Many preschoolers feel anxious about moving on to kindergarten. They worry that they won’t have friends, won’t like the teacher, will get lost, or won’t be able to do what the teacher asks.

Here are some tips to guide your child through the move from preschool to kindergarten.

To Help With End-of-the-Year Feelings

• Place a sticker or make a mark on each day of the calendar every day during the last month of school.

• Encourage children to talk about their feelings about preschool ending; talk about your feelings too.

• Draw pictures and/or write good-bye messages for your child’s friends or teachers.

• Revisit the events of the past year with your child by looking at drawings, paintings, photos, and writing. Celebrate how much your child has learned this year.

• Offer stress-reducing activities at home such as water play, puppets, or playdough.

• Help the class plan an end-of-the-year family potluck.

• Plan ways to keep in touch with classmates or organize a regular play group.

To Ease the Move to Kindergarten

• Visit the new school before your child’s first day. Point out ways the room is similar to his preschool room, but also discuss how it holds new materials to explore.

• Plan playdates with new classmates.

• Read books about starting school, such as Look Out, Kindergarten, Here I Come! by Nancy Carlson; Will I Have a Friend? by Miriam Cohen, illustrated by Ronald Himler; and If You Take a Mouse to School, by Laura Numeroff, illustrated by Felicia Bond.

• Describe the daily routines, including arrival, breakfast, snack, lunch, and bathroom practices.

• After your child is well settled into kindergarten, plan playdates with old friends.

Source: Adapted from the Message in a Backpack for Debora Jones, 2010, "Letting My Butterflies Go. Helping Children Move on to Kindergarten," Teaching Young Children 3 (4): 21–22.

© National Association for the Education of Young Children — Promoting excellence in early childhood education

by Eugene Geist

Two-year-old Felicia is playing with blocks while her grandmother sits nearby.  One of Grandma’s favorite songs comes on the radio. Grandma starts tapping her foot to the music. Felicia notices and begins to match Grandma’s tapping to the beat by banging two blocks together. To encourage Felicia, Grandma claps along with Felicia’s beat. In response, Felicia gets up and begins marching around the room in time to the music and singing “la, la, la” along with the rhythm of the song.

Music is one of the first ways children experience math. Without thinking, our bodies react to music. When we hear music, we rock our babies, clap along, and even look toward the source of the sound. These responses are reactions to musical elements such as steady beat, rhythm, and melody, all of which reflect mathematical concepts. Even the youngest of children can respond to music and the mathematical principles behind it. Here are three musical elements that relate to math and some suggested activity ideas to try at home.

Steady Beat

What it is: Steady beat is what you respond to when you hear music and start tapping your toe. The steady beat is repetitive and evenly spaced. Listen to “Old MacDonald,” “Bingo,” or “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star,” and you will hear the steady beat.

How it relates to mathematics: Emphasizing the steady beat by clapping or moving to the music supports children’s development of one-to-one correspondence. One-to-one correspondence is matching up one thing with something else, such as one clap for each syllable. Clapping to the steady beat also is a way to emphasize the math concept of “more.” Through music, toddlers can show they understand what “more” means even when they do not yet understand numbers. For example, if you clap once and then ask, “Can you clap more than I clapped?” a toddler will most likely clap more than once.

Activities to try: While singing a song, emphasize the words that fall on the beat by stomping or clapping on each beat. You can even have children stomp or clap harder on the downbeat (the most accented note in each measure). There is no wrong way to do this, so feel free to experiment.

To work on one-to-one correspondence, try having your child repeat a basic clapping sequence. Ask, “Can you clap as many times as I do?” As your child gets better at this, you can add rhythm to your clapping. You could also play a drum or even sing instead of clapping.

Songs that build on themselves, such as “There Once Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly”) help children grasp the idea of “more.” After each verse or every few verses you can ask, “What’s next?” or “Should we sing more?” Songs that invite children to join in with each verse also promote this concept.

Rhythm

What it is: Rhythm is similar to but different from the steady beat. A song’s rhythm varies, while the steady beat is constant.

How it relates to mathematics: Rhythm helps children learn to recognize one-to-one correspondence and to identify and predict distinct patterns. Being able to recognize and anticipate rhythmic patterns helps children remember or predict the words to a song or a rhythmic story.

Activities to try:  Even newborns can learn about rhythm as their parents sing lullabies to them. Rock with your child while you sing, and pat gently on your child’s back so that he can simultaneously hear and feel the patterns in the music. If the words themselves make a pattern, your child can also see a pattern in your mouth movements. Here is one example of a song you could sing:

(Sung to “Hush, Little Baby”)

Verse 1:   Little baby, don’t you cry. Little baby, don’t you cry.

Pattern:           A               B                     A              B

Verse 2:  Mama loves you don’t you cry. Mama loves you don’t you cry.

Pattern:           C                     B                      C                     B

Invite toddlers and preschoolers to repeat, predict, and/or extend rhythmic patterns. For example, sing “Old MacDonald Had a Farm” with your toddler. Stop after “With a moo moo here,” and wait for your child to repeat the phrase or extend the pattern of the song by adding “and a moo moo there.’”  

Melody

What it is: The movement from one note to another is the melody of the song, or in other words, the tune. Consider the familiar song “Old MacDonald Had a Farm,” focusing on the repetitive pattern “E-I-E-I-O.” You may notice that the first E and I are repeated on a higher note, the next E and I are repeated on a lower note, and the O is sung on an even a lower note. This is the song’s melody.

How it relates to mathematics: Children can use melodies to recognize patterns, such as how notes are repeated within a song.

Activities to try: Offer instruments like a xylophone (or piano, if you have one in your home), shaker, drum, or even a pot and a wooden spoon to play a song. Ask your child to play her instrument at a specific note of a simple song (such as on “star” of “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”) as you play the rest.

¹Bonny, J.W., & S.F. Lourenco. 2013. “The Approximate Number System and Its Relation to Early Math Achievement: Evidence From the Preschool Years.” Journal of Experimental Child Psychology 114 (3): 375–88.

Dr. Eugene Geist is an associate professor in The Gladys W. and David H. Patton College of Education and Human Services at Ohio University.  Dr. Geist teaches in the Early Childhood Education program, the Curriculum and Instruction graduate program and the Teacher Education Honors Program. His areas of expertise include child development, constructivism, and the development of mathematical knowledge in young children. 

by Karen and Tom Buchanan

Kindergarten teachers are passionate about partnering with the families of their students. When families and teachers work together, kids win!

Here are four things that kindergarten teachers want you know.

1. Parents Play a Critical Role

Kindergarten teachers value you as your child’s first teacher. They are honored to take their place as another significant adult in your child’s life. Kindergarten teachers want to facilitate your child’s continued development and help him learn how to be a successful student in a school setting.

What you can do:

● Welcome your child’s kindergarten teachers as an important partner in your child’s development.

