Early Birds Caregiver Guide by Sunbeam Family Services: Early Birds

Caregiver Guide

All families need support, tools and connection to others to thrive. Smart Start is a nonprofit organization that engages and supports Oklahoma families as they create the life they want for themselves, their family and our community. Smart Start engages families and community partners to make sure families, schools and nonprofit partners have access to what they need and can connect to one another in meaningfulways.

Firstthingsfirst…

You

Located in Oklahoma City, The Harbison Early Education & Kiwanis Community Center is our hub for community engagement. In partnership with Mark Twain Elementary located next door, the center provides a birth to school continuum for the area. The Harbison Center provides a central space for learning and family activities such as STEAM family nights, art activities, health sessions and additional parent/caregiver supportprograms.Offeringsevolvewithcommunityneedsandpartnerengagement.

Smart

What is Smart Start? so pleased you have found Start's Caregiver Guide! will find lots of information here that can help you as your child’s first and influential teacher. You will alsofindmanycommunityresourcesthatareavailabletosupportfamilies. are using this guide as a standalone resource you choose to with Start’s additional program offerings, are glad you are here!

Whether you

Smart

Welcome to Your Caregiver Guide!

participate

Smart Start partners with parentPRO, a free statewide service that connects families with young children to parenting programs that take place in the family home. These programs link families with professionals to help reduce stress, build skills, provide information and connect to resources. Smart Start also partners with Bright By Text, a national texting program for caregivers of children prenatal to eight. Texts are sent directly to participating parents and caregivers so that they have tips, activities, development information, and information about local resources at their fingertips. In addition to the community resources found here, Smart Start maintains an online guidetocommunityresourcesforfamiliesthatyoucanfindhere.

Explore - Hands on opportunities to grow with learning materials

Coming Soon: Smart Start is exploring additional tools to help ease navigation and accessofeducationalresources.

Accessadditionalresourcesthroughthelivebinderresource. Learnmoreabouthomevisitingprogramshere. SignupforBrightbyTexthere.

Empower - Deepen your connection with yourself, others, and nurture your ability to help your family thrive. Attend multiple Early Birds classes/the Early Birds series of classes and get multipleEarlyBirdsSTEAMkitstousewiththechildreninyourcare.Signuphere. Attend multiple Harbison/Kiwanis community and program events. Contact Rufus Howardhereformore. Completeahomevisitationprogram.ContactRufusHowardhereformore.

Use this caregiver guide to access tips, new ideas to help your child learn and accesscommunityresources.

ComingSoon: PurchaseEarlyBirdsSTEAMkit(s)tousewiththechildreninyourcare.

Attend an in person or virtual Early Birds class with informed, passionate instructors who join your caregiving journey and help you grow with the materials; connect to other caregivers for a network of support; receive an Early BirdsSTEAMkittousewiththechildreninyourcare.Signuphere. Attend a Harbison/Kiwanis community and program event. Contact Rufus Howard hereformore. Enrollinahomevisitationprogram.ContactRufusHowardhereformore.

How can I participate with Smart Start?

ComingSoon:Askthecommunity:youhelpusidentifypressingneedsforfamiliesand determinefutureprogramofferings.

99%learnedtotakeadvantageofroutinesandeverydaylearningopportunities 99%betterunderstandhowimportanttheirjobasaparent/caregiveris

94%feelbetterconnectedtocaregiverswithchildrentheirchild’sage 98%wouldrecommendEarlyBirdstoafriend

Early Birds is Smart Start’s signature education resource program for adult caregivers with children from prenatal through 5 years old. Early Birds is designed to boost school readiness skillsforchildrenandsuccessforfamilies.

What is Early Birds?

EarlyBirds: All parents and caregivers of children under 5 in Oklahoma are eligible to participate. You receive one STEAM kit per child with each class. Each class has a different STEAM kit to complement the curriculum and place quality learning materials into your home. Thanks to ourgenerousdonorsandpartners,EarlyBirdsisofferedatnochargetofamilies. We love for families to start with our prenatal class while they are expecting, and then completetherestoftheseriesofclasses.Youcanalsojoinalongthewaybasedontheageof yourchild.ClickheretosignupforyourfirstornextEarlyBirdsclass. SmartStartlovestoreceivefeedbackfromEarlyBirdsfamilies.Recentfeedback:

From an Early Birds caregiver: “Thank you. Parenting feels like a lonely job. You are so informative, useful, and very supportive. Parenting can make me feel overwhelmed and like I’m failing my children. You break down the lessons so it’s doable. I can count on you wheneverIneedadviceandguidance.”

99%feltsupportedasacaregiver

Offers a prenatal class and classes for adult caregivers of children from birth 1, 1 2, 2 3, 3 4, and 4 5 years olds; a series of 16 classes is available. After the prenatal class, you can attendaclassforeachchildinyourcarethreetimesperyear.

Covers developmental milestones, parent/child activities, everyday learning, purposeful parenting and discipline, and family health and wellness. Hands on classes include discussionwithothersaboutthesuccessesandchallengesofcaringforyoungchildren. IsavailableinEnglishandSpanish. Isofferedinpersonandvirtually. Includes training and a Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math (STEAM) kit filled with activities, quality educational toys, and books to stimulate your child's developmentandlearning.

99%learnednewwaystousetoys/bookstohelptheirchildlearn 99%arebetterpreparedtosupporttheirchild

97%learnedageappropriatedisciplinetechniques

Providessupportforyouasaparentorcaregiverofayoungchild. Focuses on family strengths and recognizes the importance of your role as your child’s firstandinfluentialteacher.

Want to Know More? Want to support more families with Smart Start? Website: smartstartcentraloklahoma.org Stay connected and follow us on Social Media! For Early Birds or Bright by Text, contact Courtney Flores-Young or Carolina Martinez atcflores@smartstartokc.orgorcmartinez@smartstartokc.org. For The Harbison Early Education & Kiwanis Community Center or parentPro, contact RufusHowardatrhoward@smartstartokc.org. Your messages are important to us. Please be patient, we will respond as soon as possible. In the meantime, happy exploring, and thank you for joining us as you grow asacaregiver. Donateheretoday!ThankyouforyourinvestmentinOklahomafamilies! Have an organization in mind that we need to partner with? Contact Rufus Howard heretoletusknow.. 5

Welcome! WhatisSmartStart&EarlyBirds TableofContents EarlyBirdsSponsors&Partners WhyEarlyBirds 2 6 14 17 Inside This Guide PrenatalClassMaterials 0-1ClassMaterials 1-2ClassMaterials 2-3ClassMaterials 3-4ClassMaterials 4-5ClassMaterials 18 28 38 48 59 68 Early Birds Class Materials 6

Reading Tips SharingStoriesWithYour YoungChild FortheLoveofReading ReadingResources 79 81 83 0-1 Reading Activities SharingStoriesWithyour0-1 YearOld BearinaSquare Clifford'sOppositesBook FromHeadtoToe 85 86 87 88 1-2 Reading Activities SharingStoriesWithYour1 2 YearOld FirstWordBookontheFarm HelloFarm MyDay TheFeelingsBook 90 91 92 93 94 2-3 Reading Activities SharingStoriesWithYour2-3 YearOld TenBlackDots MyVeryFirstBookofNumbers BrownBear,BrownBear,What doyousee? LittleMouse&theRipe,Red, Strawberry INeedaHug 96 97 98 99 100 101 7 Inside This Guide

3-4 Reading Activities SharingStoriesWithYour3 4 YearOld BigDog,LittleDog IsYourMamaaLlama TheVeryHungryCaterpillar 103 104 105 106 4-5 Reading Activities SharingStoriesWithYour4-5 YearOld Corduroy WhistleforWillie IfyouTakea MousetoSchool 108 109 110 111 Reading Tips Cont. 8 Inside This Guide

Learning Activities PlayEveryday MathintheHouse 113 114 Everyday Learning Activities LearningatHome LearningonaWalk LearningontheRoad LearningattheStore LearningattheTable LearningatBedTime LearningatBathTime 116 119 120 121 122 124 125 1-2 Learning Activities SoftBlockFarm PegPuzzles StackandRoll Doctor'sKit ToddlerWriting Blocks&Pegs Ball&Chalk 141 143 145 148 149 150 153 0-1 Learning Activities BabyBlocks StackingRings NestingCups ShapeSorter LinkingBlocks BallPlay 127 129 131 134 136 139 Inside This Guide 9

Inside This Guide 2-3 Learning Activities ABCBlocks Shakers Row,Row,RowYourBoat GeometricStackers Playdough JigsawPuzzle MemoryGame Ball&Chalk 156 160 162 164 167 169 171 174 3-4 Learning Activities RhymingGame StringingBeads Twinkle,Twinkle,LittleStar TinkerToys Playdough 177 180 182 184 187 BalancingBears PlayMoney DryEraseBoard&Magnetic Letters 190 193 195 3-4 Learning Activities Cont. 4-5 Learning Activities EarlyBirdsWords DeckofCards PatternBlocks TracingShapes BuildingBricks ItsyBitsySpider UnifixCubes DiceGames BallandChalk 199 204 207 210 212 214 216 219 221 Songs & Finger Plays Songs&FingerPlays 223 Learning Activities Cont. 10

Inside This Guide Indicators SchoolReadinessIndicators OklahomaSchoolReadiness Indicators 232 233 0-1 Years BabyBlocks StackingRings NestingCups ShapeSorter LinkingBlocks 235 235 236 236 237 1-2 Years SoftBlockFarm PegPuzzle MegaStackers Doctor’sKit BlocksandPegs 237 238 238 239 239 2-3 Years ABCBlocks Shakers GeometricStacker Playdough JigsawPuzzle Memory 240 241 241 242 242 243 3-4 Years StringingBeads RhymingGame ConstructionSet BalancingBears Dryeraseboardwithmagnet letters PlayMoney 243 244 245 246 246 247 11

Inside This Guide 4-5 Years EarlyBirdsWords DeckofCards TracingShapes EarlyBirdsGame BuildingBricks PatternBlocks Cubes DiceGames 247 248 248 249 249 250 251 252 0-5 Years Balls(withChalk) SharingBookswithYourChild Writing SongSheets 252 253 254 254 Resources PostpartumDepression FeedingyourBaby ChildhoodSleepGuidelines SafeSleepGuidelines MyFriends&Feelings SettingLimitswith Preschoolers HealthySafe&Strong HealthyYou MindfulnessPractices TextForBaby BrightByText EnrollforyourNextEarlyBirds Class 256 254 261 262 264 266 268 273 274 283 284 285 Indicators cont. 12

Resources cont. Community Resources StatewideResources CentralOklahomaResources NorthwestOklahomaResources SouthwestOklahoma Resources NortheastOklahomaResources SouthCentralOklahoma Resources SoutheastOklahomaResou 286 287 290 291 304 308 Inside This Guide 13

Sustainability Circle $100,000+ 14 Community Circle $50,000-$99,999 Vision Circle $25,000-$49,999 Family Strength Circle $10,000-$24,999 American Fidelity Foundation Cresap Family Foundation Communities Foundation of Oklahoma Love Meyer Family Foundation Potts Family Foundation Sarkeys Foundation Thank you to our July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022 Donors!

Thank you to our July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022 Donors! Innovation Circle $5,000-$9,999 15 Child Success Circle $1,000-$4,999 Greater Oklahoma City Chamber Howard Family Charitable Foundation, Inc. Oklahoma City Thunder Harris Foundation Lisa & Albert Lang Jean & David McLaughlin Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores Wegener Foundation Macay Brummal The Chickasaw Nation Sandy & Art Cotton First National Bank of Oklahoma Fred Jones Family Foundation Trisha Goga Jean & Bob Harbison Sue Hood Meinders Foundation Lacey & Josh Miller Oklahoma Partnership for School Readiness Caroline & Guy Patton Bank of Oklahoma Believe in Reading Blue Cross Blue Shield of Oklahoma Reagan Bratcher Steve Potts George Records Helen & Kenneth Smith Westminster School

Thank you to our Partners! 16 Community Action Agency of Oklahoma/ Canadian Counties Community Development Support Agency-Enid Community Health Centers of Oklahoma –Healthy Start Edmond Public Schools Enid Public Schools Hennessey Public Schools Ketchum Public Schools Lilyfield Metropolitan Library System NewView Oklahoma Oklahoma Department of Human Serviceskith.care Oklahoma State Department of Health Pioneer Library System ReMerge Resilient Payne County Stillwater Public Schools Sunbeam Family Services

Why Early Birds?

Caring for a young child is the most important job, and you are the most important part of your child’s life! We know you want the best for your child, and we do too. That is why we have developed Early Birds, a Smart Start program designed just for parents and caregivers. Early Birds arms you with information, activities, and materials to use while you play with your young child. Understanding how children develop will allow you to know what to expect and how to help your child develop and be successful. Early Birds will support you as you give your child the Smart Start they need and deserve. Children develop specific skills during the first five years of life that prepare them for reading success. Sadly, many children enter school without these skills, which makes school much more difficult.

Smart Start partners with others in the community to strengthen families, by creating or expanding health and early learning opportunities for young children and their families.WeworktomakeOklahomaanurturing and supportive community for all families so that our young children will be safe, healthy, eager to learn, and ready to succeed when they enterschool Smart Start

Prenatal TAB 4–5 Years TAB

3–4 Years TABOur future is brightest when Oklahoma’s children are thriving Smart Start knows the first five years in a child’s life are crucial to theirfuturesuccessinschoolandlife.Itisvital that children have opportunities for positive early learning experiences and safe, nurturing relationships that support their growth and development. Each young child deserves a smartstart!

In Oklahoma, 38% of kindergarten through 3rd graders receive reading remediation. When you complete each Early Birds class, you will know how to play so that your child will learn and develop skills that will give them future success in school and life. Your child is learning all day through play and everyday experiences. You are helping them make the most of each moment. We will encourage you to take advantage of daily routines to promote development. Feeding, diaper changing, car rides, and bath time offer rich opportunities to have fun, connect with one another, and help your child figure out how the world works. Caring for young children is the most important job in the world! Thank you for making every moment with your little one count.

EARLY BIRDS PRENATAL CLASS MATERIALS 18 Caring for a young child is the most important job. You are the most important part of your child’s life! You are the one who will give your child a Smart Start.

Reading Singing DAILY shared reading is the single most important activity you can do for your child’s futurereadingsuccess! Rereadbooksyourchildisfamiliarwith. Look over your Reading Tips for helpful hints aboutreadingwithyourchild. 19 Singing is another great way for your child to learnlanguage. Singalong&dancewithyourchild! Incorporatesingingintoyourdailyroutine. Refer to the Songs & Finger Plays section to find songstosharewithyourchild.

Whatkindofperson doyouwantyourbaby tobecome? Whatqualities contributetoa person’ssuccess? Whyarethesequalities important? Goals for our Children 20

Youknowwhatyou wantforyourchild. Youcanmakedecisions thathelpthemdevelop theseskillsand characteristics. Pickaqualityand discussparent behaviorsthatwillhelp makethishappen. Modelwanted behaviorsfor yourchild.

Raising Sucessful Children 21

Supporting You As a Parent Childrenarebornlearning.What doesthismeantoyou? Use“teachablemoments.”How couldyouteachyourbabywhile changingtheirdiaper? Talkwithyourchildevenbefore theycantalk. Morethanjustreadingandmath skills,learningisabout relationshipsandconnections withotherstoo.Howcanyou buildtrustwithyourbaby? Remembertoread,talk,sing, play,andholdeachday 22

Whatcanyoudonowto takecareofyourunborn baby? Findorganizationsthat offersupportand resourcesinthe CommunityResources sectionofyourCaregiver Guide. Healthy Pregnancy 23

Whatdoyoudoina typicalday? Whatwillneedto changeaboutyour daywhenyouhave anewbaby? Practicesafesleep. Preparing for Baby 24

Takecareofyourselfinorderto providethebestcareforyourbaby. Askforhelpandacceptit. ChecktheCommunityResources sectionforinformationabout wheretogethelp. Howdoyoufindsupportnow? Whoprovidesyouwith youneed? PracticeMindfulness. AfterTheBabyComes: Postpartum Healthy You 25

Nesting Cups Planning For a Smart Start Prenatal Worksheet What are you looking forward to about being a parent? Goals for Our Children Please list 5 qualities you want to help your child develop. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Planning For a Smart Start What are you going to do to raise a child that is ? (Fill in the blank with one of the 5 qualities you listed) Supporting you as a parent Children are born learning. How could you teach your baby while you are changing her diaper? How do you build trust with your baby? 26

Nesting Cups Healthy Pregnancy Prenatal Worksheet y s? Preparing For Baby Describe a typical day: 27

EARLY BIRDS 0 – 1 YEARS CLASS MATERIALS Caring for a young child is the most important job. You are the most important part of your child’s life! You are the one who will give your child a Smart Start. 28

Lift my head and chest while lying onmystomach Touch,pull,tugmyhandsandsuck myfingers Takeswipesatdanglingobjects Graspandshaketoys Followmovingobjects Roll both front to back and back tofront Reach, grasp and put objects in mouth Transfer objects from hand to hand Sitwithnosupport Standwithnosupport Crawlwell Pickupthingswiththumbandone finger Claphands Wavebye-bye Feedselffingerfoods Putobjectsintocontainer MY BODY By 6 months, By 12 months, 25 0 1 year I can… By 3 months, Your Child's Development 0-1 Year 29

Prefer mom or regular caregiver over others Am shy around strangers I can… By 3 months, By 6 months, By 12 months,

26 30 MY FEELINGS & FRIENDSHIPS

MY LANGUAGE & LEARNING I can… By

Enjoy

Look

Smile at self in mirror Respond to “no” Show affection to familiar adults Cry when caretaker leaves Show preference for certain people and toys May be fearful in some situations

Enjoy playing with other people and cry when playing stops Express myself with my face and body Begin to smile Play peek a boo Laugh out loud Imitate facial expressions

Try to imitate scribbling Say first words Use exclamations, like “uh oh!” looking at picture books at the correct object when named Explore objects by banging, throwing, shaking and dropping 6 months, 12 months, 3 months,

0–1 year Respond to speech by looking at you Turn my head toward direction of sound Begin to imitate some sounds Repeat some vowel and consonant sounds Babble chains of sounds Find partially hidden objects Struggles to get objects that are out of reach

Don’t respond to loud noises Cross my eyes most of the time Don’t crawl Drag one side of my body while crawling Cannot stand when supported Do not search for objects that are hidden while I watch Do not use gestures like waving or shaking my head Do not point to objects or pictures Seem very stiff or very floppy Experience a dramatic loss of skills I once had LET MY DOCTOR KNOW if I… 26 0–1 year 31

Reading Singing DAILY shared reading is the single most important activity you can do for your child’s futurereadingsuccess! Rereadbooksyourchildisfamiliarwith. Look over your Reading Tips for helpful hints aboutreadingwithyourchild. 32 Singing is another great way for your child to learnlanguage. Singalong&dancewithyourchild! Incorporatesingingintoyourdailyroutine. Refer to the Songs & Finger Plays section to find songstosharewithyourchild.

Floortime Creepingandcrawling Sittinguptoplay Holdyourbabyuptothe mirror Comfortandreassure aroundstrangers Makesureyoutakeyour babytothedoctorforall well-childcheckups RefertoYourChild Developmentform information. Your Child’s Development 33

Talkaboutthefoodtheyareeating. Whatisit?Howdoesitfeel?Usewords like,creamy,soft,cold,andwarm.

Whenyoubegintoserveyourchild tablefoodneartheirfirstbirthday, makesureyouservesmall,cut-up piecesoffoodforyourbabytoeat withtheirfingers.Don’tputtoomuch outatonetime.

VisitHealthy,Safe&Strong,to understandwhatelseyourchild learningwiththisactivity.

Healthy & Strong 34

AlwaysuseaCarSeat.

Makesuretheyareindifferent positionsallday—ontheirback, tummy,andsittingup.Theyneedto seethingsalotofdifferentways.

“Youjustatethreecrackers.”

Pulltheirhighchairuptothetableso theycanbewiththerestofthefamily.

Tellthemhowmuchtheyareeating. “Twospoonfulsofcarrots...yummy!”

Talkandsingtoyourbabyduringbath time.Tellthemwhatyouaredoingasyou washthem. Goforstrollerwalksandtalktoyourbaby aboutwhatyousee,hear,andsmell.What isyourfavoritethingtodowithyourchild whileinthecaroronawalk? Respondtoandcomfortyourchildwhen theycry. Besuretobuckleupwheninthecar. LookthroughyourEverydayLearning Tipsformoreideas! Everyday Learning Teachable moments happen throughout the day: 35

Babieslearnbyexploring andinteractingwiththeir surroundings. Usegentlewordstotell yourbabywhattheyneed todo.Staycalm. Pickthemupandmove themawayfromanunsafe place. PleaserefertoSetting LimitswithPreschoolersfor moreinformation. Purposeful Parenting 36

Seekhelpforpostpartumdepression.

Shareyournameandphonenumberwith peopleyoumeetatEarlyBirds.Wecanuse allthefriendsandsupportwecanget.

Healthy You 37

Enjoybeingaparent/caregiver.Youarethe mostimportantpersonintheworldtoyour littleone! Trytofindadulttime.Youcangetworn downdealingwithyoungchildrenallday andyouneedsomeadultinteraction. Takeawalkwithyourchild.Useastroller andjustgetoutofthehouseforafew minutes.Getsomefreshairandgetyour bodymoving.Itwillrelievestressand increaseenergyandyourbaby/youngchild willenjoytheride.

MakesureyouhavePOSITIVEpeoplethat appreciateyouandhelpyoufeelgood aboutyourself.Peopleyoucantalkto,like familyandfriends. Haveothertrustedadultsthatyoucanrely ontowatchyourchildwhenneeded. Makesureyouandyourchildgetenough sleepeverynight. PleaserefertoHealthyYouformore information.

EARLY BIRDS 1 – 2 YEARS CLASS MATERIALS 38 Caring for a young child is the most important job. You are the most important part of your child’s life! You are the one who will give your child a Smart Start.

By 2 years, • Kick a ball • Pull toys behind me while I walk • Carry a large toy while walking • Walk up steps with help • Bend over to pick up a toy • Begin to run • Move to music • Build a tower of four blocks • Drink from a straw • Feed self with a spoon • Scribble • Walk without help • Push, pull, & dump things • Throw a ball • Turn pages in a book • Stack two blocks • Drink from a cup MY BODY 27 1 2 years I can… By 18 months, Your Child's Development 1-2 Years 39

Struggle to control feelings and actions Show some defiant behavior Show increasing independence Begin to be helpful Imitate behaviors of others Become excited being around other children 28 1–2 years 40 Comfort someone who is sad Start having tantrums Play alone with toys Compete with other children for toys Put two words together Use two to four word sentences Repeat words I overhear Distinguish between “you” and “me” Begin to sort shapes and colors Point to eyes, ears & nose when asked Find objects when hidden under several covers Say 8 20 words Identify objects in a book Understand and answer simple questions Solve problems by trial and error Turn pages in a book By 2 years, I can… By 18 months, MY LANGUAGE & LEARNING MY FEELINGS & FRIENDSHIPS I can… By 18 months, By 2 years,

Cannot walk Do not speak at least 15 words Do not imitate actions or words Do not use two word utterances Cannot push a wheeled toy Do not know the function of common household objects (phone, brush) Do not follow simple instructions Experience a dramatic loss of skills I once had if I… LET MY DOCTOR KNOW 28 1–2 years 41

Reading Singing DAILY shared reading is the single most important activity you can do for your child’s futurereadingsuccess! Rereadbooksyourchildisfamiliarwith. Look over your Reading Tips for helpful hints aboutreadingwithyourchild. 42 Singing is another great way for your child to learnlanguage. Singalong&dancewithyourchild! Incorporatesingingintoyourdailyroutine. Refer to the Songs & Finger Plays section to find songstosharewithyourchild.

Giveyourchildroomto play,insideandoutside. Theyshouldbewalking withouthelpandbeginning torun. Playwithtoyswith differentshapesandcolors. Theyshouldbegintosort bytwocolors. Bepatientandkind,but firm.Donotpunishachild foratantrum. LookoverYourCh Development,for information.

Your Child’s Development

Makesureyourchild’scarseatis installedcorrectlyandthatthey're alwaysbuckledup! Keepphones,doorknobs, countertops,andtablescleanedand disinfectedto reducethespreadof germs. Serveyourchildsmallportionsandlet themaskformore.Don’tmakethem cleantheirplate.Thatmayteachthem toovereatandnotlistentotheirbody whenittellsthemtheyarefull. Getyourchildtothedentistfora cleaningandcheck-up.Makesureyou areshowingthemtheproperwayto brushtheirteeth. Alwayssuperviseyourchildoutside andaroundwater. RefertoHealthy,Safe&Strong for more.

Healthy & Strong 44

•Giveyourchildabookortoytoholdinthecar orstroller. •Listentomusicwhileinthecarandonthego. •Duringbedtime,letyourchildholdabookand turnpageswhileyouread. •Snuggleupwithabookatbedtimeorsinga quietsong. •Giveyourchildsimplechoicesallday.Whatare somechoicesyoucangiveyourtoddler? •LookthroughyourEverydayLearningTips e. Everyday Learning Teachable Moments Happen Throughout The Day: 45

Childrenatthisagegetinto everythingandmovefast.Help themfindsomethingtodo. Besuretogiveawarningbefore itistimetoleaveorchange activities. Whenitistimetogo,thengo! Ifyouhavetoleaveyourchildat childcare,saygoodbye,givea hugandkiss,andleave. LookoverSettingLimitswith Preschoolersformore.

Purposeful Parenting

Takeawalk.Useastrollerandjustgetout ofthehouseforafewminutes.Getsome freshairandgetyourbodymoving.Itwill relievestressandincreaseenergyand yourbaby/youngchildwillenjoytheride. MakesureyouhavePOSITIVEpeoplethat appreciateyouandhelpyoufeelgood aboutyourself.Peopleyoucantalkto,like familyandfriends. Haveothertrustedadultsthatyoucan relyontowatchyourchildwhenneeded Makesureyouandyourchildgetenough sleepeverynight PleaserefertoHealthyYouformore.

Healthy You 47

EARLY BIRDS 2-3 YEARS SECTION 48 Caring for a young child is the most important job. You are the most important part of your child’s life! You are the one who will give your child a Smart Start.

Feed myself with some spilling Climb up and down steps, alternating feet Balance on one foot for a short time Pedal a tricycle Kick a ball Run easily Put on my shoes (but can’t tie) Jump in place with both feet together Build a tower of more than six blocks Hold a pencil in writing position Draw a line Turn a knob or unscrew a lid String large beads MY BODY I can… 2 3 years Your Child's Development 2-3 Years 49

28 50 Tell events that happened that day Say my name, age and sex Use pronouns (I, you, me, we, they) Ask questions Use 3 5 word sentences Use 900 words! Look through books alone Play make believe with dolls, animals, people Sort by shape and color Complete puzzles of three to four pieces I can… MY LANGUAGE & LEARNING MY FEELINGS & FRIENDSHIPS I can… Take a turn in games Express a wide range of emotions Object to major changes in routine Help dress and undress myself Have one or two friends Notice similarities and differences in people Laugh at silly things Get scared and not understand what is real and what is pretend Watch other children and copy what they do Demonstrate some shame when caught Understand “mine” and “his/hers” 2–3 years

Frequently fall or have difficulty with stairs Have persistent drooling or very unclear speech Have difficulty manipulating small objects Cannot communicate in short phrases Have extreme difficulty separating from primary caregiver Have poor eye contact Do not understand simple instructions Show little interest in other children Experience a loss of skills I once had 3 0 2 3 years 51 if I… LET MY DOCTOR KNOW

Reading Singing DAILY shared reading is the single most important activity you can do for your child’s futurereadingsuccess! Rereadbooksyourchildisfamiliarwith. Look over your Reading Tips for helpful hints aboutreadingwithyourchild. 52 Singing is another great way for your child to learnlanguage. Singalong&dancewithyourchild! Incorporatesingingintoyourdailyroutine. Refer to the Songs & Finger Plays section to find songstosharewithyourchild.

