Archive for the ‘Skill development ’ Category
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Filed under: Featured, Senses and Body Parts, Skill development, Teaching Ideas, Teaching Tales
First Snip: Learning to Cut
by Cheryl Villareal on Nov 19th, 2010
Cutting is an essential skill that each of us needs to learn during our early years. It may be scary at first, but it's easy to get the hang of it. - Children love playing with things they are not supposed to play with. They love touching things they are not supposed to touch. So when we tell them NOT to play with scissors, obviously, we just triggered their curiosity. They do not yet realize that scissors can hurt if not used properly, hen...Read More » Tags Share Comments (0 )
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Filed under: Animals and Insects, Edible crafts, Featured, Games and Activities, Senses and Body Parts, Skill development, Teaching Ideas
Feed the animals
by Cheryl Villareal on Nov 4th, 2010
Just a few days ago, I shared the Pin the Nose on the animals activity. Most of the kids already knew which nose belonged to which animal even before we started. This time, we tried learning about the other things animals do with their noses. The kids all know that noses are used for smelling, but they have yet to learn how some animals use their noses for eating and picking up objects. To introduce to them how elephants eat, we prepared a sim...Read More » Tags Share Comments (0 )
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Filed under: Arts and Crafts, Featured, Messy art, Skill development, Teaching Ideas
Box Kicking Art
by Cheryl Villareal on Oct 7th, 2010
Toddlers are still learning the different skills their body can perform. Jumping, walking, running are some of the activities that they are still learning to perfect. Throwing objects is part of these skills, and so is kicking things. To adults, kicking is just like walking with force! It's a very simple task for us, but for these kids, kicking means letting loose of what foot and making sure the other foot is able to keep balance! Here's anot...Read More » Tags Share Comments (0 )
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Filed under: Arts and Crafts, Featured, Messy art, Skill development, Teaching Ideas
Squeeze Painting
by Cheryl Villareal on Oct 4th, 2010
We were on the topic of hands and wanted the kids to something unique. We started off by asking them: "What can your hands do?" They then suggested a variety of things from clapping to building! Some even suggested walking which then led to us trying to walk with our hands! A sure funny scene! We then suggested hugging and squeezing! We hugged the stuffed bears and hugged each other! As for the squeezing, we used those little squeaky toys and tri...Read More » Tags Share Comments (1 )
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Filed under: Arts and Crafts, Edible crafts, Featured, Messy art, Sand and Sea, Skill development, Teaching Ideas
Fruit Loop Sand Art
by Cheryl Villareal on Oct 3rd, 2010
Fruit loops are really good to eat, but they're also fun to play with! I have used fruit loop several times before, and I'm using it again! This time however, we decided to crush the fruit loop and turn it into sand! You may also use colored sand as an alternative, however, using fruit loop takes away the fear that one of our kids might swallow it and get a tummy ache! . . What you will need Fruit Loop Printed picture Crayons G...Read More » Tags Share Comments (5 )
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Filed under: Reading and Language, Skill development, Teaching Ideas, Tips for Parents
Name Recognition Part 3
by Cheryl Villareal on Sep 25th, 2010
In my past posts, I shared different ways to help children recognize their own names. I shared music, and pre-reading skills.. So this time, let's do some art! It's always important that the kids at least become familiar with the first letter of their names . What you will need: Any small objects that can be glued (bottle caps, sequins, glitter, sand etc.) Print out of their name with the first letter emphasized . . Just l...Read More » Tags Share Comments (0 )
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Filed under: Reading and Language, Skill development, Teaching Ideas, Tips for Parents
Name Recognition: Learning to Read Part 2
by Cheryl Villareal on Sep 16th, 2010
Check out Name Recognition Part 1 in case you haven't seen it! As mentioned in Part 1, we sing the song "Hello, hello, hello" daily to let the kids practice saying their names! Another tip I can share with you is to LABEL everything! At the beginning, we labeled their cubbyholes, tables and chairs with their pictures. After a month, we added their name to the picture. After another month or two, we removed the picture and all that was left wer...Read More » Tags Share Comments (0 )
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Filed under: Reading and Language, Skill development, Teaching Ideas, Tips for Parents
Name Recognition Part 1
by Cheryl Villareal on Sep 12th, 2010
One of the first things a child should learn as they enter school is their names! Some parents and teachers would think that this is obvious and need not be reviewed, but you'd be surprised as to how many toddlers and even nursery-aged children still have difficulty saying or recognizing their names. There are also a few who don't really know their names yet, such that calling them by name would not get their attention. You'd have to tap them to ...Read More » Tags Share Comments (1 )
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Filed under: Arts and Crafts, Colors and Shapes, Messy art, Senses and Body Parts, Skill development, Teaching Ideas
Sponge Painting
by Cheryl Villareal on Sep 3rd, 2010
Still on the topic of squares, we decided to let the children try some sponge painting! The kids especially enjoyed this activity because of the unique process. Squeezing the sponge hard enough allowed paint to gush out! It became a bit messy for some, but still a lot of fun! Though we didn't really teach it, the children were able to discover how sponges can absorb liquids, and that the liquids can be squeezed out! Accidental learning takes plac...Read More » Tags Share Comments (1 )
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Filed under: Arts and Crafts, Christmas, Holiday crafts, Mothers' Day, Patterns, Skill development, Teaching Ideas
Necklace Making
by Cheryl Villareal on Aug 26th, 2010
Here's another fun activity to help develop children's fine motor skills! In this activity, they will have to carefully hold the string and insert the beads. You may be surprised to learn what a tedious job this actually is! A lot of children still have difficulty holding the string properly, others cannot figure out how to pull out the string from the other end of the bead, and still others, cannot figure out how to insert the string. Hence, the...Read More » Tags Share Comments (0 )