● Share what you have discovered about how your child learns and include examples of times when your child has learned something new.

2. The Value of Families and Teachers Working Together as Partners is Research-Based

Research tells us that when families are involved, children do better academically and socially. Kindergarten teachers are committed to developing a collaborative partnership with your family on behalf of your child’s growth and development.

What you can do:

● Tell the teacher that you sincerely want to work with them to help your child learn and grow.

● Ask the teacher to offer specific ideas and strategies that will involve you in your child’s learning.

3. Communication is Key

Communication with families is such a high priority that kindergarten teachers are willing to use a variety of methods to correspond. Some parents prefer to connect via email or text, while others prefer to receive a phone call or a printed letter in their child’s backpack. Kindergarten teachers want to communicate in the ways that make sense for you and your family.

What you can do:

● Ask the teacher the best way to access information about the classroom and the school.

● Share with the teacher your preferred method of communication.

4. Teachers Want to Know What Makes Your Family Unique

The families we work with have varied backgrounds and different configurations. Kindergarten teachers want you to know that they value the distinctiveness of your family. Learning about those qualities and values that make your family unique, improve our ability to partner in the healthy development of your child.

What you can do:

● Tell your child’s teacher about the unique characteristics of your family.

● Let the teacher know about family changes and challenges at home that may impact your child’s attitudes and behaviors at school.

Building bridges between kindergarten teachers and families is an important step in supporting your child's learning and development. 

Dr. Karen Buchanan teaches in the Doctor of Educational Leadership program at George Fox University.  Dr. Tom Buchanan is Director of the Master’s of Arts in Teaching Program at George Fox University. Tom and Karen share a research passion around family engagement in early childhood settings. This article is a result of a research presentation at NAEYC's 2014 National Institute for Early Childhood Professional Development conference; Building Bridges Between Kindergarten Classrooms and Families.

Do you want your child to love nature and care about the environment? Whether you live in an urban, suburban, or rural setting, these books and ideas will inspire you and your child to observe nature.

(Note: Many of these books can be purchased as a hardcover, paperback, or board book.)

Little Cloud, by Eric Carle. 2001.

Little Cloud drifts away from his friends and turns into a lamb, a rabbit, a clown’s hat, and then a clown before joining a large rain cloud. Your child will enjoy guessing which shape the cloud will turn into next. A simple story that encourages children to lie on their backs and look at the clouds.

Available in English. Can be purchased as a hardcover, paperback, and board book.

Birds, by Kevin Henkes.
Illus. by Laura Dronzek. 2009.

A young girl wonders about the birds she sees and hears outside her window. What might the sky look like if birds made colors with their tails? Where did the seven birds that were just on the telephone wire fly? A mix of facts about birds with illustrations and prose that will awaken the imagination.

Available in English. Can be purchased as a hardcover and paperback.

My Garden, by Kevin Henkes. 2010.

A girl gardens with her mother but in her mind,seashells and chocolate rabbits are growing in the ground. The book alternates pictures of the mother’s garden with pictures of the garden of her imagination.

Available in English. Can be purchased as a hardcover and paperback.

About Habitats: Wetlands, by Cathryn Sill.
Illus. by John Sill. 2008.

This book uses beautiful illustrations and words to show the types of plants and animals that live in wetlands. The author describes why these habitats are important. Also in this series: About Habitats: Deserts and About Habitats: Mountains.

Available in English. Can be purchased as a hardcover and paperback.

Are You a Ladybug? by Judy Allen and Tudor Humphries. 2003.

This book, part of the Backyard Books series, begins, “Are you a ladybug? If you are, your parents look like this, and they eat aphids.” The storytelling and watercolor illustrations will engage your child in learning about these fascinating creatures. Also from the Backyard Books series:   Are You a Butterfly?  ,  Are You an Ant? , and Are You a Spider?  

Available in English. Can be purchased as a hardcover and paperback.

Source: Adapted from S. Friedman, 2010, "Inspiring Nature Observations," Now Read This!, Teaching Young Children 3 (3): 3.

© National Association for the Education of Young Children — Promoting excellence in early childhood education

by Laura J. Colker

Many preschool classrooms include learning centers (for example, a writing center, a science center, a water table) where children use hands-on materials to explore, play, and learn about specific topics. Bring the spirit of learning centers into your home with prop boxes—plastic bins or cardboard shoe boxes you fill with materials and props related to one topic, such as math or writing.

Here are 10 ideas:

1. Blocks. Store proportional wooden blocks or colorful pattern blocks in plastic tubs, along, with clipboards, paper, and crayons. Children can create buildings and roads, then make signs to go with them. .

2. Pretend play. Fill a box with clothes such as dresses, shirts, and suit jackets. Add accessories like hats, scarves, neckties, bags, and jewelry to make children’s pretend play more exciting and elaborate. You could create separate prop boxes for different play themes—for example, a small briefcase, notebooks, paper, and pens for a prop box related to office play. Let the children's interests and imaginations guide their selection of clothes and props.

3. Art. Keep a box handy with different types of paper and drawing and painting materials. Add safety scissors and paste, so children can make collages or experiment with other art techniques.

4. Math. Include board games and puzzles. Add empty, clean, egg cartons or ice cube trays and materials for sorting, like buttons or old bottle tops. Add materials that children can use in inventing their own games—paper, crayons, and dice, along with pennies or buttons to use as player pieces. Add a ruler, a tape measure, and other items for measuring size and distance.

5. Reading. Store fiction and nonfiction books and magazines your child will enjoy in a basket that can be carried around the house or even outdoors. At bedtime your child can move the book basket near his bed for easy bedtime reading. You might also set aside a shelf in your child's room or make space on the bookshelf where you store your reading materials.

6. Writing center. Fill a basket with paper, markers, notebooks, pens, pencils, envelopes, a ruler, stationery, and note cards. Your child can set up the writing center wherever she wants to write.

7. Water play. The bathtub and the kitchen sink are logical locations. But a small basin on the floor can also work (place the basin on a towel with a plastic trash bag spread beneath it to catch spills). Fill a plastic container with props such as sponges, basters, colanders, strainers, pitchers, tongs, and so on.

8. Cooking. Store a child-size apron, a collection of favorite recipes, and unbreakable bowls and utensils in a kitchen drawer or bottom cupboard. Invite your children to join in while you prepare meals and snacks. Get them in the habit of washing their hands before and after handling foods.

9. Music. Use oatmeal containers, old yogurt cups, and other materials you have on hand to make homemade instruments (like a rainstick or a drum) with your children. Store these instruments in a box and add other items, like castanets or maracas. Children love to create music while singing with family members or making up silly songs together.

10. Science. Make science a routine activity by filling a box with a few investigation tools, such as magnets, prisms, a magnifying glass, and binoculars, along with a clipboard, paper, and crayons or pencils. Take a walk to collect natural items, then invite the children to investigate them using the tools. Ask questions such as “What do you think might happen?” to help them observe and make predictions.