Stayactive. Keeptalking. Playandhavefun.Your childwilllaughatsilly things. Spendtimewithother children. Bepatient. LookatYourChild’s Developmentformore. Your Child’s Development 53

Healthy & Strong 54

Makesureyourchild’scarseatis installedcorrectlyandthatthey're alwaysbuckledup! Makesureyourchildwearsahelmeton theirtricycleorscooter. Remindyourchildofthesafetyrules whenyouareattheparkor somewhereelse.Theymaystartto wanderorexplore.Remindthemwe don’ttalktostrangers,staycloseto me,etc. Alwaysusesunscreenwhenyourchild isplayingoutside. Teachyourchildtofloatontheirback andneverleavethemclosetothe waterbythemselves. Makesuretheygetlotsofwaterwhen theyareplayingoutsideintheheat. Askyourchild’sdoctororthehealth departmentifyouhaveanyquestions orconcernsaboutyourchild’sphysical, social,orcognitivedevelopment.Make alloftheircheckupappointments. RefertoHealthy,Safe&Strongfor more.

Whatcanyourchilddotohelparoundthe house? Haveyourchildhelpwiththelaundry,like foldingormatchingsocks. Teachyourchildhowtowashthemselvesin thetub. Lookforlettersandnumberseverywhereyou go.Inviteyourchildtopointthemoutand talkaboutthem. Checkoutbooksaboutyourchild’sinterests. LookthroughyourEverydayLearningTipsfor venmoreideas! Everyday Learning Teachable Moments Happen Throughout The Day: 55

Whataresomesafebehaviorswe cangivechildrentodealwith theirfeelings? LookoverSettingLimitswith Preschoolersformore.

Childrenneedtobeableto recognizetheirfeelings. Youngchildrenwillreact physicallytotheirfeelings. Canyouthinkofothernegative behaviorschildrenmaydo becauseoftheirfeelings?

Parenting 56

Whataresomefeelingsthatmake usmostuncomfortableorwe wishwedidn’tshow?

Purposeful

Healthy You 57

EARLY BIRDS 3 – 4 YEARS CLASS MATERIALS 58 Caring for a young child is the most important job. You are the most important part of your child’s life! You are the one who will give your child a Smart Start.

Throw a ball overhand Catch a bounced ball most of the time Move quickly forward and backward Use scissors Build a tower of 7 9 blocks Put together simple puzzles with 4 12 pieces Copy a square Draw a person with 2 to 4 body parts Begin to copy some capital letters Wash my hands and blow my nose 31 3 4 years I can… MY BODY Your Child's Development 3-4 Years 59

28 60 Tell stories Speak in sentences of 5 or 6 words Correctly name some colors Stay interested in an activity for 5 15 minutes Understand the concept of counting and know a few numbers Recall part of a story Use plurals and past tense Understand “same” and “different” and “big” and “little” Understand “now, soon, and later” Sort by shape and color I can… MY LANGUAGE & LEARNING MY FEELINGS & FRIENDSHIPS I can… Cooperate with other children Start playing with other children more than playing alone Negotiate solutions to conflicts Share toys and take turns (with help) Initiate or join in play Separate from my parents Do things for myself 3-4 years

3 0 61 Cannot throw a ball Cannot jump in place Cannot ride a tricycle Cannot grasp a crayon between my thumb and fingers Ignore other children Show no interest in interactive games Do not engage Cannot copy a c Do not use sent more words Do not use “me Experience a lo had if I… LET MY DOCTOR KNOW 3-4 years

Reading Singing DAILY shared reading is the single most important activity you can do for your child’s futurereadingsuccess! Rereadbooksyourchildisfamiliarwith. Look over your Reading Tips for helpful hints aboutreadingwithyourchild. 62 Singing is another great way for your child to learnlanguage. Singalong&dancewithyourchild! Incorporatesingingintoyourdailyroutine. Refer to Songs & Finger Plays to find songs to sharewithyourchild.

Playoutside.Whatgamesdoyou playwithyourchildoutside? Talk.Usealarge,descriptive vocabulary. Takeeveryopportunitytocount. Usetimewordslikeyesterday, tomorrow,inaminute. Providemoretimewithfriends. LookoverYourChild’s Developmentformore

Your Child’s Development

RefertoHealthy,Safe&Strongformore.

Makesureyourchild’scarseatisinstalled correctlyandthatthey'realwaysbuckledup! Makesureyourchildknowstheirname. TeachyourchildYOURfirstnameandlast name,youraddress,andyourphonenumber. Loveandsupportthem.Thinkingand reasoningdevelopmorewhenthereisplenty oflove. Neverleavethemaloneinthecarby themselves,eveniftheyareasleep,oryouare runningintothestoreforjustaminute.

Snugglewiththem.Givethemhugsandkisses andtellthemyoulovethembeforetheygoto sleep. Eattogetherasafamily.Theyliketotalkto everyoneandtheyneedtolearntolistento others. Tryandkeeptheirroutinethroughouttheday andgetthemtobedontime.

Healthy & Strong

•Neverleaveyourchildaloneinthetub.Encouragethem towashthemselves. •Practicewordsinthebathtubanduserhymingwords. •Usemeasuringcupsatthetable.Encouragethemtopour theirdrinks. •Remindyourchildthattheyneedhealthyfoodtohelpthem grow. •Atthestore,letyourchildholdthesaleflyerorcoupons.See iftheycanrecognizeanyofthewordsorproducts. •Helpyourchildwithbalance.Walkalongthecurb,sidewalk cracks,ortapedlinesonthefloor. •LookthroughyourEverydayLearningTipsformore. Everyday Learning Teachable moments happen throughout the day: 65

• Bespecificwhenyouare re-directingyourchild. • Recognizewhenyourchild isdoingtherightthing. • Keepyourchild’stoysand writing/drawingmaterials handy. • Whatcanyoukeepattheir levelsotheycangettoitand doitforthemselves? • Alwaysmodelthebehaviors youexpect.Canyouthinkof otherbehaviorsthatchildren willlearnfromus? • LookoverSettingLimitswith Preschoolersformore. Purposeful Parenting 66

Try to find adult time. You can get worn down dealing with young children all day, andyouneedsomeadultinteraction.

Make sure you and your child get enough sleepeverynight. Please refer to Healthy You for more information.

Make sure you have POSITIVE people that appreciate you and help you feel good aboutyourself.Peopleyoucantalkto,like familyandfriends. Have other trusted adults that you can relyontowatchyourchildwhenneeded.

Healthy You 67

Take a walk. Use a stroller and get out of the house for a few minutes. Get some fresh air and get your body moving. It will relieve stress and increase energy and yourbaby/youngchildwillenjoytheride.

EARLY BIRDS 4-5 YEARS CLASS MATERIALS 68 Caring for a young child is the most important job. You are the most important part of your child’s life! You are the one who will give your child a Smart Start.

• Swing and climb • Stand on one foot for 10 seconds • Hop on one foot • Walk backward • Walk up and down stairs without help • Do somersaults • Run quickly, stop and start again • Copy a triangle • Draw a person with a body • Use a fork and spoon • Dress and undress without help • Cut on a line with scissors I can… MY BODY 4 5 years Your Child's Development 4-5 Years 69

28 70 Draw, name, and describe pictures Name four or more pictures Use future tense Understand the sequence of events Count ten or more objects Combine thoughts into sentences Ask “when?” “how?” and “why?” questions Understand comparatives like small, smaller, smallest Listen to long stories Tell longer stories Say my name and address Play with words and make rhymes I can… MY LANGUAGE & LEARNING MY FEELINGS & FRIENDSHIPS I can… Compare myself to others Express more awareness in other people’s feelings Want to be like friends and please them Understand the physical differences between boys and girls Likely agree with rules Show more independence Begin to understand fairness and good and bad behavior Enjoy imaginative play with other children 4-5 years

• Act extremely fearful or timid • Act extremely aggressively • Cannot separate from parents without severe protest • Cannot focus on any single activity for more than five minutes • Show little interest in playing with other children • Seem unhappy or sad most of the time • Do not express a wide range of emotions if I… LET MY DOCTOR KNOW 4 5 years 71 • Have trouble eating, sleeping, or using a toilet • Cannot correctly give my first and last name • Do not use plurals or past tense correctly when speaking • Cannot wash or dry my hands • Have trouble taking off clothing • Experience a loss of skills I once had

Reading Singing DAILY shared reading is the single most important activity you can do for your child’s futurereadingsuccess! Rereadbooksyourchildisfamiliarwith. Look over your Reading Tips for helpful hints aboutreadingwithyourchild. 72 Singing is another great way for your child to learnlanguage. Singalong&dancewithyourchild! Incorporatesingingintoyourdailyroutine. Refer to the Songs & Finger Plays section to find songstosharewithyourchild.

Your Child’s Development

Giveyourchildtimeandspace toplayandexploreoutside. Theyaregettingalotstronger andcanrunandplayhard! Playwithsandorinwater.Be suretoalwayssupervise. Givethemachancetodothings forthemselves. Engageinmorethoughtful discussionsandaskseveral questions. Haveyourchildplaywithother children. LookoverYourChild’s Developmentformore.

Childhood Sleep Guidelines

Healthy & Strong

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) provides some helpful guidelines regarding just how much sleep children need at different stages in their development. Keep in mind that these numbers reflect total sleep hours in 24 hours. So if your son or daughter still naps, you’ll need to take that into account when you adduphisorhertypicalsleephours. RefertotheHealthy,Safe&Strongformoreinformation.

Keepsparechangeandgiveyourchilda piggybankorspecialboxtokeepitin.They cancountitwithyouandstartsavingfor somethingsmalltheywanttobuy. Duringmealtime,askyourchildtoshare somethingabouttheirday.Askthem questions. Whileonthego,playaguessinggame.Give cluestoseeifyourchildcanfigureoutwhat youaredescribing.Whatothergamesdoyou playwithyourchild? Keeparoutine.Trytosticktothesame bedtimeandwake-uptimeduringtheweek andonweekends.Whataresomeroutines youkeepinyourhouse? LookthroughyourEverydayLearning Tipsforevenmoreideas. Everyday Learning Teachable moments happen throughout the day: 75

Purposeful Parenting

LookoverSettingLimitswith Preschoolersformore.

Ifyouseeyourchilddosomething theyshouldn’t,acknowledgewhat yousaw.Acknowledgewhatyour childisfeeling.Statetherules,and givechoices. Childrencanbeunhappyorangry. Youarehelpingthemlearnto controltheirbehavior.“Icansee youaremad,butwedon’thit.” Remember,itiscriticaltopoint outhowhisbehaviorimpacts otherpeople. Whyisitsoimportanttopointout theconsequencesofyourchild’s behaviorandhowhisbehavior impactsotherpeople?

MakesureyouhavePOSITIVEpeoplethat appreciateyouandhelpyoufeelgood aboutyourself.Peopleyoucantalkto,like familyandfriends. Haveothertrustedadultsthatyoucanrely ontowatchyourchildwhenneeded.

Makesureyouandyourchildgetenough sleepeverynight. PleaserefertoHealthyYouformore information.

Healthy You 77

READING TIPS 78 Caring for a young child is the most important job. You are the most important part of your child’s life! You are the one who will give your child a Smart Start.

Sharing Stories with your Young Child You can instill a love of reading in your child! Early literacy skills in children are one of the biggest predictors of future academic success. No matter your child's age or developmental level, it's important to read with them every day, and make part of your routine. Make this tim enjoyable and fun for your child, it's great way to bond with your child! The next few pages, provide genera reading tips for young children. W hope that these tips enable you to help your child read and develop critical thinking skills, no matter what book you pickup! Snuggle up & read everyday! Sharing a story is a great time to cuddle and bond! 79

Point to pictures in the book and name the objects. Eventually your child will begin to point, and you can ask them to show you the pictures that you name. Keep books in every room in the house and bring them with you in your purse or diaper bag. If your child throws the book or stands on it, just pick it up and say,“Books are for reading.”

Talk about the front cover. Talk about the picture and what you think the story will be about based on the title or picture. Point out any emotions or expressions on the faces of the characters in the story. “Oooh, he looks sad.” “He is sad because he broke his toy!”

Talk about the pictures, what you see, the colors, size, shape. Compare them, “That square is bigger than the circle.” “The bear is brown, and the dog is white!” Keep books where your child can “read” them on their own. Read all kinds of books. Choose books with one or two words on a page, stories, poems, rhymes…

Read every day with your baby. If you don’t sit down with a book, tell them a story while you are changing their diaper, rocking them, or giving them a bath. Make reading a part of your routine. Do it every night before bed or any other time you feel you could do it every day. Use board books or plastic books. Let your child hold the book and explore it. That means even putting it in their mouth! Don’t insist on finishing the story. If your child crawls away, you can read again later. Use a lot of animation in your voice and exaggerated facial expressions. Don’t read too fast. Make reading a relaxed, enjoyable time. Snuggle up with a book. Reading together is a great time to bond!

Sharing Stories With Your Baby and Young Child Resources 80

Make reading a routine in your home. Every night before bed is a wonderful time to share a few stories. Keep books and other reading materials in every room in your house. You can even keep some in your car. Take every opportunity that is available to sit and share a book, even if it is just a few pages or a couple of minutes

For the Love of Reading MAKE READING A HABIT…

Resources

Read in the few minutes before dinner, waiting for the timer to go off. Read while waiting in the car for someone. Make a special place for your child to keep their books, like a shelf or basket. Choose a place they can easily find them. Get a library card for you and your child. Visit the library. Check out books, play, participate in story times, and other activities just for kids. Trade books with friends and look for them at garage sales. Read their favorite stories over and over again. Read in the bathtub. Get as many kinds of books to read with your child as you can, like picture books, nursery rhymes, poetry, ABC & number books, shape & color books… Model reading. Let your child see you reading books, magazines, blogs, etc. Show them that reading is enjoyable and important.

ANYTIME YOU READ A BOOK, YOU CAN… SHARING A STORY WITH YOUR CHILD…

Resources

See if they can find a letter or a word they know. Run your fingers along with the words so they know you are reading left to right. Have them draw their favorite part of the story or a different ending. Make rhymes to go with words in the story. Ask them to make their own book with blank paper and crayons. Make a letter sound and see if your child can find the letter that makes that sound. Practice writing favorite or main words from the story. Make comparisons to other stories you have read or to real people and events. What is the same? What is different? Talk about the characters’ feelings and behavior. Talk about consequences of good and bad behavior.

Make some comments about the story, the message, the characters… Let them hold the book and “read through it" themselves. Go back through the pages and look for certain parts of the story or for certain characters or pictures. Ask them to tell you what happened in the story or retell the story to you or someone else. Snuggle up! Sharing a story is a great time to cuddle and bond! FOR YOUR FIRST TIME WITH A NEW BOOK…

Look at the front cover together and ask, “What do you think this story will be about?” After they answer, ask, “Why do you think so?” For children who are younger than two, point to the pictures on the cover and talk about what you think the story will be about. Read the title of the story, tell the author and illustrator, and say, ”The author writes the words and the illustrator draws the pictures.” As action unfolds in the story, stop for a minute and ask, “What do you think is going to happen?” Wait for an answer. “Let’s see.” When it is over, if they want to read it again, go for it! Read with enthusiasm. Inspire a love of reading in your child! Kids love it when you change your tone of voice and use funny voices for the different characters. Have your child bring you the book and hand it to you “ready to read,” (frontfacing, right side up). Snuggle up! Sharing a story is a great time to cuddle and bond. Ask them about their favorite part and why was it the favorite?

Reading with your Baby Reading with your Toddler Reading with your Preschooler Pre-K: Getting Ready to Read and Write Simple Yet Powerful Things to Do While Reading Aloud Sharing Wordless Picture Books How to Choose Read Aloud Books Reading Adventure Packs Reading Resources 83

84 Reading 0-1 Years

As you read, ask your baby to point to different things in the pictures, like animals,flowers,colors,shapes,etc. Follow upwithacompletesentence,“Yes,youfoundthepuppy!”

While sharing a story with your little one, hug them and say, “I love readingwithyou!”

Take a picture walk through the book. Describe the pictures and tell the story without reading the printed words. Point to pictures, use descriptive words,andspeakincompletesentences.

“Whereisthe…?” “Pointto…” “Showme….” Read with your baby every day. Make it part of your daily routine. Make this time enjoyable and fun for your child. You are helping your baby develop a love of books and reading. These reading tips help your child readanddevelopcritcalthinkingskills,nomatterwhatbookyoupickup!

Hold your baby in your lap and help her/him hold the book in their hands. Asyouread,helpyourchildturnthepages,“Let’sturnthepagenow.”

Sharing Stories with your 0-1 Year Old

Point to the picture on the cover and say, “What do you see?” Respond to sounds or words with a complete sentence. “Yes, there is a …. “ You are modelingturn takingbystartingoffwithaquestionandthenresponding.

Use an animated voice. Change the tone and speed to match the story to keepyourchildinvolved.Usedifferentvoicesfordifferentcharacters.

Reading the Story After the Story

Fall Activity Handout Bear

4. If your baby is not enjoying reading the book, stop and try again later. You are creating positive experiences with books to help your baby develop a loveofbooksandreading.

by Stella Blackstone

1. Before you read the book, show your child the cover and talk about what you think the book will be about. Read thenameoftheauthorandillustrator.

3. Tell your child about your favorite shapes.

2. As you read, point out shapes. Count the shapes on each page, and help themtracetheshapeswithafinger.

2. As they get older, have your child share their favorite shape. Then have them draw a picture of somethingwiththesameshape. in a

1. Review the shapes in the book. Talk about colors and how many sides each shape has. Help your child trace the sides of each shape with their finger. As your child gets older, you can draw shapes withyourchild.

Square 0-1 YEARS

5. Have books within reach of your baby so they can explore. Your baby may want to hold the book and put it intheirmouth.

Reading the Story After the Story

6. When the book talks about Clifford being inside, and his friend being outside, talk about, “What do we like to do inside?” and “What do we like to dooutside?”

7. Remember, at this age, if your child loses interest, you can always finish thebooklater.

0-1 YEARS 87

1. Before you read the book, show your child the cover and talk about what you think the book will be about. Read thenameoftheauthorandillustrator.

1.Pointtodifferentobjectsthat are"big"and"small." 2.Talkabout“inside”and "outside."Haveyourchildlookout thedoororwindow. 3.Lookforobjectsorpicturesin magazinesorotherbooksthat showopposites(e.g.,big window/smallwindow,big dog/smalldog).andshowthemto yourchild. by Norman Bridwell

4. When the book talks about Clifford being slow, and his friend being fast, talk about, “What else is fast?” and “Whatelseisslow?”.

Winter Activity Handout Clifford's Opposites

5. When the book talks about Clifford being wet, and his friend being dry, talk about, “What else is wet?” and “Whatelseisdry?”.

2. When the book talks about Clifford being small, and his friend being big, talk about, “What else is small?”. Talk about “What is smaller than you?” or “Whatisbiggerthanyou?”

1. Before you read the book, show your child the cover and talk about what you think the book will be about. Read thenameoftheauthor/illustrator.

For example, "Simon says, shake yourhead." Eric Carle

Reading the Story After the Story

Spring Activity Handout From Head to Toe by

0-1 YEARS 88

2. In this book, the children meet various animals. For each animal, they identify a body part, and add a motion to the body part. For each body part, point to that body part on their body. Help them repeat the motion in the book. Identify the parts of the body with your child, and act out the motionswiththem!

3. For example, when the book mentions the penguin turning its head, help your child point to their head, and then turn their head. Or when the giraffe bends its neck, help your child point to their neck, and ask them if theycanbendtheirneck.

1. Sing "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes" with your child, to help your child develop vocabulary whenreferringtotheirbody.

2. When they get older, play “Simon Says” with your child. Direct your child to do a motion with different parts of their body toseewhatbodypartstheyknow!

4. Remember, at this age, if your child loses interest, you can always finish the book later. You are creating lots of positive experiences with books for yourbaby.

89 Reading 1-2 Years

Hugthemandsay,“Readingisfun!"

Label what you see in the pictures using descriptive words. “Look at the big yellow petals on the sunflower.” Point to pictures and ask, “What is that?”

Read everyday with your child. Children this age can be all about action. They may not always sit and read with you, but they are listening. You are encouraging a love of books and reading. Hearing the same story, again and again,buildschildren’sliteracyandlanguageskills.

Respond to your child's sounds or words with a complete sentence, “You are right, it is a brown and white spotted cow!” If your child says, “Cat,” you say, “Thatisagreycatinthepicture.”

Point to the picture on the cover and say, “What do you see?” Respond to any sounds or words with a complete sentence, “Yes, there is a …. “ You are modeling turn taking by starting off with a question and then responding to anysounds. Take a picture walk through the book. Point to and describe the pictures. Tell thestorywithoutreadingtheprintedwords.Talkabouttheactionsyousee.Use descriptive words and speak in complete sentences. Find fewer than 5 objects youcaneasilycount.“Let’scounthowmanybutterfliesareonthispage.”Touch eachpictureorhelpyourchildtouchthepictureforeachnumberyousay.

Sharing Stories with your 1-2 Year Old

While you are reading or taking a picture walk, talk about connections to your child’s life. For example, if there is a dog in the picture, “That looks like our dog, Toby,” or “We saw a dog running in the park today!” If there is a flower, “We have flowers in our garden!” Relate colors in the story to colors in their clothes, theirtoys,orotherobjectstheycansee.

First Book: On the Farm

1.Haveyourchilddrawapictureof the farm. Help them flip through the pages to get ideas of things to addtotheirpicture.

2. Read through the Farm Animals, and saythesoundseachanimalmakeswith your child. Ask them what their favorite farm animal is. Do the same withtheWildAnimals.

5. Continue to read the book, having yourchildpointtoeachpicture.

3. On your next walk, or car ride, play “I Spy” with your child, using wordsfromthebook.

6. On the "Name the pictures" page, see how many pictures your child can identify.

Reading the Story After the Story

Word

2. Make a farm themed collage. Cut out farm animals, and other farm themed pictures from magazinesorotherbooks.

4 Read through the "Things that Go", havingyourchildpointtoeachvehicle. Askyourchildwhattheirfavoriteis?

1. Before you read the book, show your child the cover and talk about the pictures. Ask your child to point to and nametheanimalsonthecover.

Fall Activity Handout

by Usborne 1-2 YEARS 91

3. Read through the food from the farm, having your child point to each food. Ask your child what their favorite foodfromthefarmis.

7. Children this age are active. If they lose interest in reading, stop and read itagainlater.

3. As you continue to read, and meet different animals on the farm, ask your childguidingquestions.Forexample: 4. On the last page, review all the animals, and ask your child what their favorite animalfromthebookwas.

2. As you read, there are different farm animals on each page. Ask your child, “What animals do you see on this page, can you point to them?” For each animal, ask your child what sound the animal makes,andsaythesoundwithyourchild.

1. Before you read the book, show your child the cover and ask what they think the book will be about. Read the name of the author/illustrator. Ask your child to nametheanimalsonthecover.

Haveyoueverseenahorsebefore? Wheredidyouseeahorse? Wheredohorseslive? Whatsounddoesahorsemake? Doyouknowwhatahorseeats?

Fall Activity Handout Hello Farm by

Reading the Story After the Story How many legs (eyes, nose, etc) does the horse have? Point and count with yourchild.

1-2 YEARS 92

1. Have your child draw a picture of the farm. Help them flip through the pagestogetideasofthingstoaddto theirpicture.

2. Make a farm themed collage. Cut out farm animals, and other farm themed pictures from magazines or otherbooks. 3. On your next walk, or car ride, play “I Spy” with your child, using words fromthebook. Maddie Frost

2. Do a “picture walk”. Turn through the pages, look at the pictures, and just listen totheirobservations.

Reference the schedule throughout the day. This will help your child know what to expect, and learn new vocabularywords. Remember, children this age are all aboutaction.Theymaynotalwayssit and read with you, but they are listening. You are encouraging a love ofbooksandreading. Rhea Wallace

Winter Activity Handout My Day by

When the book says, ”I play," ask your child,“Whatdoyouliketoplay?”

1-2 YEARS 93

3. This book goes through the daily routine of a child, introducing them to new vocabulary words. Ask your child questionsasyouread. Forexample: Create a “Visual Schedule” for your child. Post it in their room. There are tons of free visual schedules online, oryoucancreateyourown!

When the book says, ”I read books," talk about how you and your child lovetoreadbooks.

When the book says, ”I put on my pajamas", ask your child, “What are your favorite pajamas to wear to bed?” When the book says, ”I eat dinner", ask your child, “What is your favorite thingtoeatfordinner”

When the book says, ”I eat," ask your child,“Whatdoyouliketoeat?”Share yourfavoritethingstoeat.

1. Before you read the book, show your child the cover and talk about what the bookwillbeabout.

Reading the Story After the Story

1-2 YEARS 94

Whatdoyouthinkthepersonfeels likeonthispage? How can you tell if someone is happy?

Whatmakesyoufeelscared? What does someone's face look likeifthey'reangry?

4. As you read other books, ask your child how they think the characters are feeling. You can alsoaskthemhowtheywouldfeel in the character's situation. Help them label feelings in stories you read. Spring Activity Handout

3. Play “Simon Says”, and have your child act out different emotions. For example, "Simon says, show me a silly face." or “Simon says, show me an angry face.”

1. Have your child draw a picture of their favorite feeling from the story. Encourage them to share with you any words to describe their picture, so you can write them on the paper. Then read themtothem.

Reading the Story After the Story

2. Each page highlights a different feeling.Askquestions,like:

1. Before you read the book, show your child the cover and ask what they think the book will be about. Read the nameoftheauthor.

2. Cut out pictures from magazines or other books that show different feelingsoremotions.

The Feelings Book Todd Park

95 Reading 2-3 Years

Sharing Stories with your 2-3 Year Old

Have fun. Children love silly voices and enthusiasm. If you are having fun, your childwilltoo.Thisisagreattimetolaughtogetheraboutwhatyouarereading. Use your finger to follow along, and encourage your child to do the same. Point out that we read and write from right to left across the page. Show your child howwordsareseparatedwithspaceinbetween.

Ask open-ended questions while you read. “What is he doing?” “Why is he sad?” Respondtoanycommentsorrestatewithacompletesentence,“Youthinkheis sad because his toy is broken? You are probably right. What might make him feelbetter?”Eventhoughyoungchildrenmaynotfullyunderstandthequestion or be able to make long responses, they must hear the questions and begin to participateintheseback-and-forthconversations.

When your child hands you the book, turn it upside down. If your child does not respond, ask, “Is this how I am supposed to hold the book?” Talk about the way youneedtoholdthebooktoreadittogether.

While sharing a story, hug them and say, “Story time is one of my favorite times withyou.Thankyouforreadingwithme.” Children this age can be all about action. They may not always sit and read with you, but they are listening. Keep it short and simple if needed, and read frequently in short bursts. You are encouraging a love of books and reading. Readbooksagainandagain.

Readthetitleofthebook,andask/talkaboutwhatyouandyourchildthinkthe book will be about. Read the name of the author and illustrator, and tell your childtheauthorwritesthebook,andtheillustratordrawsthepictures.

