the descriptive words
to help them chose the words that best describe them. For example, for the word
“funny” you can have a person laughing so that they know that word is "funny".
And, for the word “smart” you can have a picture of a person with a light bulb
above their head. Those are just examples, but you get the idea. You want to
help your child pick descriptive words describing themselves.

Eye Color Graph

Make a color graph to show the different colors of eyes such as…. blue, green,
brown and hazel eyes. Let the children look in the mirror and decide what eye
color they have on their own. Did they chose the right color. Talk about that with them.

Thumbprints

This is a really cool project… a little messy, but cool. Bring out an ink
pad and let the kids place their thumb on the ink pad and then onto their own
pieces of blank paper. Give each of the children a magnifying glass and let
them determine what makes each thumbprint different. Do they notice the differences?
Explain to the children that no two fingerprints are alike…. pretty amazing,
huh?!

Body Tracing

Me Stories

Let the children create short stories about themselves. They can draw pictures
and make it a picture book or you can help them write a story using word and with the pictures
as well.

Felt Faces

Cover a coffee can with felt. Also, cut out different sizes and shapes of
felt cutouts. Tell the kids to make their faces using the different shaped felt
and the coffee can. Felt sticks onto felt pretty easily, so no other supplies
such as glue or tape is needed.

Growth Charts

Provide a measurement chart and scales for the children to measure their height
and weight. Explain to the children what these numbers mean.

In Conclusion

These projects should help you teach your children all about them in
the physical sense. Tomorrow we will continue the "About
Me" topic, but go into projects that help you teach them about
themselves using their feelings and their senses.

Top image by squacco

Keep in mind that any change in routine or structure can mess young toddlers
and preschoolers up. Children love structure. And structure gives your child
something they can count on.

This time doesn’t have to be full of anxiety. Here are some ways to make the
transition easier.

7 Ways to Make Transition Easier when Older Siblings Go Back to School

2. Start Preparing your Child Early – Yes, we know this time
   can be scary. But, what is even scarier for a child is not being prepared
   for change when it happens. So, start preparing the younger child for the
   fact that the older children will be starting school soon. Ask the child how
   he or she feels about it. Let the child know that everything will be okay
   and what your plans will be for the day when the older children are at school.
   Your child will find comfort in knowing what’s ahead.
3. Start your child taking Lessons that coincide with their older siblings
   going to school – One of the feelings that your youngest child might
   be feeling is jealousy. Your child might be jealous in the fact that the older
   children will be heading to school to learn. Why not have your youngest child
   start a class of his or her own. There are tons of lessons your little one
   can take. What does your little one want to learn? What are his or her interests?
   Check out your local YMCA, JCC or Community Center for Lessons. Your child
   will love the fact that they can learn something new too.
4. Do something daily just the two of you – One nice thing
   about having the older children away at school is that there is much more
   time for you and your little one. This is a great time to spend quality time
   together. One
   on one time with your child can really deepen your relationship with them.
   Let your child know that you are looking forward to doing something special
   together. Sit down with your youngest and come up with some ideas of how you
   are going to spend this time together. Don’t be surprised if your little one
   is no longer scared and sad about the older children going off to school…..
   but instead these feelings are replaced with excitement. Your younger child
   will probably be thrilled to have some alone time with you.
5. Realize the feelings that the child left behind might be feeling
   – There are a ton of feelings your youngest might be feeling about the older
   siblings going off to school. Be prepared for them and it will make this transition
   for you and the younger child easier. Some of the feelings your youngest might
   be feeling are…
   • Fear
   • Anxiety
   • Sadness
   • Excitement
   • Stress
   • Worry
   • Loneliness

   And these are just some of the many, many feelings your child might be
   feeling. Make the transition easier by talking with your youngest child
   about their older siblings going off to school. Let them know whatever feelings
   they are having about it are understandable and that they can always come
   to you with whatever they are feeling and you will help get them through
   it.

6. Plan the Days out for your Little one – Children love structure
   and don’t like change. When older children go to school and leave the littlest
   one at home that is a change of structure for your little one. It is very
   scary. Adding structure back into their life will help your little one feel
   more secure and less stressed during this transition. They love to know what
   they could expect next. So, plan away….. and include your youngest one in
   the planning process. It will get them more excited about the time to come.
7. Start a School for your Child at Home – Your child might
   feel left out when the older children go back to school. Why not start them
   in a school of their own as well. There are Preschool Curriculums out their
   that are perfect for teaching your young Preschooler at home. Just make sure
   to choose the right Preschool
   Curriculum for your Child. And, don’t forget to name the School. Giving
   your at home school a name will make it more official and special for your
   little one.