Label the prop boxes with words and a picture or photo of what's inside, so children can easily identify the one they want to use. Store the boxes in a closet or even under a bed—wherever it makes sense in your home, as long as you and your child can reach them readily. If your child has never experienced an activity such as water play, introduce him to the activity and model the use of materials in the prop box by playing along for awhile.

Take cues from your child. If she wants to write or draw, bring the appropriate prop box to a table and let her explore and make her own discoveries. The same goes for music or playing with math materials.

One final thought: you can ask your child's teacher about prop boxes. She may suggest supporting your child’s learning at home by repeating the kinds of activities your child enjoys at the program.

Laura Colker is a contributing editor for NAEYC's magazine for preschool teachers, Teaching Young Children. This article was adapted from an online Q & A about Learning Centers that took place in January 2013.

© National Association for the Education of Young Children — Promoting excellence in early childhood education

By Julia Luckenbill 

From rolling over to jumping in puddles, from gripping your finger to stacking blocks, infants and toddlers astound us with their day-to-day achievements as they grow in their abilities. Here are some ways that families can support these exciting new skills as they develop.  If your child could talk, he or she might say... 

1. Start at the beginning, before I can go anywhere on my own – hold me, rock me, cuddle me, and carry me in your arms or on your body. As you move I learn to move with you.

2. Offer me your fingers to grip. Once I can grip and let go of things, hand me lightweight toys to hold, mouth, and bang. Give me choices: a rattle, a cloth doll, a wooden block. I can explore these objects while on my back and on my tummy. 

3. It’s so fun to bat at things that hang down from a play-mat. Watch as I learn to connect my action to the movement of the toy!

4. When I can sit up, I can explore toys with two hands. I like to put them in my mouth and see what I can make them do. Invite me to bang things together – I like to imitate you!

5. When you place me on my belly, place new and exciting toys just out of reach – I may roll over or even crawl over to see them. Soon I’ll crawl or scoot in and out of the places I want to go – a basket or a box, perhaps?

6. Pulling up is so much fun! Place me near stable furniture such as a couch so I can improve my view and coast along.

7. Standing up means I can play at a low table, scribbling on paper, poking at play-dough, or moving puzzle pieces around. I can also coast around the table, developing balance and learning to alternate my feet. 

8. With a finger for balance, I am taking my first strides! Follow my lead, and soon I won’t need any help. Let me take steps on different surfaces like grass, sand, wood and carpet so I learn to adapt my pace. 

9. I am walking! Let me try safe climbing, low slides, swings, tunnels, balls, and “ride on” toys so I can refine my balance and expand my skills. 

10. I’m getting better at moving my hands too! I can put rings on sticks, pick up a small snack, open a pop-up toy, and turn book pages. This is because I have learned to move my pointer finger and thumb together to pinch and pick up small things, and can use both hands together. Pick out toys and snacks that let me get better at these tasks. 

11. I am running! Give me space to go! Give me things to push, carry and ride! I love to climb, give me safe places to try: stairs, ramps and balancing on the curb. I love to dance, dance with me! Let’s jump together! Let’s hide in a box! 

12. With my hands working together, I can stack blocks high, connect wooden tracks, peel stickers off of sheets, and string big beads onto laces. I can hold a paper down while I draw on it, and sometimes catch a ball. I’m better at these things with you beside me, coaching me. 

These are just a few suggestions for strengthening the motor skills of infants and toddlers. Learn more on how infants and toddlers develop fine motor skills and gross motor skills.

Happy moving and grooving! What are some of the ways you support how your baby moves? 

Julia Luckenbill, M.A. is a Child Development Demonstration Lecturer at the Center for Child and Family Studies Laboratory School at the University of California, Davis. Her interests include emergent curriculum, farming with toddlers, photography, and exploring the world with her daughter

Family friendly live performances are a wonderful introduction for your child into the world of performing arts. Here are some tips to help children prepare for visits to performance venues.

Before your visit:

• Call the theater in advance and ask how long the show will last and the age the performance is intended for.

• Explain what you will see and hear during the performance with your child. Talk about the characters, tell the story, or listen to other music in the same style. If the performance is based on a storybook, read it beforehand with your child.

• Review appropriate audience manners. Remind your child of how to behave among large groups, out in public, and during quiet times. Explain when applause is appropriate.

On the day of the visit:

• Arrive early so there is plenty of time to explore the theater. You might take a close-up look at the stage or peer into the orchestra pit. An early arrival also leaves plenty of time to use the restroom and find your seats.

• Recognize that it is okay to leave before the end of the performance. Preschoolers may find even a half-hour event too long. One adult can take the child who has reached his or her limits to the lobby or outdoors to play a game or read a story.

After the performance

• Talk about what you just saw and heard. Ask, “What did you think?” “What did you like best?”And “Which characters were your favorites?”

• Read a related book or do an art, music, or dance project. Provide dress-up clothes, puppets, props, and other materials so your child can reenact the performance.

Source: Adapted from the Message in a Backpack, Teaching Young Children 4 (3): 11

© National Association for the Education of Young Children — Promoting excellence in early childhood education

By Yi-Chin Lan

There are many ways to enjoy reading with your child. Here are a few ways to make reading a fun part of your everyday life.

1. Develop family reading routines and rituals

Find a regular time of day when you can dedicate story time into your day. You can read in the morning, after school, or before bedtime! Making story time a cozy routine makes reading an essential and pleasant activity.

2. Read what interests your child

The nutrition facts on the milk box, newspapers, recipes, maps, and game instructions all make great reading material if your child is interested.

3. Try books that reflect your daily experiences

Making connections to topics you read about is a fun way to keep children engaged. For example, you can read You Can’t Take a Balloon into the Metropolitan Museum with your child before or after visiting an art museum. This opens up opportunities for conversations like discussing similarities and differences between the book and the museum visit.

Or read Dr. Seuss’s In a People House and then ask your child if they see any similar items, how they work, or even create a new book based on what’s inside your own home.

4. Let your child select books

When you visit the library, let your child select books. Try both fiction and informational books, and ask the librarian for recommendations based on your child’s interests.

5. Reread your child’s favorites

It’s common for young children to request the same book again and again. Re-reading familiar stories offers children a chance to absorb information over time and lets them master the whole story.

6. Encourage storytelling

Encourage your child to tell you a story from time to time or to retell a story after you’ve read it several times. Don’t feel the need to correct how she’s telling the story. Let her enjoy the experience of storytelling.

7. Have fun while reading

Try whatever style feels comfortable for you and your child. Some ways families have fun with stories include:

• Acting out the story while reading by using facial expressions, gestures, body movements, and voices to make the story come to life.
• Making the story relevant to your child’s life by adapting the story to include her name, a friend’s name, or your pet’s name. For example, surprise your child by saying “Olivia, Olivia, what do you see?” when you read Eric Carle’s Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?
• Finding props to go along with favorite stories and offering them to your child to use in her play.