5.Readthefirsttwopagesandfindthe

2. Have your child draw a picture of their favorite part of the story. Encourage them to share with you any words to describe their picture, so you can write them on the paper. Thenreadthembacktothem.

Fall Activity Handout Ten Black Dots 2-3 Years byDonaldCrews 97

Reading the Story After the Story

1. The first time you read the book, showyourchild the cover and ask what they think the book will be about. Read thenameoftheauthor/illustrator. Go back through the book and look for letters your child knows (maybe fromtheirname). Ask your child what they can do with 10 black dots. Write down their words andreadthembacktothem. aboutthelettersintheword“dots”. rhyming words (sun, done). What are other words that rhyme with sun and done? (fun, run, ton, bun, won). Repeat thisforeachsetofpagesinthebook. Together, count all the black dots in thebook. Ask, what do you think will be next? Whydoyouthinkthat? Go back through the book and look for numbers your child might know like theirage.

4.Findtheword“dots”inthestory.Talk

1. Ask your child to draw a picture about the story. Write down what theysaythepictureisabout.

3. Draw or download a free “Ten Frame”. Use this tool to help your child learn how to count. Use different objects in your house to countonthetenframe.

2. Ask your child what their favorite number is. Help your child to write the number, and to draw objects of that amount. For example, if their favorite number is two, have them draw two flowersoranyobjectthey'dlike.

3. Practice using your ten frame, and incorporate counting into your daily routine, to help your child feel more comfortablecounting.

1. The first time you read the book, show your child the cover and ask what they think the book will be about. Read the nameoftheauthor.

Reading the Story After the Story

1. Write numbers 1 10 on a piece of paper, have your child trace the numbers. They can use their finger or a writingutensil.

2. Draw or download a free ten frame. A tenframeisatoolyoucanusetohelpyour childlearnhowtocount.

Help your child represent the number on the ten frame. For example, if the number is 4, put 4 objects on the ten frame.

My Very First Book of Numbers

4. Incorporate counting songs into your dailyroutine.

2-3 Years byEricCarle 98 Fall Activity Handout

3. Find 10 small items. It can be crayons, paperclips, counting bears, cut out pieces of paper, toy cars, etc. You will use these to count on your ten frame. Make sure to supervise in case they put them in their mouth. 4. Each page highlights a number from one toten.Oneachpage:

Say the number word, have your child repeatyou Ask your child to count and point to the objects on the page. Guide them, bycountingandpointingwiththem.

1. The first time you read the book, show your child the cover and ask what they think the book will be about. Read thenameoftheauthor/illustrator.

2-3 Years byEricCarle 99

the

What animal is on this page? Can you ever seen this animal before?

youpointtoit? Whatcoloristhisanimal? Have

What animal do you think will be onthenextpage?

2. This book is very repetitive, which is great for young readers. On each page, you meet an animal. Each animal is a different color. As you read, ask your childthefollowingquestions:

1. Ask your child what their favorite animal from the book was, and have themdrawapicture.

2. Ask your child what their favorite color is. Have your child draw a pictureofsomethingthatisthecolor theychose. 3.Cutoutpicturesfrommagazinesor other books that show different animals and colors. Have your child sort the pictures into different categoriesbasedontheircolor.

4. Play “I Spy” with your child, focusing on different colors, to help yourchildidentifycolors.

Winter Activity Handout Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do

Reading Story After the Story

5. Incorporate color songs into your dailylearningroutine! you see?

Whatsounddoesthisanimalmake?

4. Go back through the book and look for letters your child knows, like from their name.

1. The first time you read the book, show your child the cover and ask what they think the book will be about. Read the nameoftheauthor/illustrator.

“What do you think the mouse did afterhewokeupfromhisnap?”

“How would you feel if you had the strawberry?Whatwouldyoudo?”

5. Ask your child what happened first, the mouse picking the strawberry or the mouse burying the strawberry in the dirt? 6. Ask your child to retell the story, with andwithoutthebook.

The

100

3. After the page that says, “Quick, there is only one way to keep a big hungry bear from eating a red, ripe strawberry!” Ask your child, “What do you think he is going todo?”

2. Point out the picture of the mouse right after he picks the strawberry. Ask, “What do you think the mouse is feeling? Is he scared?Howcome?”

6. Ask, “What will he do after his nap when hewakesup?”

5. Show them the words “mouse,” “bear,” “strawberry” and see if they can find them againinthebook.

2-3

3.Talkaboutwhatelsebearseat.

7. Ask your child to draw a picture about the story. Write down what they say the picture is about. Draw pictures with baby animalsandtheirmothers/fathers.

The

8. Have your child draw a picture of their favorite part of the story or of what they would do with the strawberry to keep it from the bear. Encourage them to share with you any words to describe their picture and write them down. Then read thewordstoyourtoddler.

7. Ask, “What do you think the bear did orateifhecouldn’teatthestrawberry?”

byDonandAudreyWood

4.Talk about what/who else eats strawberries.

1. Ask your child where they would hide thestrawberry. 2. Ask for other ideas about how to keep thestrawberryfromthebear.

Spring Activity Handout Little Mouse, Red Ripe Strawberry, & The Big, Hungry Bear Years

Reading the Story After the Story

4. In the book, you'll continue to meet other animals that don't want to hug Lou. Continue to ask your child questions,asyouread.Forexample:

2. On the first page, say, "Do you think the bunny will give Lou a hug? and "WouldyougiveLouahug?"

Spring Activity Handout I Need a Hug 2-3 Years byAaronBlabey 101

After the RStory eading the Story Do you think this animal will want tohugLou?Whyorwhynot? How do you think that made Lou feel? Look at his face, what do you thinkLouisfeeling? HaveyoueverfeltlikeLou? How do you think the other animal feels?Haveyoueverfeltlikethat? What do you think will happen next?

1. The first time you read the book, show your child the cover and ask what they think the book will be about. Read thenameoftheauthor/illustrator.

3. On the next page say, "How do you think that made Lou feel?" and "Have youeverfeltlikeLou?"

1. Have your child draw their favorite part from the story. Encourage them to share with you any words to describe their picture, so you can write them on the paper. Then read thewordstothem. 2. Have your child draw a time when they felt like Lou, or another animal fromthestory. 3. Talk to your child about emotions, and how to identify them. Ask your child about the feelings of book charactersormoviecharacters.

102 Reading 3-4 Years

Talk about the picture on the cover and ask your child what they think the book is about. Discuss their response. Ask, “Why do you think that?” Ask your child to identify letters on the cover and throughout the book. Start with letters in their name. Ask your child to describe what is happening in the pictures. When your child becomes more familiar with the story, they can read it to you by looking at the pictures to tell the story. After you have read a story a few times, ask your child to retell it. Say things like, “What was the first thing that happened? What happened next?” Go back and look at the pictures to jog their memory. Use words like beginning, end, middle, next, before, and after, to help your child learntosequence.

Ask your child to show you where you start reading on a page (first word, top left). This helps them understand that you are reading the words and not the pictures.Lookforfewerthan10objectstocount.Askyourchildtopointtoeach object as you count. To challenge your child, ask them to identify objects. For example, “How many yellow flowers do you see?” “Let’s count the number of childrenholdingballoons.”

Ask your child what they think will happen next and why. Help them look for clues about what could happen in the pictures. Ask your child what they liked aboutthestoryandwhy.Whatdidtheynotlikeandwhy?

Sharing Stories with your 3-4 Year Old

While you are reading the book, make connections to your child’s life. For example, if there is a fish in the picture, “We saw fish in the zoo aquarium." You canrelatethecharactersoreventsinthestorytootherstoriesyouhaveread,or television shows you watch together, “This butterfly looks like the one in The VeryHungryCaterpillar.”

Hug them and say, "I love reading with you and hearing what you think." To show your child reading is important, let them see you and others read for pleasure. This is a great time to use the library to find a variety of books. Your child is curious so choose books they are interested in like science, counting, alphabet, colors, shapes, rhyming, fairy tales, and poetry. You are encouraging a love of booksandreading.Readeverydayandreadfavoritebooksagainandagain.

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2. Make sure you read the title and author & illustrator. Show them the wordsonthecoverasyouread.

9. Ask your child to draw a picture about the story or their favorite part. Write down what they say the picture is about onthesamepageastheirdrawing.

10. Talk about rhyming words, like “Fred” and“Ted”.Makeupmorerhymesfor“ed” and words like talk and walk. Encourage your child to write these words. Copy themonpaper/indexcards.

1. If it is the first time reading this book, look at the front and back covers and ask your child what they think the story will be about. If you have read the book together before, ask them if they rememberwhatitisabout.

6. Find other things in your house that aren’t true opposites, but are different. Ask your child to describe how they are different. 7. After the story, ask, “Why couldn’t FredandTedsleep?”

3–4

8. Have your child re tell the story. Ask a questionsuchas,“Canyoureadthestory to me?” “Please tell me what happened in the book.” Use the pictures in the booktohelp.

3. Talk about the word “opposite” and give some examples from the book as you read, like big, little; wet, dry; slow, fast;uphill,downhill.

Big Dog…Little Dog by P.D. Eastman YEARS

Reading the Story Fall Activity Handout

4. Use the words in the book to find opposites in your home, or in the car or bus. For example, “Please show me somethingthatistheoppositeofbig?”

104

5. Point out that tuba and flute are not true opposites. Ask how they are differenti.e.tubaisbiggerandlouder.

6. After the story, talk about it together. Startbyaskingyourchild“Whichanimaldo youlikethebest?”andthen“Why?”

105

Reading the Story Words to write or draw about

4. After the story, make up more rhyming wordswith“bat,”“cow,”and“seal.”

8. Ask your child to draw a picture about the story. Write down what they say the picture is about. Draw pictures with baby animalsandtheirmothers/fathers.

9. Together, think about other animals that could be in the story. Make up a rhyme for theanimal. Write the words on index cards or on papertodraw.

3. After the story, ask, “How do you think the llama felt when she couldn’t find her mama?”

7. Ask, “Why was the llama happy at the end?”

•Llama •Mama •Cow •Seal •Bat •Swan •Kangaroo Winter Activity Handout Is Your Mama a Llama? 3-4 Years

2.Afteryoureadadescriptionofananimal, ask your child to guess what the animal mightbeonthenextpage.

5. Have your child re-tell the story. Use the book. Ask your child, “Can you read the story to me?” “Can you remember the animals?Whatwerethey?”

1. The first time you read the book, show your child the cover and ask what they think the book will be about. Read the nameoftheauthor/illustrator.

byDeborahGuarino

Reading the Story

3. After the caterpillar eats all the food on Saturday,ask“Whydidhehaveastomachache?”

5. On an index card or paper, draw a picture of the main thing that happened on each day of the week, along with the name of the day. Together with your child, put the pictures in order from start to end. You may also put them in order by dayoftheweek.

2. During the story, every couple of pages, ask your child which food did the caterpillar eat more of. For example, oranges or plums OR strawberriesandapples.

8. Ask your child to draw a picture about the story. Write down what they say the picture is about. Read the words together, pointing to each word as you read. Point out the letters that are in their name or other words thatarefamiliartothem

7. After the story, talk about it together. Start by asking your child “Which food do you like the best?” Follow up with “Why?” “Was there a food you didn’t like? Why?” “Did you like the way it ended? Why? Would you change the ending if you wrote the book? If so, what would it be? If not, why not?” If your child would change the ending, offer to write it down for them. And encourage them to draw a picture to go with theirending. Write one of the words on an index card. Have your child draw a picture of it. Think of other words that start with the same letter or sound as the word you wrote on the indexcard.Writethosewordsonthecard.

•apple •caterpillar •egg •hungry •leaf •orange •plum •strawberry

9. Together, think about other foods that could be in the story. Make up a silly song aboutyourfavoritefoods.

4. After the story, ask your child the following questions: “What happened first?” If they aren't sure,include“Wasthereaneggonaleaforabig, fatcaterpillar?”

106

Words to Write or Draw About

The

6. Have your child re tell the story. Use the book. Ask your child, “Can you read the story to me?” AND “Can you remember all the foods? What werethey?”

1. The first time you read the book, show your child the cover and ask what they think the book will be about. Read the name of the author/illustrator.

Spring Activity Handout Very Hungry Caterpillar 3-4 Years byEricCarle

107 Reading 4-5 Years

108

Identify letters on the cover and throughout the book. Challenge your child to find upper and lower case letters, periods, and question marks. Ask, “What do youthinkwillhappennext?Whydoyouthinkthatwillhappen?”

Sharing Stories with your 4-5 Year Old

After you have read the story a few times, ask your child to retell it. Ask, “What happened first? What happened next?” Praise your child’s ability to remember what they read and share details. If a problem is presented, ask your child how they would solve it. “What would you do…?” and “How would you…?” Pause throughout the story and ask why they think the character acted a certain way or how the character was feeling. For example, “How did the little boy feel whenhissistertookhiscandy?”

Tell your child that they learn so much when they read. You know they are going to learn even more and do a great job in kindergarten! Hug them and say, "Ilovesharingstorieswithyou."

Encouragealoveofreadingbylettingyourchildseeyoureadforfun. Keep encouraging your child to choose books they want to read. Share some of your favorite childhood books with your child. You are encouraging a love of booksandreading.Readeverydayandreadfavoritebooksagainandagain.

Discuss the cover and ask, “What do you think this story is about?” “Why do youthinkthat?”Whileyouarereading,makeconnectionstoyourchild’slife.For example, if a child is going to school, “You go to school, too!” Relate the characters or events in the story to other stories you have read, or television shows you watch together, “They ate ham for dinner. I wonder if they also had eggs,likethebook,GreenEggsandHam!”

• button • friend • girl • green •

• sad 109

Words to or Spell

• bear •

6.Aftertheyfindthemattresswiththe

2. Make sure you read the title and author & Illustrator. Show them the wordsonthecover. During the story, after the mom and girl first see Corduroy, ask “Why did the mother say that Corduroy didn't look new?” After page 8, ask your child, Why is Corduroy sad?” Ask, “Do you ever feel sad?Tellmeaboutit.” buttons, ask them, “Why did Corduroy pullthebuttonmattress?” After page 29, ask “How does Lisa feel?” After page 32, ask your child, “How does Corduroy feel?” “Why?” “When do youfeelhappy?” Have your child re tell the story. Use the book. Ask a question such as, “Can you read the story to me?” or “Can you tellmewhathappenedtoCorduroy?" Ask your child to draw a picture about the story. Write down what theysaythepictureisabout. Write or draw the words below. Talk about the words, like how they are spelled, the first letters in each and how they sound. For example, “Bear and button both start with b. Whatelsestartswithb?” book happy

11.

Fall Activity Handout Corduroy by Don Freeman 4-5 Years 10.

1. If it is the first time reading, look at the front and back covers. Ask your child whattheythinkthestorywillbeabout.If you have read it before, ask them if they rememberwhatitisabout.

Reading the Story

Write

4.Ask“WheredoesCorduroylive?” 5.

Whistle for Willie 4-5 Years

AdaptedByJanBrett

Why did Peter wish he could whistle? Why did Peter hide from Willie, his dog? How did Peter feel when he couldn’t whistle? Why didn’t Peter give up when he tried to whistle and couldn’t? What wouldyoudo?Why? HowdidPeterfeelwhenhewhistled forthefirsttime? Peterhidingundertheemptycarton Willie Yourfavoritepartofthestory 1. If it is the first time reading, look at the front and back covers and ask your child what they think the story will be about. 2. Make sure you read the title and author amd illustrator. Show them the wordsonthecover. 3. Afterthestory,ask: 4. Drawapicturefromthestory,like: boy, carton, chalks, dog, hat, grocery store, mirror, sidewalk, whistle Drawapicturefortheword Think of other words that rhyme withthem Think of words that start with thesamesound 5. Write, or have your child write, each of the following words on a separateindexcard: 6. Using the word cards, your child can: 7. Talk about other times when you mightwanttowhistle. 8. Have your child make up a new ending to the story. Write it down. Askyourchildtoillustrateit. Reading the Story Winter Activity Handout 110

Encourage your child to use the

6.Afterthestory,makeupmorerhymingwords with“mouse,”“bell,”and“snack.”

for school. Talk

On the

togetreadyforschool. Look

Whichpartdoyoulikethebest?Why? Wasthereapartyoudidn’tlike?Why? Didyoulikethewayitended?Why? Would you change the ending if you wrote the book? If so, what would it be? If not, why not?

to tell the story. “How did the story begin? Whathappenednext?Howdiditend?" Spring Activity Handout

get

illustrated

1.Thefirsttimeyoureadthebook,showyour childthecoverandaskwhattheythinkthe bookwillbeabout.Readthenameofthe authorandillustratorwhilepointingtoit.Point outthepicturesonthecoverandask“What doyouthinkthebookisabout?”“Whydoyou thinkthat?”Afterlisteningtoyourchild’s response,say“Let’sreadtogetherandsee.” 2.Duringthestory,askyourchild“Howdoyou thinkthemousefeels?”

If You Take a Mouse to School 4-5 Years 111 Writethewordsonindexcardsoronpaperto draw. Then write other words that start with the same sound OR write words that rhyme withtheword.“Bellandbusbothstartwithb, the bbbb sound. What else starts with “b” (or thebbbbsound)?” •Bell •Bus •Desk •Pencil •School •Snack

5.Whatisthefunniestpartofthestory?Write downyourchild’swordsandthenre-read themtogether.

Reading the Story Looking Back Through the Book

talk

Numeroff

Talk

3.Whenyoureadaboutthelunchbox,ask, “Whatwouldyouputinthelunchbox?” 4.Whenthemouseisbuildingwithblocks,ask yourchild,“Whatwouldyoubuild?”

7.Afterthestory,talkaboutittogether.Ask: story.Writedownwhattheysaythepicture isabout. first page, about what the mouse is doing to ready to your child about what they will do at all the different things the mouse does at school. about what your child thinkstheywilldoatschool book by Laura & by Felicia Bond

Words to Write About

8.Askyourchildtodrawapictureaboutthe

LEARNING ACTIVITIES 112 Caring for a young child is the most important job. You are the most important part of your child’s life! You are the one who will give your child a Smart Start.

just have one specific use.

Examples: WHEN YOU PLAY WITH YOUR CHILD: 113

open-ended

imaginations

CHILDREN LEARN BEST THROUGH PLAY! TO PROVIDE FREE AND SPONTANEOUS PLAY TIME: Dress upclothes Old phone, calculator or computer keyboard Paper,pencils,crayons BlocksandLegos Empty boxesorothercontainers Cars,dolls,books Child proof your play space.

materials

Resources Play Everyday

It is important that children get plenty of time for unstructured play each day. Children learn best through play! They always need supervision and a safe environment but they do not always need an adult to participate in their play. Pretend play engages children in reasoning, problem solving and symbolic thinking. This is important for later use of symbols such as letters, words and numbers. Pretend play helps children gain a sense of characters, plot, setting, and dialogue, establishing understanding for later reading experiences. How does that work? Tell me about this? Why did you do it that way? What should we do? How can we fix it? Let your child lead. Follow their lead and play along. Children direct a lot of the play when it is with adults Keep your suggestions occasional, participate and have fun. Play your role well by adding dialogue, action, and materials to play that keep it going. For example, if you are given a pretend shot, you can whimper or tell the doctor she did a good job or ask for a band aid. These things will enhance the play. As children play with each other, they negotiate, compromise, and take the other’s perspective. Playing with other children is important. Talk to your child while you play. Play along with whatever role you are pretending, don’t hesitate to be silly, and have fun! Ask your child open-ended questions that encourage them to think beyond yes or no or one-word answers. Teach your children to be problemsolvers and work together to figure things out. Whether there is an argument or something breaks, ask, “What do you think we should do?” before you jump in with the answer. Provide that are and don’t Encourage children to use their to make up games and roleplay, by themselves or with friends.

Math In the House

Resources

OPPORTUNITIES

WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT ACTIONS, PLANS, AND ACTIVITIES: TOYS THAT PROMOTE MATH LEARNING: • Toys that have several pieces and can be sorted by shape and color • Dice and Spinners • Calculator • Measuring tape • Ruler • Toy cash register and telephone • Play money • Magnet numbers and bathtub numbers • Sorting bowls or cupcake/muffin tray 114

Clean your room. Organize toys and books. Help with laundry by sorting clothes, matching socks, and dividing among family members. Set the table. Each space gets one place setting. Put the silverware away. Use cleaned-out plastic containers and bottles in the bathtub. Compare toys and objects when playing, “this doll is bigger than this book.” “This block is long and flat.” Talk about objects and toys. How are they the same and how are they different? Put toys and materials in order from smallest to largest or largest to smallest. Count out loud to see how long it takes to do something like walk down the hall, put away your toys, and get your pajamas on. Point out the numbers on everything you see, like addresses, phone numbers, remote control, and price tags. Cut up sandwiches and snacks into small pieces like one half or one quarter. Talk about pieces that make up a whole. Use fingers to count. EVERY DAY TO LEARN MATH CONCEPTS: Use time words: later, earlier, yesterday, tomorrow, in the morning, in the evening... Use words that tell the order of things: first, second, third, fourth, last, beginning, end... Use quantity words: more, less, few, many, full, empty... Use positional words: over, under, next to, behind, in front of... Use comparison words: larger, smaller, heavier, lighter, longer, shorter…

Resources Everyday Learning Tips Everyday Learning Tips Everyday Moments Are Teachable Moments Count Everything. Describe Everything. During baby and child care routines, talk to me, tell me what you are doing, what you see, what will happen next, how you feel, etc. Ask Open-Ended Questions. Before answering my question, ask me, “What do you think?” Sing to me. Use a singing voice to talk to me and make up songs when you change my diaper, feed me, or bathe me. As I get older, sing to me as we transition from one activity or responsibility to another. 115

2 Years & Up:

Store toys, books, and other learning materials at my level. I can do more for myself when I can get to the things I need without your help. Have low, secured shelves, boxes, or baskets labeled for toys and books, so I know where things go when we clean up. In the kitchen, pick a cabinet that I can sit down and play with the plastic storage containers and lids. I can take them in and out and put the lids on and take the lids off. Give me a special place to keep my writing and drawing supplies. I want to write with pencils, crayons, and markers. I don't want to lose them. Label familiar items in the house with an index card and the name printed on it. I would like to help with this project. Let me play with an old calculator, phone, or measuring tape. They will help me learn my numbers. Let me look through magazines and materials that are lying around. Ask me if I can find any pictures, shapes, colors, numbers, letters, or words that I know. Keep a calendar posted at my level. Mark important events. Let's talk about the days of the week, the month, and count from left to right.

Learning at Home Cultivate a Learning Environment

Resources Everyday Learning Tips 116

Learning at Home Cultivate a Learning Environment 2-3Years: Startgivingmesmallresponsibilitiesaroundthehouse.Icanhelpclean upmytoys,putmyshoesinthecloset,andtakemycuptothesink. Let me help sort the laundry. I can separate by colors or divide the clothesfromthetowels. I can help with cleaning. Give me a clean rag or sponge to wipe windowsortables.Ilovetofollowyouanddowhatyouaredoing. Singa"cleanupsong"withmewhenyouhelpmeputmytoysaway. Help me count and organize shoes in our closets. I can find shoes that match. Letmehelpoutside.Icanlearntopullweedsanddigholesforplanting. Let me look through magazines and materials that are lying around. Ask me if I can find any pictures, shapes, colors, numbers, letters, or wordsthatIknow. Keep a calendar posted at my level-mark important events. Let's talk aboutthedaysoftheweek,themonth,andcountfromlefttoright. Resources Everyday Learning Tips 117

3-5Years: Make a list or chart of my chores, so I can read them and checkthemoff.Wecandothistogether. I can do more around the house. I can clean up my messes androom.Icanstarthelpingwithothertaskslikewashing off the counters or tables, putting laundry in rooms or drawers,orcarryingthedishestothesink. I can do more with laundry, like sorting into piles of colors ormatchingsocks.

I can put the silverware away and make sure it gets in the rightspotinthedrawer.

Learning at Home Cultivating

a Learning Environment Resources Everyday Learning Tips 118

I can put the food away in the pantry or cabinet on the shelves I can reach and with a step stool. This helps me learnsortingandorganization.

Let me get out of the stroller and explore. I like to touch things. Use wordstodescribewhatIamfeeling,seeing,smelling,andhearing. Readeverythingliketrafficsigns,storesigns,andthewritingontrucks. Tellmewhatlettersyouseethatareinmyname.

0-1Year: Let me use my senses. Use a variety of words to describe what we are seeing, hearing, and smelling. Let me touch some things on our walk, likeleaves,sticks,rocks,andgrass. Take me out of the stroller sometimes and carry me. Change my positionsoIcanseethingsfromadifferentpointofview.

3-5Years: Help me with balance as I walk along the curb, tape lines, or sidewalk cracks. Play "I spy" while we are taking a walk. Take turns guessing. Use colors,shapes,andsizestodescribewhatwespy. Let's count the steps we walk from one place to another for short distances.

Singwithmewhilewearewalkingtogether. Talk to me. Tell me what you see, where we are going, and what we willdowhenwegetthere.

Learning on a Walk

Resources- Everyday Learning Tips 119

1-3Years:

Learning on the Road

1-2 Years: Give me a book or toy to hold in the car. I will probably throw it down eventually, but I like to look at it. Talk about what we see on the road, like signs, stores, and flowers. Read the print along the road, “STOP-stop sign!” Tell me how traffic lights work. “Red means stop, green means go.” Count the number of cars, trees, light posts, stop signs, big trucks. Count anything we see. Count how long it takes for the light to turn green.

Always bring books along when we go somewhere. We may have time to look at them.

Resources- Everyday Learning Tips 120

ALWAYS put me in a properly secured car seat when I ride in a vehicle. Sing with me while we are traveling. Talk to me. Tell me what you see, where we are going, and what we will do when we get there.

3-5 Years: Rhyme on the road. Come up with real or silly words to rhyme with what we see or what we hear on the radio. Ask me to read the road signs. I bet I can read some restaurant and street signs and even tell you some letters. Play the alphabet game. Begin with the letter ” A” and together work to find each letter of the alphabet. Ask me if I can find things like a red car, a blue sign, a brown building, a gas station, and a restaurant.

Talktomeaboutwhatweareshoppingforandaskformyhelp. Remindmethatwewaitinlinetocheckoutofthestore.

Give me coupons or ad flyers to hold when we shop to see if I can match thewordsorlabelsfromthepapertowhatisontheshelfatthestore. Play “I Spy!” Look for colors, shapes, foods, letters, and numbers that I'mfamiliarwith.Taketurnsguessinganddescribingthings. AskmetotellyouaboutthethingsthatIsee. Ask me to counttheitemsas we put them in the basket, or we can count together.

Pack some books. We may have to wait somewhere, or I can look at themwhileridinginthecar.

Learning at the Store

3-5Years: Talk about the letters you see, the ones from my name or other ones I know.Tellmemorewordsthatstartwiththoseletters. Read the labels on packages and in the store. Spell out some words or tellmethenumbers. Count the number of items in the grocery cart or basket. Count other thingsyouseeinthestore.

1-2Years: Talktomewhileshopping.Tellmewhatyouareputtinginthecart. Talk about the colors of the boxes in the store. Count how many things youputinthecartatatime.Tellmeitiscoldbythefrozensection.

Resources Everyday Learning Tips 121

Ta s, sw Let me spread butter and jelly, or anything else I put on my bread. Find something for me to help with like stirring, getting supplies from the pantry or refrigerator, measuring, or pouring. A I to le M Use placemats with numbers, shapes, colors, or letters. I can look at them and learn while I eat. Remind me that I need healthy food to make me strong, and that food is what makes me grow. 0-2 Years: Talk about the food I'm eating. What is it, how does it feel, what color is it? Use words like creamy, soft, cold, and warm. Talk about how much food or drink I have. Use words like half, full, whole, cut-up, a little, more. Count the number of bites I take, and when I get old enough, count the pieces on my plate. Learning at the Table Preparing Food Family Meals 2+ Years: Resources Everyday Learning Tips 122

Ask

Resources Everyday Learning Tips 123

Talk about how much food or drink I have and use words like half, full, whole, cut-up, a little, more.

