Archive for the ‘Cognitive Development’ Category

From my experience, it’s all about engaging them in the experience. Interaction is a key component to any successful activity. The more involved you feel, the more you want to participate. The same is true of all ages, especially little ones. They have such short attention spans and everything is new, i.e., distracting. The key is to work with those “limitations” not try to squash them. I witnessed a most unengaging book reading one time that made me, who loves books and reading almost more than any other leisure activity, want to run screaming from the room. { photo credit: chimothy27}

A teenage girl was trying to read a short board book to three preschoolers. Now, Sammi can sit through long picture books, so a short board book should have been a piece of cake for these kids. But they were sitting in a row facing the girl and she was sitting up on a chair reading the book to them. Anytime they fidgeted at all, she stopped reading and told them to sit still. At the end of every sentence she stopped and asked them a question about that sentence. Then she demanded the correct answer before she moved on to the next sentence. There was no flow to the story, no magic floating out from the book to capture the interest of these three little ones. It was pure agony. The girl was obviously frustrated by the behavior of the children and they were obviously bored with the experience, yet they pushed on. If this is the perfect example of how not to get kids interested in reading, I’d like to share some tips to turn this exact situation into the perfect way to get kids interested in reading.

6 Tips to Get Kids Interested in Reading

1. Get close. Be on the same level as the kids. Let them climb in your lap or on your back as you read. Let them sit as close as they can get so they can see the illustrations and let the magic of those pictures bring the story to life for them.
   
2. Accept age appropriate behavior. It’s not feasible for a 1 year old or a 2 year old or even a 3 year old to be perfectly still. They wiggle and fidget because that’s what they do. It doesn’t mean they aren’t listening. Because, believe me, they are. As long as they haven’t wandered off into another room, they are still listening and will probably protest if you stop reading. It’s okay that they aren’t able to give you their undivided attention for the length of the book. It doesn’t mean they aren’t ready for it or don’t want it. It just means they can only process so much at a time and the moving around may be a coping skill to help them get the most out of the experience.
   
3. Answer questions. Something like 90% of questions little ones ask about a story come from the illustrations. It’s a visual way for them to understand the story. Take the time to answer those questions and bring it back to the words of the story. Sometimes Sammi will ask a question from the picture that hasn’t been answered yet in the story. I usually say, “We don’t know that yet. But if we keep reading, I bet we’ll find out. Let’s listen for the answer.” And then once we’ve read the answer, we talk about it again.
   
4. Have stacks of books available in all play areas. Anywhere the little ones are free to be and play, have books visible. They will be more interested in them if they seem them often. It’s also a lot easier for you to just pick up a book and read with your little one if you don’t have to go find one.
   
5. Let your kids see you reading. I have a few things around the house that I read: a book, magazines, scriptures, the computer. Sometimes when Sammi or Elli want to get on my lap while I’m reading I’ll read out loud to them. They love being involved in that moment with me, but they usually get their fix and then move on, which gives me time to read one more page/article/post.
   
6. Extend the reading to other activities. Do a craft, make a treat, dress up, get creative. Anytime something relates to the story, tie in that connection so they can remember the book and build their background knowledge. There are tons of blogs that have examples of ways to extend a book into other activities. Some I enjoy are A Mommy’s Adventures and Silly Eagle Books.

I’m sharing these tips today because I’ve been invited to be on the panel of #GNO tonight on twitter. You can learn more about #GNO here and about tonight’s discussion here. Tonight’s topic is “Let’s Play—Getting Our Kids to Love Books and Reading” The discussion is sponsored by a brand new site, Memetales, that is devoted to bring parents, kids and books together in creative ways. I’ve only just begun to explore this site and look forward to sharing more of its potential and usefulness as I become better acquainted with it. If you want more info now, Mom Tried It and No time For Flashcards have both posted about Memetales. Here’s a slide show to give you a glimpse into the vision of tonight’s #GNO discussion and the mission of Memetales.

If you haven’t yet, please check out the Baby Leg Warmers giveaway going on until March 1o.

…time and space for free play.

