When Your Child’s Preschool Teacher Gives You Bad News
A mom tells her story: “It was a day just like any other. I walked into my child’s preschool classroom to help him hang his jacket and snack box on the hook in his cubby. As I leaned in to kiss him goodbye, the classroom teacher approached. “Good morning, Tommy! How are you today? Go ahead and a wash your hands and choose an activity, ‘K?” Then, turning to me, “Could I talk to you for a few minutes in the hallway?” In a quiet alcove just outside the classroom, the teacher began. “We have a few concerns about Tommy’s language processing skills...
read moreChild Development Resources: Where to look for support in the early years
Katy was fascinated by her baby’s development. She carefully observed every new skill and developmental milestone, celebrated her son’s trajectory and diligently sought answers to her questions from a number of sources including books, magazines and websites. She was pleased to see that her son was right on track, if not a little ahead of the curve on most developmental markers. Katy had faithfully consulted the book, What to Expect When You are Expecting throughout her pregnancy and had come to depend on its reliability in predicting and...
read moreChildren’s Amazing Capabilities
Your child did incredible things in school today. Much was required of her and she rose to the occasion, meeting and surpassing expectations. As she prepared to enter the school building this morning, she knew exactly where to line up and what she needed to carry with her. Perhaps she even knew her precise position in line: in front of number 16 and behind number 14. She stopped playing, turned off her voice and was swallowed up behind the doors before you turned away, confident that she would be cared for and looked after for the next six...
read moreDeclutter Your Child Rearing Practices
As we begin a new calendar year, it is only natural to stop and take stock of our lives and habits. We reflect on our priorities, our use of time and our accomplishments. We take a look at what we have done and accumulated over the past year, and many of us resolve to make changes going forward and perhaps begin a process of decluttering in our lives. If we tweak a little here and cull a little there, we tell ourselves, we will see big changes in the year ahead. As parents, we may stop and reflect on our children’s progress and development....
read moreSupporting Language Development in Multilingual Settings: Part 3
Action Steps for Parents Just as there is not one “correct” way to raise children, there is also no one “correct” way to introduce and nurture the learning of multiple languages for children. Each family has its own language circumstance, needs and priorities that must be taken into account. However, although there is no one size fits all approach to language learning, there are several guidelines and recommendations based on research and experience that can be taken into consideration when setting goals and implementing family language...
read moreSupporting Language Development in Multilingual Settings: Part 2
Part 2: Common Questions Parents Ask Read Part 1 here What language should I use with my child? Research shows that children’s language development is enhanced when they are engaged in meaningful, rich, interactive conversations with people who listen to them and respond to their interests and questions. The more language children hear, the bigger their vocabulary will become. However, the quantity of words a child is exposed to is enhanced by the quality of the interactions and the language that takes place. Therefore, experts recommend...
read moreSupporting Language Development in Multilingual Settings: Part 1
Part 1: Introduction In today’s globally transient world, many children are exposed to multiple languages from birth and parents may well wonder how best to support the language development of their children. Some families may be comprised of parents whose native languages are not the same. Mom may have been born and raised in France and although she speaks English, her “heart language” is French, while Dad speaks English exclusively. Other families find themselves living in places where the language of the greater environment differs from...
read moreHow To Read To Your Baby
Experts in both research and practice in the field of child development agree that reading aloud to babies is an important and helpful activity in which to participate. Many new parents set goals of reading to their babies, perhaps even before they are born. “I read aloud passages from Anne of Green Gables to my newborn daughter,” a mother recently told me. Another mom confessed to reading her master’s level textbooks aloud to her unborn child in order to expose her growing baby to the rhythm of language and the sound of her voice. These...
read moreWhat Teachers Know About Routines
Throughout the past two months I have had the privilege of guest teaching in nearly two dozen classrooms at five different schools. I enjoy interacting with the children, ranging in age from 3 to 12, and I constantly marvel at the amazing things they are learning and producing in class, led by their competent and well prepared teachers. Last week I noticed this poster prominently displayed in a Preschool classroom. I love the fact that teachers keep this sentiment in mind as they work day in and day out with children. Caring and effective...
read moreResponsive Interaction Between an Infant and Her Mother
This video recently appeared on my Facebook feed and I find it to be one of the most beautiful recordings of responsive interaction between an infant and her mother I have ever seen. I cannot understand the words the mother is speaking any more than I can decipher the meaning behind the baby’s utterances, yet it is obvious that they are participating in what has been labeled a “serve and return” interaction. Watching this video shows the viewer that communication can transcend language. What is important to note is that there is back and...
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