I got a terrific idea from my son’s teacher this week.  This idea can be used with just about any subject being studied.  Take a piece of posterboard (12 x 18 inches) and have your child decorate it with anything that is currently being studied.  For example, if your child is learning his or her multiplicaction facts, have him or her write them around the edges of the posterboard.  Or, if your child is learning to identify colors or letters, do the same with that information.  Maybe your older child needs to memorize a timeline or a set of dates or events.  Write whatever subject it is on the posterboard, then cover it with clear Contact paper.  Viola!  Your child has made an instant, teachable placemat to use at mealtimes!

“Practice makes perfect.”

These words couldn’t ring truer for preparing a child to become a writer.  Writing isn’t an acquired skill; it is learned and practiced long before pencil is actually placed in hand.  Here are some great ideas to get your preschooler ready to write - and still have a great time doing it!

1. Take a ziplock baggie and place about 1/4 cup of hair gel inside.  Seal the bag, squeezing out all the excess air (depending on the size of bag, you might need more or less gel, and colored gel works better).  Place the sealed baggie on a flat surface and use as a writing “tablet”.  Children can draw and doodle in the gel, wiping their “slate” clean by simply smoothing out the gel.  Place the gel baggie over a piece of paper with squiggle lines or simple shapes and have the child “trace” the shape with his or her finger.  This can even be used with large letters written on paper as well.
2. Spread sand on a cookie sheet or other edged pan.  Have children use this surface as a writing surface.  It can be easily “erased” as well.  Use fingers as well as other items, such as straws, unsharpened pencils, pasta and even small cars to “write”.
3. Place a dollop of shaving cream on a table.  Have the child spread the shaving cream out and then use it as a writing surface.  Children can “erase” by simply covering their marks with more shaving cream.  (I use this method at the end of the day, and the shaving cream helps “clean” my tables!)  To make it more interesting, add a drop or two of watercolor.  Children can make shapes, squiggles, pictures or even write letters.
4. As children become more intentional in their strokes, give them several markers or crayons.  Have them trace the same shape over and over with different colors.  These shapes can be arcs, circles, lines, zig-zags, or even letters.  My class calls this “rainbow writing”.
5. As a culminating activity as we learn our letters, I give each child an unbaked breadstick (Pillsbury makes a good one, as does my generic store-brand).  Children then form their breadsticks into either their favorite letter or the first letter of their name.  Bake and eat!

Here’s a fun activity to try with your child that promotes critical thinking and school readiness.  This idea can be adapted for any age from preschool through grade school and beyond.  Best of all, no supplies are needed!

Have your child turn his or her back to you.  Using your finger draw a letter on your child’s back and see if he or she can identify the letter.  After he or she guesses the letter, see if they can come up with a word that begins with that letter!

If this is too difficult for your child, try it out first on the palm of his or her hand.  That way, your child can see the letter being written.  With younger children who might not know their letters yet, try simple shapes, like circles, triangles and squares.  Older children will enjoy the challenge of entire words or a more complex picture, such as a tree, a plane or a house.

Have your child do the same to your back as well.  It is great practice for writing, spelling and simple fine motor skills and dexterity!

Stringing beads, lace up cards, even picking up cereal - these are all wonderful ways to help your child develop fine motor skills and strengthen hand muscles.  In turn, these skills will aid your child in learning to write and even cut with scissors.  Providing ample opportunities for your child to practice is important during the Toddler Years.

