Infants and Toddlers « Growing Children

Hearts on Their Sleeves

Posted on February 10, 2012 by 4cforchildren

In a recent conversation with a child care provider, she asked me my thoughts on taking off a child’s shirt if he or she is eating a messy food, like spaghetti. Many parents don’t like when their child comes home with a messy shirt, and many child care providers naturally want to keep parents as [...]

Filed under: Advocating for Children, Best Practice, Early Childhood, Infants and Toddlers, Parents | Tagged: children, early childhood, families, infants, parents, teachers, toddlers | 1 Comment »

Respecting Young Children

Posted on January 19, 2012 by 4cforchildren

I’ve always had a passion for working with young children. The longer I am in the early childhood education field and the more I see our culture’s perspective on early education change, the more passionate I am becoming about treating children with respect. What does respecting a child mean? I think it can mean a [...]

Filed under: Advocating for Children, Early Childhood, Family Child Care, Infants and Toddlers, Preschool | Leave a Comment »

Staying in the Moment

Posted on November 30, 2011 by 4cforchildren

This past weekend my 8-month-old granddaughter Josephine and her parents came for a visit. It was a joy to watch her learn and play. She has just started to crawl, so we would lay her on a blanket on the living room floor and surround her with toys. We found that she did not move [...]

Filed under: Early Childhood, Infants and Toddlers | Tagged: children, early childhood education, grandparents, infants, stress, teachers, toddlers | Leave a Comment »

Now and Forever

Posted on October 26, 2011 by 4cforchildren

I heard a story recently of an elementary school gym teacher responding to a child with asthma’s performance in class that, “Oh, that’s good for a kid with asthma. Usually they don’t do that well.” What if that child had overheard his teacher? What would he think? While the teacher may intend to be positive, [...]

Filed under: Best Practice, Early Childhood, Infants and Toddlers, Preschool | Tagged: children, early childhood education, parents, preschool, social and emotional development, toddlers | Leave a Comment »

Leave the Costumes at Home

Posted on October 11, 2011 by 4cforchildren

One year for Halloween, I was required to dress in costume at the center where I was teaching. I didn’t want to scare the children, so I decided to choose a costume I thought would be less intimidating: my husband! I dressed in one of his suits with a tie and hat and penciled in [...]

Filed under: Best Practice, Directors & Administrators, Early Childhood, Infants and Toddlers, Preschool, Professional Development | Tagged: brain development, children, early childhood, halloween, preschool, social and emotional development, teachers | 1 Comment »

Putting on the Brakes

Posted on September 15, 2011 by 4cforchildren

You’re driving on the interstate, keeping up with traffic, when you see a police officer with a radar gun aimed right at your car. Does your right foot automatically go to the brake? Do you nervously look in the rearview mirror to see if the police car pulled out onto the interstate? Now imagine that [...]

Filed under: Best Practice, Early Childhood, Infants and Toddlers, Preschool | Tagged: child development, children, early childhood education, safety, teachers | 2 Comments »

Get in There and Play!

Posted on July 11, 2011 by 4cforchildren

I just had the pleasure of spending some time at the beach with my kids. I truly enjoyed watching them run in and out of the waves, jump into the swimming pool and play games that needed nothing electronic! For the first day or two, I sat idly by watching their fun and listening to [...]

Filed under: Early Childhood, Family Child Care, Infants and Toddlers, Preschool, School Age | Tagged: children, early childhood education, learning, parenting, play, preschool, teachers | 2 Comments »

Baby Talk

Posted on June 27, 2011 by 4cforchildren

Last week I was in a well known department store shopping for a birthday gift when I noticed a new mother with her infant son in a stroller. It was so meaningful to see her having a conversation with her baby. She pulled a dress off the rack and held it up for him to [...]

Filed under: Best Practice, Early Childhood, Infants and Toddlers | Tagged: children, early language, infants, literacy | 3 Comments »

For a Successful Transition, Trust isn’t Enough

Posted on June 21, 2011 by 4cforchildren

I recently took my daughter to the zoo for an overnight field trip. My daughter, Maggie, is 9-years-old and in third grade. As I was leaving Maggie at the zoo in the care of her teacher and other parents, it struck me how this experience is just like what parents of young children go through [...]

Filed under: Best Practice, Directors & Administrators, Early Childhood, Family Child Care, Infants and Toddlers, Preschool, School Age | Tagged: children, early childhood education, early learning, parents, transitions | Leave a Comment »

Respecting Infants, Respecting Parents

Posted on May 4, 2011 by 4cforchildren

I am 36 weeks pregnant with my first baby. The doctors are calling for a boy, and with three ultrasounds and some very clear shots, we are pretty sure they are right. Though I tend to write mostly about preschool experiences because of my work in the classroom, I’ve had baby on the brain, and [...]

Filed under: Early Childhood, Infants and Toddlers | Tagged: babies, children, early childhood, infants, new mothers, teachers | Leave a Comment »

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