Yes, this time can be very stressful and sad for your little one, but it doesn’t
have to be. With a little planning and preparing it can be a happy and
exciting transition for your little one.

Top image by Pink
Sherbet

]]> http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2009/08/25/when-the-older-siblings-go-back-to-school/feed/ 0 http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2009/06/01/teaching-a-child-to-ride-a-bike-without-training-wheels/ http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2009/06/01/teaching-a-child-to-ride-a-bike-without-training-wheels/#comments Mon, 01 Jun 2009 12:33:34 +0000 TheNanny612 http://www.abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/?p=185
Image by jonny.hunter

I remember when I was little and my mom taught me how to ride a bike without
training wheels. Actually, I remember it quite vividly. How can I not? I still
have a few scars on my knees to prove it.

My mom and I [...]]]>
Image by jonny.hunter

I remember when I was little and my mom taught me how to ride a bike without
training wheels. Actually, I remember it quite vividly. How can I not? I still
have a few scars on my knees to prove it.

My mom and I out in our back alley of my childhood home. Her running behind
me while holding me up and then all of a sudden I realize she is no longer hold
me up and I immediately panic and fall over.

I remember the fear I felt when I realized she wasn’t holding me up any longer.
I also remember me yelling at my mom in the most dramatic fashion when I blamed
her for me falling and hurting myself. But, what I remember most importantly
is thee feeling of accomplishment when I was able to ride on my own.

I know my mom taught me how to ride my bike how most parents teach their children how to ride a bike. My mom didn’t do anything wrong. After all, children learn by trial and error. From falling I learned how to balance better. I learned what worked and didn’t work. I learned that I didn’t want to fall anymore…. falling hurt. But, I kept at it because I wanted so badly to ride my bike on my own… without training wheels.

I had decided that there must be another way to teach our children how to ride
a bike without training wheels. I understood that my children needed to learn
balance. That in order to learn balance there must be some falling. But, I wanted
to teach my children how to do this with less injuries. And, I did just that.
How? By teaching my children the first few days how to ride bike on the grass.

On the grass? Yep.

Steps I used to Teach my Kids how to Ride Bike without Pain


• I didn’t start them too early – They had to understand
  a bit of balance. They trained hard on Training wheels for some time. We also
  made sure to raise the training wheels every so often as they got use to them.
  By the time we removed them from our children’s bikes they were at the highest
  level possible and the kids were no longer relying on them for balance as
  much.

• Started on the Grass - The first few days of training was
  spent on the grass. This way they were learn balance, but their falls would
  be much less painful… macadam hurts.

• Slight Decline on Grass – My background seemed to be the
  perfect spot for the kids to learn how to ride bike. There was a very slight
  decline in the yard which gave them a little momentum without making them
  go to fast.

• They Need to Know How to Brake – Before the training wheels
  come off the kids need to know how to brake. I practiced a long time with
  my children on breaking…. way before the training wheels come off. And,
  this is necessary. When the training wheels come off you will find that your
  kids will be concentrating so hard on balancing that they will occasionally
  forget the things they already learned. You don’t want them to have to worry
  about learning balancing and breaking at once.

• Don’t expect too much – I went into this event know there
  would be some falls, some laughter and probably even some tears. And, that
  is exactly what happened. The day will have his challenges, but you will find
  more than that there will be ample rewards too.

• Celebrate Even the Littlest of Things – This project is
  a true challenge for the kids. Not only is it difficult to learn, but it can
  be a bit scary for the kids. So, celebrate even the tiniest of advances. If
  they stayed up for 20 seconds celebrate it. Be a cheerleader for your child.

• Inspect the Bike before Training -Make sure all the bolts
  are tightened and the chains are greased. This way the bike rides as smoothly
  as possible. Nothing will cause your child to be super scared of riding their
  bike than to have them fall due to a bolt coming loose. Do not skip this step!!

• Tell them what you are doing through Every Step – I made
  sure to tell my children exactly what I was doing every step of the way. Don’t
  let go without your child knowing that was going to happen. My mom did that
  to me and the minute I saw she wasn’t holding me anymore…. I’d fall due
  to panic. Let your child know what you are doing right before you do it.

