How are you today?

I would like to start of with a message from Lisa Olivera:

Yes, we all are trying to sort out our emotions and find balance in these uncertain times. Remember to be kind and gentle to yourself and your loved ones. It will serve as positive model for your children.

You (the parents) are your child’s best teacher.

They observe you and want to grow up to be just like you. They are lucky to have you in their lives. You have lots to share with them.

And if times come that you are at lost, what else you can play and do with your children, I’m here to help.
My intention is, that every week I’ll share with you activities that cover the five Basics that will help your child to grow into a happy, capable and well-balanced child.

Here are some ideas for this week. Feel free to pick and choose the ones that inspires you. Don’t forget to listen to the singing with teacher Maria and to The Colour Monster story. (look for the blue links)

If you have any questions or suggestions, please leave a comment (it won’t be posted, will come directly to me) or you can e-mail me at maria.kerekes@burnabyschools.ca

Have you noticed the translate tab at the bottom of the page? It will translate the whole text to the language of your choice.

1. Maximize love, Manage stress	Young children pick up on stress, which means mom and dad must take care of themselves, too. It’s also not possible to over love or be too affectionate with your young children. Research shows feeling safe can have a lasting positive influence on development.
2. Talk, sing and point	When we point at something, that helps young children to start to associate words with objects or feelings. Let’s talk and sing about feelings today with teacher Maria here. (click on the highlighted words to see the video)
3. Read and discuss stories	It’s never to early to start reading out aloud. Children benefit enormously from discussing the story. Asking questions will allow parents to see what children understood and help children express their thoughts and make connections to their own life experiences. Let’s listen to The Colour Monster story.
4. Explore through movement and play	• Go for a scavenger hunt around the house to see how many small household/ recycled items you can find for each colour: Yellow, blue, red, black, green and pink. Keep your collection for a later numeracy activity. Items should be able to fit in a jar or container. • Nature walk: Fresh air every day can calm, balance our moods and refresh the mind. When on your daily walk look for how many yellow, blue, red, black, green and pink coloured nature elements you can find. Here is a picture of what we saw with my kids. • Do you have paint at home? If not, try mixing flour with red food colouring. You can paint the beautiful cherry blossoms with fingerprint or a juice bottle.
5. Count, group and compare	Children love sorting, grouping and counting. When you ask them questions it helps them think deeper and extends their attention spam (how long they stay with one activity). • Do you remember how many feelings did Colour Monster had? If not, let’s listen to the story again. • Find your colourful collection and sort them into separate jars/containers just like Colour Monster did. Do you remember which colour represented calm, happy, sad? How many red objects have you found? Can you count them? Put them in pairs? Group them by five? • Can you think of a patter you can create with your colourful collection? Ex. Yellow, blue, red, yellow, blue… What comes next? My son chose to create a rainbow.