I’m continuing my series on ways I would love to make a difference in the world. In previous posts I suggested an indoor play area not part of a fast food restaurant in every community and a bookshelf full of age appropriate books for every home. I’ve been thinking a lot about play as a necessary part of child development. I recently began reading Playful Parenting by Lawrence J. Cohen. He names three reason child desperately need play in their lives:

1. To Connect, or Reconnect after connection has been severed
2. To Build Confidence by role playing and practicing new skills in a safe environment
3. To Heal from Emotional Distress by recreating the situation with different roles and outcomes

These are compelling reasons why children need generous amounts of free time to play, create, connect, imagine and discover the world around them and their position in that world. I see such potential in my little ones and I want more than anything to provide every opportunity to foster that potential. But my biggest fear is over-scheduling them in sports, lessons, service opportunities and any other good thing that may arise. Cohen goes on to explain that this need for play is not an early childhood phenomenon. That childhood is made up of this need to play and it stretches long past toddlerhood.

It’s not just important that children play, but that they have playmates. This could be siblings, friends and even, maybe most importantly, parents. When we use play as an opportunity to connect with our children we can learn something about them and their experiences that we would never be able to draw out of them through conversation alone. When we use play to build confidence in our children they are learning in a most powerful way the strength of their character and determination to master a skill. When we use play to help them heal from emotional distress we skip over the discipline, yelling, correcting that we somehow come to rely on and jump instead straight to the heart of the matter and bring our little ones back to the joy of life they so often display.

For these reasons, and many more, I want every child to have the time and space to play.

What do you want for every child?

I am an Amazon Affiliate and use affiliate links to as an easy way to find more information on books or other products I share in my posts. If you click on the link and make a purchase, I receive a small percentage of that sale. Happy shopping

If you haven’t yet, please check out the Baby Leg Warmers giveaway going on until March 1o.

I managed to browse through a HUGE used bookstore all by myself this week. Brent stayed in the car while the girls were sleeping so I had a whole hour to myself. I found a bunch of books that were pretty cheap and even a big hit with Sammi and Elli. We also “discovered” one Elli got for Christmas that we hadn’t read yet. It’s been a great week for reading at our house.

Ladybug Girl (Elli’s Christmas present)
by David Soman and Jacky Davis

Ladybug Girl is the story of how Lulu entertains herself one morning when everyone at her house is busy. She is dressed up as a ladybug, which immediately drew Elli to the book. Their room right now has ladybugs decorating the walls and curtain and they even have ladybug wings they like to wear on occasion. They could really relate to Lulu who wanders her house and yard finding adventures to entertain herself until her mom is done with her “work.” The first time we read this book, Elli was on my lap and her little legs just kicked and kicked in joy when Lulu jumped off a log and said, “Ta-da!”

Clifford’s Happy Easter
by Norman Bridwell

I thought Clifford’s Happy Easter would be a good one with Easter approaching. It has tons of eggs on the cover and we’ve been doing Easter egg hunts for two years straight. When I brought out the stack of brand new books this was the first one she wanted to read. We were driving in the car so she just looked at it by herself but she was back there laughing at the silly situations and telling us her version of the story as she showed us the pictures. She really got to exercise her creative imagination muscle with this book. It will be fun to read this book again and again in preparation for Easter.

What books have you enjoyed reading with your little ones?

If you’re looking for more ideas, check out Feed Me Books Friday hosted by Adventure Mom Janna. I promise you’ll have a long list of books to look for at the library!

Today marks 106 years since the birth of Theodor Seuss Geisel, a.k.a. Dr Seuss. Even if you haven’t fallen in love with Dr Seuss’s works themselves, you’ve probably loved classics that follow the style he made popular. That style is marked by imaginative characters and settings, bold colors, rhymes that trip the tongue and made-up words. In conjunction with Dr Seuss’s birthday, the National Education Association has developed an initiative to encourage reading called National Read Across America Day. {Last year, Aaron Nigel Smith joined in the celebrations to inspire young readers.} This year, to celebrate both, we are having a wild Dr. Seuss birthday party!