• Reminder Child to Always Look Straight Ahead – This might
  seem obvious to us, but to a child it is not. You will find that your child
  will be tempted to look at their feet while they are pedaling or to look back
  to see if you are still holding them. Constantly remind your child to look
  straight ahead. Not only is this important so they don’t hit into anything,
  but this will help your child keep the bike balanced as well.

• Hold your Child Correctly – When you are holding your child
  up and running behind them you will be tempted to hold them on the back of
  the seat and handle bars. But, your child will not be able to learn balancing
  well this way and it will be impossible for the child to learn how to steer
  as well. Make sure to hold your child up by holding the back of the bike seat
  and their shoulder or sweatshirt.

• Dress your Child Well – Make sure that your child doesn’t
  wear anything that you don’t mind getting grass stained or torn. Plus, you
  want the less skin showing as possible. Long pant and a Sweat shirt work great.
  This way if they fall they will be less apt to get cuts and scrapes and be
  frightened to get back on.

Also, if you do not have a nice area of grass suitable for teaching your child
to ride a bike and must do it on macadam please make sure to have elbow and
knee pads. Plus, it is imperative that you don’t skip out on the helmet even
if you are riding on the grass. Any fall can cause head injury without the proper
protective gear.

]]> http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2009/06/01/teaching-a-child-to-ride-a-bike-without-training-wheels/feed/ 12 http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/09/15/teaching-child-the-alphabet-using-coloring-pages/ http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/09/15/teaching-child-the-alphabet-using-coloring-pages/#comments Sun, 16 Sep 2007 03:56:38 +0000 TheNanny612 http://www.abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/09/15/teaching-child-the-alphabet-using-coloring-pages/

When I began teaching
my children the Alphabet as Toddlers I found that using Alphabet Coloring Pages
was one of the most effective way to teach the Letters of the Alphabet to my
children. I already knew that they loved to color, so why not teach them the
letters in [...]]]>

When I began teaching
my children the Alphabet as Toddlers I found that using Alphabet Coloring Pages
was one of the most effective way to teach the Letters of the Alphabet to my
children. I already knew that they loved to color, so why not teach them the
letters in a way that I know will hold their focus more than 2 minutes. So,
I started printing off alphabet coloring pages from the internet and I was off
to start teaching my children the alphabet.

My young Preschoolers-To-Be
had no idea that they were going to begin a Lesson. For all they knew they were
going to have fun coloring…. and they were right.

While my kids were coloring I would talk to them about the letters they were coloring. Here are a few examples of some things I would talk about with my children while they were coloring: The Letter "S" sounds like ssssss…..? What food begins with the letter "A"? Can you point to an object in the living room that starts with the Letter you are coloring? Those are just a few examples…. I am sure you can probably come up with a few more yourself.

Here are some of my kids’
favorite Alphabet Coloring Pages when they were learning the Alphabet:

• Learning
  Planet.com – Nice Collection of Printable Alphabet Coloring Pages
• Sesame
  Workshop – My Children absolutely loved these Alphabet Coloring
  Pages. The coloring pages have their favorite Sesame Street Characters.
• Coloring
  Castle.com – Simple bubble letter alphabet coloring pages. They
  have quite a few choices of different alphabet bubble letters.
• Preschool
  Coloring Book – Excellent Alphabet Coloring Pages. Preschool
  Coloring Book has so many choices of alphabet coloring pages to choose from.
  They have Plain Letters, Block Letters, Letters with Animals, Fruit &
  Vegetable Letters
• Jazzles.com
  – Very cute collection of alphabet coloring pages.
• Alphabet
  Soup – An Excellent collection of alphabet coloring pages.
• Animated
  Animals Coloring Book – Florida’s Animated Alphabet is designed
  to introduce young children to Florida’s wide variety of native wildlife and
  the interesting natural history and behavior of its wild creatures.
• Halloween
  Alphabet Coloring Pages – Since Halloween is next month I had
  to add this amazing collection of Alphabet Halloween Pages.