Learning at the Table Family Meals

Describe each food group and help me identify the things on my plate that belong in each group: whole grains, dairy, protein, fruit, and veggies.

Use words for comparing and describing the food. You have more green beans than carrots. The mashed potatoes take up half of your plate! You had six chicken nuggets, you ate one, and now you have five. You ate half of your sandwich.

If to take just a little and get more if I'm still hungry.

I can pour my milk or water. Put it in a measuring cup for me. me questions about my day. Encourage me to ask other people questions. Talk to me about my food, such as the color, the name, how it tastes, and how it feels. Help me count the pieces of food on my plate.

Take a few minutes to help me clean up my room before bed. This is a great habit for me to start. Let me pick up my pajamas and put my clothes in the dirty clothes hamper. Ask me questions about tomorrow. What do you think the weather will be like? What should we have for breakfast? Read to me or tell me a story while we snuggle. I might want to read you a story or tell you one.

Learning at Bedtime

Keep a routine at bedtime. Read books, brush teeth/gums, sing songs to me, snuggle.

1-2 Years

Remind me about our routine. First, we get into PJs, second, we brush teeth, third, we read books while we snuggle, fourth, we sing a song, fifth, we fall asleep. Talk to me when you undress me and put my pajamas on. Say things like let me put your right arm in, and now your left. Tell me to put my dirty clothes in the hamper and my diaper in the trash. I want to be helpful. Talk to me and sing quiet songs to me. Let's snuggle as I go to bed.

3-5 Years

Resources Everyday Learning Tips 124

0-1 Year:

Resources Everyday Learning Tips 125

1-5 Years: Provide plastic water bottles, measuring cups, or plastic storage containers for me to play with. Talk to me about what half and full are and use words like more and less. Provide different toys to play with and play with me. Talk about sinking and floating. Talk to me about the temperature of the water. Are you adding hot to make it warmer? Provide waterproof books for me to look at in the tub. Read to me while I play in the tub, especially when I am a toddler and enjoy moving so much.

If I coo or babble while you wash me, talk right back. Mimic my sounds or say something in response. Take turns.

Never leave me alone in the tub! Ignore the doorbell and phone, or take me with you to answer it. Ask me about my day. I may be relaxed in the tub and share more. Name my body parts as you wash or dry me off. Make up a silly bathtub song to sing to me when it's time to get in or out of the tub.

Look into my eyes as you gently wash me and talk to me, about 8-10 inches from my face.

When I am big enough to sit up in some water, provide containers for me to fill and empty. Play with me and use words like pour, empty, and splash.

Learning at Bath Time

126 Learning Activities 0-1 Years

127

Fall Activity Handout

Baby Blocks Years

0-1

Naming Game

Remember TActivities

Lineuptheblocksinarow,describing what you are doing. “I am putting the blueblocknexttothepinkblock.Iam makingarow.” Hand your child a block and say, “Will you please help me make a row of blocks?”Ifyourbabyputstheblockin the general area of the row, say “Thank you for putting your blue blockintherow.Youarehelpingme.”

Talkaboutwhichrowhasmoreblocks or has fewer blocks. Talk about which row is longer and which row is shorter.

Take the blocks out of the packaging and put them on the floor for your baby. Let yourbabyexplorethepiecesontheirown. They may chew on them. Sit with your child and just observe. After a few minutes, begin describing what your baby is doing with the blocks. “You are holding the blue block.” Once your child has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with your child using the activities,oneatatime. Describe your baby’s actions while you are playing. Model sharing and saying “please” and “thank you.” If your baby loses interest, stop playing and try again

o Begin

Count the blocks from left to right. Touch each block with your finger, or guide your child’s finger, as you say each number. Create more rows and continue to count with your child.

All in a Row

Talkabouttheblocks.Describecolors, pictures,letterandnumbersonthem. “Thisonehasawagononit.Whatdoes your block have on it?” Your baby mightrespondwithababbleor smile. After they respond, say, “Your block hasaredball.Weliketorollourball backandforth.” Themoredescriptiveyoucanbewith theblocks,thebetter.

Toucheachblockasyoucountit. Start by placing a block in each of your hands Hand your baby a block Hold the other block out for them to reach and grab. If they take the block, say, “You have 2 blocks and I have none. Will you please hand me a block?” When they hand it to you,say,“Thankyou.NowIhaveoneblock likeyou.” Choose a block and hand it to your baby. Say, “Would you like to hold the blue block? I will hold the green block.” Then say, “I have the green block, and you have the blue block. May I have your block?” When your baby hands you the block, say, “Thank you. Do you want the green block?”Handthemtheblock.

If your baby is not participating, hand them a block and say, “Please put the block in the basket” and show them by putting a block in the basket. Make sure you say, “Thank you” if they put a block in thebasket. It may take a few times before they help youcleanup. Sing a song to make it more fun. "Let's all putourtoysaway,toysaway,toysaway."

Basket Fun Fall Activity Handout

Sharing Blocks Stacking Blocks

Baby Blocks 0-1 Years 128

Remember to model the behavior you want from your baby. Begin placing blocks in the basket and say, “It is time to clean up.Iamputtingablueblockinthebasket. Whatblockareyouputtinginthebasket?”

Let your baby knock down the stack of blocks. Say, “You knocked them down! Let'sstackthemupagain!”

Activities cont. Stack one block on top of another and say, “I am stacking the blocks. Will you please help me?” Hand your child a block. Build short stacks together. Describe the blocks theypickupandplaceonthetower.

Build block towers side by side Describe and compare the blocks you use to make your towers. For example, “You have a yellow block on the bottom of your tower, and I have a blue block on the bottom of my tower.” Babies are not able to stack manyblocks,sokeepyourtowersshort. Count the number of blocks in the stack.

Clean Up Take turns putting blocks into the basket. Count the blocks one by one as you put them in, or say what color the block is. Say, “Let’s put the green block in the basket.” Empty the basket or let your child empty the basket. Say, “You dumped the blocks out.” “Can you put the blocks back in?” Describe the blocks as your baby puts theminthebasket.

Your baby may not answer with words. It may be with a sound or a coo. Or they may just look at you and shake their arms and legs. Respond to their method of communication, even when it is not words. You might say “Oh, you want me to put this over here with the othe When your baby makes a sound, exp on their response, “Yes, I am your ma andweareplayingtogether.”

0–1 YEARStacking Rings Fall Activity Handout Ring Play Sharing Rings TActivities o Begin Remember 129

When your baby has a ring in their nd,saythecolorofthering. and the rings back and forth. “You ve the blue ring. Will you please nd me the red ring? Thank you, reistheyellowoneforyou.”

Sit on the floor with your baby and taketheringsoffthecone.Say,“Iam taking off the yellow ring” as you removeit..Placetheringonthefloor infrontofyourbaby,closeenoughfor themtoreachit. Take the next ring off the cone. Describewhatyouaredoing.Watch toseeifyourbabyreachesforaring orfortheringsonthecone. Handyourbabyaringtoexplore.Say, “Itookofftheblueone,andyouare holdingtheyellowone.” Haveyourbabytryandtakeoffeach ring,onebyone.Say,“Youaretaking off the red ring” as your baby takes theringoffthecone. Yourbabymayholdtheringsandput themintheirmouth.Thisisapartot exploring.

Set the stacking rings on the floor in front of your baby. Let them explore the toy on their own. They may chew on the rings. Sit with your child and observe. After a few minutes, begin describing what your baby is doing with the toy. “You are holding the orange ring.” Once your child has had the opportunity to explore, begin to play with your child using the following activities, oneatatime. Make sure to use descriptive words to describe your baby’s actions while you are playing. If your baby loses interest, stop playing and try another time. This is a special time for you and your baby and itshouldbeenjoyableforbothofyou.

Oncetheringsareinarow,countthem whiletouchingeachring.“Wehavesix rings! Would you like to hold the smallestring?Ihavethebiggestring. Wouldyoulikeanotherring?Iwillgive youthisbig,purplering.Nowyouhave twoandIhaveone.”

Stacking Rings

Fall Activity Handout

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Whileyourchildiswatching,turnthe basketoverandhidearingunderneath it.Say,“Whereisthegreenring?Can you find it?” Show excitement when theyliftthebasketandfindthering. Take turns hiding and finding rings. Describe your play. “I wonder where the rings are. I am looking under the basket. I found two rings under the basket,ablueandorangeone!”Ifyour child cannot lift the basket, use the blanketforhiding. Basket of Rings

Counting Rings Activities cont.

“It is time to clean up our toys. Let’s put the rings back on the cone.” If your baby has lost interest, just describe what you are doing as you puttheringsontheconeandputthe toyaway.

Seeifyourchildcanputtheringsback onthecone.Putthefirstoneonand see if they will copy you. They may struggletoputthemon.Youmayhelp byhandingthemoneorholdingtwo outandlettingthemgrabonetotry. Remember to talk about what they aredoing.“Youaretryingtoputthe big,redringonthecone.Youdidit!”

As your baby plays this game more andmore,begintoletthemchoose theringtoputonthecone.Itmaynot bethecorrectring,buttheyneedto discoverthatforthemselves.Youcan describewhatishappeningforthem astheytrytosolvetheproblem.“It lookslikethatringwon’tslideallthe waydowntheconetotouchthered one.Oh,youaretakingitoffnow.You aregoingtotrythepurplering.Let’s seewhathappens.”

Layalltheringsonthefloor.Putthem inorder,smallesttolargest,goingleft toright.Describewhatyouare doing asyouputtheminorder.Say,“Thisring goesnextbecauseitisbigger.”

Placetheringsonthefloornexttothe basket.Say,“Let’sputoneringinthe basket.Whichcolorwillyouchoose?” Narratetheiractionsastheyputrings in and take them out. “You put an orange ring in the basket. You are holdingabluering.”

Clean Up StackingRings

0–1 YEAR

Winter Activity Handout Nesting Cups 0-1 Years To Begin

When your baby makes a sound such as “aaahhh”, expand on their response by saying, “Yes, I am your da da, and we are playingtogether.”

As you put the cups in a row from smallest to largest, say, “Let’s make a row of cups. The purple cup will be first because it is the smallest. This red cup is the next smallest.” For the lastcup,say,“Thisisthelargestcup.”

Place the cups in front of your baby. Let your baby explore the cups on their own. Sit with your baby and observe. After several minutes, begin describing what your baby is doing with the cups. “You are holding the blue cup. It is smaller than the others.” Once your baby has had the opportunity to explore the materials, play with your baby using the following activities,oneatatime. Your baby probably won’t remain interested in an activity for more than a few minutes. If your baby loses interest, stop playing and try again another time. This is a special time for you and your baby, and it should be enjoyable for both ofyou. Your baby may not answer with words. It may be with a sound or a coo. They may just look at you with excitement or interest and shake their arms and legs. Make sure you respond to their communication, even if it is not words. When they respond to you, expand on their response by saying, “Oh, you want me to put this over here with the others.”

Activities Row of Cups

Line them up in order from smallest tolargest,workinglefttoright.

After playing ROW OF CUPS several times and as your baby approaches theirfirstbirthday,theymaybeginto help you line them up from smallest tolargest. Once the cups are lined up smallest to largest, ask your baby, “Where is a small cup?” or “Can you find the biggest cup?” Your baby may point to or touch the cup before they use words.

Remember 131

Then describe what your baby does withthecups.

Onceyouandyourbabyhaveplayed several times, you may ask them to identifythedifferentcupsbasedon their color. You might say, “Do you wanttheblueortheorangecup?”

Activities cont. Counting Cups Winter Activity Handout Nesting Cups 0-1 Years

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Hold a cup in each hand and tap them together. Sing a song, sing the ABC’sorcountasyoutap. Making Music Bath Time Fun Nesting cups are a great bathtub toy. Your child will enjoy filling the cups with water and dumping them out. They can see if the cups float or sink, and pretend to make food and drinks. Encourage them to use their imagination.Therearemanywaysto playwiththistoy.

Linethecupsupinarowandcount them, putting your finger on each cup when you say the number. Alwaysgofromlefttoright. Handyourbabyacupandsay,“You haveonecup.Doyouwantanother one?” Handthemanothercuptoholdin their other hand. Say, “Now you havetwocups.”Toucheachcupand say,“one,two.” Placedifferentnumbersofcupsina circleandcount.Putyourfingeron eachcupwhenyousaythenumber.

Thankstothetimeyouspendplaying withyourbaby,theywilleventually begin to recognize the different colors.Youmightsay,“Canyou touch the yellow cup?” to see if they recognizecolors.Iftheydon’tanswer, point, or touch the cup, you can touch it and say “This is the yellow cup.Canyoutouchtheyellowcup?”

As you line the cups up, say the colors.Chooseacupandhanditto your baby. Say, “Would you like to hold the blue cup? I will hold the green cup.” Then say, “I have the greencup,andyouhavethebluecup. MayIhavethebluecup?”Whenyour baby hands you the blue cup, say, “Thankyou.Wouldyoulikethegreen cup?”andhandthemthegreencup. Holdtwocupsandaskyourbabyto selectone.“Wouldyoulikeoneofthe cups that I am holding? You picked thesmall,yellowcup.Istillhavethe bigger,redcup.”

Colored Cups

Hide toys under the cups and have your child look for them. Start with two cups. Say, “Which cup has the ball in it? Try again. You found it!! It wasunderthebluecup.”

Activities cont. Bottom Down Winter Activity Handout Nesting Cups 0-1 Years

Hide and Go Seek

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Placealarge,mediumand smallcup withinreachofyourchild.Pickup the medium cup and say, “I am goingtoputthiscupinsideofthis big cup.” Place the cup inside the otheroneandsay,“Canyouputthat cupinsidethisone?” Describetheiractionsastheyplay withthecups,“Youputthesmaller bluecupintothelargergreencup. Welldone!” Takeoutthetwosmallercupsand ask them to put them back inside thelargecup.Theymayonlybeable to do one at a time instead of nestingtwoinsidethelargestcup. When they have mastered placing smallercupsinsidelargercups,add more. Play alongside and describe your playasyouputthecupsinsideone another. Put other small toys in the cups. Dump them out or shake them to make a rattle. “I am putting the ball into the cup. You dumped the ball out of the cup. What happens when you shake the cup? It makes a rattlingsound.” Shake, Rattle, and Roll Clean Up

Stackthecupsandplacethemback where they belong for safekeeping. Your baby may help you, by collectingacup,handingyouacup, orhelpingyouputthestackofcups away. Singasongtomakecleaningmore fun!

Encourageyourbabytopickoutthe blocks with their fingers. You do it first and they should copy you. Say, “Look I found a blue one! Which one will you find?” Then describe what they pull out. Say, “You found ayellowstar.”

In and Out Shape Sorter 0-1 Years Winter Activity Handout

Remove the lid and pick up a shape and hand it to your baby. Name the shape and color of each block as they hold them. “This is a blue triangle.” They might put these in theirmouthorbangthemtogether.

The shape sorter is a very challenging toy. Placing the shape in the proper hole is difficult and takes practice. Your baby will try many times before succeeding and may need time to grow and develop before mastering the skill. Be patient and enjoy the processoflearningwithyourchild.

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To Begin Activities Remember

With the lid open, pick up a block and put it in the box. Hand your baby a block and say, “Let’s put the blocks inside the box.” Once filled, see if your baby can shut the lid. Say,“You shut the lid. Can you open it again,please?”

Open the top of the box and let your baby explore the box and blocks. They may chewontheblocks.Sitwithyourbabyand observe. After several minutes, begin describing what your baby is doing with the shape sorter. “You opened the lid. What do you see inside?” If they pull a block out, say, “You found a blue square. Do you want to find another one?” Once your baby has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with your baby using the following activities, oneatatime.

Share and model saying “please” and “thank you” when playing with your baby. If your baby loses interest, stop playing and try again another time. This is a special time for you and your baby, and it should be enjoyableforbothofyou.

Putthelidbackonthebucketandletyour baby explore and try and fit the blocks intotheshapedholes.Remember,placing the shaped blocks in the proper hole is verychallenging. Iftheystruggle,helpthemmovetheblock around to fit. Say, “Maybe it fits in a differenthole.Theroundblockfitsinthe circlehole,”andshowthemthecirclehole, or “Try this block” and hand them the block that fits the hole. You may also gentlyplaceyourhandovertheirstohelp themturntheshapeuntilitfitsinthehole. Theymaygetfrustratedandtakethelid off. That is fine. Eventually, they will be abletoputtheblocksintothesmallholes. Youdonotneedtotaketheblocksaway from your baby and place them in the correctholesforthem.Theywillbeginto loseinterestandmaydoubttheirabilityto succeed.

Stacking Blocks Stacktheblocksontopofeachother.See howhighyoucanbuildatower.Say,“The bluesquareisonthebottom.Let’sputa yellowcircleontopofit.”

Clean Up

Winter Activity Handout 135

Eachtimeyouoryourbabyaddablockto thetower,re-counttheblocksinthetower. “…one,two,three,four.Nowwehavefour blocks.” When the tower falls, say, “Boom, it fell down! Let’s build it again. Which block shouldbeonthebottom?”

Oncetheblocksaregrouped,count thenumberofgroups,touchingeach groupasyoucount. If your baby is interested, mix the blocksupandsortthemagain. Oncetheblocksaresorted,countthe numberofblocksineachgroup,one groupatatime.Say,“Thereare2blue blocks. One, two. This group has three.One,two,three.”

Shape Sorter 0-1 Years Activities. cont. Puzzle Box

Remembertomodelforthem.Say,“If youarefinishedplaying,weneedto put the blocks back in the box, please. Which block will you put in first?”Besuretothankthemifthey putablockin,butknowthatthefirst fewtimesyoumayputalltheblocks inthebox. You may gently hold your baby’s handwiththeblockinitandmoveit totheboxifneeded. Singingmakescleaningupmorefun!

Sorting Shapes

Dumptheblocksoutoftheboxonto the floor. Put the blocks in groups, basedoncolor.Say,“Ifound2blue blocksandIwillputthemhere.What color is your block?” They probably won’t “answer” but this is good modeling.Theymaybabblebackto you.Answertheirbabblebysaying, “Yes, you have the orange triangle. Where should we put the orange blocks?”

Open the top of the box and let your baby explore the box and blocks. They may chew on them. Sit with your baby and observe. After several minutes, take a block out and describe the color to your baby. Once your baby has had the opportunity to explore, begin to play with your baby using the following activities, oneatatime. Ifyourbabylosesinterest,stopplayingand tryagainanothertime.Thisisaspecialtime for you and your baby, and it should be enjoyableforbothofyou. Yourbabymaynotanswerwithwords.It maybewithasoundoracoo.Ortheymay justlookatyouwithexcitementorinterest and shake their arms and legs. Make sure yourespondtotheircommunication.When they respond to you, expand on their response. “Oh, you want me to put this blue block withtheotherblueblocks.” “You are holding a yellow block. Do you wanttokeepitandIwillfindanotherone?” “Doyouwantmetoputtheredblocksover here?” When your baby makes a sound such as “aaahhh”,expandonitbysaying,“Yes,Iam yourmamaandweareplayingwithyour blocks.”

Linking Blocks 0-1 Year To Begin

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Remember Spring Activity Handout

Activities Block Sort

Spread the blocks on the floor and sort them into piles by color. Say, “Can you put the blue ones over here?” Model the activity for them whiledescribingwhatyouaredoing. “I found a blue block and I am putting it over here with the other blue blocks. Where should we put theyellowblock?”

Once the blocks are in color piles, count the blocks in each pile, touchingeachblockasyoucountit. Giveyourbabyablockfromoneof thepilesandsay,“Wheredoesthis yellow block belong?” Feel free to pointtothepileofyellowblocksand say, “Here is the pile of yellow blocks.”Watchwhatyourbabydoes. You may want to demonstrate by takingayellowblockfromthepile andplacingitbackinthepileasyou say, “My yellow block goes here.” Yourbabymayjustobserveatfirst, andnotactuallyputtheyellowblock inthepile. Asyourbabygetsolder,givethem directionstofollow.Forexample,put all of the blocks in a pile between you. Say, “Please take one yellow blockoutofthepile.Canyouplease givemetwoblueblocks?Thankyou.” If your baby doesn’t follow your directions, you do it and tell them what you are doing. Say, “I am pickinguptwoblueblocks,”or“Now I am handing you 3 yellow blocks. Youhave3blocksandIhave2.”

When they hand you the block, say “Thankyou.NowIhaveoneblocklike you.”Handthembackandforthtoone another.

Helpyourchildpulltheblocksapartand encouragethemtorebuild.Say,“Youput theblueoneontopoftheyellowone.”

Activities cont. 0-1 Year Sharing Blocks

Building With Blocks 137 Spring Activity Handout Linking Blocks

Thenholdtheotherblockoutforyour child to take. “Would you like this block?” Iftheytaketheblock,say,“Youhave2 blocks and I have none. Could you pleasehandmeoneofyourblocks?”

Startbyplacingablockineachofyour hands. Holdablockoutforyourbabytotake. Theyshouldalreadyhaveoneintheir hand.“Wouldyoulikethisone?”Ifthey takeit,say,“YouhavetwoblocksandI have none. Will you please hand me oneofyourblocks?”

Hook the pieces into one another. Let yourbabyexplorewiththeblocksand trytofitthemtogether. Theymaygetfrustrated.Tryencouraging themfirstandletthemtryagaininstead ofdoingitforthem. Youmaysay,“Youaretryingtoputthem togetherlikeIdid.Iknowyoucandoit. Tryagain.”Youmayevenwanttomodel againforthemwithdifferentblocks. Helpyourchildpulltheblocksapart.This willbeaneasiertask.Iftheycontinueto struggleputtingblockstogether,youput them together so they can pull them apart! When your child succeeds, say, “Wow, you worked hard to get those blocks hookedtogether.”Or,"youworkedhard topullthoseblocksapart!" Eventually,yourbabywillputmoreand more together. Describe what they do. “Youputthreeblueblockstogether.Can youaddanotherone?”

PutOurToysAway Tune:MaryHadaLittleLamb Let’sputallourtoysaway,toysaway, toysaway. Let’sputallourtoysawaytouse anotherday. 138 Linking Blocks Spring Activity Handout

Clean Up

Activities cont. Counting Blocks 0-1 Year

Place three blocks on the ground in front of you and count them…one, two, three. Then pick up another block and say, “Three blocks plus one block equals four blocks” as you set the fourth block down next to the three blocks. Then touch each block as you count…one, two, three, four. Repeat this activity, taking away blocks. Put a block in each of your baby’s hands. Then pick up a block in your hand and say, “You have two blocks and I have one. One, two, three. Togetherwehavethreeblocks.”

If your baby is not participating, handthemablockandsay,“Please puttheblockinthebox”andshow thembyputtingablockinthebox. Make sure you say, “Thank you” if theyputablockinthebox.Itmay takeafewtimesbeforetheyhelp youcleanup. You may gently hold your baby’s handwiththeblockinitandmove ittotheboxifneeded. Singingmakescleanupmorefun!

Remembertomodelforyourbaby thebehavioryouwantfromthem. Beginbyplacingtheblocksinthe boxandsay,“Itistimetocleanup.I amputtingared blockinthebox. Whichblockareyouputtinginthe box?”

How Many?

Ball Play 0-1 Year Spring Activity Handout TActivities o Begin

Hand your child the ball or gently roll it to them. The first time you play, describe it to your child. “The ball is yellow and round. It feels bumpy whenIrubmyhandoverit.”

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Playing with the ball is good for your child’s large muscle development and hand eye coordination. Ballplay is a great opportunity to uselanguagetogether. Describe what is happening as youplay. “You picked up the ball withyourlefthand.”

Remember

Hide & Go Seek Showyourbabytheball. Placeitbehindyourback. Ask your baby, “Where is the ball?” Encourage your child to find it and celebrate when they do.“Youfoundit!”

Take turns rolling the ball back andforth.Yourbabyneedslots of practice catching and rolling tofeelconfidentaboutit. Count each roll together out loud. As your baby begins crawling, theymaycrawltotheballifyou rollitjustoutoftheirreach.

Now place the ball under a blanketortowel. Ask your baby, “Where is the ball?” Encourage your child to find it and celebrate when they do.“Youfoundit!” Once they get comfortable finding the ball, put it other placesaroundtheroomforthem tofind.Yourchildcanevenhide itforyou.

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1-2 Years

Identify the animals and make the sounds they make. Encourage your childtomakethesoundswithyou. Place the animals on the floor and say,“Ispyahorse.Canyoufindit?” Whentheypointtoorpickupthe animal, say, “Yes, you found the horse! Can you say, horse?” Then, continue identifying the other animals. Makeananimalsound.Say,“Which animal makes that sound?” Follow upwithacompletesentence,“Yes, the pig makes that oink sound!” Encourage your child to make the animalsounds. Name the shapes and their colors, andnametheotherblockpieces.

Place a triangle block on top of a square block. Say, “Look, the red triangle is on top of the square. I madeahouse.” Give your child a red block and see if they will make a house. Ask, “Can you make a house?” After they make the house, ask them, “What else can youmakewiththeblocks?”

Your toddler may show interest at first, but then want to move on to something else. Invite them back, but do not make them play if they continue to be uninterested. Stopplayingandtryagainatanothertime. Make sure to use descriptive words to describe your toddler’s actions while you are playing. Share and model saying “please”and“thankyou.” Open the soft block farm set with your toddler. Name the pieces as you take them outofthepackage.Letyourtoddlerexplore the toy on their own. Sit with them and just observe. After a few minutes, describe what your toddler is doing with the toy. “You are holding the cow.” When they are exploring the blocks, talk about how the blocks feel, what they look like, and if one piece is bigger or smaller than another. “Look, the cow is bigger than the pig.” Once your toddler has explored the materials, play with your toddler using the following activities,oneatatime.

While they are building with the blocks, say to them, "Tell me about what you are making?” and then listentowhattheysay. Stack the blocks. Play with the pieces, moving the animals and people around and on top of the other blocks. Say, “The sheep is on topoftheblock.”

Name the Animal Building Basics Soft Block Farm 1–2 YEARS Fall Activity Handout TActivities o Begin Remember 141

As you play with your toddler say thingslike,“Thehorseisnexttothe pig.” Make up small stories with the pieces. Use silly voices for the animals. Ask,“Whatelsecangoonourfarm?”

Remember to model for your toddler the behavior you want from them. Begin placing the pieces in the container and say, “It is time to clean up. I am putting the cow in the container. What are you putting in thecontainer?” If your toddler is not participating, put a block into the container as you say, “I am putting the pig in the container.” Then show them two blocks and say, “Which animal will you put into the container?” Make sure you say, “Thank you” if they put a block in the container. It may take a few times before they helpyoucleanup.Keeptrying. Sing a clean up song to make it more enjoyable. Clean Up Fall Activity Handout Activities cont.

Soft Block Farm 1–2 YEARS 142

Make a suggestion if they don’t respond thefenc Sing“OldMcDonaldhadaFarm.”You can find it in your songs and fingerplays.Usethefarmanimalsand their noises and then pick new animals. Maketheanimalsdancetothesong asyousingit. Actoutthesongusingtheanimals.