8. Change your setting!

It can be fun to read books in different places in and around your home. Try reading Eric Carle’s The Very Lonely Firefly in a dark room with a flashlight. I’ve read The Lamb and the Butterfly (written by Arnold Sundgaard, illustrated by Eric Carle) to a group of four-year-olds on the grass, and when they saw a butterfly fly by, they associated it with the one in the story! You can even ask your child where she wants to read a particular story.

9. Try one of these books that trigger children's interest in reading

Adam Lehrhaupt’s Warning: Do Not Open This Book! Is a great example of a book that draws children into the act of reading. Children wonder: “Why can’t I open this book?” and read on. Here are some others:

• Don’t Push The Button by Bill Cotter
• Go Away, Big Green Monster! by Ed Emberley
• How To Hide a Lion by Helen Stephens I
• If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Joffe Numeroff
• Maisy’s Fairground by Lucy Cousins 
• My Granny’s Purse And My Mummy’s Bag by P. H. Hanson
• Press Here by Herve Tullet
• Tap to Play by Salina Yoon
• The Foggy Foggy forest by Nick Sharratt
• Where’s Wally? by Martin Handford

10. Get to know your child and your own reading style

• Knowing your child and your own reading style is important for three main reasons:
• It offers you an opportunity to observe what interests your child. Be it science, art, interactive books or wordless books, you will figure out her current interest and support her in appropriate ways.
• You won’t impose your preferences on your child; instead, you will share what you like with each other and get a chance to explore those beyond your favorites.
• It allows your child to understand and respect that every individual reads differently and it is okay.

There are lots of ways to encourage and enjoy reading. Try these ideas and do more of what your child enjoys.

Yi-Chin Lan received her PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Texas at Austin. When she worked as a kindergarten teacher, she read her students at least three books a day. Her favorite picture books are Miss Rumphius, Guess how much I love you, and Not a box. She can be reached at lollipop0913@gmail.com

School may be out for the summer, but there are still lots of opportunities for young children to play and learn! Here are a five ideas:

1. Take your child to a live performance - Family friendly events are a great way to teach your child about the performing arts. Try these tips to help young children prepare for the experience.

2. Read books about warm weather fun -These stories focus on playing outdoors, visiting relatives, and cooling off in the water. Read a story then try one of the suggested activities with your child!

3. Turn any walk into a nature walk -  Use time outdoors with young children to help them learn about the natural world. Explore your neighborhood, observe the weather, examine plants, flowers, and more!

4. Visit museums and libraries in your town -  Find low-cost or no-cost local attractions to visit with young children (zoos, botanical gardens, libraries, and aquariums - to name a few) to assist in their summer learning adventures.

5. Create mini-learning centers at home -  Use these ideas to fill boxes with materials and props related to a topic to give children a hands-on way to learn!

And before heading to the parks and playgrounds for outdoor play, be sure to review these sun safety tips to keep young children protected!

How will you incorporate learning into your child’s summer?

June 29th is International Mud Day!  Read one mother's special moment when her children played together in the mud and tell us about your favorite mud moments and memories!

Here are some fun ways to celebrate:

• Mud song: Sing a song about mud.
   
• Mud play: Offer shovels, buckets, plastic animals and figures and water. Ask: what would happen if you did a deep hole and fill it with water? A shallow hole? Let your child explore and see what they discover. (See Five Essentials to Meaningful Play)
   
• Mud paint: Fill a cup with dirt and water and mix to create mud paint. Use sticks or paintbrushes to paint on paper or the sidewalk. Construct mud objects: Shape mud pies or sculptures. Children can decorate with pebbles, or other found objects if they like. Ask: what would happen if you add more water? More dirt? Leave it to dry in the sun?
   
• Mud books: Read books about mud! Try: Pigs in the Mud in the Middle of the Rud by: Lynn Plourde; Mud Pies and Other Recipes by: Marjorie Winslow; Stuck in the Mud by: Shana Corey; Harry the Dirty Dog by: Gene Zion

by Julia Luckenbill

Infants and toddlers love to explore with their senses. They delight in the process of exploring art materials and other sensory activities even though they are typically unconcerned with the end result. They are also capable of making a tremendous mess, which might make a parent think, “Are they really ready to use art supplies? Shouldn’t we wait until they can use the tools the ‘right,’ way to make pictures that look like something and mold critters out of clay?”

Don’t wait! Just as infants and toddlers need experience crawling or scooting to learn to walk and babbling and crying to learn to talk, they need to practice using their hands to control art supplies and practice using their minds to figure out how art supplies work. They need the time and freedom to be curious and creative. They also need permission to freely explore other sensory activities that aren’t usually thought of as art, such as water, mud, nontoxic plant materials, and sand.

 Below are some art supplies that we use regularly in our classrooms—and also worked well for my toddler at home. Most of these are very easy to work with and to clean up; however, none of these will produce a recognizable product. That’s because your child is working to please the most important audience of all—himself!

1. Paint. I started painting with my daughter when she was about 6 months old after observing her interest in smearing her snacks. I allowed her to use nontoxic finger paint while she was seated in her high chair. She painted herself green and needed a bath after the adventure. As she has grown (she just turned 2), we have explored other kinds of paint, added an easel, and introduced tools. She has responded by labeling her artwork with intriguing titles like “Chopping Onions.” She also enjoys painting on objects such as rocks and pinecones.

2. Crayons, pens, pastels, and pencils. When my daughter began to show interest in using a spoon as a tool and trying to take my pens while I was writing, I gave her short and thick pens, pencils, and crayons to explore. She responded by making scribbles, then arcs, then dots, and now circles and blobs. Recently she began commenting that she is writing her name (which still looks like scribbles) and making pictures of things such as “flamingos pooping” (which look like dots).

3. Stamps and dot markers. These are fun for cause-and-effect play. Unfortunately, I introduced these tools to my daughter before she understood stamping as a concept. She decided that ripping the removable stamp pad was more fun than stamping and that trying to pick off the dot marker tips was better than dotting. This year, at 2, she seems much more inclined to use the tools more conventionally, making stamps and dots, and noticing her results.

4. Homemade and store bought Playdough and natural clay. I waited to introduce these materials, beginning at about 18 months, because I didn’t want my daughter to eat the salty homemade playdough, and I didn’t think she was strong enough to shape the natural clay. At first, she enjoyed using her fingers and tools to poke holes in the dough and clay, but she was quickly bored. Now she is more excited by various clays. She enjoys making “sunflowers” by planting pipe cleaners in her dough and also likes cutting out “cookies” with cookie cutters.

