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Developmental Writing Deep Dive Part 1: Pencil Grip
Developmental Writing Deep Dive Part 1: Pencil Grip As an early childhood educator, I am responsible for a lot of firsts. One of the firsts I love teaching the MOST is writing. It is such a magical journey that opens up a whole world for children to explore. But writing doesnā€™t just happen. There are many steps that must be taught explicitly, in a developmentally sequenced order, with research-backed and child-centered strategies in order to help a child become a fluent writer. And lucky for you, I have spent the... Read more...
Developmental Writing Deep Dive Part 2: Writing Pathways
Developmental Writing Deep Dive Part 2: Writing Pathways Oftentimes when we think of handwriting instruction we think of grabbing a workbook and starting on page one. Page one usually is Aa. But that is actually not where to start when teaching kids to write their letters and numbers. In fact, you donā€™t even need those workbooks for quite a while, you arenā€™t even going to start with letters or numbers. So then, where do we start? Let me tell you.Ā  Prewriting PathwaysĀ  Before your child picks up their pencil, they... Read more...
Developmental Writing Deep Dive: Part 3 Handwriting Pathways
Developmental Writing Deep Dive: Part 3 Handwriting Pathways Youā€™ve read Part 1: Pencil Grip, youā€™ve tackled Part 2: Developmental Writing Pathways, so now your learner is ready to start writing their letters! But where do you start? Is it with the first page of a preschool writing workbook with the letters Aa? What if I told you itā€™s notā€¦ Handwriting, just like all skills, is not something you can just jump in and start doing. You have to lay a foundation of skills, practice those skills, then try the big... Read more...
FAQ: Daily Schedule
FAQ: Daily Schedule One of the MOST frequently asked questions I get, almost daily, is ā€œwhat is your daily scheduleā€? Laying out a schedule is a few things:Ā  Unique to your group size Unique to your group needs Unique to your group age Unique to the length of your school day Unique to how many days of school you do per week Unique to your preferences While all these factors come into play, I also know that sometimes just having a guide to start with when creating the schedule that... Read more...
Snip, Snip: Mastering Scissor Skills
Youā€™ve all requested it, and now I finally have a space to share it in detail. I want to talk about an essential milestone in a child's life: learning to use scissors. It may seem like a simple skill, but it actually involves a complex developmental journey for children starting somewhere around 18 months and continuing through kindergarten. So, let's dive in and explore the stages and some handy tips to help your learners master scissor skills. Exploring Scissors (18-24 months*) At this age, introduce child-safe scissors with blunt or... Read more...
A Teacherā€™s Guide to the BEST Decodable Readers
FAQ: My child knows all their sounds and is starting to sound out words. What books should I get for them to start learning to read?Ā  My Answer: Decodable Readers!Ā  Not all beginning reader books are created equally. In fact, many ā€œbeginning readerā€ books are marketed as such, but they really arenā€™t for beginners. When a child is first learning to read they need to practice the skills they have, and be successful at practicing them, so they will feel that sense of accomplishment and will want to return to... Read more...
Top 10 Classroom Teaching Supplies
Top 10 Classroom Teaching Supplies School supply lists can get long. Pencils, crayons, glue, markers, the list goes on. But what are truly the unsung heroes in the early childhood classroom? Here are my top 10 favorite teaching tools that may or may not be on the traditional school supply list, but are used daily just like those pencils!Ā  Unifix Cubes- These cubes are used for EVERYTHING in my classroom. We use them to represent and manipulate sounds in words during phonological awareness and phonicsĀ  practice. We use them to... Read more...