Silly MSinging ake Believe

Takethebrownblocksandhelpyour toddlermakeasquareonthefloor. Youcancallitafenceorabarn. Playwiththedifferentanimalsand people, putting them inside and outsidethefence.Say,“Thisiswhere theanimalslive.Willyoupleasehelp me put the animals inside the fence?” Asyourtoddlerbeginstorecognize the animals, ask questions such as “Canyoupleaseputthecowinside the fence?” Be sure to emphasize wordslike“inside”andoutside.”

Divide the pieces up between you and count them, “One, two, three, you have three. One, two, three, I havethree.” If your toddler is holding one piece, offer them another. “Would you like to hold this piece? Now you have twopieces.” Leave the pieces in the puzzle or removeandplacethemonthefloor facing your toddler. Describe each pieceasyoupointtoit.Forexample, “Thisoneisabrownhorse” Ask, “Which one is your favorite?” They may point or pick it up. Describe the way it looks in more detail.Talkaboutthecolorsyousee. Eachtimeyouplay,theymaychoose a different piece. Then show them which one is your favorite and describeittothem. Astheygetmorefamiliarwiththe pieces, try asking them to find a certainpiece.Forexample,findthe piecewithblueandgreenonit.If they choose the wrong piece, just say“Thatonehasorangeandblue. Whereistheonethathasgreenand blue?”

Pieces Playing with Pieces Peg Puzzle Fall Activity Handout Peg Puzzle 1–2 YEARS TActivities o Begin Remember 143

Take turns putting the pieces in the puzzle. Let your toddler take the lead, but iftheydon’tunderstandthatthepiecefits back in the space, show them and describe what you are doing. Then, encouragethemtotryagain. If your toddler loses interest, stop playing and try another time. This is a special time for you and your toddler, and it should be enjoyableforbothofyou. Put the puzzle on the floor in front of your toddler. Ask, “What do you see? It is a puzzle.” When your child is exploring the pieces, talk about how they are shaped, what colors they are, and what you see on the puzzle pieces. Once your toddler has exploredthematerials,begintoplaywith your toddler using the following activities, oneatatime.

Count each piece while it is in the puzzle. Take the pieces out and line them up on the floor in front of your toddler. Count each piece, touching itasyoucount. If your child chooses to hold a piece, talk about it. “You are holding one piece.NowIamholdingthispiece.”

Counting

Make sure and use a variety of wordsinyourstorytodevelopyour toddler’svocabulary. Leavingthepiecesinthepuzzle,or removing and placing on the floor facing your toddler, identify the picture on each piece and then something it does (a cow says MOOOandeatsgrass).

Clean

Activities cont.

Talking Pieces What does it do? Up

The first few times you play this game,letyourchildchooseapiece, anddescribeittothem.Whenthey get more familiar with the pieces, describetheactionthepiecemakes andhavethemfindthepiece.

Peg Puzzle 1–2 ARS

Ask your toddler to help you put the pieces back in the puzzle if they are not in the puzzle. They could simply hand you the pieces as you put them in their spot, or you can each put pieces in the puzzle. If the puzzle is already complete, ask them to put it on the shelf where it belongs. If they are reluctant to participate, say, “We can carry it together. Which side of the puzzle will youhold?”

Makeupastoryusingthepiecesof thepuzzle.Forexample,putallthe piecesinarowwithsomespacein betweeneachpieceonthefloorin front of your toddler. Say, “The sheepwantedtoplayoneday,so theysetofftofindafriend.”Have your child move down the row of pieces,goinglefttoright,meeting eachoftheotheranimalpieces. You can tell the same story each timeyouplaythisgame,oryoucan makeupadifferentstory.

Puzzle Strategy Fall Activity Handout 144

Takeonepieceoutofthepuzzleboard and place it in front of your child. Encourageyourchildtotryandputit back in. If they are struggling, first describe what they are doing. For example,say“Youareputtingthepiece inwiththepictureupsidedownandit doesn’tfit.Let’stryturningit.” Iftheybecometoofrustrated,putyour handontheirsandhelpthemputthe piece in the puzzle. Use words to describewhatyouaredoing. Continuetakingthepiecesoutoneata timeuntiltheybuildconfidenceintheir abilitytofiteachoneintothepuzzle board.Then,begintakingtwoorthree piecesoutatatime. When you complete the puzzle, say “Wow!Wedidit.Wereallyworkedhard toputthatpuzzletogether.”

If they choose the wrong piece, simplysay,“ThesheepsaysBAAAA, what animal makes the sound MOOOO?”

o Begin Take the Stack and Roll pieces out of the box and place the pieces in front of your toddler. Say, “What do you see?” As they explore the pieces, describe the shapes and colors they touch. Once your toddler has played with the materials for a few minutes, you are ready to play the following activities. You can gradually increase the number of pieces you use whenyouplaytogether. These activities have been created to challenge your toddler to help them develop.Thatmeansyoumayneedtoplay an activity several times before your toddlerparticipates. Ifyourtoddlerlosesinterest,stopplaying andtryanothertime.Thisisaspecialtime foryouandyourtoddleranditshouldbe enjoyableforbothofyou. Make sure you model the behavior you wantfromyourchild.Taketurns,shareand say “please” and“thank you” as you play togeth Exploration

Find the pieces that fit together. Practiceputtingthemtogetherand pullingthemapart.Encouragethem tofindthepiecesthatfit.

Remember TActivities

Explorethepieces.Practicestacking andputtingthemtogether. Trade pieces back and forth, sharing, and saying “please” and “thank you.” Say “May I have the yellow piece? Thank you.” OR “Wouldyoulikearedpiece?”

Practicerollingthepieceswhenyou maketheballshape. Have your toddler put the smiling faceinsideaballshape.“Iputthe smilingfaceinsidetheball.Canyou take it out?" OR “Can you put the smiling face inside?” OR “Where doesthisgo?”

Describehowyouopenthepieces and fit them back together. “Try twistinglikethis.” Pick up different pieces that don’t go together and try to connect them.Askyourtoddlertohelpfind the right piece to fit. Have your toddler help you try fitting pieces together. Inside and Out

Stack and Roll 1–2 Years 145 Winter Activity Handout

Sorting Stackers

Stacking Stackers

Sort all the pieces by color or shape. “Let’s put all the red ones here.” OR “Where should we put the blue ones?”

Experiment with different sizes and shapes. See if they can be stacked. Stack them upside down and also, sotheyfitinsideeachother.

Small to Big Place a few of the smallest and a few of the largest pieces in front of your child. Pick up a small piece and say, “Can you find a piece that is bigger than this one?” Talk to them about their choices and encourage them to keep trying until they find a bigger piece. “This green one is smaller than mine, let’s keep looking for a bigger piece.” Pick a large piece and say, “Help me find a piece that is smaller than this one.” As your child develops a better understanding of big and small you can add more pieces to the game that are closer in size. This will provideagoodchallengeforthem.

Put smiley face into a ball shape. Now shake it like a rattle and sing yourfavoritesongs!

Talk about how high the tower is, countthepieces, touching each one as you say the number. “There are fivepiecesinmytower.”

146 Winter Activity Handout Activities cont. Stack and Roll

Explore the pieces and build together. As you play, ask them to hand you big and small pieces and talk about the big and small pieces they are using to reinforce the concepts.

1–2 Years

Music and Movement

Stack the pieces and talk about the colors and sizes. “You put the blue oneontopof theredone.”

Winter Activity Handout

Clean Up

147

together. Talkaboutthecolorsasyougo.. Sing a song to make cleaning more fun! PutOurToysAway Tune:MaryHadaLittleLamb Let’sputallourtoysaway,toysaway,toys away. Let’sputallourtoysawaytouseanother day. Stack and Roll

1–2 Years

Hide

Activities cont. Design Time Encourageyourtoddlertobuildordesign somethingusingthepieces.Thereisnota wrongwaytodothis,soencourageyour childtobecreative.Askquestionstoget startedsuchas,“Whatcanyoumakewith thesepieces?”OR“Iambuildingacircus. What are you going to build?” As you build,describewhatyouaredoing. At first, your toddler may just want to handyouapiecetoaddtoyourcreation. If you see that your toddler is more interested in helping you, then engage themintheplaywithquestionssuchas, “Whatdoyouthinkweshouldputhere?” OR“Howmanypiecesshouldwestack?” and Seek Turnsomecupsupsidedownandhidea smaller piece or other toy underneath oneofthecups.Haveyourchildfindthe missingtoy.Say,“Whereisthesmiling face?” Next,encourageyourtoddlertohidea toyfromyouunderoneofthecups. When you clean up together, talk about putting the pieces

Count and Share Lineafewpiecesupwithyourchild and count them. Remember to touch each piece as you say the number. Handyourtoddlerapieceandsay, “You have one piece.” Hand them anotherpiecetoholdintheirother handandsay,“Nowyouhavetwo.” Toucheachpieceandcount,“One, two.” Ask, “May I have a piece?” When they hand you a piece, tell them thankyouandsay,“Nowweeach haveonepiece.” Continue sharing pieces back and forth,placingthepiecesonthefloor infrontofyou.Counteachtimeyou exchange different numbers of blocks. Playing this way helps your child learntosharebyfeelingwhatitis like to give you something and receivesomethingfromyou. Lineupthepiecesinfrontofyour child in numerical order. Count togetherandtouchthenumberon eachpieceasyoucount.

Clean Up Make sure all the pieces fit back into thekitforsafekeeping.Ifyourchildis slow to help, ask if they can put a specificpieceintothekit.

Doctor's Kit Years

Pretend you are at the doctor’s office, and you are the doctor and your child is the patient. Roleplay giving your child a checkup. Use descriptive words as you play together. Switchrolesandletyourchildgive youacheck-up. Encourage your child to give their doll or stuffed animal a checkup. Youcanbetheirdaddyormommy andaskthedoctorquestions. Tellyourchildthatavetisadoctor whotakescareofanimals.

Remember 148 Winter Activity Handout TActivities o Begin

Going to the Doctor

Set the kit in front of your toddler. “I wonder what is in the kit?” Encourage them to look in the kit and take the pieces out.Talkaboutthepieces.

Doctor play is a great opportunity to show careandloveforothers.Playdifferentroles andencourageyourchildtodothesame.

Explore the pieces together. Name each piece as your child touches or holds it. Show them how doctors use it. “When we go to the doctor, they usethistolistentoyourheart". Trade pieces back and forth, sharing, and saying, “please” and “thank you.” Say, “May I have the blood pressure monitor?Thankyou.”OR,“Wouldyou likethestethoscope?”

Exploration

Boys and girls can be nurses, doctors, physical therapists and veterinarians. Pretend play is essential to your child’s development. It allows them to develop their imagination, learn to think about how others feel, express emotions, and care for others. It promotes confidence and a sense of independence. They learn by imitating the behaviors they see around them. By practicingthe behaviors they see in others, theylearnhowtobehave.

1–2

Your child will start to label their pictures, even if they only look like scribblestoyou.

12-24 Months

3 Years and Older

Remember 149 Winter Activity Handout

Encourage your toddler’s efforts and describetheirwork.

Drawing with your toddler

Young toddlers will grasp a crayon with a fist and move it around on a piece of paper making random marks all over the place. Some children just make one mark on the pageandaredonefortheday.

Your toddler’s marks, lines, and scribbles are all helping them get ready to read and write.

Toddler Writing 1–2 Years

Your child will most likely have a proper grip with a crayon or pencil. As they become more comfortable holding a crayon or pencil, they will begin to draw simple things you can recognize.

Activities

As your child draws and practices with crayons and other writing tools likemarkers,chalk,andpencils,their small muscle skills will develop and improve in small stages. Provide lots of opportunities for them to practicedrawingandwriting.

18-36 Months

Pegs, Pegs, & More Pegs!

“Show me a yellow peg. Thank you. Can you put it in the green block please?” Describe what you are doing. “I am putting the red peg on the green block.” Share the pieces between you, trading back and forth. Be sure to say“please”and“thankyou.”

TActivities

Count the pegs, left to right, on the floor. Explain what you are doing while you play. “I have two pegs and I added one more, so now I have threepegs.One,two,three!” o Begin

Unpack the toy with your child. Name the colors and label the pieces as you take them out and place them in front of your child. “Here is a yellow peg.” Let your child explore the pieces on their own. They may chew on them. Sit with your child and just observe. After several minutes of observation, begin describing what your child is doing with the pieces. “You are holding 2 pieces, a red and a yellow.” Once your child has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with your toddler using the following activities, oneatatime.

1–2 Years 150 Spring Activity

Blocks & Pegs

Peg Play

Remember

These activities have been created to challenge your toddler to help them develop. That means you may need to play an activity several times before your toddlerparticipates. Make sure you model the behavior you wantfromyourchild.Taketurns,shareand say “please” and “thank you” as you play together. If your toddler loses interest, stop playing and try another time. This is a special time for you and your toddler and it should be enjoyableforbothofyou. Handout

Encourage your child to put the pegs into the holes on the blocks.

151

Blocks & Pegs cont.

Activities

Namethecolorsofthepegs.Ask“What coloristhispeg?” Prompt your child to find different coloredpegs.“Showmeagreenpeg.” “Canyoufindtworedpegs?” Together,linethemupbycolor. Countthenumberineachcolorgroup. Whichgrouphasthemost? Matchthesamecolorpegtothesame color block. Together, put the likecoloredpegsintheblock. Makeasimple,2-colorpatternwiththe pegs.Readthepatterntoyourtoddler. "Red,green,red,green,red,green." Askyourchildwhichcolorcomesnext andletthemchoosefrom2pegs,ared andablue. Spring Activity Handout

1–2 Years

Using one of the blocks, stack the pegs on top of each other. Demonstrate for your child to get started. Ask, “How high can you build it?” Use positional words and phrases to describe the pegs. “The orange peg is under the green peg.” Use words and phrases like on top of, underneath, nextto,andbeside. Countthepegsastheyarestacked. Interlock the blocks to create one large cube. Try to do this together, but you may have to do it. Describe your actions as you snap the pieces together. Put the pegs into the cube and them dump them out of the cube. Describe your child’s actions as they put them in and dump them out. “You put the yellowoneinfirst,thenagreenone.”

Ask your toddler to take out or put in certain pegs. “Can you show me two pegs?” “Can you put three pegs in the cube?” “May I have a blue one, please?Thankyou.” Continue to play and experiment placing the pegs in different places andmakingdifferentdesigns.

Color Corral Counting and Dumping

1–2 Years Balancing Stack the blocks on top of each otherwith pegs in between the layers. Have your child experiment with how many pegs will “hold up” the blocks. Move the pegs in and out of the blocks on the different levels. Ask, “How can we get this block to stayontopofthisone?”or“Canyou fit this peg in here?” or “What else canyoudo?” 152 Clean up Blocks & Pegs Spring Activity Handout Activities cont. Say, “It is time to clean up, what color pegs will you put in the box first? Great, would you like me to helpyou?” Encourage your child to take the boxandputitinitsstorageplace. Sing while you clean up to make it morefun. PutOurToysAway Tune:MaryHadaLittleLamb Let’sputallourtoysaway,toysaway, toysaway. Let’sputallourtoysawaytouse anotherday.

Ball

For the chalk: Your child may not be interested in the chalk at first. It is important to leave it out, keep using it in front of them, and keep offering it as a choice for play. Encourage their efforts and describe the marks they make when theybegintoplaywiththechalk.

Remember

Chalk 1–2 Years 153

Forthechalk:Findasafeplacetodrawon the cement, or use the chalk to draw on a chalkboard. The first time you explore with the chalk, make a few marks, and describe what you are doing as you draw. “I am making a red line and a circle. What willyoumake?”

Ball Play - How Many?

Sitonthefloorwithyourlegsspread outlikeaVandrolltheballbackand forthwithyourchild.Encourageyour childtorollitinbetweenyourlegs. Counteachrolltogetheroutloud. Whenyourchildisconfidentintheir skills, scoot back to make it more challenging. Havefunandrepeat! & Spring Activity Handout TActivities o Begin Ball Play - Toss It Stand a couple feet apart from your child and gently toss the ball up in the air and catch it. Say, “I am catchingitwithtwohands.Nowyou try.” Gentlytosstheballtoyourchildand encouragethemtousetwohandsto catchit. Showyourchildhowtotossitgently to you, underhanded. Explain that “tossing”isanunderhandthrow. Counteachtimeyoutossitbackand forth. When your child is successful catchingandtossing,takeoneortwo stepsandcontinuetossing.

Challenge: Sing a song together while you are tossing the ball back andforth.

For the ball: Playing with the ball is good for your child’s large muscle development and eye-hand coordination. Ball play is a great opportunity to use language together. Describe your toddler’s actions andaskquestions.

Begin by drawing lines and scribbles withthechalk. Draw pictures and designs with the chalk. Ask your child to describe their picture for you. Write down their words in chalk next to the picture. Read their words back to them. Have your toddler lie down on the cement and trace their body with the chalk. Encourage them to color intheirbody. Write the letters of the alphabet andsingthea,b,csongtogether. Draw one square and then write the number 1. Draw two circles and write the number 2. Continue with thenumbersonethroughfive. Write the names of friends and family. Your toddler can write too. Read the letters and names together.Handout Activities cont.

Increase the distance between the shapes to make the jumps challenging and to add more steps between the shapes.

Jumpfromshapetoshape. Create different shapes and name themasyousteporjumpintothem.

Chalk Play - Outside Games

1–2 Years 154 Chalk Play

Draw several shapes about one foot apart from each other, and large enoughtojumpfromshapetoshape. Walk from shape to shape, taking large or small steps. Describe what you are doing as you play. “We took onebigsteptowalkintothesquare.”

Scribbles & More Ball & Chalk Spring Activity

155

2-3 Years

Let your young child explore the toy on their own. Sit with your child and just observe. After a couple of minutes, begin describing what your child is doing with the toy. “You are taking the blocks out.” When they are exploring the blocks, talk about how they feel, what colors you see, and what letters and objects you see. “Look, this one has a wagon.” Once your child has had the opportunity to explore thematerials,begintoplaywithyourchild using the following activities, one at a time.

As your child gets older, and you play with them more often, they will play with you for longer periods of time. When they lose interest, stop playing and try again anothertime. This is a special time for you and your toddler, and it should be enjoyable for both of you. Make sure to use descriptive wordsandpositionwordstodescribeyour child's actions while you are playing. Share, take turns and model saying "please"and"thankyou"

Fall Activity Handout TActivities o Begin ABC Blocks 2-3 Years Remember 156

Whenyoucountthemmakesureyougo from left to right. Say, “This line is short, thislineislong” Stack the blocks on top of each other. See how high they can make thetowerbeforeitfallsdown. “Let’s put this block on top of this one.” “We are making the tower taller,orhigher.”

Line Them Up Tower Tumble

ABC Blocks

Line the blocks up in a row. Count them, putting your finger on each block when you say the number. Make long lines of blocks.Makeshortlinesofblocks.

Once you get the hang of it, add some blocks to make it more challenging. Also, begin using the letters and the pictures to make it morechallenging.

2-3

ABC ABlocks BC Blocks Years

Now trade roles. Let your child choose a picture, describe it, and youfinditontheblock.

Findtheblocksthatarethelettersin yourchild’sname.Encouragethemto helpyou.“CanyoufindtheD?”

Onceyouandyourchildarefamiliar withtheblocks,play“Isee”withthe pictures on the blocks. You may want to start with one block. Choose a picture and describe it. “I seeabluebear,wherecoulditbe?” Your child looks at the different sides of the block to find the blue bear. If they can’t find it, give anotherclueandencouragethemto keeptrying.

Put the blocks in a row, left to right, to spell the word. Read it to your child. Then say, “What word do you want to spell?” Work with your child to spell the word. Ask your child questions to guide their discovery. “You want to spell dog. Du, du, du…What letter makesthedusound?” Spell and Tell 157

Onceyouhavealltheletters,putthem in a row, left to right, to spell their name.Nameeachletterasyouaddit totherow.Askyourchildtomixup theblocksandworktogethertospell their name. Eventually, they will be abletospellitthemselves. Astheyspelltheirname,talkaboutthe sounds of the letters. Together, spell othernamesofpeopleinyourfamily. Makesuretotalkaboutthesoundsof the letters in each of the names, beginning with the first letter of the name. Name Game Find the blocks to spell a simple word familiar to your child, such as “hat.”

I See Fall Activity Handout

Identify the letters, numbers or picturesontheblocks.“Here is a B onthisblock,andabear.Whatison yourblock?”

Activities cont.

ABC Blocks 2-3 Years

158

Sing the ABCs slowly and find the letters. Put the blocks in ABC order, inastraightline. Sorttheblocksbycolor.“Iamgoing to find all of the blue blocks. What colorareyougoingtofind?” Afteryousorttheblocks,stackeach grouporputtheminaline. Make a line of the blocks, left to right, with numbers from 1 9. Name eachnumberasyouaddittotheline. Hold up three fingers and say, “Find this many blocks.” Help your child count your fingers and the blocks. Repeat with different numbers. Ask your child to hold up their fingers, and you will find the blocks. Speak withenthusiasmandmakeitagame. Together, using the line of blocks with numbers from 1–9, stack the number of blocks that matches the numeral on the block in the row. Stack each tower side by side. Talk with your child about the way the tower looks and the pattern it makes. Talk about how each stack gets one blockhigher.

Counting Cubes Holding one block, say, “Can you please hand me a block with red on it? Thanks! Now I have two blocks. Aredoneandablueone.” Place three blocks on the ground in front of you and count them, one, two, three. Then pick up another block and say, “Three blocks plus oneblockequalsfourblocks!”

Building Blocks

Alphabet Song Math with Blocks

Put a block in each hand and ask your child if they would like a block. Once you hand them a block, say, “I had two blocks and gave you one. I only have one left. Two minus one equalsone.” Ask your child to help you make two piles of 3 blocks. Take a block from one of the groups and put it in the other group and say, “I am moving one block from that group to this group. Now let’s count the blocksineachgroup.” After counting the blocks in each group, talk about which is bigger and which is smaller. Encourage your child to try moving a block from one group to the other, and then count the groups to learn which group is bigger. As they get older and play this game often, you mayusemoreblocksineachgroup.

ABC Blocks Fall Activity Handout Activities cont.

159

Make designs or build something with the blocks. Say, “Tell me about what you are making.” Describe what you are doing. “I am buildingahouse.”

Building with Blocks Clean Up Measuring Blocks Fall Activity Handout

Use the blocks to measure other objects. Use the measuring form and the erasable marker to write down whatyoulearn.

Determine what container you want to storeyourblocksin. Suggest taking turns putting the blocks in the container, or count the blocks togetherasyoubothputthemin.

Start with small objects so the number is not too high, like a small book or pencil. Say “Let’s see how long this book is. We will line up the blocksbesideittomeasure.”Linethe blocks up next to the object and count the blocks to measure how long the object is. Say, “The book is blocks long!” Record the numberofblocksontheform.

You may measure anything using the blocks. Use words like “length” and “width” and compare the objects. For example, say “The book is longer than the crayon” or “The paper is widerthanthebook."

ABC Blocks 2-3 Years

Usewordstodescribepositionand location. Say, “I am putting this block on top of this block to make ittaller.” Make shape designs out of the blocks. Have your toddler place other blocks inside. “Can you put a block inside the square?” “Can you moveitoutsidethesquare?”

Use words that teach position and location. Model for your child if they are unsure. “I am putting the block inside the square. Which block will you put inside the square?” Take turns giving each other instructionsandfollowingthem.

Activities cont.

Shakin', Shakin', Shakin'

Fall Activity Handout Shakers 2-3 Years TActivities o Begin Remember 160

Play with and explore the shaker. Shake it fast and say, “I am shaking it fast. Can you shake it fast?” Slow downtheshakingandsay,“NowIam shaking it slow. Can you shake it slow?” Ask your child, “How can we make it sound loud?” and wait to see what they do. Then, tell them what they're doing to make it loud. You may also ask your child, “How can we make a quietsoundwiththeshaker?”

Make sure to use descriptive words and position words to describe your child’s actionswhileyouareplaying. Share and model saying “please”and “thank you.” Your child may show interest at first, but then want to move on to something else. Invite them back, but do not make them play if they continue to be uninterested. Stop playing and try again at another time. This is a special time for you and your child, and it should be enjoyable forbothofyou. Let your child explore the shaker on their own. Sit with your child and observe. After several minutes of observation, begin describing what your toddler is doing with the shaker. “You are holding the purple shaker.” Once your toddler has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with your child using the following activities,oneatatime.

You and your child take a shaker in yourhand. Say,“Howmanyshakersdowehave? One, two …we have 2 shakers.” Touchtheshakerasyoucount.

Next, shake it high over your head and say, “I am reaching high with my shaker.” Ask your child, “Can you shakeitlow?” Say this rhyme as you shake the shaker: “Put it up high, put it down low,shakeitfast,shakeitslow!”

Ask your child, “What is your favorite waytoshaketheshaker?”

Themoreyouplaythisgamewith your child, the more their ability to copy longer sequences will improve. When you take turns with your child, you are helping them develop social skills they will need to interact with others. Taking turns helps them make andplaywithfriends.

Activities cont. Shakers

When you are singing your favorite songs with your shakers, change the tempo (how fast or slow you are singing) and see if your child cankeepthebeatatthenewpace.

Shakers

Singanyofyourfavoritesongsand shaketheshakertothebeat.

161

2-3 Years

Create a short sequence of shakes and see if your child will repeat it. Say, “Listen carefully. Canyoushakejustlikeme?” Take turns copying one another. Say, “Now you shake, and I will copyyou.”

Some easy songs to keep a beat are “ABC’s,”“Row, Row, Row Your Boat,”“Twinkle,TwinkleLittleStar.” Say, “Let’s sing a song and shake our shakers. What song to do you wanttosing?” Find lots of songs in Songs & Fingerplays. Dance and keep the beat with your shakers to your favorite songs. Copy Cat Tempo Tunes Song Shakers Fall Activity Handout

Make sure you model the change with the shaker. Then, ask your child, “Should we sing faster or slowerthistime?” Encourage your child to sing at different levels, both quiet and loud. Shake the shaker, to copy yourvoicevolume.

Take the song poster and lay it on the floor or hang it on the wall or fridge. Ask your child to point to pictures on the song poster. “Where is the boat?” After identifying the pictures on the poster, begin the activities below together. Row,Row, Row Your Boat

Sing & Move 2-3 Years

Sing & Point Look at the song sheet and point to the words as you sing the song together. Sing it together and have them pointalong,startingatthetopleft andmovingacross. Sing the song and clap or tap to thebeat.

162 Winter Activity Handout TActivities o Begin

Tapping & Clapping Sing the song with your child and do the motions that go with the song. Make up new motions to do with thesong. Sing the song at different speeds tomakeitfunandsilly! Pretend you are in a stream and sing and row as you walk. Row all overyourhouse! Allow your child to make choices about how you play. Do they want to put the poster on the floor or hang it on the wall? This is a special time together, and youandyourchildwanttoenjoyit.

Remember

163 Winter Activity

Activities

Clean Up Make sure you store the erasable marker in a special place, so it doesn’t get lost. And, don’t forgettosecurethecap!

Row,Row, Row Your Boat 2-3 Years

Rhyming Time Point out the parts of the song thatrhyme. Together, come up with other words you could substitute. The words may be silly words or real words,justaslongastheyrhyme. Sing the song with the new rhyming words. For example, “Row,row,rowyourcoat.”