Sammi has been so excited to have a birthday party. We’ve read Dr Seuss books and she and Elli have been heard around the house belting out “Happy Birthday to You.” It has really helped her and Elli establish the pattern of birthday parties and their preparations. We were able to borrow a box of Dr Seuss themed decorations from the library as well as a few more books. Here’s a peak at what we’re preparing:

We’ve invited tons of friends to celebrate with us. Each family is bringing their favorite Dr Seuss book along with a treat/drink/craft that is inspired by their favorite book. I’m making meatballs inspired by the GUFF going by in Oh, the Thinks You can Think! I asked a dear friend to bring her Oobleck cupcakes that she debuted at her son’s birthday party (which inspired a lot of what I hoped to do for this party.) She graciously shared her yummy recipe, too, so you can whip up a batch of these little cupcakes today to celebrate!

Oobleck Cupcakes

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 egg whites from large eggs
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 cup 2% milk
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Green Food coloring

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners.
• Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, shortening, milk and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Mix at low speed for 2 minutes. Scrape bowl. Add egg whites and mix at high speed until fluffy and smooth, approximately 2 minutes. add food coloring.
• Fill liners 1/2 to 2/3 full of batter. Do not overfill. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
• Cool 10 minutes in pans then remove from pan, and place on wire racks to cool completely.
• Frost

Vanilla Buttercream frosting

16 ounce(s) marshmallow cream
1 1/2 cup(s) butter softened
1 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract
1/2 cup(s) confectioners’ sugar (more if necessary)

Beat the marshmallow cream using an electric mixer set on low. Add the butter (in 1-inch pieces) and beat until smooth. Add the vanilla extract, and confectioners’ sugar, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally, and continue to beat on medium-high until smooth and fluffy. Add more sugar to adjust texture.

So, grab a Dr Seuss book, or any favorite, and sit down with your little one today and read, read, read!

What book has inspired you to read, either for yourself or with your little one?

Brent came home early from school the other day with the brilliant idea to take the girls on a nature hunt. We drove to the start of a trail that would take us through two covered bridges and a tunnel. When we parked the car, we asked the girls to look around outside and help us make a list of the things we might see on our nature walk. With our list in hand, and a camera in each girl’s hand, we set out to find everything on our list.

After looking at all the pictures, which item on our list did we NOT find? There was only one.

Today we are sharing our family’s favorite Dr Seuss books as part of Feed Me Books Friday hosted by The Adventure of Motherhood. Check out the other posts today about Dr Seuss books!

My Fave Dr Seuss Book:
I Can Read With My Eyes Closed

We’ve read this one so many times, I literally can read it with my eyes closed! I was a bit hesitant the first time I read this book because I thought it would downplay “reading” and upplay imagination. But I was wrong, gratefully. It’s actually about how important it is to keep yours eyes open to read and observe the world around you. My favorite line is “And when I keep them open I can read with much more speed. You’ve got to be a speedy reader cause there’s oh so much to read.” We’ve worn our copy of this book almost completely out.

Brent’s Fave Dr Seuss Book:
Sneetches and Other Stories

Brent loves to read the Sneetches story to the girls at bedtime. At first I thought it was a little long for a bedtime story, but now that I’m more familiar with it, it goes rather quickly. I think Brent really likes the rhythm of this book’s rhymes and he kind of sings the words in a bouncy voice. He also likes the message of the Sneetches lesson, that we are all the same no matter out outsides and we can live in happiness and peace together. But we do always wonder with the Sneetches without stars upon thars never had their own frankfurter parties. Some mysteries are left unexplained, I guess.

Sammi’s Fave Dr Seuss Book:
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

Sammi requests this one quite often. It’s another one I can almost read with my eyes shut. It doesn’t have a single storyline, rather each couple of pages work together around the same characters or topics. The lack of a coherent story is kind of difficult for me, but it does have some pages we quite love and quote often. For example, one page counts the fingers on Ned and he has eleven. Our quotable line is “Eleven, this is something new. I wish I had eleven, too!”