5. Sticky things. When my daughter was about 18 months, I introduced masking tape because she was trying to peel off the tape I had been using to keep her artwork on the tray. She loved it and put tape all over her picture. Since then, she has made tape sculptures (3-D art!) and moved on to stickers and dollar store Band-Aids. Now that her hand-eye coordination has improved, handling these materials is easier for her than it would have been last year. We also enjoy exploring contact paper by placing objects on the sticky side. And we have just begun investigating glue, which my daughter treats like paint. This is another good activity to do in the high chair.

6.  Really gooey things. Sometimes we get into really messy activities. My daughter enjoys making mud, exploring oobleck (cornstarch and water), forming cakes out of very wet sand, “helping” with potting soil, and “cooking” bread and tortillas with us. These make a tremendous mess, so we choose days when this will be the primary activity and plan a bath right after her adventures. I find that I need to play along and join my daughter in the mud and goo, or else she notes my avoidance of the mess and won’t dive in.

7. Water and bubbles. Water play is usually a hit in the classroom and at home. When my daughter was smaller, simply splashing and making bubbles was exciting. Now she loves mixing colored water, pretending to wash dishes, playing with colored soap, exploring volume with measuring cups, and the list goes on. Soapy water (and shaving cream, too) is particularly good for play since it’s quite easy to clean up.

8. Ice/snow. This is a tricky one. Many kids don’t like getting their hands cold, so they avoid sensory activities that include touching frozen items.  Offer your child a tool (such as a hammer) to chip away at the ice around a frozen object, give her mittens to keep her hands shielded when playing in the snow, or  use something like salt or sand to modify ice without touching it. My daughter and I just began our frozen explorations, and mittens were key to her willingness to engage, but they also frustrated her because she likes to explore with her bare hands.

9. Various natural materials. Because we have chickens at our home and at our early childhood program, as well as plenty of wild birds, exploring the feel of chicken feed and birdseed has been an ongoing experience for my daughter. While using rice or pasta in play activities can upset families who dislike food waste, exploring birdseed before the birds eat it is culturally sensitive and nontoxic. Other satisfying natural materials include dried (nontoxic) leaves, fresh herbs such as mint, and rose petals.

10. Your toddler! As I mentioned in item one, my daughter’s first art action, like that of most of her peers, was to paint herself. Since then, she regularly colors herself. Her favorite tools for this are colored soap (bath crayons), washable marker, and paint. Nontoxic face paint is another option. Try to relax—the paint comes off! At the very worst, your child will be unusually blue for a day or two. Consider instead the time you spend bonding, the joy of creative expression, and the self-initiation that comes from this activity, and choose to laugh along with your toddler.

As you begin this journey with your child, be aware of how you respond to your child’s efforts. You may be tempted to comment with “Good job” or to shape your child’s work by praising the art that looks most like an adult product. Try instead to comment on the process—the colors your child is using, the shapes or lines or marks created. If offered an end product, say: “You look really proud of that! You worked hard!” Research suggests that when adults give open-ended feedback instead of praise, children are more creative with their play and are more motivated to engage in activities because they want to, not because they seek our approval.

I hope you have as much fun as we did as you explore open-ended art and sensory activities.  We’d love to hear back what worked for you, and about any other art and sensory activities that you enjoy with your toddler.

 Julia Luckenbill, M.A. is a Child Development Demonstration Lecturer at the Center for Child and Family Studies Laboratory School at the University of California, Davis. Her interests include emergent curriculum, farming with toddlers, photography, and exploring  the world with her daughter.

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At 22 years old, I can of course sit at the beach and enjoy the fireworks with my family. But still strong is a memory of the first time I experienced fireworks when I was four years old, and it was a pretty scary time.

My twin sister Jackie and I were both pumped to be headed to Jones Beach for my parents’ anniversary which was also the Fourth of July. I was so happy with my new bathing suit since I loved swimming even at a young age. I spent the day running around, playing in the water and the sand, hand-in-hand with my sister.

As the sun went down, we enjoyed a picnic while my parents prepared the two of us for a wonderful fireworks show above the water. My dad had his camera out ready to capture our smiles.

Covered with a blanket with heads tilted to the sky, the first firework shot into the clouds, full of different colors and shapes. The colors in the sky filled my parents and sister’s eyes as they smiled, but my eyes flooded with tears as the noise from the fireworks ripped through me. I was so scared! I covered my ears with my hands and cried at the top of my lungs. I remember my dad taking me to sit in the hot muggy car, where the sound could no longer reach me, as my mom and sister enjoyed the rest of the show.

So what does it mean that as a four year old I was terrified by fireworks and my twin sister loved them? I thought this information about what's too scary might be useful. It was written about Halloween but seems like it applies to fireworks as well: “Each child is different, so it’s difficult to give hard and fast rules about what may be overwhelming for all children at different ages. The most important thing a grownup can do is to know an individual child and watch for her reactions to potentially scary images and situations. Pay attention to what she seems very worried about, avoids, or talks about, which can be clues that something is scary. Parents are often surprised by what frightens their child.”

Someday when I have a family of my own, I’ll remember that sometimes fireworks can be scary for young children, as they were scary for me, and that there are other ways to celebrate the excitement of the holiday with my kids.

Here are some ways families can celebrate the 4th without the fireworks - if they’re too scary for your kids.

• Enjoy a day at the beach or pool together
• Listen to, sing, or learn about the Star Spangled Banner
• Read Apple Pie 4th of July by Janet S. Wong or another book about summer fun
• Cook together and make some patriotic looking treats. Just add food coloring to your cake or cookie frosting or decorate with blueberries and strawberries

At the end of the day your children will be wiped out but excited about all that they have done and learned on America’s day of Independence, even without the fireworks.

  Lena Salzbank is a student at the University of Maryland, majoring in Broadcast Journalism. This summer she is working as an intern with the Digital Content team at NAEYC. 

Our Learning Moments is a blog where families share stories about their own and their children’s learning.  Use this form to submit your story ideas.

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By: Mary Reid

For years I kept a stone in a drawer in my kitchen. Why, you ask?  Because my kids and I needed it to make stone soup! The classic story, Stone Soup, tells about a weary traveler who arrives in a village hungry and without food. None of the villagers wish to share food with him until he says he can make soup from a stone. The villagers offer first an onion, and finally some juicy beef bones.

Every time we made soup, we’d turn it into stone soup and together would chant the refrain, "Fancy that, soup from a stone,” and "It tastes good now but it would taste better if we had some juicy beef bones."

Our children loved making stone soup for years, always using the same smooth white stone. As a family, we had fun chanting, “Soup from a stone. Fancy that?” but the lesson was deeper. We talked about the gist of being generous - a family value we wanted to pass down to our children.

Cooking offers a wonderful way to bring what we learn from books into our daily life.  While cooking we build relationships, engage the senses and develop literacy skills.