1. Necklaces!  Give your child a piece of yarn (tape the end to keep it from fraying) or a shoelace and let him or her create some fun and festive jewelry.  Children can string a variety of pasta (and it can be colored as well - simply mix 1/4 c rubbing alcohol or vinegar with food coloring in a baggie, add pasta to be dyed, shake and let dry on wax paper!) to create patterns and designs.  Or provide them with other household items to string: keychains, old keys, large buttons, big beads, and even construction paper “donuts” (circles with a hole punch in the middle) are great for stringing as well.  For coordinating bracelets, use chenille stems or pipe cleaners to string items.  Twist around wrist to fasten.
2. Lace up cards.  Several companies provide lace up cards to work on the ‘in and out’ motion of simple sewing.  You can also create your own.  Mount a picture from a magazine on a piece of sturdy paperboard, posterboard or even cardboard.  Once dry, punch holes around the outside.  Provide a shoelace for “sewing” and let the fun begin!  Younger children may need a knot in one end of the lace to keep from pulling it through.
3. Starburst.  Take a paper plate, punch holes around the outside edge, and give your child a piece of string.  Lace around and across the plate, creating a multitude of patterns and designs.  For even more fun, punch a hole in the middle of the plate as well - can you make a sun?  A star?  What other shapes can you make?  Use different yarn colors as well for another design element.
4. Snack time!  Give your child an activity to do during snack time.  Give him or her a bowl of their favorite snack for lacing, such as pretzels and/or cereals - anything with a hole in it.  Using a piece of string or dental floss, let your child create an edible necklace.  Or, use it as a way of sharing snacks with nature - create a garland to hang in a tree for the birds!

Jenna* is a child in my pre-k class.  She is your typical just-turned-5-year-old - curious, sweet, full of energy.  Jenna comes from a strong family unit with a brother who probably tests off the IQ scale, a dad who is a high school math teacher, and a mom who is a nurse.  Jenna is in crisis.

Jenna’s family, without realizing what they are doing, are putting Jenna into a tailspin before she even gets to kindergarten.  Jenna’s mom and dad are doing what many parents do at this stage: they are encouraging beginning reading skills, such as sounding out letters and words, modeling good writing skills and having Jenna do the same, and living in the “teachable moment”.

Jenna, however, isn’t ready for this.

Jenna is now exhibiting classic symptoms of a child who is being “pushed” academically.  She is having nightmares at home, is reluctant to come to school, bursts into tears at any given moment, is terrified of her parents finding out about things she does at school, and spends most nights in tears when her mom reads out loud to her.

Pre-kindergarteners are highly sensitive to change, and this specific time in their lives is chock full of change.  My preschool class is very aware of the approaching end of school and upcoming summer break.  They are also keenly aware of the “scattering” of friends that will occur as each moves on to a different school next year.  While it is an exciting time for them, it is also a time full of uncertainty, and children can become “stressed out” over such change.

What Jenna’s parents (and I on occasion) are witnessing is an outward show of emotion from Jenna.  She is scared she isn’t like her big brother, the genius, and she will tell you that her daddy teaches at the big school, and she is NOT going there - EVER. 

What Jenna needs is acceptance for who she is - a young, five year-old little girl who likes ribbons and horses, drawing rainbows and hugs.  She knows her letters and numbers, but developmentally, she isn’t ready to start reading or writing.  Jenna needs for her parents to read to her every day in a fun and non-threatening way, to learn to enjoy the printed word and relish in stories, and in her own time, she will learn to tell and read on her own.  By stepping back from the “teachable moment” and allowing Jenna to flourish at her own level of success, they will, in turn, make her a successful student.

*The name of the student has been changed.

As a preschool teacher to four year-olds, I’m intrigued with one of Wonderbrains’ new products, Alpharings.  Alpharings are designed by Educational Insights, an educational product company that has a 50 year history of providing hands-on activities to reinforce early learning skills.  Alpharings come with 130 adjustable plastic illustrated rings (five of each letter) and an instructional guide.

So, my first question was, why so many rings?  Well, each letter is represented by five different illustrated rings to give the child five different relationships with the letter.  A child can find all the letter “Cc” rings, for example, and place one on each digit of a hand.  It is a great way to integrate sorting and classifying with the alphabet, and these are important pre-math skills as well. 

This set is also wonderful for children who tend to reverse certain letter pairs, such as p and q or b and d.  Children can easily compare the two letters in the pair by putting them on each hand.  The full-color illustrations on each ring are easily recognizable for each letter, so being able to identify b and d is a snap.

As children progress with their learning, these rings become excellent tools for working on word-building skills.  With the availability of multiples of each letter, words such as “tot” and “moo” can be built.  As children work on longer words, such as “letter” or “school”, these rings can be a great tool.  Older children will enjoy working on spelling activities with Alpharings.  They are a concrete tool that can be utilized in a number of ways over a wide range of age and development.