Technorati Tags:alphabet, coloring pages, education, children, kids, preschool

]]> http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/09/15/teaching-child-the-alphabet-using-coloring-pages/feed/ 2 http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/08/28/cooking-with-kids/ http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/08/28/cooking-with-kids/#comments Wed, 29 Aug 2007 03:36:37 +0000 TheNanny612 http://www.abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/08/28/cooking-with-kids/ Cooking with kids can be one of the most terrific activities that can happen
in a home. Sure, there’s going to be mess and there’s always a little
bit of risk when putting kids in the kitchen, but cooking with kids
teaches a variety of lessons that will apply to all areas [...]]]> Cooking with kids can be one of the most terrific activities that can happen
in a home. Sure, there’s going to be mess and there’s always a little
bit of risk when putting kids in the kitchen, but cooking with kids
teaches a variety of lessons that will apply to all areas of life and education.
Plus, cooking with kids helps to establish a bond between you that will last
a lifetime.

Here are just some of the things that kids can learn when you cook
with them:

Nutrition. Kids should learn healthy eating habits starting from a young age and what better way to learn them than through learning healthy cooking? By learning about food and their bodies, kids are learning some basic things about science that will help them in school down the line. And they’re learning lessons about good health that will help them for a lot longer than that. Reading. Cooking involves reading directions and looking at labels. By cooking with kids, you are helping them gain reading skills in a natural environment.

• Motor skills. When you’re cooking with kids, you’re
  moving plates around and pouring items. When they help, they improve their
  motor skills.
• Math. Cooking involves measurements and times which are
  important foundations in math. Cooking with kids gets them used to using math
  in a daily environment which makes them more comfortable with it and therefore
  more proficient at it.
• Taking care of themselves. Children who learn how to cook
  are less likely to be adolescents that eat out all of the time. They know
  how to take care of themselves in the kitchen so they will.
• Attention and focus. Nobody wants to eat burned cookies
  and your kids will rapidly learn to focus on the task at hand if they’re
  in charge of making sure the cookies don’t burn!

Here are some ideas for cooking with kids that help you to
teach them these skills without causing too much of a mess or safety risk in
the kitchen:

• Stick to recipes that are simple. Cooking with kids isn’t
  the same as cooking a romantic four-course meal for your spouse. You should
  stick to one or two items that have only a few ingredients each so that the
  kids can be involved with all parts of cooking.
• Let children find a favorite dish and let them make it once a week.
  Yes, you might get sick of it but stability is good for kids and if you know
  that you’re always cooking spaghetti together on Tuesdays, you enhance
  that.
• Start early if you want the cooking to be done at a certain time.
  It’s not healthy to cook under stress and it’s not a good habit
  for kids to get into so make sure you have plenty of time to make the meals.
• Read recipe books with your kids and have them pick out some of
  the dishes. If they’re involved in the planning, the shopping
  and the cooking, they’ll develop good food habits, learn great lessons
  and enjoy their meals.
• Have fun. You will look back on cooking with kids as hours
  that were spent together. These will be fond memories so enjoy them while
  you can.

Technorati Tags:cooking, kids, children, education, learning, homeschool, preschoolers, toddlers

]]> http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/08/28/cooking-with-kids/feed/ 1 http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/08/27/preparing-your-child-to-start-preschool/ http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/08/27/preparing-your-child-to-start-preschool/#comments Tue, 28 Aug 2007 02:32:42 +0000 TheNanny612 http://www.abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/08/27/preparing-your-child-to-start-preschool/ No parent is ever
ready for the day that their child goes off to preschool. But
that doesn’t mean that your preschooler can’t be ready. Even if
you’re nervous about the separation, you should do your best to make sure
that your child is prepared to head off to preschool when [...]]]> No parent is ever
ready for the day that their child goes off to preschool. But
that doesn’t mean that your preschooler can’t be ready. Even if
you’re nervous about the separation, you should do your best to make sure
that your child is prepared to head off to preschool when the time is right.
You want to do well as a parent and part of this means giving your child the
tools to go off on his own, even if it’s just for a few hours at preschool.
And by preparing your child both educationally and emotionally for the preschool
experience, you’ll help to quell your own fears about the situation.

Here are
some of the things that you need to do when preparing your child to start preschool:

Get your child used to following directions by using them regularly in your home. Use simple one-step directions first (such as “brush your teeth”). Then incorporate a second step (such as “brush your teeth and then get in bed”). Over time, your preschooler will get used to following directions and this will make doing so in preschool easier. Involve your child in a play group or other social activity. Your preschooler is going to need to learn to share items, take turns and otherwise interact with children so make sure that you’ve given him the skills to do so.