Many classic children's stories lend themselves to cooking with children. Here are some examples:

Goldilocks and the Three Bears: The story of the Three Bears is a predictable story and one easily sequenced by young children due to the repetition (Papa Bear’s big items, Mama Bear’s middle sized things and Baby Bear’s tiny things). Sequencing is a skill that is needed in daily life, as well as in reading and math comprehension.  And of course this story begs for a porridge meal (oatmeal, cream of wheat, etc.) Children will, of course, want theirs "Just right," just like Goldilocks.   

Green Eggs and Ham, by: Dr. Seuss: Add a little green food coloring into scrambled eggs for your child after reading the book together. If your picky eater doesn't like the look of green eggs, ask him "Would you eat them in the boat? Would you eat them with a goat?" He may reply, "I do not like green eggs and ham. I do not like them, Sam I Am." Who can deny Dr. Seuss as the king of rhyme? Learning to rhyme is a skill needed before children learn to read. Many adults remember the rhymes from Dr. Seuss books and making time to rhyme with children is a fun way to learn this skill.

Pancakes, Pancakes, by: Eric Carle: This book illustrates the old fashion way to make pancakes beginning with graining the flour. Follow the author’s lead and take the time to make pancakes from scratch with your child. (You don’t need a mix - pancakes require just a few ingredients.) Foster writing and math skills by creating a pictorial version of your own pancake recipe with your child, making simple drawings to depict the ingredients. For example, you can say: “We used two eggs, Can you make a drawing that shows how many eggs we need for this recipe?”

You and your children will build relationships, engage your senses and develop literacy skills by reading and cooking together.

Read and eat, that's my philosophy.

Mary Reid, a nine-year veteran Pre-K teacher, reads and eats with her students at Glanton-Hindsman Elementary School in Villa Rica, GA.  When she’s not at school, she enjoys reading for pleasure and listening to live Bluegrass music with her husband.  

By Ben Mardell and Melissa Tonachel

Q: I have a child in preschool. How do I know if he will be ready for kindergarten when the time comes?

A: As a parent, you know your child better than anyone else. Pay attention to the things she says and does. Children come to kindergarten from a wide variety of experiences, and settings, so expecting them all to know and be able to do the same things is unrealistic.

Is your son excited about school? That's a good sign. Beyond that, it would be great for him to have some experience with the following things:

• listening to others and taking appropriate turns for expressing ideas and questions;

• handing materials respectfully and putting them away;
• sustaining engagement with an activity or process;

• identifying and pursuing his own interests, choosing materials and having some ideas about how to engage with them productively;

• being safe in relation to the group (staying within school bounds) and attending to personal needs (washing hands); and

• asking for help when he needs it.

He may have begun to develop other habits and skills but they may not be fully developed in preschool or even by the end of kindergarten: solving problems with peers, taking the perspective of others, increasing his stamina, and building academic mastery, for example. Hopefully, on the first day of school, your child will enter kindergarten with joy and the confidence that school is a good place to be--a fun, fair, and good place to learn.

Ben Mardell is associate professor and program director of early childhood education at Lesley University in Cambridge, MA. Melissa Tonachel is a kindergarten teacher in Boston, MA.

Source: Adapted from an online Q&A published in 2011.

By Richard Rende, Ph.D. 

Art projects offer children and families many benefits. Child development and pediatrics experts agree that even short spurts of creative time greatly impact social, cognitive, and emotional development of children in their earliest formal years and create long-lasting memories. It’s important to remember that a meaningful art project doesn’t need to take a lot of parent preparation time.

Here are a few tips to help busy families engage in meaningful art projects.

1.     Eliminate the pressures that make art projects difficult

Art projects don’t need to take a lot of parent prep time. Use items that you already have around the house – like paper towel rolls or cotton balls – to eliminate time needed to go to the store and purchase special supplies. And keep staple items on-hand that can be used for a variety of art projects - such as paper, paint, tape, crayons, and glue. You can take them out and add in other items you have to the mix.

2.     Let children take the creative lead

Parents promote creativity, thinking, planning and other important skills when they let kids take the lead on art projects. The creative spark is lit when kids try to figure out how things work on their own.

A number of recent studies have shown that young children display more advanced cognitive skills when adults use less instruction. One of the key reasons is that this allows kids to practice what’s known as “counterfactual” reasoning, the process of mental “trial and error” that is an early emerging aspect of innovative thinking. For example, ‘What happens if I paste this piece of fabric here instead of there?’ or ‘What if I paint this dog green?’ By hanging back and encouraging kids to try out their own ideas versus giving a strict pattern to follow, parents can support the roots of innovation.

3. Allow children to use their hands to create their project

Art projects also offer many ways for children to build their small muscles and improve their fine motor development.  When children use scissors, squeeze a glue bottle or mold clay they strengthen the muscles needed to master using a pencil at school later on.

4. Support but don’t take over

The benefits from doing art projects independently are critical for academic readiness.

Parents can support their children by encouraging them, helping with suggestion, and stepping in only when really needed. While it might take your child longer to open a glue bottle or paint tube, these are important ways children can develop the muscles they will need for school.  

5. Praise their efforts, not the product itself

It’s clear from research that praising children for their effort, not the quality of the final product, supports the future mindsets that underlie success in academics, sports, and arts.

Art projects offer a perfect platform for encouraging and reinforcing effort rather than focusing on outcome.

For example, parents can acknowledge something specific a child spent time on like making a particularly interesting color when mixing paints or acknowledging a specific skill like cutting with scissors instead of focusing on how the final project looks. 

6. Remember – you’re creating happy memories

The fact that you’re supporting your child’s creativity and spending time together is important. One of the most important benefits children and parents both reap from arts and crafts is that, years from now, it won’t matter what was created, just that it was created as children and parents spent time together.

Interesting materials, smiles, laughs, and some silliness keep kids engaged. Not only will this lead to cognitive benefits, but also bonding time with parents. Kids will form lasting memories that will stay with them for years to come.

Richard Rende, PhD is a developmental psychologist, researcher, author, and educator. He recently teamed up with Elmer’s to further explore the impact of creative time on our children’s long-term success and through this research, found the majority of those surveyed wished they had more time to engage in arts and crafts with their children.

By Julia Luckenbill

We all know that it’s good to read to our babies.  But what exactly are they learning? Here are just some of the things your baby can learn as you read together.

7. I can explore how books are the same and how they are different by tasting and touching them. 
8. There is always something hiding behind the flap; my favorite pictures are always in the same place in a book.    
9. Listening is part of communication and language includes listening and understanding. 
10. Things come in different colors, sizes, and shape.     
11. It’s fun to play with language, and explore rhythm, rhyme and humor.
12. When I do something, another thing happens; if I point at a picture, my mom or dad will tell me its name. If I drop the book, we might stop reading.    
13. I love books and one day I will love to read on my own. 

