Dear StrongStart families,

The winter is here! Days are still short, but are thankfully getting longer. As adults, we are often looking forward to spring, but for a child there so much to experience and enjoy in any season. The best winter gift is of course snow, let us hope our children will be lucky to experience a bit more snow this year.

When you are outside with your child, take the time to notice and wonder together. Notice frost on the grass, bare trees, bristle leaves that stayed after wind blew away most of them, cherry blossom buds that came out a bit too early. Take time to feel the textures, experience cold, moisture, crunch, sliminess.

Talk about what you are noticing, but also ask your child: “I don’t see any birds, where do you think they are, I wonder?”; “Remember when we had snow… We built snowman and then it all melted away. Where did the snow go, what do you think?”

Of course, their stories or ideas might differ from reality.  Every culture or nation is full of wonderful myths which were created as early humans were trying to make sense of their world and answer the same puzzling questions: What is the thunder? Where does the sun go at night?  Where does the water from a puddle go on a sunny day? We enjoy them as stories now but they started as  scientific questions or what  we now call ” inquiry”.

When we allow children to express their thoughts and use their imagination and connect with what they already know, we’re allowing children to make sense about the world around them, think critically, and let their creativity and imagination blossom.

To start you on your wonderous journey…

CLICK HERE to join me in wondering and in reading “When Winter Comes” by Nancy Van Laan and Susan Gaber.

This wonderous book is published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

Stay warm and safe,

Ms. Lillian

Dear StrongStart friends,

Join in me in reading a book about dressing up for really, really cold winter day.

The book is called “Under My Hood I have a Hat”, written by Karla Kuskin and illustrated by Fumi Kosaka, published by Balzen and Bray. I will be also singing a silly and fun song ” I Dropped My Hat”.

CLICK HERE to watch the video.

Hope you are doing well and finding time to enjoy cold winter days in your backyards,  nature or in your neighbourhood parks. Please feel free to leave a comment/suggestion on the blog, (it will be visible just by me). You can also send me an e-mail or call if I could  support you in any way.

Ms. Lillian

Dear StrongStart parents,

Here is the info from our community partners about additional community support available to you.

• Information Children will continue to offer Parent Coaching services – via phone or Zoom. These sessions can be booked by emailing us at info@informationchildren.com. We are available for Parent Coaching: 9-4pm Mondays, and afternoons Tuesdays-Fridays.

Also, they are is offering an online New Parents Group in a six part series. Topics such as adjusting to your new baby, expectations, growth and infant development and self-care will be explored in the comfort of your own home via Zoom check out the attachment for more information or click the link below – New Parents Group – Fridays from Jan 15-Feb 19, 1:30-3pm https://www.informationchildren.com/event/new-parents-group/

They offer online Family Storytime suitable for ages 18 month to 5 years old. Here is  link to more info: Information Children Online Storytime Jan 2021 copy (1)

• Burnaby Family Life continues to offer an assortment of virtual parenting classes and of course, children’s programs, such as circle times, play to learn, and mother goose. Registration is required for all programs – check out the attachment for their winter calendar or the links provided – https://bflgrowscommunity.org/ and WINTER 2021 – Parenting and Family Resource Programs Calendar
• Burnaby Public Library has had a website makeover! With a new look and reorganization, everything is easier to navigate and find. Check it out – www.bpl.bc.ca
• Burnaby Neighbourhood House is still staying apart right now to keep each other safe, but there is still much fun to be had with all the virtual classes and programs offered! Please join BNH for many online Zoom programs for people of all ages.  For more information and to register: https://burnabynh.ca/virtual-programs/

Dear StrongStart friends,

I hope this post finds you healthy and well! Hope you had a nice holiday and that you made some joyful memories!

Wishing you all a healthy and safe, hopeful and joyous New Year!

Click here to watch a short video of me singing to cheer the New Year.

Here are the words if you want to sing it to someone else to wish them Happy New Year.

Please reach out if I could support you in any way. We will re-start face-to-face visits in our StrongStart on Monday, January 11th and our first StrongStart Zoom Storytime will be on Thursday, January 21st. I will send the link early next week.

Take care,

Ms. Lillian

Dear StrongStart friends,

I am hoping that you are finding ways to keep your hopes and spirits high in these stressful times. As always, in good times and bad times, in happy and stressful times, being with people you love makes for the best holidays no matter what you are celebrating!

As we are heading into Winter vacation (StrongStart’s last day is Tuesday, December 15th), I am wishing you a lots of happy, joyous times together, even if it means just being with your immediate family. Whether you are celebrating religious or secular holidays, Diwali (that was celebrated recently), Bodhi Day, Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, Christmas, New Years or Kwanzaa or any other holiday that is coming up, it is always about light, people close to our heart and love.