Point to the word “row” on the songposter.Sayasyoupointto eachletter,“Thelettersr–o–w spellsthewordrow.Canyoufind the word “row” somewhere else ontheposter?” Congratulate them when they find the word, “You did it! You foundthewordrow,r o w.” Ask them to find all the words that spell “row” on the poster andnametheletters. Count how many times “row” is onthesongposter. Using the erasable marker, ask yourchildtodrawalineunderall the“row”wordstheycanfind. Taketheposteraroundtoshow others in the house and encourage your child to say, “I found the word “row” on my songposter.Iamlearninghowto read.”Askthemtosaytheletters intheword. Hide and Seek Find a letter your child might recognize, such as the first letter in their first or last name, or an “m”formommyor“d”fordaddy. Circle the letter on the sheet. Is there more than one on the poster? Look for them together, and when you find one, encourage your child to touch it. One of you can circle the letter onthesheet. After your child finds the same letter on the song poster ask him todoitagainandcountthem. Handout cont.

Word Search

164 Winter Activity Handout TActivities o Begin

Sort the pieces by color. Say something like, “Let’s put all the orange ones here!” If your child choosesanothercolor,youmightsay, “You are holding a red one. Where should we put the red ones? Please helpmefindtheotherredones.”

Place the geometric stacker in front of your childandletthemexplorethetoywhileyou just observe. After a few minutes, describe the colors of the pieces your child is exploring. Once your child has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with your child using the following activities,oneatatime. Make sure you use descriptive words like tall, short, and long and position words like on top, below, under, over, and beneath as you play with your child. Share, take turns, andmodelsaying“please”and“thankyou.” These activities have been designed to challenge your child to help them develop. That means you may need to play an activity several times before your child fully participates. As your child gets older, and you play with themmoreoften,theywillplaywithyoufor longer periods of time. When they do lose interest, stop playing and play again at another time. This is a special time for you and your child, and it forbothofyou.

Thenmixthemalltogetheranddoit again.

Oncethepiecesareingroups,count them, touching each one as you count.Encourageyourchildtocount with you and touch the pieces with you.

Once the pieces are sorted by color, countthenumberofgroupsyouhave. Make a line of blocks of each color, next to each other. Ask, “Are all the lines the same length? Which is longest?Whichisshortest?”

Remember

Number Fun

Stacker Sorting

Eventually, your child will be able to count on their own. When they can, ask them to count the pieces in a group, and you count the pieces in another. Askyourchildwhichgrouphasmore piecesandwhichonehaslesspieces.

Geometric Stacker 2-3 Years

Explain that groups are bigger because they have more pieces and groupsaresmallerbecausetheyhave lesspieces.

Talk about “same” and “different.” Ask your child to find blocks that are the same color or same shape. Ask them to find different colors or shapes. Remember, you may need to play this a few times, giving your child a choice betweentwopieces. Ask them to make groups of pieces that are the same. Watch as they choose to group by color or shape. Ask them to explain how they grouped the pieces. If they struggle to decide how to group, suggest that they use color. Later group byshape. Count the pieces in the different groups and talk about which group is smaller or larger than the others and which pieces have more or fewer pieces than the others.

Building Blocks

Geometric Stacker

Color Stack Stack pieces of the same color on onerod,alltogether.

Same & Different

Winter Activity Handout 2-3 Years

The object is to fit two pieces together to make one piece. Demonstrate for your child how you fit two pieces togethertomakeonepiece. You may also want to find two pieces that fit together and give them to your child. Or, give your child three pieces and let them figure out which two piecesfittogether. Once your child has fit a few together, encourage them to find matches themselves. Ask questions such as “Where is the piece that fits with this one?”

Once all the pieces are connected, you may count them or line them up from smallesttolargest. You may also want to try stacking the connected pieces on the rods. Any order is fine to begin. Once your child practices, make it more challenging by encouraging them to stack the largest tosmallestorsmallesttothelargeston therods. Puzzle Play Use the pieces to build something together.Buildsomethingwideortall. Describe your child’s actions and what ishappening. Encourage your child to use their imagination and celebrate their creativity.

165

Activities cont.

Encourage your child to put the pieces on the rods and then take them off again. Any order is fine. Describe what they are doing and what the pieces look like. “You are fillinguponerodwiththepieces.”OR

Challenge: Remove one or two blocks from the middle of the row of blocks that are arranged from smallest to largest. Give them to your child and ask himtoputthemintherightspace. Try to stack a same-shaped set of blocks smallesttolargestorlargesttosmallest.

Together,lineupthesameshapedsetof blocks from smallest to largest or largest tosmallest. Line the set of blocks smallest to largest butleaveoffthesmallestorlargest.Give that block to your child and ask, “Where doesthisblockbelong?”

On & Off

Start with one set of like shaped blocks. Show your child the largest block and say, “This is the largest block. It is red.” Put the block back in the group of blocks and say, “Can you find the largest block?” Give your child time to think aboutyourquestionandrespond. Removethelargestblockandrepeatthe process. You can also look for the smallest block, and try it with a different same-shaped setofblocks.

Shape Stack Clean Up Stack the blocks, any shape, from smallesttolargestorfromlargestto smallest. “Let’s put the smallest one onthebottom.” Stack the blocks of all the same shape, from smallest to largest or from largest to smallest. “Let’s put the smallest circle on the bottom. Whatcirclegoesnext?”

166 Winter Activity Handout Activities

Geometric Stacker

“You put the green one on and then theredoneontopofit.”

2-3 Years

Be sure to emphasize the position (below,above,nextto)andthesize (big, bigger, large, larger, small, smaller)ofthepieceswhileyouplay. To make cleanup faster, you may want to fit the pieces together and haveyourchildputthemontherods. Hand your child a fitted piece and say,“Whichrodwillyouputthisone on?” As you work together, say, “I wonder which rod you will fill up first?” or “How many pieces will it taketofilluparod?” cont.

Large & Small

Make several small pieces to share and count. Describe what you make. Say, “I made three balls and one pancake!”

167 Winter Activity Handout TActivities o Begin

Play Dough Play

Play with the play dough with your child. Squish it around in your fingers and smash it flat, roll it into balls,androllitintosnakes. Be careful that your child does not just watch what you do and wants you to make all those things for them. Show them how you roll the play dough in your hands or on the tabletomakeyourcreations.

Talk about the colors and the objects you make. Say, “tell me aboutwhatyouaremaking.”

Add and subtract the pieces. Say, “I made 3 snakes, and I am giving you two snakes, so I only have one left.” or“You have 3 balls and I have 1 ball. How many do we have together?” Then, see if your child will count the balls. If not, you count, touching each ball as you count, "1,2,3,4 we have4balls.

Play Dough 2-3 Years

Use your mat, and play on a hard surface. Hand your child a can of play dough and encourage them to open the cans by themselves. Let your child explore the play dough on their own. Sit with your child and observe. You may want to ask your child, “What does it feel like?” Once your child has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with your child usingthefollowingactivities,oneatatime. As your child gets older, and you play with them more often, they will play with you for longer periods of time. As you play, make sure to encourage your child to describe whattheyaredoing. Play dough is a great way to strengthen your child’s hands and make them ready for writing! As you share the play dough and materials, remember to say “please” and “thank you” andmodelpatientlywaitingyourturn.

Counting Fun

Remember

168

Use the rolling pins to flatten your play dough. Share materials back and forth with your child. Take the opportunity to model sharing. Say, “Can I please use the rolling pin whenyouarefinished?Thanks.”

Clean Up Encourage your child to roll the playdough around on the mat to pick upanysmallpieces. Ask them to smash the playdough into each can. Talk about putting the matching lid on the correct color. Make surethelidisontight. Now carefully dust the crumbs of playdough off the mat and into the trashcan.

Challenge your child to make their play dough very flat, or very thick. Try all different shapes and sizes, and don’t forget to describe each onetheymake. Use your fingernail or a pencil to draw in the flattened play dough. Draw things like the first letter in your child’s name, a shape, and a smileyface.

Rolling Pins Pretend Play Pretend you are working at a restaurant and making food for customers. Talk about and create different food for breakfast, lunch, anddinner. Use prompts for conversation. “Tell me about that.” “What should we make for lunch?” “Why did you choosethatfood?”

Story Time Make up a story using the “cool creations” you and your child have madetogether. Winter Activity Handout Activities cont.

Cool Creations Shape the play dough into different forms. Encourage your child to do the same. Consider making shapes, people, animals, food, flowers, houses, or anything you can think of... Use prompts for conversation. For example, “Tell me about what you are making.” “Why did you use that color/shape?”“Whatcanitdo?”

Play Dough 2-3 Years

169

Make sure you use descriptive words like brown, 4 legged, and round and position words like on top, below, under, over, and beneathasyouplaywithyourchild. As your child gets older and you play with themmoreoften,theywillplaywithyoufor longerperiodsoftime.

Remember Jigsaw Puzzle

Animal Match Say the name of an animal and ask your child to find it. Take turns namingananimalandfindingit. Makethesoundoftheanimalandask your child to find it. Take turns making the sound of the animal and findingthepuzzlepiece. Describe an animal’s characteristics andencourageyourchildtofindthe animal. “I see a big, spotted animal withalongneck.”Giveeasiercluesif your child is struggling. Or ask them to choose between two animals to findit. Spring Activity Handout

When they lose interest, stop playing and play again at another time. This is a special timeforyouandyourchild,anditshouldbe enjoyableforbothofyou.

Count each piece while it is in the puzzle. Take the pieces out and line themuponthefloorinfrontofyour child.Counteachpiece,touchingitas youcount. Ifyourchildchoosestoholdapiece, talk about it. “You are holding one piece. Now I am holding one piece also.” Divide the pieces up between you and count them, “One, two, three, you have three. One, two, three, I havethreealso.” If your child is holding one piece, offer them another. “Would you like toholdthispiece?Nowyouhavetwo pieces.”

Take the pieces out with your child and let them explore the toy while you observe. After a few minutes, begin naming the animals and objects your child is exploring. Once your child has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with your child using the following activities, oneatatime.

TActivities o Begin

Counting Pieces 2-3 Years

It is important that your child has the experience of doing it independently, but they may have to watch it being done several times before they figure it out for themselves. If they become frustrated, put your hand on theirs and help them put thepieceintothepuzzle.Usewords todescribewhatyouaredoing.

Singingmakescleanupmorefun!

Put all the pieces on the floor, colored side up. Encourage your child to try to put a piece in the puzzle. If they are struggling, first describe what they are doing. For example, say “You are putting the piece in with the picture upside down. Is that the way it fits in the puzzle?”

Encourage your child to complete the puzzle independently. Help or stop the activity if they get frustrated. It may take several times doing it together before your child issuccessfulontheirown.

2-3 Years Puzzle Strategy 170 Jigsaw Puzzle

Ask your child to make up a story about the animals and pieces. Write down the words they tell you and then read the words back to them whentheyarefinished. Ask your child to draw pictures to go withthestory. Make it into a book or hang the story pageonthewall. Clean Up Make sure you have a safe place to store puzzles as they are easily lost or torn. Ask, “Which piece are you going to pickup?”

When you complete the puzzle, say “Wow! We did it. We worked hard toputthatpuzzletogether.”

Spring Activity Handout Activities cont.

Story Telling

Once your child has matched the sets of cards, begin to play with your child using the following activities, one at a time. If your child cannot find a match, demonstrate for them and then let them tryagain.

Activities

These activities have been designed to challenge your child to help them develop. That means you may need to play an activity several times before your child fully participates. When they lose interest, stop playing and play again at another time. This is a special time for you and your child and it should be enjoyable for both of you.

Handout Remember To Begin

Find a way to sort the cards, like by colorortypeofpicture.Demonstrate and explain what you are doing. Ask yourchildtohelp. Encourage your child to think of another way to sort the cards. Work together to put them in the groups thatyourchildhasidentified.

After a few minutes, describe the pictures on the cards your child is exploring. Ask, “Can you find two that look alike?” or pick uponecardandsay,“Canyoufindonethat lookslikethis?”

Take the cards out of the box, find 3 or 4 sets of matches, and place them face up in front of your child. Let them explore the cardswhileyouobserve.

Memory Game 171

Sorting Spring Activity

2-3 Years

Talkaboutthethingsyouseeonthe cards that make you think they belong in a certain group. If you are unsure about one, explain your thinkingandaskyourchild'sopinion. Count the number of cards in your groupsandtalkaboutwhichonehas moreandwhichonehasless.

172 Memory Game Spring Activity Handout Activities

As your child becomes familiar with the cards, repeat the activity with moresetsofcards. Take turns to find matches once you areusinghalfofthecardsatatime.

Matching

Choose another group of 3 or 4 sets of matches and place them face up in front of your child. Ask your child to find two that look alike. Repeat the activity until your child has matched allofthecards.Usethewords“same”, “match”and“pair”withyourchild.

2-3 Years

When you are confident that your child knows what the words “match” and “same” are, and they have had practice matching the cards, you can take 3 matching sets and put them face down in one row. Say, “Let’s try to find 2 cards that match or two cardsthatarethesame.” Demonstrate turning two cards over to see if they match. Ask, “Are they the same?” If they are, put them in a stack. If they are not, turn the cards over and ask your child to try. Your child may flip several cards over at a time, or leave them turned over and flipmoreovertofindamatch.

When it is your turn, model flipping just two cards over, and point out that you remembered the picture on thecardsevenwhenyoucouldn’tsee them. Playuntilyouhavematchedallofthe cards. Then repeat with new sets, increasing the number of sets to makeitmorechallenging. cont.

Memory 173 Memory

As your child becomes more confident and able to flip cards and findmatches,startplayingMemory.

PutOurToysAway Tune:MaryHadaLittleLamb Let’sputallourtoysaway,toysaway, toysaway. Let’sputallourtoysawaytouseanother day. Spring Activity Handout Activities cont.

Put the cards face down and in rows. Tell them to flip two cards to search for a match and flip them back over if they don’t match. Then it is your turn. When someone finds a match, they get to take another turn. Begin with three or four matching sets and increase the number as your child becomesmoreskilled. Describe your observations and ask prompting questions, such as, “Do you remember where you saw that fish before?” or “Do you think it was in the middle or on the side?” or “We haven’tseenthatonebefore.”

2-3

Have your child choose a card and tell you a story about it. Write down the story and read it back to your child. Point to the words as you read them. Clean Up

Ask your child to name and describe what is on each card. “Tell me what youseeonthiscard.Whatelse?”

When all the cards are matched, counthowmanypairsyoubothhave. Then count all the cards. Don’t talk about winning and losing, just count togetherandplayagain. Forarealchallenge,scatterthecards.

Together, put the cards in the box. You may want to put the cards in the box in sets to make sure you have all thecards. Sing a song to make cleaning more fun! Storetheboxinasafeplace.

Tell Me About It Years Game

Ball & Chalk 2-5 Years

TActivities o Begin Remember Ball Play- How Many?

Take turns to roll the ball back and forth. Your child needs lots of practice catching and rolling to feel confidentaboutit. Counteachrolltogetheroutloud. Once your child is comfortable rolling the ball, you can switch to an

For the ball: Playing w good for large muscle andhand eyecoordinat opportunity to use together. Describe your andaskquestions.

For the chalk: Your chil interested in the chalk they do become interes just make random marks fine. Using chalk and utensils will strengthen t help them have better theywriteanddrawasth

For the ball: Hand your child the ball or gently roll it to them. The first time you play, describe it to them. “The ball is yellow and round. It feels bumpy when I rub my hand over it.” The next time youplay,askyourchildtodescribeitto you. For the chalk: Find a safe place outside to draw on the cement. You may also use this chalk to draw on a chalkboard. The first time you play with h lk d a simple picture of your c awordorgroupofwords Nowencourageyourchil thechalk.

Ball & Chalk Years

2-5

175

Chalk Play - Outside Games Draw several shapes about one foot apart from each other and large enough tojumpfromshapetoshape. Walk from shape to shape, taking large or small steps. Describe what you are doingasyouplay.“Wetookonebigstep towalkintothesquare.” Jumpfromshapetoshape. Create different shapes and name them asyousteporjumpintothem. Increase the distance between the shapes to make the jumps challenging and to add more steps between the shapes. Practicetossingtheballintoeachshape.

Spring Activity Handout Activities cont.

Alphabet Art Draw pictures and designs with the chalk. Ask your child to describe their picture for you. Write down their words in chalk next to the picture. Readthewordsbacktoyourchild. Ask your child to lie down so you can trace their body with the chalk. Encourage them to color in the picture. Encourage your child to draw freely with the chalk. Describe their work as they draw. “Wow, you made three red, curvy lines.” Ask them to tell you abouttheirpicture. Write the letters of the alphabet and sing the ABC song, pointing to each letterasyousing. write names of family and ourage your child to make marks to represent letters. tters and names together. writeyourchild’sname!

176

3-4 Years

Let your child explore the game pieces on their own. Sit with your child and observe. Once your child has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with yourchildusingthefollowingactivities,one atatime. These activities have been designed to challenge your child to help them develop. That means you may need to play an activity several times before your child fully participates. Model sharing and taking turns, and use “please” and “thank you” as you play together. THESEOBJECTSAREACHOKINGHAZARD.

Brainstorm with your child other words that rhyme with the picture on the game piece. You may want to writethemdown. Once you have practiced naming the pictures,youmaywantto… Tell me about it

Fall Activity Handout Rhyming Game 3-4 Years TActivities o Begin Remember 177

PLEASE KEEP OUT OF REACH OF YOUNGER CHILDREN. Take turns choosing a piece and naming it. “Tell me what you see on this piece?” Make sure your child can name and describe what is on each gamepiece. Take turns describing the pictures. “The fan has shiny, silver blades. Remember the fan grampa keeps in the garage? It has a cage around the shiny blades to protect us. Why does itneedacage?”

Sound out the word and try to think of other words that begin with that same sound. You may want to write themdown. Sound out the word. Emphasize the first sound you hear as you point to the letter. Try to find other pictures thatstartwiththesamesound.

Activities cont.

Encourage your child to start trying to put pieces together. Start with 3 pairs(6pieces).

Puzzle Pairs Fall Activity Handout

178

If they are struggling, demonstrate connecting two pieces and describe whatyouaredoing.

For example, say “First I am going to choose a piece and decide what it is (fan). Next, I am going to name the picture on another piece (truck). Does it sound like my piece? No, so I need to choose a different piece and try again. This piece has a can on it. Does it sound like fan? It does. Great! Now I will see if the two pieces fit together.Willyouhelpme?” Nowencourageyourchildtotry.

Rhyming Lotto

As your child becomes familiar with the cards and their confidence builds, play the game with more sets of cards. Remember to use both sidesofthecards.

3-4 Years

Place three pairs (6 pieces) face down in two rows. Ask your child to flip one card over and say the word. Ask them to pick another card and turnitoverandsaytheword. Help them figure out if the two words rhyme. Repeat the words several times to make it very clear if theysoundthesameoriftheysound different. If they do rhyme, they can put the puzzle pieces together. If they don’t, then they turn both cards back over, and you take a turn.

“Those two words didn’t rhyme. Now it is my turn; I wonder if I can find twocardsthatrhyme.”

Once you have put two pieces together, choose another piece and tryagain. When you complete the 3 sets, say “Wow! We did it. We really worked hardtoputthosetogether.”Nowput these pieces aside and repeat the processwithanothersetof3cards.

After you have played a few times and your child has built their confidence, increase the number of pairs.

Rhyming Game

3-4 Years

Rhyme Train

Placefourpairs(8pieces)facedownin astraightline.Say,“Thisisourrhyme train!”

Spread out the cards in front of you. Closeyoureyesandchooseone. Together,identifythepictureandthen the first letter and the sound of the picture. Encourage your child to point tothefirstletter,sayitsnameandthe sounditmakes. Together,drawapicturetogowiththe picture on the game piece. Encourage your child to draw. Remember, it doesn’t have to be perfect. It is the processthatisimportant. You and your child may want to draw other objects that rhyme with the pictureonthecard. Chooseanothergamepieceandrepeat the process if your child is still interested. Together, put the cards in the box. Match each set of cards and store them in the box in sets to make sure youhaveallthecards. Haveyourchildchooseacardandtell you a story about it. Write down the story and read it back to your child. Pointtothewordsasyoureadthem. Encourageyourchildtodrawapicture togowiththestory. Keep the story and reread it often together. Remember to point to the words. Clean SUp illy Stories Drawing Time

Turnoverthefirstcardandsay,“What does the engine say?” Ask your child to say the word. Then, say, “Please turn over the next card to see if it rhymeswiththeenginecard.” Ask your child to say the word. Say both words together and decide if theyrhyme.Iftheydo,askyourchild to put the pieces together and put themaside. Flipoverthenextcardandstartagain. Flipthefirstcardastheengineandgo tothenextcardtoseeifitrhymes. If the second card does not rhyme withtheenginecard,flipitbackover and say, “Please turn over the next card to see if it rhymes with the enginecard.”Then,continuedownthe trainuntilyoufindtherhyme.

Rhyming Game

Activity Handout 179

Activities cont.

Use descriptive words and position words like in out beside behind in front of and Let your child explore the toy on their own. Sit with your child and observe. While they are exploring the blocks, talk about the shapes and colors you see. “Look, there is a red ball and a red square.” Once your child has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with your child usingthefollowingactivities,oneatatime.

Beads and

“Whatcolorshouldwefindnext?” Continue until all beads are part of a colorgroup. Sortbycolororbyshape. and talk about what you are o they learn the vocabulary, he round beads here and the onesinthiscup.”

beads out on the floor and designs with them, by lining next to each other, make t shapes or any random ourage your child, say, “I am mine into a square. What design are you making?” or ou make a circle with your or “Tell me about what you ing.”

Work with your child and start sorting the beads into the small bowls of the muffin pan. “Do you think we can find all of the blue beads? Where should we put them?”

Fall Activity Handout Stringing Beads 3-4 Years TActivities o Begin Remember 180

esign Bowls

Using a flat surface, place the beads in a line, left to right, making simple patterns:red/blue/red/blue…

See if your child can come up with their own patterns. As your child can do this successfully, they can start making the patterns more challenging Makepatternsbyshape,notjustcolor.

After placing four or five in a row with a pattern, ask, “What color comes next?” Put several in a row in a pattern and leave some out. See if your child can find the right beads to make the pattern. Tie a knot at one end of the string beforebeginning. Together, make necklaces or bracelets. As you begin, describe what you are doing to your child. Say, “I am going to put beads on this string to make a necklace. I will put the blue bead on first.” If your child struggles with stringing, show themhowtopinchthestringatthe endasyoustringthebeadonit. Make any design or make patterns on your string. Explain the patterns youaremakingandaskaboutwhat they are making. “Tell me about yournecklace.”“Ihaveyellow,blue, y

Patterning SBeads tringing Beads Clean Up

Saytoyourchild,“Let’sseehowfast we can put all of the beads in the container. Are you ready? Get set, go!” Allow your child to take the lead, putting handfuls of beads in the container.Modelturntaking.

Fall Activity Handout Stringing Beads 3-4 Years Activities cont. 181

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star 3-4 Years

Remember Word Search

Show your child a few places where “star” is written and ask them if they can find the word star again. If they point to the picture of the star, say, “Yes, that is a picture of a star. Point tothewordandsay,"thisistheword thatsaysstar.”

Fall Activity Handout

o Begin

Sing the song and clap or tap to the beat.

Once the main word is found, ask them about other words in the song. Eventually, they will be able to identify many of the words on the songposter.

Allow your child to make choices about how you play. Do they want to put the poster on the floor or hang it on the wall? This is special time together, and you and your childwanttoenjoyit.

TActivities

Model sharing and taking turns and use “please” and “thank you” as you play together.

182

Take the song poster and lay it on the floor or hang it on the wall or fridge. Ask your child to point to pictures on the song poster.“Whereisthestar?”Afteridentifying the pictures on the poster, begin the activitiesbelowtogether.

Sing the song with your child and do themotionsthatgowiththesong.

Look at the song sheet and point to the words as you sing the song together. Sing it together and have them point along, starting at the top left and movingacross.

Singing Tapping and Clapping

Next, say, “Show me some other letters you know.” Make sure you make the sound of the letter often for your child to hear. “You found the t’s. T says Tuh Tuh Tuh.” When they say a letter, encourage them to findallofthemontheposter.

Sing and Draw

Clean Up Make sure you store the erasable marker in a special place, so it doesn’t get lost. And, don’t forget tosecurethecap. Fall Activity Handout

Then, ask them to point to or underline the first letter in their name. If the first letter of their name is not on the poster, write it on the poster. Then ask them, “What other letters are in your name? Can you find the (letter child says)?” Encourage them to find all of the lettersintheirname. You may add more letters as they become better at this. Always start with letters they know to build confidence. Once your child can identify initial sounds, begin to emphasize the last sounds of a word. “Star r r r r. S t a r star. The rrrr sound is at the end.” Repeat the activities abovefocusingonendingsounds.

Pointoutthepartsofthesongthat rhyme. Together, come up with other words you could substitute. The words may be silly words or real words, just as long as they rhyme. Sing the song with the new rhyming words. For example, “Twinkle, twinkle little car, How I wonderwhatyouare.” Encourage your child to write the new song, or write it for them as they sing it to you. They can even drawapictureforthenewsong!

Rhyming HTime ide and Seek

You can ask them to draw their own song poster. They can use this same song or look through the songs and fingerplays and pick a new one, or just do anyone they like. Let them illustrate the poster and then practice looking for the lettersandwordsthattheyknow.

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star 3-4 Years Activities cont. 183

Go over the word star in the title. Sound it out slowly, emphasize the firstletter,“s s s star”. Circle the letter “s” once or twice on the sheet. Ask your child to point to or circle the other “s” letters on the poster. “Can you find the letter s, likeinthisword,star?”

Sorting 184 Winter Activity Handout TActivities o Begin Remember

You can work next to your child on your own project, or you can work with them to build something together. Whenthetoyisnew,theymayneed help fitting the pieces together. Help put it together, but find some easier pieces they can do on their own. Make sure they aren't just handing you the pieces so that you can put them all together. Encourage them toputsomeofthemtogether.

Construction Set- Tinker Toys 3-4 Years

Ask “Where should this piece go? How do I get it on?” or “I’ll put this one on, and you put that one on,” or “Should we use a shorter piece or a longerpiecehere?” Make sure you talk about the different sizes ofpiecesandwhattheymightbeusefulfor. These activities have been designed to challenge your child to help them develop. That means you may need to play an activity several times before your child fully participates.

Open the kit with your child and let them explore the pieces while you observe. After a few minutes, say “Let’s look at all the different pieces. Can you find one of each piece?” Once you have looked at the different pieces, play one of the activities together.

THESEOBJECTSAREACHOKINGHAZARD. PLEASE KEEP OUT OF REACH OF YOUNGER CHILDREN.

Experiment building with all the pieces. Make anything you can think of like cars, shapes, and machines. Be creative. Say, “Tell me about whatyouaremaking.”

Building

Together,groupthelikepieces. Have your child count the number of groups. Count the number of pieces in each group. Ask “Which group has the most pieces? Which group has the least pieces? How do youknow?”

Askyourchildtofindanother“short”stick. Cantheyfindonethatislonger?

Each of you build a tower, and then compare them to see which is the shortest, the tallest, the widest, and the thinnest. Use the pieces to make different shapes. Ask, “How could we make a square?” OR “What shapes can you make?” T ki th h diff t Shape Design Activity Handout Activities cont.

Try building a tall tower together. Ask them, “How can we make it taller?” “Can wemakeitshorter?”

Building Description Short and Long Find a stick of each size and line them up next to each other. Use descriptive words as you point to each stick. “This one is the shortest and this one is the longest. This oneislongerthanthisone.”

Construction Set- Tinker Toys

I Spy With My Little Eye 3-4 Years

Find another adult or older sibling they canshowtheircreationtoanddescribeit.

Askyourchildtodescribehowtheymade theircreation.Encouragethemtotellyou stepbystepwhattheydid.Usequestions like,“Whatdidyoudofirst?Next?Last?”

