Posted on May 22, 2018 at 6:00 am
By Abra Cole In the last month, my garden has gone from looking like the dark side of the moon after the zombie apocalypse to a lush green jungle of happiness. Many plants I forgot I had planted last fall have popped up to greet the sun. I already know that I want to plant […]
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Tags: books, butterflies, butterfly, butterfly garden, early learning, fairies, fairy, fairy garden, family, gardening, grandparents, hobbies, kids, mud, mud kitchen, outdoor play, outdoors, parents, play, science, teens, young learners
Posted on May 8, 2018 at 6:00 am
By Rachel Edmondson I want to start this post with a promise and a disclaimer. First, I promise I am not going to tell you to never ever let your kids watch TV, play a video game, or use a tablet. Second, I’m also not going to give you concrete answers on how you should […]
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Tags: 3 Cs of media use, babies, baby, Child, Content, Context, early learning, education, educational, entertainment, family, kids, media, media use, parenting, parents, preschooler, preschoolers, screen time, tablet, toddler, toddlers, tv, video game, young learners
Posted on April 3, 2018 at 6:00 am
By Sheri Boggs If the media is telling us anything these days, it’s that consent continues to be a hot-button topic. With new allegations of sexual harassment in politics, entertainment, and the arts hitting the news almost daily and the ongoing issue of date rape on college campuses, it seems more important than ever to […]
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Posted on February 20, 2018 at 6:00 am
By Rachel Edmondson If your family is like mine, then February is peak cabin fever season. While we still bundle up and go outside occasionally, we don’t last long when the weather is so chilly. This leaves a lot of time spent inside trying to keep ourselves entertained. While we love reading books, watching movies, […]
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Tags: activities, baking, blanket fort, cabin fever, cookbooks, cooking, crafts, dance, decorate eggs, family, flashlight tag, food, hobbies, hoopla, indoor, indoor fort, kids, library, movies, music, parents, recycling, STEM, tag, teens, tweens, upcycling, young learners
Posted on January 2, 2018 at 6:00 am
By Sheri Boggs Winter is just not my thing. I’m too clumsy to ski. It’s too cold to enjoy being outside. And I get too dispirited by the short days to remember to take my vitamin D. I pretty much just grit my teeth, put on my stupid tights (and gloves, and boots, and hat, […]
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Tags: book list, booklists, books, family, kids, parents, picture books, reading, winter, young learners
Posted on December 12, 2017 at 6:00 am
By Rachel Edmondson The holiday season is often fraught with emotions. Many adults find themselves stressed, excited, joyous, and sad—sometimes all in the same day! It’s helpful to remember that the children in our lives are often dealing with the same strong emotions. While having a vacation from school, receiving gifts, attending celebrations […]
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Tags: booklists, books, children, children's books, early learners, early learning, early literacy, emotional, emotions, family, feelings, health, holiday season, holidays, kids, parents, picture books, preschoolers, reading, social-emotional, social-emotional skills, social-emotional tools, toddlers, young learners
Posted on October 31, 2017 at 6:00 am
By Gwendolyn Haley I hear my grandfather’s voice when I read The Tale of Peter Rabbit. He did not read to me regularly. We lived very far away from him and only saw those grandparents once or twice a year. But when he read that story to me, it was magical. I have read the […]
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Tags: authors, Beverly Cleary, books, Charlotte's Web, children's books, E. B. White, family, kids, Ludwig Bemelmans, parents, Peter Rabit, Ramona, reading, reading together, young learners
Posted on June 20, 2017 at 6:00 am
By Mary Ellen Braks This article is second in a 2-part series. The first article is 7 stages of block play: Building and early learning. As a librarian my go-to choice for baby gifts has always been books. The more books you have around your house and the more you read to children, the more likely it is […]
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Tags: block play, blocks, Build a Better World, building, development, early learning, emotional, Hands-on Building, KEVA blocks, literacy, mash-ups, math, physical, Pre-K, pre-kindergarten, preschool, social, storytime, storytime mash-ups
Posted on June 16, 2017 at 6:00 am
By Mary Ellen Braks Blocks! Kids love them and parents love them. Most preschool classrooms and child care centers have blocks. Building programs seem to be everywhere. In fact, we’re having a week full of block and building activities at our storytimes this summer. You may be thinking, “Great! But why!?” My answer would be […]
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Tags: block play, blocks, building, early learning, KEVA blocks, mash-ups, Pre-K, pre-kindergarten, preschool, storytime, storytime mash-ups
Posted on June 6, 2017 at 6:00 am
By Rachel Edmondson My family loves to go to farmers’ markets. We love fresh, local produce, and we find it’s even more appealing when you are face to face with the people who grew it. Of course, farmers’ markets have a lot more than just produce—artisan foods, fresh meat, crafts, and brews—something for everyone. Last […]
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Tags: Catholic Charities, Catholic Charities Food For All, eating right, educational, exercise, farmers market, healthy choices, KERNEL, kids, nutrition, parents