My wish is that we all find ways to make happy memories with our family, filled with light and love.

As some of you are counting the days ’till Christmas, CLICK HERE  to watch a video of me reading a book “Counting to Christmas” by Nancy Tafury, published by Scholastic. I will be also singing a song “There Was a Man in Big Red Suit” (to the tune of BINGO song).

Here is another book called “The Reindeer Christmas”, my favourite, that explains how Santa got to ride a magical sleigh pulled by reindeers and deliver many presents around the world. It is written by Moe Price, illustrated by Atsuko Morozumi and published by HMH Books for Young Readers. CLICK HERE to watch the video.

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas and best wishes for a STRONGSTART in a New Year, and a healthy and happy 2021 year! Hope to see some of you in person next year or during our Zoom storytimes.

Much love,

Ms. Lillian

Many families celebrate traditions during the winter months – Diwali just passed, Bodhi Day, Hanukkah,Winter Solstice, Christmas, Kwanzaa, New Year’s (secular) and many other celebrations are to come. Because of Covid, this year has been a significant year of ambiguous grief and loss: loss of freedom, time with family, of financial security, jobs and loss of loved ones, to name a few. It is no doubt that how we previously celebrated our beloved holiday traditions are going to look and feel differently this year as the pandemic lingers on.

Firstly, it is totally okay to feel that it’s not fair we can’t celebrate like we did last year, with parties and family gatherings – it isn’t fair. But we also recognize the importance of keeping our loved ones healthy and safe. We can expect that staying in for the holidays without the neighbours, the in-laws and the funny uncle will feel different, because it is. The family traditions we hold dear and celebrate are like long terms routines – and routines help us feel settled, we know what to expect and look forward to them in anticipation.

This year our family traditions, or routines, are hardly anything we were expecting – and that can cause uneasy feelings. Not knowing what to expect can feel scary. But luckily there are two sides to this
unexpected coin. When we don’t have a set routine to fall back on, we are nudged to flex our creative muscles! Not having a set holiday script opens up opportunity to create special new traditions for this time of year. And it may be surprising that by refreshing old traditions, new found appreciations for the holiday season pop up.

There are lots of festive ideas on how to spend this winter holiday while easily following the BC’s health minister’s guidelines – here are a few ideas to get your creative juices flowing:

• Bake your favourite treats while singing along to your favourite music. Ask others to join virtually and have a bake off!
• Dust off those board games and play a few.
• Have a house hold clean-out – donate old toys, clothing, kitchen gadgets to your local shelter.
• Reflect back as a family on the events you are grateful for, write them down, put them in a gratitude jar and read them out loud on a holiday you celebrate over the winter.

For more ideas like this and more, check out The Parenting Place blog.

No matter how you plan to safely spend the winter break, this year will most definitely be a memorable one. Happy Holidays!

Anita Olson works for Family Services of Greater Vancouver as Burnaby’s Early Childhood Community Consultant. Anita shares information, strategies and practical tools with parents through this free program. Focusing on the parent/caregiver and child relationship, Anita’s work with families aims to create and preserve loving connection and curiosity. Anita holds a current ECE licence, BA and MEd from Simon Fraser University. Contact Anita at aolson@fsgv.ca or (604)-723-9548. 

This was a guest post by our community partner Anita who you remember from her monthly visits to our StrongStart centre. Please do not hesitate to call her for support. Ms. Lillian

Music illuminates and enriches our lives and the same is true for children. Children love listening to all sorts of music, they like dancing to different rhythms and in different tempo, playing instruments, real or home-made, and singing familiar songs over and over again.

Music helps us express our emotions and maintain emotional balance, and in turns calms our brain (lullabies and calming songs) and keeps us upbeat. It brings joy and delight to children’s everyday life and aids creativity and imagination too. Music can help ease transitions, children respond much better to directions in songs and chants (that is why clean-up songs or goodbye songs work so well). An active toddler will likely follow parents and be willing  to “cooperate” and join a parent to move from one place to the other if playfully engaged in a song or a march, like the one we use in our Centre: Let’s go marching, 1, 2, 3, Let’s go walking you and me!

What about learning? How does music help your child’s development?

You will be glad to know that you are already doing many things to support child’s development in all the areas. Simple songs sung in your home language or English, nursery rhymes sometimes passed  from generation to generation, playing instruments, and dancing all help the physical, social-emotional and intellectual development in ways too numerous to mention here.

So during this upcoming winter holiday, enjoy the sound of music!

CLICK HERE to watch the video of me reading Usbourne Little Children’s Music Book by Fiona Watt and enjoy a little music concert.