© National Association for the Education of Young Children — Promoting excellence in early childhood education

Did you know that children begin their path to reading as babies when they hear and respond to the sound of a human voice? Literacy—the ability to comprehend and communicate through reading and writing—begins as babies understand your spoken words. Listening, talking, reading, and writing are all parts of early literacy learning—and they’re all connected.

On the road to becoming readers and writers, young children need many opportunities to hear and understand spoken language. This helps them become aware of the different sounds of language. They also need to learn about print—letters and words seen in books and all around them at home and in their community. Young children need writing to help them learn about reading, and reading to help them learn about writing. However, they need to talk and listen before learning about both!

Young children can learn about literacy through everyday activities at home. It’s especially important for families to encourage a love of reading and to demonstrate how writing is used to communicate information and ideas. Ask your child to tell you about her drawing, then write her words on the back of the paper. This helps her learn that the letters and words you are writing have meaning.  When you listen as she “reads” her scribbles, you give meaning to her own marks.

Nurturing a love of literacy

How can you encourage your child to love reading, writing, and language so much that he begs for a bedtime story or a trip to the library? In any home, there are countless ways to encourage a child’s love of reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Here are eight simple ideas for including literacy in your everyday routine.

Talk and listen.

Hold meaningful, thought-provoking conversations with your child. Talk about things that he did or things she finds interesting. While you listen and respond to what your child says,

• introduce new words, like colander or automobile.
• expand on what she says, offering more description and using more mature language (Your child: “It runned out.” You: “Your marker ran out of ink!”). 
• challenge him to imagine, remember, and think about things he sees and hears around him.
• ask him to tell you about the best thing that happened that day.

Read aloud together.

Research has found that one of the most important things parents can do to help their child build reading and writing skills is to read aloud.  To make the most of this time together,

• read aloud at least once every day
• read favorites again and again
• talk about the story before, during, and after reading
• ask her teacher what kinds of books and authors she likes best at school
• ask a librarian to suggest some diverse and age-appropriate children’s books, poetry collections, and songs
• share a variety of literature (stories, poems, and informational books) over time
• suggest activities that go with the books you read (“In this book, Yoko brought sushi to school for lunch. What special food would you like to make for lunch?”)

Explore the sounds of language.

Children love to play with sounds and words. Invite your child to have fun with sounds and words. Make up games. Using stories, poems, and songs, or your own imagination, play with the following:

• rhymes—What words end with the same sound? “See you later, alligator.” “Hey, what other words sound like splat?” [mat, flat, cat]
• alliteration—What words begin with the same sound?  “The red car raced to the restaurant.”
• matching specific sounds—What words begin or end with the same sound? “Listen to the word duck. Duck starts with the /d/ sound. What other words start with the same sound as duck?”
• sound/letter connections―What else begins or ends with the same letter? “Look, Jennifer and Jamal’s names both start with J.”

Offer alphabet activities.

Over time, playing with items like the following can help your child recognize the letters of the alphabet:

• ABC books
• magnetic letters
• alphabet blocks and puzzles
• alphabet charts
• ABC stamps

Support budding readers and writers as they test their new skills.

Your child needs time and space to explore books and print on his own or with friends. You can

• create a cozy book nook in your home where you keep lots of good books
• reread favorite books, especially ones that invite your child to chime in (predictable books)
• create a space where you and your child can leave notes for each other—an erasable white board, for example
• make reading and writing part of play—for example, provide materials for making menus for a pretend restaurant or suggest reading aloud to stuffed animals and dolls
• staple sheets of paper together so your child can, with your help, write and illustrate a story

Offer books throughout your home and even outdoors.

Be sure to provide a wide variety of styles and topics

• information books, such as Byron Barton’s Airport
• books, songs, and poems with strong rhymes, such as Raffi’s Down by theBay
• stories with detailed plots, such as Mercer Mayer’s There’s an Alligatorunder My Bed
• books in your home language and in English
• books that reflect your culture and family
• classic books and new books
• books with beautiful, inspiring illustrations

Support early writing with lots of materials.

Children need easy access to materials so they can build their early writing skills through scribble writing, groupings of random letters, and their own unique spelling of words. Offer your child:

• a basket stocked with pens, pencils, markers, paper, envelopes, and book-making materials
• writing materials to use in play (for example,  pencils and notepads to write prescriptions, take orders, or make grocery lists)

Explain how books and print work.

While introducing and reading books, magazines, or other written items, help your child learn how print works.

• Point to words as you read them.
• Note the differences between pictures and print.
• Show how books in English are read from left to right, top to bottom.
• Talk about the different parts of books, like the cover and the title page.
• Encourage your child to join in with repeated lines when reading favorite stories.

Source: Adapted from K.A. Roskos, J.F. Christie, & D.J. Richgels, 2003, “The Essentials of Early Literacy Instruction,”  Young Children 58 (2): 52–60.

© National Association for the Education of Young Children — Promoting excellence in early childhood education

By Mary Reid

“Reading to your children gives them a lifetime of happiness,” says Elizabeth,my 23-year-old daughter, an avid reader.

When our two children were preschool age, their father’s career required him to be away from home until evening almost every day. By the time he made it home just before dinner, I was ready for some assistance. Every night after dinner he took charge of the kids for 45 minutes. They all piled onto our big bed with lots of pillows, the children’s favorite stuffed animals, and a stack of books. He started reading to them before they could walk and continued until they were in second and fourth grade, respectively. There’s no telling how many books he read or how many times he reread their favorites. As the children matured, he began reading chapter books in nightly installments.   

I don’t know about that promised lifetime of happiness, but as a pre-K teacher I now know how important it is to read to young children. I attribute much of my children’s academic success to the hours their father gave to reading aloud to them.

Reading to a young child is important for several reasons:

• It builds your relationship with the child. There’s always something to talk about—the characters, the action, how it makes you feel and why. And all the language you share in conversation is an amazing learning experience for the child 

• It teaches rhythm. Children need exposure to the rhythm of language. What better way to teach it than with a silly book like Who Stole the Cookies From the Cookie Jar?

• It teaches rhyme, another essential skill when learning to read. Read nursery rhymes aloud and repeat them often with your child. “Little Boy Blue” and “Mary Had a Little Lamb” should be on your reading list as well as other old favorites.

• It strengthens focus and attention span. If you say, “My 3-year-old won’t sit and listen to a book,” try a wordless book with bright, colorful photos that interest her (e.g., dogs, trucks, butterflies). Focused attention is a necessary skill for later learning.

• It teaches new vocabulary. When you read books like Is Your Mama a Llama?, by Deborah Guarino, animal names and their babies’ names become a natural part of the conversation. Did you know a baby llama is called a cria? Your 3-year-old may even recognize the names of some animals when your play group visits the zoo.

When you read with your child, you cozy up with him and a good book because it’s fun. The time spent together is irreplaceable. No, you don’t set out to teach your child when you read to him. But it happens. 

