Two2Read May GiveAway

Best Books For Kids Who (Think They) Hate to Read : 125 Books That Will Turn Any Child Into A lifelong Reader by Laura Backes This book is created to help parents choose what books are right for their child. It shows parents how to match a book to their child. Some children don’t take easily to reading. They may have difficulty learning to read, they may run toward other activities like watching television or playing...

Summertime Collecting With Kids

Summer Collecting with Kids  Summer is a great time to start a collection with your child. Here are some ways to help them on their collection journey. 1. Find a proper box that will make their collection fun and easily accessible. One great possibility is a clear plastic jewelry box which can be found in most cosmetic supply stores. It is clear, has several compartments and is easy to open and close. Other possible ways to...

Egg Carton Challenge

      Egg Carton Challenge   Materials Needed:   one empty egg carton one sheet of white paper scissors marker, pen or crayons     Directions: Take the one sheet of paper and cut out 36 small sqaures.   On each square write one letter of the alphabet (26 letters.)   On the extra squares write additional vowels (a, e, I, o, u) so you have 2 of each vowel.       How to Play the Game:   Open the egg...

How to Be a Super Parent

Super Parents  Kids need to know you love them and care about them more than anything else. You can be a SUPER PARENT without giving up your time to read, blog, write, design or anything else you love to do as an artistic person. You can be the best SUPER PARENT in the world without being there for your child full time. Here are some suggestions to help find time for special moments with your child. 　 Ten Ways to be a...

How To Find a Good Early Childhood Program

Looking for the Perfect Early Childhood Program  According to NAEYC ( the National Association for the Education of Young Children) there are 10 things to look for when checking out an Early Childhood program for your child.   1. Children are not expected to sit quietly but instead are playing and working with other children and with good quality materials.   2. Children can choose from many different activities during...

What’s In a Name Game

What’s In a Name Activity  One of the best ways to get your child interested in reading and writing is to use their own name. Here are some fun ways to work with your child and introduce reading and writing skills at the same time: 1. Write your child’s name. Ask your child to write his/her name. Go over the letters and say the name of each letter of your child’s name. Now ask your child to do the same. Taking the...

Read Alouds And Thinking Skills

Reading A Picture Book Aloud Introducing New Vocabulary and Thinking Skills Reading a picture book can be a fun activity for you and your child.  While reading to your child, you can use critical thinking skills to help your child gain understanding and increase his/her ability to analyze and problem solve. These are some thinking skills  that you can use while reading aould. They are : analyzing, reasoning, decision...

The Benefits of Storytelling

The Creative Art of Storytelling  Recently my kids were given a gift of Rory’s Story Cubes. We opened the package to find 9 cubes inside. On each cube were 4 different pictures. You roll the cubes out and each child has to tell a story by using all the pictures on his/her 9 cubes. My kids were busy for hours taking turns telling stories. (Ages 9, 7 and 5) Later, we noticed the 3 year old take the bag of cubes on his own...