Elli’s Fave Dr Seuss Book:
Sleep Book

Yes, at 18 months Elli has a fave Dr Seuss book and it is indeed The Sleep Book. It’s kind of a long book so I usually read the first few pages (which are the best, in my opinion) and then read a couple out of the middle and then the last three pages. I’m not sure why Elli likes this book so much. We tried reading it to Sammi for ages before she showed any interest in it. But it’s a regular now at bedtime. My favorite line is “And people are gradually starting to say, ‘I feel rather drowsy. I’ve had quite a day.’” That’s exactly how I feel at the end of most days.

My Least Fave Dr Seuss Book:
The Cat in the Hat

I’m not fond of this one in the least. The poor kids are totally overwhelmed by the cat and then the poor cat is totally rejected by the kids. When I read it, all I can think about is the experiences of the characters on an emotional level. I think Dr Seuss definitely improved over his career. I haven’t read The Cat Comes Back. Maybe I should give it a try. But I’m not entirely motivated to. Maybe if it shows up on my doorstep, I’ll give it a go. But for now we’ll stick with our favorites.

What are your family’s favorite Dr Seuss books?

…A bookshelf full of age appropriate books for all members of the household.

This one takes a bit of background so please bear with me! I am an only child. I read and read and read all throughout my childhood. Books were my escape from hours of endless boredom. I always told people that I would have a dozen or so children so that no one would ever be bored at my house. Fast forward to my present situation: stay-at-home mom of two children.  I’m trying to figure out the whole sibling relationship thing right along side my daughters.

Whenever there are squabbles that don’t die down or when the girls are so emotionally charged, my coping skill is to scoop them up and read them a book. Books have become a neutral ground for us. The girls always come together over a book. I can read them a book, sometimes two, and they are ready to play together again. When my mom was here, she used the same coping skill! It cracked me up to hear her over crying girls, “Come here and I’ll read you a book.” And it works like a charm.

The benefits of early exposure to books is astounding to me. Literature is such a powerful way for parents to connect with children, for children to connect with each other and for families to come together. To help each family secure the benefits of literacy and reading habits, I’d like to see each family have a bookshelf in their home full of books just right for the ages of all members of the family.

My Book Picks By Age

Ages: 0-2

Five Little Ducks illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

We love this book because it takes the familiar song and changed up each of the verses so ti’s not so redundant. My favorite is the ending because the mother duck goes out to look for her ducklings and they all come back to her. Sometimes when we sing the song we sing this ending instead of the daddy duck version. Makes me feel better I love Dan Yaccarino’s illustrations and have enjoyed any book I’ve seen illustrated by him.

Love and Kisses by Sarah Wilson, illustrated by Melissa Sweet

We love this book. We bought it from the library a couple of years ago and the girls have read it completely to pieces. I’m actually buying it again because we’ve enjoyed it so much. It’s all about the circle of giving love and how that love always comes back around to you. It has cute illustrations and lots of animals. We practice our animal sounds as we read it so it’s interactive. Elli is currently enthralled with the little frog and stops on that page every time we read it!

Ages: 2-5

Good Night, Gorilla by Peggy Rathmann

This is such a cute bedtime book. The gorilla has so much personality and the ending is adorable. We love the zoo so this book is a great way to remember and revisit the zoo as often as we like. For the longest time, Sammi said “granilla” instead of “gorilla.” I tried to explain it to her, but she was determined she was saying it correctly. It was pretty cute and we got lots of great smiles whenever she told people how much she liked the granillas at the zoo.

Where the Wild Things Are by Maruice Sendak

This book took us a little bit to fall in love with. But once Sammi let me read it all the way through, she was hooked. My favorite part is when Max is lonely and wants to go where someone loves him best of all. I asked Sammi who would love Max best of all and she shouted, “His Mommy!” We include that in every reading now. I just love the imagery of Sendak’s language because it is beautiful but still accessible to little ones. We also loved the movie. Sammi wasn’t scared at all. In fact, it helped her resolve some of her own fears and emotional outbursts. I think it’s just about time to see it again!