And maybe you’ll also give your child a lifetime of happiness.

 Mary Reid taught Pre-K and Kindergarten for 11 years in the public school system in Villa Rica, GA. In the fall of 2015, she began a new adventure teaching pre-service teachers at the University of West Georgia in Carrollton, GA. 

by: Mabel Yu

Yes, you’ve seen me. I was that kid—the one wobbling out of the library, a mass of black hair barely perceptible behind a crooked tower of borrowed books. From the Spot lift-the-flap books, to, later on, the Encyclopedia Brown mysteries, I devoured children’s literature. I grew up in a working-class neighborhood that happened to be situated in a wealthy county—though I didn’t own many texts, I never wanted for reading material. Sadly, that’s not true for many children.

Losing Our Libraries

A March Washington Post article highlighted the disparity between some school libraries. One elementary school, in an affluent section of DC, houses 28,000 books in its library, while 12 miles away, another elementary school only owns 300 books. Since the District doesn’t budget specific funding for school library collections, schools rely on donations from parents and community members. Nationwide, 20 percent of school libraries lack even part-time certified librarians.  

The Literacy Connection

Why worry over a few books? Because many children don't have them: literacy non-profit Reading is Fundamental (RIF) notes that nearly two-thirds of low-income families in the U.S. own no books. And reading benefits children's learning in many ways: A 2010 RIF study analyzed over 11,000 literacy reports and found that “when children have access to books and other print materials, they experience many positive outcomes." Those outcomes include language development, improved reading performance, improved attitude towards reading and learning, and positive performance in subjects other than reading.

What You Can Do — Helping Your Child

• Take your child to the public library as often as you can. Explore different county or state libraries to access varied collections.
• Read with your child, not just to them. Ask questions as you read (What do you notice . . . ? Why do you think . . . ?), make predictions, point out similar sounds and rhymes, and investigate outside of the book when possible (for example, after reading a text about animals, take a trip to the zoo to learn more and see the creatures in action. ).
• Add diversity. Vary the genre and topics of books you read. Incorporate multiculturalism, fantasy, how-to books, science, autobiographies, poetry, etc.
• Start a home library if possible. Find lower-priced books by browsing thrift stores, yard sales, used bookstores, and online book re-sellers.
• Find storytime hours at local libraries and bookstores that you can attend with your child.

What You Can Do — Helping Others

If your child’s school already contains a well-stocked library, consider lending a hand to children, programs, or schools with fewer resources. Include your child in these efforts so that they learn civic responsibility and the importance of assisting others.

• Donate books your children have outgrown. Check with schools, libraries, nationwide charities like the Salvation Army, and other local charities who are likely to welcome these donations.
• Volunteer. Look up local programs where you can read weekly or monthly to underserved children, or participate in occasional events.
• Organize a book swap with your child’s neighbors, friends, or classmates, and their families. www.readingrockets.org/article/book-swap-kids.
• Start a book drive for a school in need. Several websites offer tips:

          -www.serve.gov/?q=site-page/toolkits/book-drive/four -

          -www.readtogrow.org/images/customer-files//TOOLKIT2010.pdf

           -www.firstbook.org/get-involved/virtual-book-drives

• Create a community book exchange. In 2009, Todd Bol built a waterproof box, filled it with books, and posted it outside of his house with the sign “Free Book Exchange.” These pint-size libraries have sprouted in communities in over 28 states and six countries. Share reading materials while getting to know neighbors. http://littlefreelibrary.org/builders/.
• Help fund classrooms. Consider donating to a site like Donorschoose.org. This crowdsourcing site lists specific needs in specific schools (e.g. ABC elementary in Baltimore, MD is trying to raise $XX to buy 50 Dr. Seuss books for their Kindergarten classes). Search by keyword, subject, or location, and donate any amount you’d like.

As an adult I'm still frequenting the library, devouring the literature and resouraces offered. No one can predict what habits and interests will stick with a child. But if you never offer up the opportunities, the odds will always remain at zero.

Mabel Yu is an assistant editor at NAEYC

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by: Karen Nemeth

Many parents have questions about whether their child is ready for kindergarten. Don’t forget that it’s important for the school to be ready for your child as well. Young children are so different from each other - their maturity, language development, past experiences, home languages, physical and social development can vary widely. Kindergarten is a wonderful way to get children of all abilities, languages, and backgrounds ready for success in school – each in their own way. Here are some things you can do to help your school be ready for your child.

• Visit the school with your child. Stop in the main office and request a tour so you and your child know where he will enter and leave the school, where the bathrooms are, and what will happen during meals and fire drills. Try to let your child meet the school nurse, secretary, principal and social worker so they recognize him when he comes to school.
• Set aside time to read all the materials the school sends to you. Let the school know if you need things translated into another language or if you need someone to read the information to you. Be sure to return any forms or information the school requests. The more the staff and teachers know about your child, the better they can meet his or her needs.
• If the school asks you about the child’s home language, be sure to let them know any and all languages that your child is exposed to at home. Knowing more than one language is an asset and schools can provide the best supports for your child’s language and literacy development if they have this information.
• It’s also important to share with the school any concerns you may have about your child’s language, physical or learning development. Schools can provide a variety of highly effective supports for children at no cost to the family, so it is very important that you share information about your child’s needs as soon as possible.
• Make sure to let the teacher know if there are some things that are especially challenging for your child such as going to the bathroom, or staying calm when transitioning from one activity to another and make sure to . share the strategies you use to help your child so the teacher will know what works.
• Find out what supports your school offers to families. You might be surprised to learn that many schools have parent committees to help new families feel welcome and to answer questions they may have. There may be a school social worker or guidance counselor to help family members find literacy or English as a Second Language courses or help with social services. Many schools ask families to share family photos and information about family traditions, favorite foods and your child’s interests. If yours hasn’t asked yet, you might suggest it yourself.
• Ask how your child’s school will stay in touch with you and the best way to communicate with the teacher. Ideally, the teacher will be in touch with you before school starts or during the first week so you can get to know each other. Some schools send text messages. Others use secure websites or Facebook pages to share information.
• Some families are reluctant to provide information about their child’s language or abilities, or about the family income, for fear that their child will be labeled or tracked into a certain educational program. Keep in mind that the school has to ask your permission to place your child in any kind of special program. But, if they don’t have the right information about your child, he or she may have to wait many months to get the services that can help him or her learn. Time is so precious when children are young, so getting started is very important.

Your child is a unique individual who deserves the very best school experience to meet his or her needs. You can have a big impact on that success by partnering with your child’s school to make sure the school is ready for your child!

Karen Nemeth is an author, speaker and consultant on teaching young children who are dual language learners. She has written several articles and a book for NAEYC. She also has leadership roles in NABE and TESOL. She provides a wealth of information to support the field at her website: www.languagecastle.com.