Write down their words and read the wordsbacktothem. Ask your child to describe their creation andaskquestionstopromotethinking.For example,“Whatdoesitdo?”“Wheredoes itgoorlive?”“Howdoesitmove?”

185

Have all the pieces spread out in front of the two of you and say, “I spy with my little eye something that is shaped like an L and is the color orange.” Then your child tries tofindthepiece. Now let your child describe a piece foryoutofind. Take turns describing pieces and trying to find them. Use creative, descriptive vocabulary when describingthepieces.

Winter Activity Handout 186

Construction Set- Tinker Toys 3-4 Years

Singingmakesclean upmorefun!

Measuring Gather several sticks or pieces that are the same size. The shortest ones may work best. Use them to measure the book and paper in the kit or other items around the house. You can use several of the pieces to measure, but you must use the same size pieces for each measurement. Use the measurement form from your kit. Turn it over and measure other thingsyoufind. Let your child write. Make the number out of dots for them to trace, or show them the number on the bottom of the formforthemtocopy. Ask questions such as “How many sticks long is the book?” OR “How many sticks long do you think this paper will be?” or “Whatelsecanwemeasure?”

When you clean up together, talk about what you are doing and what yourchildisdoing. For example, “I am finding all the sticks first and putting them in the box. How are you cleaning up?” Show them you appreciate them by saying“thankyou”whentheyhelp.

Activities cont. Clean Up

187 Winter Activity Handout TActivities o Begin 3-4 Years

Talk about the colors and the objects you make. Say, “Tell me aboutwhatyouaremaking.”

Counting Fun

Play Dough

Make several small pieces to share and count. Describe what you make. Say, “I made three balls and one pancake!”

Add and subtract the pieces. Say, “I made 3 snakes, and I am giving you two snakes, so I only have one left!” or“You have 3 balls and I have 1 ball, sohowmanydowehavetogether?” Then see if your child will count the balls. If not, you count, touching each ball as you count "1,2,3,4...we have4balls.

Remember

Play Dough Play

Challenge your child to make their play dough very flat, or very thick. Try all different shapes and sizes, and don’t forget to describe each onetheymake. Use your fingernail or a pencil to draw in the flattened play dough (the first letter in your child’s name, ashape,asmileyface).

Shape the play dough into different forms. Encourage your child to do the same. Consider making shapes, people, animals, food, flowers, houses, or anything you can think of. Use prompts for conversation. For example, “Tell me about what you are making.” “Why did you use that color/shape?”“Whatcanitdo?”

3-4 Years

Rolling Pins Pretend Play Together, pretend you are working at a restaurant or in the kitchen and make dinner. Ask, “What other types ofworkcanwedo?”

Play Dough

Activities

Cool Creations

cont. Use the rolling pins to flatten your play dough. Share materials back and forth with your child. Take the opportunity to model sharing. Say, “Can I please use the rolling pin whenyouarefinished?Thanks.”

Story Time Make up a story using the “cool creations” you and your child have madetogether. 188 Winter Activity Handout

Use the plastic scissors to cut the playdough. Share the pieces between each other.Countthem. Add and subtract pieces. “If you have two snakes and I give you one, how many snakes do we have?” “If I have three balls and you take two, howmanydoIhaveleft?”

Cutting and Counting

First, one of you make a letter with theplaydough. Then, the other person makes the sound to go with the letter. The other person can also come up with wordsthatstartwiththatletter. Switch roles, so the other person makestheletter.

To begin, one of you make a number withtheplaydough. The other person then makes that number of balls (or snakes, or pancakes). Next time, let the other person make the number with the play dough.Howhighcanyougo?

Snakes Letters & Numbers

3-4 Years Encourage your child to roll the playdough around on the mat to pickupanysmallpieces. Ask them to smash the playdough intoeachcan.Talkaboutputtingthe matching lid on the correct color. Makesurethelidisontight. Now carefully dust the crumbs of playdough off the mat and into the trashcan.

Number Search

Roll out snakes and make them into letters. Spell your child’s name and other words. You may want/need to write large letters or words on a sheet of paper and have your child place the playdoughontopofthepaper. Make your snakes into numbers. Write a number on a piece of paper and ask your child to place the snakes on top of the number. Ask your child to make the matching number of balls and place them under the number. Repeat with more numbers.

Activities cont. Play Dough Clean Up 189 Winter Activity Handout Shapes and Sounds Game

Discovery Play Bears 3-4 Years

o Begin

Balancing Act

Remember

Encourage your child to explore the bears and balance. Describe their actionsastheyplay. Point out clues to your child that might help them figure out how the bears affect the scale. “Hmm. I wonder if adding bears will make that side go down? What do you think?”

Spring

Balancing

Ask your child to choose two bears. Next, have them place one bear in each bucket. Encourage your child to observe what happens to the buckets. Ask them to describe to you whattheysee. Repeat this activity with two more bears. Add different combinations of bears and talk about what is happening withthebalance.

190 TActivities

THESEOBJECTSAREACHOKINGHAZARD. PLEASE KEEP OUT OF REACH OF YOUNGER CHILDREN. Activity Handout

Make sure to use descriptive words and position words like heavier, lighter, more, less, in, and out to describe your child’s actions while you are playing. Allow your childtocomeupwiththeirownwaytoplay with the toy. Your child has creative ideas andneedstheopportunitytoexpressthem. As your child gets older and you play with themmoreoften,theywillplaywithyoufor longer periods of time. When they do lose interest, stop playing and play again at another time. This is a special time for you and your child and it should be enjoyable forbothofyou.

Let your child explore the pieces on their own and talk about what they are doing as they explore. “You are putting all the bears in one bucket.” “You put all the green bears in a pile.” Once your child has had the chance to explore the materials, begin to play together using the following activities, oneatatime.

Balancing Bears 3-4 Years Spring Activity Handout 191

Make a color pattern from left to right, with red, blue, red, blue and ask your child to continue the pattern. Use another color and make a pattern and askthemtocontinueit. Use three different colors to make a pattern and ask your child to continue it. Askyourchildtomakeapatternforyou to finish. Read it out loud, from left to right,pointingtoeachbearasyouread. Together, create more patterns, challenging each other by mixing the colorsinyourpatterns. Consider these types of patterns to challenge your child: ABA; ABCD; AABB; ABBA;ABBC; . Activities cont. Balance Ask your child to make one side of the balance heavier. Make sure they understandthatisthesidethatgoes down. Ask them to explain why one side is heavier and the other one is lighter. Emphasize the words heavier andlighter. Askyourchildtomakethetwosides balance, with both sides equal in weight. Emphasize the word equal. Describe their work as they move the bears into and out of the buckets. Challenge your child by giving them ten bears and asking them to make the sides balance, equal in weight. Ask them to use the bears to make one side heavier or lighter. Describe their work as they move the bears intoandoutofthebuckets.

Pattern Bears

Work with your child to sort the bears by color. Describe your actions while you do this. “We are putting all the yellow bears over here and the blue bearsinthisbowl.”

3-4 Years

Clean Up Spring Activity Handout 192 Balancing Bears Storytelling Activities cont.

It is important that all the pieces makeitbackintheboxunderneath the balance each time you finish playing. Work together to put the bears where they belong. Use “please” and “thank you” to show your child how much you appreciatetheirhelp. Singingmakescleanupmorefun!

Make up stories with the bears. You can retell Goldilocks and the Three Bears or createyourownadventures. Encourage your child to write the story or you can write their words. You can write it on one page or make it into a book. Remember, any attempt they makeatwritingshouldbeencouraged. Ask your child to illustrate the story and thenreaditbacktoyou.

Even though your child probably will not be able to make accurate change, you can still model giving accurate change and describing the amounts of the bills andcoinsyouuse.

Sharewithyourchildhowyoufeelwhen you have spent all of your money. For example, “Well, if I buy this, I will spend all of my money. Maybe I should save some of my money.” Or, “I can only afford one of these but I want them both. What should I do?” Then, listen to yourchild’ssuggestions.

Divide some money between you and your child and tell them you want to go shopping. Go around the house and take turns buying and selling different things.. Exchangemoneybackandforth. Talk about what you are buying and why you want to buy it. What you will use it for? Ask questions about what your child isbuyingandwhytheyarebuyingit.

Remember, this is not about making a perfect price tag or receipt, it is about giving your child the opportunity to write. One of you can sit at a table and the other can put things into a bag to shop. Then, go to the table (check out counter) and purchase your items. Give change back when they give you money. Model saying, “Thank you” and other politeremarks.

Add props. Using paper or index cards, write the name of the object and write a price for each item that is for sale. Use a piece of paper to write receipts. Take turns being the buyer and the seller.

Money is a great prop for children to use to pretend to be like grown-ups. Children will love having play money to practice buying andselling.Weneedtorememberthatthey will not understand how much the bills are worth. There are obvious connections to math and numbers, but our main objective usingthemoneyistoplayandinteractwith your child. You can model for them how to be polite and teach them the appropriate ways of interacting with people while shopping. Your child will not understand that it takes five one dollar bills to equal one five dollar bill. You can explain the concept to them while using the money. Don’t get frustrated iftheydon’tgetit.

The money may get torn or crumpled easily, so encourage your child to put it in a safe placeeachtimetheyfinishplayingwithit.

Remember Activities Shopping Play Money 3-4 Years Spring Activity Handout 193

Pick up something and say you would like to buy it, ask them how much it costs, and then give them that amount of money. They may come up with very strange amounts like one hundred dollars, fifty cents, one penny, ten dollars. If you do not have the amount they say, then tell them what you do have. For example, “$100 is too expensiveforme.Ionlyhave$8.”

Bank Teller

Askyourchildwhatweusemoneyfor. Help clear up misunderstandings by explainingthatweusemoneytobuy food, transportation, clothing, toys, andaplacetolive. Explain that we don’t have money to buy everything we want, all the time and we must make decisions about whattouseourmoneyfor.

See if your child can sort the money by amount.Putallthe1’sinastack,5’s,10’s, etc.Say,“Wheredoesthisbillgo?Ithasa 10onit?”

Talk, Talk, Talk Clean Up Encourage your child to help you remember where the things you played with belong. Take turns putting thembackintheirplace

Have your child identify the number on eachbillastheyputitintheappropriate stack. Tell your child that they are the bank teller. They are in charge of giving you moneythatyouaskfor.Ifyouevergoto therealbankdrivethru,explainaboutthe bankteller’sjob.

Decisions, Decisions

Talkabouthowimportantitistosave money.Helpyourchildsavemoneyby designating a special place to keep changeorsmallbillstheymayhave. Usethesediscussionsanytimeyouare in a store. Talk about why you are spending money on some things and not others. When they ask to buy treats, help them decide which one theycanselectandwhy.Askalotof questions to understand why they wantsomethingandexplainwhythey canorcannothaveit(whyorwhynot youcannotspendmoneyonit).

Talk to your child about what you are buyingandwhatyouwilluseitfor. If you are the seller, ask your child what they will do with the things they are buyingfromyou.

Activities cont. Play Money 3-4 Years Spring Activity Handout 194

Ask for different bills in different quantities. Don’t ask for total numbers andexpectthemtoadd.“Ineedfourfive dollarbillsandtwoten-dollarbills.Please givemesixonedollarbills.”

Use a lot of language.. If you are pretending to be at a grocery store, ask questions about where certain things would be located “Where can I find the milk?” Askhowmuchthingscost“Howmuchis thisboxofcereal?”

Piquingyourchild’snaturalcuriosityforwords and language is the best way to help them learn. Spelling words correctly isn’t most important at this age. Understanding the concept that putting letters together in certain ways makes words is important. You want to celebrate any attempt your child makestoformwords. As your child is learning to write letters and words, you can help in many ways. You can write words and your child can copy them. You can dot words and your child can trace them. Your child can say the words and you can write them. You can spell the words and your child can write them. Or your child can writethemthewaytheythinktheyshouldbe.

Place the board, marker and eraser in front of your child and let them explore the materials while you observe. After a few minutes, begin describing what they are doing. Once they have had the opportunity to explore, play one oftheactivitiestogether..

Runaway Drawing

3-4 Years Spring Activity Handout 195

Encourage your child to draw freely on the board. Describe their drawing, “Youdrewbigcirclesandsmallcircles allovertheboard!” Ask them to tell you about their picture. Encourage them to give more details, like, “What else can you tell me?” or “Why did you draw it this way?”

Dry Erase Board & Magnetic Letters TActivities o Begin Remember

THESEOBJECTSAREACHOKINGHAZARD. PLEASE KEEP OUT OF REACH OF YOUNGER CHILDREN.

Encourage them to label their picture and write the word. Sound it out together and tell them the letters if they want you to. Do not insist they spell correctly or write the letters correctly. We are building excitement aboutwriting. Ask your child to tell you a story about their picture. Who are the people/animals? What are they doing?Wheredotheylive?

Spread the letters on the floor or table and ask your child to find the letters in their name. Help if necessary. Help your child fill in any missing or duplicated letters when theyspellitout. Encourage your child to write their name under the letters. You may need to move the letters to the table, so they have more space to write. Praise their efforts and provide hints about how to form the letters.

Avoid writing for them and don’t worry if the letters are not formed correctly.Ifanymagnetlettersarea strange shape, write the letters on paperinsteadofusingthemagnets. Continue with other family or friends’names. Spread about half of the letters on the floorortable,mixed up.

Spring Activity Handout 3-4 Years Find that Letter! 196 Dry Erase Board & Magnetic Letters What’s

“You are working hard to make that c. It curves around, like you are drawingpartofacircle.”

Drawoneofthelettersonthedryerase board and quickly show it to your child. Makeitfast,soitisengagingandfun.

Tell them to find the letter as fast as they can. If this is hard for your child, don’t ask them to go fast, only use the letters in their name, and make sure the letters are facing your child, right-sideupinsteadofupside-downorsideways.

When they find it, ask them to name it and, together, make the sound of the letter. Ask them to put the letter into a pileorinabasket.

Continue with other letters. Make it more exciting by asking them to move fast or slow and make the sound of the letterinsillyvoices. For a challenge, instead of writing a letter,say,“Iamthinkingofaletterthat makes the ‘buh’ sound, can you find it?” Together, come up with more words thatmakethatsoundatthebeginning.. in a Name?

Activities cont.

to make cleaning more

& Magnetic Letters

Once, your child can match, ask them tofindthelettersforyoufromapile.At first, you may need to let them find the letter from a small group of 2 or 3. As theyplaymore,theywillbeabletofind itoutofalargegroup.

PutOurToysAway Tune:MaryHadaLittleLamb Let’sputallourtoysaway,toysaway, toysaway. Let’sputallourtoysawaytouseanother day. Letter Fun with Board

Write a familiar word on the board. Ask your child to find the letters that spell the word. You may need to start with a small group of letters. Take turns coming up with words to write and find. Board

Sing a

Clean Up

Write your child’s name on the board. Together, find the magnet letters that match each letter in your child’s name and place them on the board under the written name. Make the sound of the letter as your child places it on the board. Read their name when they have finished. Ask your child for more words (encourage family and friends’ names) andrepeattheactivity. Once your child has become familiar with several words, write the word on the board and then match each magnet lettertothewrittenletter.

Spring Activity Handout 3-4 Years 197 Dry Erase

Activities cont.

Say to your child, “We need to put all of the letters back on the refrigerator (or wherever you keep them) to keep them safe. How many can you put on the refrigerator? Thank you for putting all those letters on the refrigerator(orintheirspot).” song fun!

4-5 Years

198

“Look,hereisDfordaddy.”

Yourchildenjoysbeingwithyouandplaying together. Make sure you see this as an opportunity to play a fun game with your child. Your child may get a few correct and a few wrong, and that is OK. We want your child to feel successful, and a great way to support their success is to start with objects and words they are familiar with. The more often you play, the more practice your child gets with letters and their sounds. It takes a lot of practice to learn the letters and their sounds. If your child gets frustrated and is no longer enjoying the game, please stop and try again another time. You may spend the first few times simply playing letter fun with your child so that they become familiar with the letters. Sitting with your child, play with the letters together. Sort all the letters into pairs. Say, “Here is my pair of ‘g’s. Whatletterareyoucollecting?”

199 4-5

Remember TActivities

Foranextrachallenge,trysingingthe ABC song backwards, beginning with “z” and pointing to each letter as you singit. Find all the letters in their name and spell it out on the floor. “I am looking for a letter that makes the ‘AAAAA’ sound,whatisit? Can you help me find one?” Repeat this process for each letter in their name. For a challenge, try it again usingotherfamiliarnames.

Letter Fun Fall Activity Handout Years Early Birds Words

o Begin

You and your child can sit together and take outthe letters in the kit. Name the letters as you play and emphasize the sound the letter makes. Point out any letters that are familiar to your child (from their name, mom, dad...).

Next, take a letter from each pair to put the letters in a row in ABC order, lefttoright. Sing the ABC’s as you touch each letter.

Work together to find the letters to spell thewordsonthecards.

Fall Activity Handout 4-5 Years 200 Early Birds Words

Take turns choosing a letter and trying to match it to your words until all the words have been completed and all the letters are gone. As your child builds their confidence, add more cards and letters. Another way to play is to put a letter in each hand behind your back and let your child pick one. Use the same process to facilitate the identification of a missing letterforeachwordonthecard. Speedy Sets

Puzzle Play

Youcanstartwithfewerwordsifneeded. Make sure you “read” each word as you completeit.

Now, put the letters in a group in front of you. Time how long it takes the two of youtospellthewords.

Picture Cards

First, choose two word cards and find their letter matches. Place the letters in a pile, choose a letter, and try to match the letter to its place in the word on the puzzle card. Second, read the word using the letterdrawnandaskyourchildifit is the correct letter. “Does it sound right?” If it does, place it on the card and if it does not, put it back inthepilewiththeotherletters.

Activities cont. Put all the word cards in front of you, eithersideupisfine.

Find the stack of picture cards in your box and encourage your child to pick one. Ask them, “What do you think that is?” Describe the object, using its name but also other descriptive words. For example, “Yes, it is a fish, a bright blue andyellowfish.” Repeat this until your child has named allofthecards. If your child is still interested, encourage them to sort the cards by a certain characteristic. For example, color, type, or beginning lettersound.

Activities cont. Fall Activity Handout 4-5 Years 201

Use the letters to spell a simple word such as “pig” or “cat.” Place the picture cardofthewordnexttotheword. Remove the first letter and replace it with several others, each time creating a new rhyming word. Read the new word each time and let your child read them. Pick consonant letters and let them choose and make new, silly words by placing them as the first letter, even if they don’t make sense. Let them practice saying the word. For example, wig, pig, jig, fig, dig. Then silly like lig, mig,tig. Use the picture and word cards to make astory. Place them in a row to tell the story. Startwiththreecards. Write down your child’s story and read itbacktothem. Invite them to draw pictures to go with theirstory.

Rhyme Time Missing Letters

Early Birds Words

Storytime

Choose a word card and find the lettersthatspelltheword. Usetheletterstospelltheword.Then removeoneoftheletters. Read the incomplete word to your child and see if they can find the new missingletter. “Now let’s see if you can spell pig. I put the ‘p’ there and now the last letterismissing!!” To begin, make sure you have 2 lettersforthemtochoosefrom.

Art Smart

“Howdoyouknow?” What do you think?

Use your clip board and paper to make your own picture cards. When they are finished, use paper to make word cards to match. You can write the words for them, but if they want to write, let them. You can dot the word for them to trace, say the letters to them for them to write, or spell the word with the lettersandletthemcopythemontothe paper. Say a word and encourage them to draw pictures to go with the word, and tellyouaboutwhattheyaredrawing.

Once they have gathered the information, discuss their findings.

“How many answers did you get?”

If they make up a story, write it on the papernexttothepicture.

Activities cont. Fall Activity Handout 4-5 Years 202 Early Birds Words

Encourage them to write their name on thepicturealso. They may also use their clip board and practicewritingwordstheyknow.

Encourage your child to ask the questiontopeopleanddocumentthe responseusingthechart.

“Do more people like or dislike pigs?”

Use the clipboard chart and erasable marker to collect information from people. Begin by encouraging your child to think of something that interests them using the picture cards. Make up a question to investigate what they find interesting. For example, “Doyoulikepigs?”

Challenge Clean Up Use another game card or a piece of paper to cover up the words, so only the pictures are showing. Using one picture at a time, work together to identify the word that describes the picture and then to spell the word. For example, “Fish, I wonder what letters are n f f fish?” use the letters tospelltheword. To begin, make sure you have 2 letters for them to choose from for each letter in the word. “OK, fish, we have f-f-f. What sound is next?” Show them an “I” and a “k” and make each sound. See if they can figure out what comesafterf.

Write and Sort Useindexcardsandtogetherwriteeach word on a card. Then read each word and match them to their pictures on the gamecards. Next, sort the cards into groups based on the first letter. Once they have been grouped by first letter, read each group of words. Encourage your child to describethegroupsforyou. Try sorting the cards based on different characteristics. For example, beginning sound, middle sound, ending sound, middle letter, end letter, rhyming. Think ofotherwaystosortthem.

Activities cont. Fall Activity Handout 4-5 Years 203 Early Birds Words

Saytoyourchild,“Whatpiecesshould we put away first?” Allow your child to take the lead putting the pieces in thebox. As you work together to put the kit away, ask your child additional questionstoget them thinking about howtoorganizethepiecesinthebox.

Turn the cards face up on the floor. See if your child can group them in several different ways, one way at a time. By color, say “Put all the red ones here.” By suit, say, “Can you find all the spades?” By number, say, “Showmeallofthe5’s.”.

Memory Madness

Place the cards, face side down, and play memory. You can have a winning match by color, suit, or number. You and your child should decide together or take turns decidinghowtoplay. Because you want your child to have a successful experience, begin with a smallernumberofcards.Forinstance, all of the twos through sixes. Add additional cards as your child builds confidence. Flip over a card and then flip a second one looking for a match of color, suit, or number. If you find a match, put it to the side and take another turn. Ask questions such as “Canyoufindanother8?”

Remember

TActivities o Begin

Let your child explore the cards on their own.Sit with your child and observe. While they are exploring the cards, talk about the number and letters you see. “Look, there are red hearts on that card.” Once your child has had the opportunity to explore the cards, begin to play with your child usingthefollowingactivities,oneatatime.

204 4-5

Grouping Game Fall Activity Handout Years Deck of Cards Model good sportsmanship, be a good winner and a good loser. Share with your child how much you enjoy playing with them. As your child gets older and you play with them more often, they will play with you for longer periods of time. When they lose interest, stop playing and play again at another time. This is a special time for you and your child, and it should be enjoyable forbothofyou.

Take out the face cards and ace’s. Divide up the cards between you and yourchild.Eachofyouputsyourstack of cards in front of you face down. At thesametime,flipacardover,soitis face up. Whoever has the higher number,getsbothcards. Ask your child questions about the cards,suchas“Hmmm,issixmorethan nine?” Be sure to use sentences that describe numbers that are higher and lower.“Yes,sevenishigherthanfour.” Or“Twoislowerthansix.” Superchallenge: You can add the face cards when your child has a good understanding of the other numbers andwhatishigher/lower.

To begin, model counting the symbols on your card if your child doesn’t recognize the numerals. Describe what youaredoing.Forexample,say“Ihave a5.1,2,3,4,5"whilepointingtoeach symbolasyoucount.Thisnumeralsays 5.Howmanydoyouhave?”Repeatthe countingwiththeircardsifneeded,but just watch if they want to do it themselves. If their counting isn’t correct,justsay,“Let’scounttogether" and touch each symbol as you count withthem. Onceyouknowtheamount onbothofthecards,ask,“Whohasthe highestnumber?”

205

Activity Handout 4-5 Years

Use cards 29. Shuffle the cards and place them face-down between you andyourchild.Turnthetopcardover. Askyourchildtoidentifythenumber. Say, “Let’s start with (the number) and count on to 10.” For example, the card is a six, so you say, “6,7,8,9,10.” Count the numbers up to ten (rote counting) and then do it again, using yourfingers. Continue flipping cards and counting up from the number to ten (rote countingandthenonyourfingers). Makeitmoreengagingandjump,snap, clap,ortapwhileyoucount. Challenge your child to count as high astheycango! Superchallenge: Count down from the cardchosen,tozero! Counting

Activities cont.

Deck of Cards

Highest Card

Shuffle the cards and deal each player 4 cards.Asyourchildgetsbetteratholding cards, you may start with 7. Put the remaining cards in a pile in the middle, facedown.Holdyourcards,sotheother playerscan’tseethem.Decideifyouneed fourmatchestomakea“book”ortwo. Beginbyaskinganotherplayerforacard you have in your hand. If the player has thecard,theygiveittoyou.Iftheydonot haveit,theysay“gofish”.Ifyou“gofish,” youdrawthetopcardfromthepile. Taketurnsaskingotherplayersforcards. Onceyoumakea“book”(amatchof2or4 ofthesamenumber),takethe“book”out ofyourhandandputitinfrontofyou. The game is over when all the cards are matchedin“books”. Helpyourchildbecomeagraciouswinner andloser.Donotgloatorbragwhenyou win. When you lose, say, “Oh well, you can’t win every time. I wish I didn’t lose butIreallylikeplayingthisgame.” Itisimportantyourchildgetachanceto loseinasafeenvironmentwhereyoucan provide support and coach them about appropriateresponses.“Iknowitisnofun to lose, but it is fun to play.” “If you are goingto(actout,getangry,yell)thenwe canstopfornowandplayagainlater.”“I am sorry you are unhappy because you lost,Iunderstand.Let’splayagain,orwe canplaylater.” Go Fish

4-5 Years Deck of Cards Activities cont. Fall Activity Handout 206

Count the cards as you put them in the box to make sure that you have a full deckforthenexttimeyouplay. Clean Up

Providing opportunities for your child to be creative is very important for development. Not only does it stimulate brain development, but it allows them to make decisions and express themselves, which strengthens their self esteem. It is fine to follow your child’s lead when you are playing one of the following activities together.Theymayhaveabetteractivityin mind. Childrenenjoytellingyouabouttheirwork. Encouraging your child to explain what they are thinking and doing helps them develop social skills, thinking skills, and pre reading skills, preparing them for school.

Dump the blocks out on the work area. Work together to sort the blocks by colororshape. about what you are doing as you work together. “I am looking for blue rhombus blocks. What are you lookingfor?” “How many sets of blocks did wemake?” together, pointing to each set asyoucountit. many blocks are in each set?

“How

4-5

Sorting Sets

Fall Activity Handout 207

THESEOBJECTSAREACHOKINGHAZARD. PLEASEKEEPOUTOFREACHOFYOUNGER CHILDREN.

TActivities o Begin Years Pattern Blocks

Talk

Ask:

Count

Let’scountthemtogether.”

Remember

Let your young child sort through the shapes. They can play with the shapes by building, designing and sorting. Once your child has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with your child usingthefollowingactivities,oneatatime.

Decide together who will be the leader andwhowillbethefollower.

Dumptheblocksontheworkarea. Make a picture or design using some or all of the blocks. You can each make your own, and then tell each other aboutthem. Now choose a number between 1 and 20. Together count that number of blocks and use then to make a picture oradesign. Try making a design using only two colorsorshapes.Describeyourcreation.

The leader chooses 6 blocks. The followercollectsthesame6blocks. The leader makes a design with the 6 blocks. The follower makes the same design. Say, “Do you think mine looks justlikeyours?”Ifnot,askwhy.

Each of you collect the same 12 blocks. Now each of you make your own design. When you are finished tell each other about your design. Ask, "What is similar?Whatisdifferent?" Build a tower using the blocks. Count thenumberofblocksinyourtower.

