Throwback to one of the activities I did in the past… I brought this giant keyboard mat, set it on different instrumental settings and we drew all over it with dry erase markers while it played music! This gave us the chance to practice drawing/writing while lying in prone on the floor, and drawing and … Read more
This post has an audio and video recorded version for those who prefer to learn by hearing rather than by reading. Scroll to the bottom for the video of me reading it. Let me tell you a story about child-led learning, and about The Very Hungry Caterpillar. About one month ago, my coworker asked me … Read more
…I was going to put “play with scissors” and “play riskily” on here, too, but I thought that might freak people out TOO much. 😉 Seriously, though. It’s the start of summer break at the American schools I work at. I know English schools go awhile longer before having more of a break in August, … Read more
Here’s an unconventional tip for parents who are sensory-sensitive or get “touched out”. First of all — there’s nothing wrong with you if your preferred level of touching, snuggling, hugging, wrestling etc in a day is less than your child’s. There’s nothing wrong with them, either. It’s just a normal need for them to have … Read more
Ultra-washable paint: 50% washable tempera paint 50% dish soap or bubble bath or old shampoo that you have left over after switching brands That’s it. Mix those two together. It will create an extremely washable paint. Because of the soap, it is also very runny. This is a good activity for toddlers or young children … Read more
“My child won’t play without being destructive. He is extremely smart, but he bounces off the walls and is destructive. We try redirecting him. We try positive reinforcement. We try using incentives. We use time-outs. We’ve tried everything,” a parent asked me recently. First off — this is a great example of how using precision … Read more
If you’re someone who would say “Oh, I can’t handle letting my kids make a mess! It stresses me out too much!” …Well, first step, let’s differentiate between “wet mess” and “dry mess”. These aren’t strictly liquids vs solids here. We’re using the words “wet” and “dry” in a more abstract way than that. But … Read more