• Know
  where your child should be academically. Your preschooler doesn’t
  have to be right on track or ahead of the game, but you should have some basic
  child development knowledge of where other kids of the same age are going
  to be. This varies depending on the age that your child enters preschool but
  can be figured out by checking out basic parenting books on development. Help
  your child reach an average academic place before sending him off to preschool
  so that he doesn’t start at a disadvantage.
• Point out the
  ways in which your child is growing up and make it a point to say
  that preschool is a big kid thing. This way, your child will be proud
  and excited about preschool, not scared.
• Purchase
  some special preschool items that your child gets to use only when going to
  preschool.
  A backpack, lunchbox, set of crayons … these small things that are for
  school only can help with the transition to preschool.
• Use a
  schedule at home since your child will be on a schedule in preschool.
  Have a playtime, a nap time, a video time, and an outside time that are basically
  the same every day. The routine itself may be different in preschool but the
  process of getting used to a routine won’t be new.

And of course, the
most important thing about preparing your child to start preschool is that you
have to prepare yourself. Even parents who are eager to return to work
feel a twinge of regret when it’s time to send kids to preschool. It’s
a change that breeds fear. But if you are overly anxious about it, your child
will pick up on that and the transition to preschool will be more difficult.
Trust that you’ve prepared your child for preschool and rest easy in that
knowledge.

Technorati Tags:preschool, pre-k, kids, children, education, learning

]]> http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/08/27/preparing-your-child-to-start-preschool/feed/ 0 http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/08/24/children-and-prejudice/ http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/08/24/children-and-prejudice/#comments Fri, 24 Aug 2007 18:54:24 +0000 TheNanny612 http://www.abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/08/24/children-and-prejudice/ Have you ever been
in the awkward position of having your child make a prejudiced statement
in front of other parents? This is mortifying for most adults because they want
others to believe that they are teaching their children right from wrong when
it comes to the important issue of prejudice [...]]]> Have you ever been
in the awkward position of having your child make a prejudiced statement
in front of other parents? This is mortifying for most adults because they want
others to believe that they are teaching their children right from wrong when
it comes to the important issue of prejudice in our society. But when you step
away from the situation and get your ego out of the picture, you’ll usually
find that your child had no bad intentions and that the statement doesn’t
actually reflect poorly on your social teaching skills. Instead, it reflects
on the fact that your young child is noticing differences in the people around
her and she wants to know what that’s all about. Each opportunity that
comes up – whether awkward or simply mundane – should be thought
of as an opportunity to teach your children about prejudice.

Children who start learning about prejudice in a natural way when they are young are less likely to exhibit prejudice in their own behavior. This is because it is just common sense to them that all people are to be treated equally. But this can’t be achieved by pretending that all people are the same. While we may all be equal, there are obvious differences that your kids are going to notice. The color of skin, gender of bodies and texture of hair vary from person to person and it makes sense to acknowledge that difference. If you don’t, then your kids aren’t going to take much that you say seriously because it’s going to appear that you’re blind to the world around you. So, instead of teaching your children that we’re all the same, you should be teaching them that our differences don’t matter.

This sounds like
a big task that involves a lot of moral conversations with your kids. While
those will eventually come up, the task of teaching children about prejudice
is really an ongoing thing that you don’t need to stress out about. It
happens every time that you teach your children about differences (“daddy’s
a boy and mommy’s a girl”) and every time you encourage fairness
amongst people in a group (including your own kids). These basic lessons
that you’re already teaching your kids are going to be the foundation
for helping them to avoid prejudice later on.

While parents may
find it awkward when their kids make seemingly prejudice statements, they find
it outright horrifying when their own children are the victims of prejudice.
This happens especially as your kids get older and start going to school with
a divers group of people. When it does, you have to be sure to work first on
restoring your child’s self esteem. Prejudice is confusing for
children and it’s your job to explain that it happens and that
it is about the person who is being prejudiced, not about your child. At the
same time, you need to encourage acceptance of all people, even the prejudiced
person, while not condoning the behavior. Every time that you teach
your child to stand up for herself as well as to stand up for others who are
being victimized, you teach your child how to cope with prejudice in
a mature manner.

Technorati Tags:prejudice, children, kids, social skills, people, education

]]> http://abchomepreschool.com/PreschoolEducationBlog/2007/08/24/children-and-prejudice/feed/ 0