Ages: Elementary School

Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White, illustrated by Garth Williams

Sammi and I read this book when she was two. I read it to her every morning at breakfast. It took us a few months to finish, but she stuck with it. She really enjoyed what she got out of it. We saw a real baby white pig, just like Wilbur and that was very exciting to her. I remember reading this book with my mom when I was in elementary school and just loved it, too. It’s a great read-aloud book as well as an individual read.

Ages: Junior High/Middle School

The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt

This book was a Newberry Award honor book in 2008. I really enjoyed the flow of the book as well as the storyline. It covers a lot of issues experienced by junior high/middle school students with humor and depth. It’s the story of a boy and his journey of self-discovery. I think it appeals to boys because of the main character and his boyish interests, but it’s well written and would still be a good read for a girl.

Ages High School

The Outlaws of Sherwood by Robin McKinley

I love Robin McKinley’s ability to retell classic stories. She is an amazing storyteller and can weave the very essence of the characters, plot, twists and triumphs into the pages the book is printed on. I never fail to lose myself in one of her books. My all time favorite is Beauty, a retelling of Beauty and the Beast. But I chose The Outlaws of Sherwood because it has such appeal to both males and females. It’s a fun retelling of the Robin Hood story. She gives the characters so much background and depth that it’s impossible not to feel their experiences right along with them. I read this book and Beauty again every couple of years and enjoy them all over again each time.

For Grown Ups

The Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease

This book is an inspiration for reading with your family. Aside from outlining the benefits of reading aloud, he gives great examples of how to make it work for different ages and different situations. I love that he encourages all people, whatever their level to start today to read with their family members. I had a cool experience with this idea one day at the library. There was a mom sitting on the floor with her two children, one of whom was on her lap. She was reading them a book. She was stumbling over some of the words and I could tell she was out of her comfort zone to be reading aloud to her little ones, especially in public. But, her children were so engrossed in what she was reading, it didn’t even matter. It was obvious they loved listening to their mom read out loud to them. As parents, we have a connection with our children that enables us to step outside our comfort zones and do things with and for our little ones because they have no judgment. They are 100% accepting and embracing. I so appreciate that!

So that’s my list! The books I’d love to see every family be able to own and a bookshelf to put them on. Sorry it was so long. I hope you made it this far This post is part of Adventure Mom Janna’s Feed Me Books Friday. Check out the other books moms are sharing.

What would you love to see in every home?

While at Blissdom last week I picked up a few of ice cream bowls from Blue Bunny, one of the sponsors. The bowls change colors when they get cold. They turn blue, of course! Well, I had some ice cream last night and left my bowl on the table. When I woke up this morning, it was still blue! I get I keep the heat pretty low (it’s set at 55 pretty much constantly!)

On a side note, they were handing out samples of Double Strawberry Aspen® Frozen Yogurt Granola Bars. They were so yummy and the girls gobbled their up in a flash. I think I’ll get more of these with the coupon they gave us!

40 Amazing Facts About Babies

I wanted to share an article with you that I found to be rather interesting. 40 Truly Amazing Facts About Babies contains all kinds of nuggets about babies’ amazing bodies. Here are a few of the facts included in the list:

No Kneecaps : On birth, babies do not have kneecaps. Rather they have a structure of cartilage that resembles kneecaps. They usually don’t develop them fully until after six months. Most seen on babies who “army crawl” instead of doing it on all fours.

What A Load : The heaviest baby ever born was a boy who weighed 22 pounds, eight ounces. He was born in Italy in 1955. To summarize, it isn’t highly unusual for a one year old baby to weigh 22 pounds.

Triple Take : At the end of the first year, your baby’s weight will have tripled. That means if they were born at ten pounds, at their first year they will weight around 30, give or take.

Motherhood Makes You Smarter : Pregnancy can take a toll on a woman’s body, but it can also help. A Pulitzer Prize winning reporter discusses her findings on how women improve perception, efficiency, resiliency, motivation, and emotional intelligence. The detailed article has more.

What amazes you most about your little one?