Here are some simple ways to add a rhythmic instrument to your child’s life. In our StrongStart centre we often use wooden rhythm sticks. At home you can use two wooden cooking spoons, or metallic spoons, a pair of chopsticks, two sticks found in nature or even two flat rocks.

CLICK HERE to watch me read another fun, rhyming book  called “Animal Music” by Julia Donaldson and Nick Sharratt, published by MacMillan Children’s Books.  You can also hear me”play” the rocks while singing “When You’re One” song.

You can also make some shakers with your child from everyday objects: empty plastic containers, recycled empty fruit cups or even empty and thoroughly washed hair dying bottles (I got many donated by a SSC family long time ago, and I still use them). You can put beans, rice, bird seeds (for a softer sound), beads or whatever else you have handy inside. Secure them with some tape, I prefer several rounds of black electrical tape but you can use masking tape or even scotch tape. If you wish, you can put some stickers or decorate however  your child likes it.  And you can sing: We gonna shake shake, our sillies out… jump our jiggles out etc. shaking your shakers.

If you want to enjoy fun physical activity with music here is a link to Decoda’s HOP_Freeze_dance. 

Have fun playing, listening and enjoying music together.

Ms Lillian

Young children need to move and challenge their bodies everyday for several hours. Jumping games can offer your little one a lot of physical fun and they are pretty easy to set up – both inside and outside.

• Tape jump – all you need is a roll of masking tape, some open space and some jumpers. Tape a starting line, this is where the kiddos will jump from. You will tape a line to where your kiddo jumps to. Super simple, super fun.  
•  Sidewalk Chalk Jumps – draw different shapes (keep them fairly close to one another for the new jumpers and short legs) on a patch of pavement – take turns calling out to each other what shape to jump to next.  

If you’d like more jumping game activities, check out therealisticmama.com for more.

This was included in the newsletter our Early Childhood Community Consultant Anita regularly sends to families. If you are interested in being on her e-mail list, please e-mail Anita Olson at aolson@fsgv.ca  or phone her at 604-723-9548.

Here are some additional ideas from me.

• You can also use a skipping rope on the ground, moving it around and pretending that is a snake. Wiggle it slow at first and then faster, turning it into silly game. Invite your child to jump over it. If he/she lands on the rope , you can laugh about it: ” Oh, you landed on a snake, funny, snake must be tickled, let’s try again!”
• Use chalk to draw an old fashioned hopscotch, write numbers from 1 to 8 and get your child to jump from 1 to 2 and so on. The older children will learn the number sequence that way, let younger simply jump from one square to the other as they like. This is the game that is popular all over the world. You can do it indoors, use some masking tape to make the hopscotch.

• Have so much fun together pretending to jump like different animals: a frog, rabbit, dog etc.
• Sing and act out the “Jumping, Jumping, Jump!” song we sing during our active circle at the gym.

Jumping, jumping, JUMP!

Join me in reading one of my favourite books about dinosaurs. It is called “Dinosaur Roar!”, written and illustrated by Paul and Henrietta Stickland, published by Scholastics Inc.

CLICK HERE to watch the video.

Here is a fun and “pre-historic” song about dinosaurs. Hope you will enjoy it! CLICK HERE to watch a video.

Dinousaur ROAR!

We are in the rainy season again. As adults, we sometimes view rain as a nuisance, something that has to be endured to get to those clear and sunny days.  Many times I find myself saying: when will this rain finally stop?

For children rain brings joy and puddles.  When you watch a child playing in a puddle you know how delightful that is. Making mud pies and digging in the wet dirt is one of many opportunities when children are learning in nature, immersed in the experience, focused fully and having fun.

CLICK HERE to hear me sing two of our favourite rain songs.

I invite you to also explore nature in the rain. If you dress warmly with boots, coats and hoods (and bring umbrella if you wish), you can happily enjoy the sounds and sensations of the rain. There are many of them: slow, soft sprinkle, pitter-patter of dripping, dropping rain drops from trees, roaring of the pouring rain pounding the ground and tree trunks, quietude in nature after the rain stops.

CLICK HERE to watch a video about Mushrooms in the Rain.

Hope you can  join us for one of our StrongStart outdoor nature explorations on Fridays (by registrations only, no drop-ins please). They will happen rain or shine!

Here is a book called “ Are You Ready to Play Outside? “ with our favourite characters Piggy and Gerald.  It is written and illustrated by Mo Willems, published by Hyperion Books for Children. CLICK HERE to watch the video.

Are you ready to play outside? I am!

Here’s a list of 50 simple ideas  for outdoor rain play from www.mothernatured.com to engage you children with the wet weather.

Ms. Lillian