Alpharings retails for $19.99 and is a bargain at that for the variety of activities and age span that can appreciate and benefit from this product. 

When I first started my career as a public school teacher, I had two requirements: children had to come to me knowing how to add and how to read (thus began my career in junior high!).  I felt that once they had a foundation, I could work with them to do just about anything.  But, I didn’t want to be the responsible party for learning “the basics”.

Fast forward to Today.  I’m teaching four year olds.  And, what am I teaching them?  Numbers and letters.  And, you know what?  It isn’t as daunting as I thought it would be!  So, I thought I would share a few “tricks of the trade” with you.  If you have preschool to early elementary children, these are great activities to do with them at home.

• Cut and Paste:  Choose a letter to “hunt” and write it at the top of a piece of paper or on the front of an envelope.  Have the child scour magazines, newspapers, empty cereal boxes (anything consumable) for that specific letter.  Once they find one, they can cut it out and either glue it to the paper or put it in the envelope.  See how many of a certain letter they can find in fifteen minutes or in one magazine.  A good idea is to start with the first letter of their first name.  If the letters are in an envelope, they can be used later to create letter matching games or to spell simple words (when other letters are completed).
• Punch-A-Letter: Using a hole punch, create a set of “confetti”.  Let the child create a specific letter using the hole punches and glue.  For starters, have the letter written on a piece of paper as a guide.  Once a child is ready to make their own letter with the punches, by all means let them do so.
• Rubbings: Use the Punch-A-Letter activity to make a letter rubbing.  Once the punches dry, place another paper on top of the letter.  Use the side of a crayon to rub across the paper, making a rubbing of the letter. 
• Sticker Letters: Use smal incentive stickers (circular, uniform stickers about 2cm in diameter) to create a letter.  Finding stickers that have pictures of objects that begin with that letter (stars for letter S, bugs for letter B, etc) is an added bonus to this activity!
• Tape It Up: Use masking tape to make a letter on a piece of paper, then have the child completely color the paper with either markers or crayons.  Once the paper is completely covered, peel off the masking tape to reveal the letter!
• Tactile Experiences: Create Letter art with various media.  Try popsicle sticks, various types of pasta or noodles, straws and toothpicks.  Cereal also makes for great letter art, just be aware of the “sugar factor” and the bugs that may find it appealing as well if it sits out for days.

What are some of your favorite ways to reinforce letter recognition?

Spring is right around the corner - trees are budding, snow is melting, flowers are starting to peek through the ground in anticipation of warmer weather and longer days.  So, now is the perfect time to sit down with your favorite kiddo and make something to celebrate nature.  Make a bird feeder and welcome our feathered friends back home!  And, gone are the days of the pine cone feeder - here are some great new ways to treat the birds.

The best bird feeders are ones that are edible.  Try coating a bagel half with peanut butter and roll it in bird seed.  Then, use some twine to tie it to a tree.  Everything that is used to create this feeder is a gift to the birds - seed, peanut butter, bagel - and the twine is excellent nest-building material!  Another great idea is to use an ice cream cone.  A cone can either be coated like the bagel, or it can be filled with seed and hung from a tree like a cup of seed (tie the string around the rim, about a 1/2 inch down, and then make a double hanger - strap on either side - to tie around a tree branch).

For a slightly less traditional bird feeder, string cereal on a piece of yarn and tie to the tree (Cheerios work well for this).  The birds will appreciate the healthy snack, and again, the yarn will make excellent nest-building material.  Cookie cutter feeders are also fun; find your favorite cookie cutter and cut the shape from a piece of bread.  Press seed into the cut out, then poke a hole through the top with a straw.  String it to a tree! 

Not all feeders need to be edible.  Using recycled materials, such as empty egg cartons, pie tins, and even empty milk cartons, you can make a simple feeders for your back yard guests.  Turn any empty container into a feeder by making twine hangers to tie to a tree branch.  Just remember to soften any edges that might pose a danger to birds.

Make a feeder this weekend with your child.  Then, sit back and watch the birds arrive, marveling in their newfound treat!