I am amazed by how well little ones understand numbers. I have been fascinated as I’ve watched Sammi develop an understanding of numbers and counting. Her spontaneous learning of numbers and counting is one of the reasons why I consider homeschooling on an almost daily basis. We talk about numbers at the most random times, like the breakfast table, a public restroom or the car. Wonderful opportunities for learning that can’t be planned or shoved into a classroom setting. [end soapbox]

This post is inspired by my mom’s visit. She has been here a week already and has another week left. Sammi, who adores her grandma, has fretted since the second day of her visit that she would be leaving any day. Sammi asks every morning if this is Grandma’s last day. Since it’s hard still for her to grasp the concept of a week, my mom thought of making a countdown chain for her so she could see how many days are left. It was also a way to prepare Sammi for Grandma’s departure so that it wasn’t a shock to her on the day that Grandma actually leaves. I was skeptical at first because I didn’t think it was very upbeat to count down the days till Grandma leaves, especially not right in front of her! But it has worked out well for Sammi. She has stopped asking and now runs to count the links on the chain to see how many days are left.

Learning Numbers

Little ones as young as 19 months are beginning to use numbers. They start by understanding the concept of more and then move to saying actual numbers in fingerplays and such. As they have more experience with numbers and counting, they begin to imitate counting at around 2 years. They also show an understanding of “one” and “one more” about this time. Then, around 2 1/2 to 3 years they start counting numbers in order. I remember Sammi got really good at the number one. She always acknowledged objects around her that were in the quantity of one. Then she moved on the the number two. She spotted two of a kind every where we went. It was about this time that she also started to understand the question “How old are you?” and could respond with her age, and favorite number, two. As she turned three, she fell in love with that number and could quickly find groups of three all around her.

I find it interesting that her progression through numbers has matched her age. Though now, at 3 1/2 she’s also got a handle on the numbers four and five. Elli is just starting to get the number one. I love to help her show 1 finger when people ask her how old she is. She doesn’t get it quite yet, but it certainly is cute to see her hold one finger up.

In addition to counting up, children (eventually) need to be able to count down in order to do simple math functions like subtracting. One easy way to introduce counting up and down is with songs. Music is a great way to help turn skills or knowledge into a game. Information can also be easier to remember when it’s set to the rhythm and melody of a song. Here are some great songs and variations for introducing numbers to little ones.

Number Songs and Variations

• 1 Little, 2 Little, 3 Little “Indians”—we sings “girls-dancing,” “books-in the library,” “toddlers-jumping,” “babies-sleeping,” “trucks-vrooming” (Count up and then count from 10 back down to 1)
• Wheels on the Bus—”1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 Begin again. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10″ (Shows counting up)
• 5 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed (Shows counting down)
• 5 Little Ducks (Shows counting down)
• 5 Little Speckled Frogs (Shows counting down)

While we don’t want to expect our little ones to fully grasp the concept of numbers and counting up or down just because we sing these songs, it is a fun way to expose them to these concepts. It’s also one of those magical parenting moments when you see the light bulb go off when the concept of 5 clicks with the 5 Little Speckled Frogs one random day.

What’s your little one’s favorite number?

One day Elli invented a new game. I don’t remember it evolving from any patterns or previous games. I can’t even think of where she might have gotten the idea. As far as I can tell, it’s all her own and she definitely owns it!

After I change her diaper, I usually stand her up on the changing table to pick her up. One day when she was facing me she held up her hand for me to kiss. So I kissed her hand. Then she held up the other hand for me to kiss. So I kissed it. Then, without warning, she planted both hands firmly on my the upper part of my chest, like you see in the picture. It startled me so much I almost lost my balance!

She has repeated this game for over a week now. She absolutely loves it and giggles the whole time. I keep wondering where she came up with the idea. I guess I may never know. But I do know that it’s so fun to interact with her in a game that she initiates. I feel like the child waiting with excitement to see what the next part of the game will be. Elli’s the parent patiently teaching me what to do, like when I first didn’t realized I was supposed to kiss her hand and she nearly smacked my lips so I’d get it.

What games have your little ones invented that you had to learn?