• Design

Follow the Leader

Now switch roles. You may also want to switch the type or number of blocks. Repeat. Puzzle Play Ask your child to choose a pattern board. Discussthepicture. Count the number of red trapezoids in the picture. Collect that many red trapezoids and put them next to the board. Repeatforeachshapeinthepuzzle.

Activities cont. Fall Activity Handout 4-5 Years 208 Pattern Blocks

Once all the pieces have been collected, work with your child to matchtheshapetothepuzzleuntilitis complete. Model placing a piece on the board to begin if needed. Describe what your childisdoing.“Youmatchedbothofthe yellow hexagons. What shape will you matchnext?”

Take three of each shape and make a line of alternating shapes. Triangle— square triangle square triangle square. Touch each shape as you say its name, readingtheABpattern. Ask your child to read the pattern. Point to the shape if needed, or say it withthem. Repeatwithdifferentshapesaslongas yourchildishavingfun. Make a pattern and have your child copyit. Now have your child make a pattern, andyoucopyit. For a challenge, add a third shape to the pattern. Make patterns using any combinationofshapes.

Ask your child to choose a shape. Discuss the name, color, and count the numberofsides.

Shapes and Colors

Now ask your child to choose a color. Repeat the process with the new set of blocks. Questionsyoumightask: Which color block is the biggest? Explainwhy. Whichcolorblockissmallest?Why? Whichblockisyourfavorite?Why? Whichcolorisyourfavorite?Why? Which shape has the most sides? Howmanysidesdoesithave? Which shape has the fewest sides? Howmanysidesdoesithave? This is an opportunity for your child to talk and for you to listen to better understand how your child reasons and thinks. You do not need to correct them.

It is important that you make your patterns in a straight line and read themfromlefttorightfromyourchild’s perspective. This is reinforcing an importantliteracyskill. Ask your child to choose 2 shapes. Name the shape and color. White small rhombus/diamond, blue large rhombus, diamond, red—trapezoid, orange square,green triangle,yellow hexagon.

Activities cont. Fall Activity Handout 4-5 Years 209 Pattern Blocks

Find all the blocks that are the same shapeandputtheminapile. Onceyouhavethemallcollected,count them. Makeadesignwiththem.Makealarger versionoftheshapeusingtheblocks.

Pattern Play

Label each shape by writing the word, or having your child write the word,foreachshape.

Discusseachshapewithyourchild.

Use the shapes for cards or thank you notesforfamilyandfriends. Make a collage with the shapes on anotherpieceofpaper. Together, make characters out of the cut out shapes and use them like you mightpaperdollsorpuppets.

TActivities o Begin

Tracing Shapes

210

4-5 Years

Let your young child sort through the shapes. They can play with the shapes, sorting them by color or shape. Encourage them to choose the one they want to use first. Once your child has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with your child using the following activities,oneatatime.

Winter Activity Handout

Remember

Providing opportunities for your child to be creative is very important for development. Not only does it stimulate brain development but it allows them to make decisions and express themselves which strengthensself esteem. Children enjoy describing their work and then having their words written on their work. Allow your child to decide where the words will be written, and encourage them to write as much as they want. You can tell them the letters to write, or write the words on another piece of paper and let themcopythemontotheirartwork.

Tracing Shapes

Scissor Fun Trace around the shapes on a piece of paperandthencutouttheshape.

Place the tracing shape on a piece of paper. They should hold the shape down with one hand and use a pencil to trace around the shape. You may need to help them hold it until they candoboth. They can draw several pictures, using the front and back of the paper. Ask, “How many shapes can you fit on this side?”

Tracing Shapes

Gift Wrap Galore Trace around the shapes on pieces of newsprint. They can color them with crayonsormarkers. Usethedecoratednewsprinttowrap presents. “Let’s wrap up this book for daddy!”

Bookmaking

Remind your child that books have covers. Show them the cover of a book to remind themthattheyneedatitle,andtheyneed to write their name as the author and illustrator. Ask them to read their story to you. Find other people in the house, on the phone, oroveravideocall,forthemtoreadto.

It is easier to clean up when everything has a place. Make sure you have a safe place to store these creativematerials. Say, “I will empty the cup of water if you will put the art supplies in the drawer.Thanksforyourhelp.”

Encourage your child to make a book, choosing favorite shapes or ones that you can group together like animals, transportation,orjusttheirfavoritethings. “Whatkindofbookshouldyou/wemake?” Yourchildcanuseatracingshapeforeach illustration, make their own original art, or useacombinationofboth. Encourageyourchildtowritethewordsto their story and label their illustrations. They can also dictate the story to you. If you write it, leave a few letters or words outforthemtowriteoneachpage.

Storytelling

Ask your child to trace one or more shapes and add details to make a picture. Have your child make up a story to gowiththepicture. Write their words on the paper or helpthemwritethem. Read it back to them to make sure it sayswhattheywantittosay.

4-5 Years

211 Winter Activity Handout Activities cont.

Decorating

Clean Up

Ask your child to place a tracing shape on a piece of paper and use a pencil to trace aroundtheshape. After they are done tracing, they can use crayons, markers or watercolors to fill in thepicture. Ask your child to tell you about their picture. Remember to let your child choose the colorsandusecreativity. Theycanmixthewatercolorstomakenew colors. You might ask, “What happens whenyoumixtheblueandyellowpaint?”

Building

Let your child sort through the pieces and try snapping them together. Once your child has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with your child usingthefollowingactivities,oneatatime.

Creative Building

Encourage your child to start snapping the pieces together. Appreciate their effort when they are finished snapping When they begin making something specific, encourage them to tell you what they are doing as they work. Remember, it is their work so allow themtocreateit.

212 Winter Activity Handout To Begin you. Ask them questions such as, “How did you decide to put that piece on top?” or “What made you decidetomakeapuppy?” Howwillyoumake... Atower? Asetofstairs? Asquare? Thefirstletterinyourname? Arobot? Amonkey? Ahelicopter? Thelettersinyourname? Whatelsecanyoumake? Remember, they don’t have to snap the bricks together to make things withthem Whatelsecanyoumakewith… Six(6)bricks? Ten(10)bricks? Littlebricks? Redbricks? Think of other ideas and use them to build.

Building with small pieces can be challenging and frustrating. Encourage your child when they struggle and remind them to take all the time they need. Offer them largerpiecestostartwithiftheyareunable to snap the small ones together. Do not fall into the habit of snapping the pieces together for them. Talk them through different strategies to do it themselves or tell them to take a break and try those pieceslater.

piecestogether.

Remember Activities Brick

Follow the

Sorting

Activities cont.

andself-correct.

“Let’s play follow the leader. I will go first.”Select 3 bricks and say “Now you find these same pieces.” If you feel there are too many from which to choose, make the choosing group smaller. Encourage them to collect the pieces they need and place them in front of them. Model the process. Say, “First, I will snap the red brick on top of the blue brick. Next, I will snap the white brick on top of the blue brick. Now you try.”

Repeattheprocessforeachstep. Challenge: Use more pieces and give two or three directions at once, withoutmodelingwiththebricks..

Once grouped, discuss similarities and differences of the groups. Ask them questions such as, “Are there other groups we could make?” and “Whichgrouphasthemost?Howdo you know?” and “How many groups didwemake?”

Leader 213 Winter Activity Handout

It is easier to clean up when everything has a place. Make sure you put all the pieces back in the bag.

Clean Up

Encourage your child to put the bricksingroupsbasedoncolor,size, shape,orothercharacteristics.

Building Bricks 4-5 Years

Failing is an important part of the learningprocess.Childrenneedtohave opportunities to try and fail and then try again and succeed. If they follow the direction incorrectly, just watch and see what happens. Give them the opportunity to discover the mistake Take turns being the leader and giving directions.

Work with them to make the groups. Ask them questions such as, “This one is long like this group and red like that group. Where do you thinkitbelongs?”

Givethemachancetotrythefirststep independently. If they become frustrated, offer some assistance. Try to allow them to actually snap the piecestogether.

Sing & Draw Ask your child to create their own song poster. Use the same song or select one from Songs & Fingerplays. Encouragethemtowritethewords. Ask your child to identify any letters orwordstheyknow.

Tapping & Clapping

Sing the song with your child and do themotionsthatgowiththesong.

Look at the song sheet and point to the words as you sing the song together. Sing it together and have them point to the words, starting at the top left andmovingacrosstotheright.

Take the song poster and lay it on the floor or table. Say, “What do you think this song is about?” and ask them to explain their answer. When you have finished your discussion,begintheactivitiesbelow.

Sing the song and clap or tap to the beat. Let your child decide how to keep the beat as you sing, like stomping, snapping,etc. Change the tempo and the volume and keep the beat, tapping or clapping softly when you sing quietly.

Itsy Bitsy Spider TActivities

4-5 Years

Begin

Your child will probably be able to “read” the song poster once you have used it to sing the song several times. Encourage their “reading” behavior, as it builds confidence for future reading experiences. Also, help them connect words, letters, and sounds on thesongpostertootherwordstheysee. Spring Activity Handout

Remember

Singing

214

215

Hide & Go Seek Gooverthewordspiderinthetitle. Sound it out slowly, emphasize the first letter,“s s s spider”. Circle the letter s once or twice on the sheet. Ask your child to circle the other letter S’s on the poster. “Can you find theletters,likeforspider?”

Word Search Show your child a few places where “spider” is written, and ask them if theycanfindtheword“spider”again. Ask,“Whatdoesitmeanwhenitsays upthewaterspout?"Showyourchild iftheyareunclear. Once the main word is found, ask about other words in the song. Eventually, they will be able to identify all the words on the song poster. Clean Up Make sure you store the erasable markerinaspecialplace,soitdoesn’t get lost. And, don’t forget to secure thecap. Use a damp cloth to wipe off the marker. You can hang the poster on the wall in your child’s bedroom or another specialplaceinthehouse.

Once your child can identify initial sounds, begin to emphasize the last sounds of a word. “Spider r r r r. S p i d e r spider. The rrrr sound is at the end.” Repeat the activities abovefocusingonendingsounds.

Activities cont. Spring Activity Handout

Itsy Bitsy Spider 4-5 Itsy Bitsy Spider

Next, say, “Show me some other letters you know.” Make sure you make the sound of the letter often for your child to hear. “You found the d’s. D says DDDDDD.” When they say a letter, encourage them to find all of them on theposter. Brainstorm together other words that start with that same sound. Write them on the song poster or another sheet of paperwitharegularpenorpencil. Then,askthemtofindandunderlinethe first letter in their name. Ask, “What other letters are in your name? Can you find the _____ ?” Encourage them to findallthelettersintheirname. You may add more letters as they becomebetteratthis.Alwaysstartwith letters they know to build their confidence.

As your child gets older, and you play with them more often, they will play with you for longer periods of time. When they lose interest, stop playing and play again at another time. This is a special time for you and your child, and it should be enjoyable forbothofyou.

Stackthemlikewallsortowers. Describe what you see your child doing. “I see you placing the yellow blockontopoftheblueone.”

216 Unifix Cubes Spring Activity Handout TActivities o Begin Remember

THESEOBJECTSAREACHOKINGHAZARD. PLEASEKEEPOUTOFREACHOF YOUNGERCHILDREN.

Ask your child about their work. “Tell me about your building.” Ask follow up questions like, “Why did youdoitthatway?” Label each design by writing the words your child uses to describe it. Or, your child can write the words, and you can help by spelling the wordsifneeded.

Remember, snapping together in itself is a fine motor skill. Some children may struggle initially, just snapping and pulling apartthecubes.

Build & Design Usethecubestobuildanddesign.

4-5 Years

Let your child examine the pieces. Once your child has had the opportunity to explore the materials, begin to play with your child using the following activities, oneatatime. Thisisatoythathasmanyuses.Itcanhelp children with their imagination and language development, as well as a variety of math concepts. Older children can also usethesetolearnmanydifferentthings.

Use the cubes to measure toys and books Have your child snap the cubes togethertomakeameasuringstick. After you measure the object, count thenumberofcubes,goingfromleftto right and touching each block as you saythenumber. Write the number of cubes on the measuring form with the erasable marker. Turn it over and find new things to measure. Encourage your child to record the answers. Say, “Let’s see how long this book is. It is 8 cubes long!”

Estimate. Once your child has had experience measuring with the cubes, ask them to estimate how many cubes longsomethingis.Afteryoumeasureit, compare their estimate to the actual numberofcubes.

Measuring 217 Unifix Cubes Spring Activity Handout

Use blocks to make patterns. Put two red, two blue, two red, two blue. Have your child continue the pattern by finding the next blocks to complete the pattern. Ask, “If I have red, red, blue, blue,red,red,whatcomesnext?” Encourage your child to create their ownpatterns. Make pattern cards for the patterns you create together with the cubes. Use crayons to draw and encourage your childtowritethecolorwords. Make pattern cards for the patterns you design. Write the color word in the same color when making your cards. For example, if the pattern is red, red, blue, write the word red using the color red andthewordblueusingthecolorblue.

Sort the cubes by color. Use the sorting bowlsinthemuffinpansormakelines.

4-5 Years

Activities cont.

Talk about which items are longer and shorterthanothers.Measurewidthand length and emphasize words like longer,shorter,width, andlength.

Make new pattern cards and challenge each other to make the patterns with thecubes. Pattern Play

Connect the cubes you get in a line in front of you. Once all players have completed 3 rolls, count the number ofcubesinfrontofyou.

To make the game more challenging, use 2 dice instead of one when rolling. Your child may need support adding the two dice together. Show them how to count the dots. Write down the number you roll each time, and alsocollectthatnumberofcubes.

Make10rows,beginningwith1inthefirst row, 2 in the second row, and so on until youhave10inthetenthrow.Countthem, lefttoright. Add them. Ask your child to find four red cubes and snap them together. Then find three green cubes and snap them together. Snap the colors together and count them, one cube at a time, then say, “Four plus three equals seven.” Repeat withdifferentnumbersandcolors. Subtract them. Ask your child to snap eight cubes together and then count them. Remove three and ask your child to count the remaining cubes. Then say, “Eight minus three equals five.” Repeat withdifferentnumbers. To make it more challenging, write the mathproblemonapieceofpaperandput the number of cubes under each number (1+2=3). Afterplayingthegameseveraltimes,your child will also be able to write the math problems. You can use the dice game boardforthis. Dice & Cube Games

Use the number dice instead of the dotteddice. Once you get to 20 cubes, begin removing the number of cubes that yourollbackinthecubepile. Every time you roll a 4 or a 7, remove that number of cubes instead of addingthemtoyourline.

Who has the most? (which line is longest?)Whohastheleast(whichline is shortest?) Are any of the lines the samelength?

It is easier to clean up when everything has a place. Make sure you have a safe place to store these materials. Say, “It is time to clean up. How many seconds do you think it will take us to put the cubes back in the box? 1,2,3 go!Wediditin30seconds.Thanksfor yourhelp.”

Put all the cubes in a pile. Take turns rolling one dot dice and taking that many cubes out of the pile. Each personrollsthedice3times.

Counting Cubes 218 Unifix Cubes

Spring Activity Handout Activities cont.

4-5 Years

Clean Up

Addition Roll two numeral dice. Write one number in the first space and one number in the second space of the addition problems. Solve the problem using the number line at the bottom of thecard. Try the dotted dice next, so that your child must count the dots to arrive at a number.

THESE DICE ARE A CHOKING HAZARD.

Roll & Circle Copy the following page onto a piece a paper. Roll one numeral die. Circle the number you roll on your paper. Play until you havecircledallthenumbers. Play using the numbers 1–12 and twodotdice.

Subtraction Roll one numeral die. Write the number in the second space of the subtraction problems. Solve the problem using the numberlineatthebottomofthecard. Try the dotted dice next, so that your child must count the dots to arrive at a number.

PLEASE KEEP OUT OF REACH OF YOUNGER CHILDREN. Startwith1dotdie. Each player rolls the die. Who has the highest number? Put a tally mark in theplayerbox.Playuntilyoubothget ten tally marks, or make up your own goal. Using numeral dice or 2 dice is more challenging. Play to see who rolls the lowest number Highest Roll Startwith1dotdie. Roll the die and count the number of dots.Writethenumberoftallymarks on a piece of paper. Repeat for each player. Afteradditionaltallymarksareadded to a player, recount the tally marks andwritethenewnumber. Playuntilyoubothreach21. To make it more challenging, use 2 diceorswitchtodicewithnumerals. 21 Spring Activity Handout

Activities YEARS 219 Dice Games

4-5

4-5 YEARS Dice Addition Dice & Cube Math Usethecubestoaddandsubtractthenumbers. 220 Dice Subtraction Spring Activity Handout

For the ball: Playing w good for large muscle andhand eyecoordinat opportunity to use together. Describe your andaskquestions.

Ball & Chalk 4-5 Years TActivities o Begin Remember Chalk Talk

Use the chalk to draw a couple of shapes on the cement. Ask your child toidentifytheshapeanditscolor. Have your child follow a simple direction using the chalk shapes. For example, say, “Stand inside the purple circle.” Take turns giving each other directions. Use words such as i i i

For the chalk: Your chil interested in the chalk they do become interes just make random marks fine. Using chalk and utensils will strengthen t help them have better theywriteanddrawasth

Activities cont.

Ball & Chalk Years

On the cement, use the chalk to draw large shapes on the ground. Then take a few steps away from the shapes and trytothrowtheballintotheshape. Make it a game by putting a number inside each shape. Take turns throwing the ball into the shapes. Keep track of the points you get by writing them on the cement. Set a goal to work together to get 10 points, or any numberyouchoose. Draw a hopscotch board with the chalk. You may want to start with 5 or 6 spaces, but remember to make some single spaces and some double spaces. Practice hopping, using one foot for the single spaces and two feet for the double spaces, from one end of the board to another. Once your child practices hopping, add spaces to the hopscotch board to make it lon morechallenging. Drawatownorhousetoplayin

Chalk Play - Outside Games

Alphabet Art Draw pictures and designs with the chalk. Ask your child to describe their picture for you. Write down their words in chalk next to the picture, or help them write their own words. Readthewordstogether. Have your child lie down on the cement and trace their body with chalk.Thenencouragethemtomakea picture of themselves. They can trace youtoo. Write the letters of the alphabet and together, draw a picture for each letter. Write the numbers one through 10. Together, draw 2 of something (for example, 2 circles) for the number 2. Repeatforeachnumber.

4-5

Activity Handout

222

Openshutthem,openshutthem, givealittleclap. Openshutthem,openshutthem, pleaselaytheminyourlap. Creep them creep them, slowly creep them,rightuptoyourchin, Openwide,yourlittlemouth. Butdon’tletyourfingersgetin!!

Twinkle,twinkle,littlestar HowIwonderwhatyouare. Upabovetheworldsohigh Likeadiamondinthesky. Twinkle,twinkle,littlestar HowIwonderwhatyouare. I’M A LITTLE TEAPOT TWINKLE TWINKLE LITTLE STAR

I’malittleteapot,shortandstout. Hereismyhandle,hereismyspout. When I get all steamed up, hear me shout, Justtipmeoverandpourmeout!

ITSY BITSY SPIDER

Songs & Fingerplays Songs & Fingerplays 223

OPEN SHUT THEM Row,row,row,yourboat Gentlydownthestream. Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily Life is but adream. ROW YOUR BOAT The Itsy Bitsy Spider climbed up the water spout Down came the rain and washed the spiderout. Outcamethesunanddriedupalltherain. AndtheItsyBitsySpiderwentupthe spoutagain.

(fold arms across chest) (make circles around eyes) (make big, wider hands around eyes/face) (make large motion above head of pulling hat on) Here is grandpa’s hat Here is grandma’s cap Here are grandma’s glasses. This is the way he folds his arms just like that. This is the way she folds her hands and lays them in her lap. These are grandpa’s glasses.

GRANDMA’S GLASSES (Chant, not a song) (fold hands in lap) (Deeper voice)

LITTLE RED WAGON Stretch legs out in front of you bounce knees up and down, patting them with your hands. For baby or toddler, gently bounce them on your lap. Bumpin’ up and down in my little red wagon. Bumpin’ up and down in my little red wagon. Bumpin’ up and down in my little red wagon. Won’t, you be my darlin’? Change the color of the wagon let your child choose Change the pace of the song slow down or speed up the bouncing to go along with your singing Tell your child you are pulling up a hill and going slower, or rolling quickly down a hill and speed up the song!

TEN LITTLE BUZZING BEES One little, two little, three little bumblebees Four little, five little, six little bumblebees Seven little, eight little, nine little bumblebees Tenlittlebuzzingbees BBZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ. (buzz fingers around) (Hold fingers up when counting) Songs & Fingerplays 224

THIS LITTLE PIGGY Stand up and do this with child, bending up and down. With toddler or baby, sit your child on your lap and touch those parts of their body while you sing, with their hands in yours. Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes (touch all body parts when spoken) Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes. Eyes and ears and mouth and nose, Head and shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes!!!

WHERE IS THUMBKIN?

Repeat with different movements (tap your nose, touch your head, stomp your feet…). Let your child pick some! Count slow enough so they can clap one time while you say each number. I’m so glad to see you, I can hardly wait, Can you clap your hands, and count to 8? 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. COUNT TO 8 This little piggy went to market, This little piggy stayed at home, This little piggy had roast beef, This little piggy had none. And this little piggy went… “Wee wee wee” all the way home.

225

Songs & Fingerplays

HEAD, SHOULDERS, KNEES & TOES

Where is Thumbkin, where is Thumbkin? (Bring out left thumb) Here I am. (Bring out right thumb) Here I am. How are you today, sir? Very well, I thank you. Run away, run away. Where is pointer, where is pointer? (Bring out left pointer finger) Here I am (Bring out right pointer finger) Here I am. How are you today, sir? Very well, I thank you. Run away, run away. Where is tall man? Where is tall man? (Bring out middle fingers) Repeat verse. Where is ring man? Where is ring man? (Bring out ring finger) Repeat verse. Where is pinkie? Where is pinkie? (In high, squeaky voice) (Bring out pinkie finger) Where are all of them? Where are all of them? Here we are. Repeat verse (Bring out all left fingers) (In louder, deeper voice) Here we are. How are you today sirs? Very well we thank you. Run away, run away.

(dance five fingers of your other hand from behind your back to the front)

(dance five fingers from behind your back to the front)

Chanting, not singing (pull five fingers up and squeeze them together like a talking gesture) (Hold all ten fingers out in front of you) (fold fingers together in front of you and rock them back and forth)

And that makes ten!!! They all danced together Along came five little gentlemen

Five little ladies going for a walk Five little ladies stopping for a talk

Clap on lap, tap different body parts have child imitate let him pick something to tap. ABC’S

Songs & Fingerplays (point thumb behind you) (wave hands back and forth) (hold finger to mouth, whisper) (pretend to rub eyes and use whining, crying voice)

FIVE LITTLE LADIES

(make circular motions with arms/hands) (push hand like you are honking a horn) Let child make up song verses with animals or other people. Let them come up with noises and motions The horn on the bus goes beep, beep, beep The wheels on the bus go round and round Round and round, round and round. The wheels on the bus go round and round All through the town

WHEELS ON THE BUS 226

The driver on the bus says, “Move on back, move on back, move on back.” The driver on the bus says, “Move on back.” All through the town. The wipers on the bus go swish, swish, swish, The money on the bus goes clink, clink, clink (motion dropping money in a slot) The babies on the bus go “Waaa, waaa, waaa” The parents on the bus go “Shhh, shhhh, shhh”

Little Bo Peep has lost her sheep, and can’t tell where to find them. Leave them alone and they’ll come home, wagging their tails behind them.

Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow? With silver bells and cockle shells and pretty maids all in a row.

Little Miss Muffet sat on a tuffet eating her curds and whey, Along came a spider and sat down beside her, and frightened Miss Muffet away.

Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight, I wish I may, I wish I might, have the wish I wish tonight. Chanting, not singing Little Boy Blue, come blow your horn. The sheep are in the meadow, the cows are in the corn. Where is the little boy who looks after the sheep? He’s under the haystack, fast asleep! Chanting, not singing Hey diddle, diddle, the cat and the fiddle, the cow jumped over the moon. The little dog laughed to see such fun, and the dish ran away with the spoon. Chanting, not singing Chanting, not singing Chanting, not singing Jack Sprat could eat no fat; his wife could eat no lean, And so between them both, you see, they licked the platter clean.

Jack be nimble, Jack be quick, Jack jump over the candlestick. (lift child up) Chanting, not singing (bounce child on lap)

MARY, MARY QUITE

CONTRARY

STAR LIGHT, STAR BRIGHT

LITTLE BO-PEEP LITTLE BOY BLUE LITTLE MISS MUFFET THE COW JUMPED OVER THE MOON

227 Songs & Fingerplays

JACK SPRAT JACK BE NIMBLE Chanting, not singing

PAT-A-CAKE PAT-A-CAKE Roll it, Pat it, Mark it with a B, Chanting, not singing Pat a cake pat a cake, pat a cake baker’s man Bake me a cake as fast as you can (clap hands to the beat) (roll hands) (pat hands) (draw letter “B” with child’s hand) And put it in the oven for baby and me! (clap hands to the beat) Songs & Fingerplays

Five little ducks that I once knew, fat ones, skinny ones there were too But the one little duck with the feather on his back, He led the others with a quack, quack, quack. Quack, quack quack, Quack, quack, quack. He led the others with a quack, quack, quack. Down to the meadow they would go, wibble, wabble, wibble, wobble to and fro But the one little duck with the feather on his back, He led the others with a quack, quack, quack Quack, quack quack, Quack, quack, quack. He led the others with a quack, quack, quack.

Wee Willie Winkie runs through the town, Upstairs and downstairs in his nightgown, Rapping at the window, crying through the lock, Are the children all in bed, for now it’s eight o’clock? Chanting, not singing WEE WILLIE WINKIE Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the king’s horses and all the king’s men, Couldn’t put Humpty together again Chanting, not singing (bounce child gently on lap) (Part legs for child to fall through not all the way to the ground or straighten legs so child slides down a bit).

JACK AND JILL Chanting, not singing Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. Jack fell down and broke his crown, and Jill came tumbling after.

FIVE LITTLE DUCKS

HUMPTY DUMPTY 228

FIVE GREEN SPECKLED FROGS

RING AROUND THE ROSIE

SUNSHINE

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. You make me happy when skies are gray. You’ll never know, dear, how much I love you. Please don’t take my sunshine away.

Now there’s no more green, speckled frogs GLUB, GLUB. Five green and speckled frogs, sat on a speckled log (hold up 5 fingers) Eating some most delicious bugs YUM, YUM! (pat tummy) One jumped into the pool, where it was nice and cool, Then there was 4 green, speckled frogs GLUB, GLUB. (repeat with 4, then 3, then 2, then 1, then…)

we all stand up! Cows are in the meadow, eating buttercups. Thunder, lightening Ring around the rosie, a pocket full of posies, ashes, ashes, we all fall down! (“stand up”) (“fall down” with child) (gently pound hands on floor), (hold hands and go around in circles)

Songs & Fingerplays 229

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the king’s horses and all the king’s men, Couldn’t put Humpty together again. Chanting, not singing (bounce child gently on lap) (Part legs for child to fall through not all the way to the ground or straighten legs so child slides down a bit).

Mary had a little lamb, little lamb, little lamb. Mary had a little lamb, its fleece was white as snow. He followed her to school one day, school one day, school one day. He followed her to school one day, which was against the rule. It made the children laugh and play, laugh and play, laugh and play. It made the children laugh and play to see a lamb at school. There was a farmer, had a dog and Bingo was his name o. B I N G O, B I N G O, B I N G O, and Bingo was his name o. (clap with each letter, B I N G O) (Repeat, clapping in place of the B and singing the other letters. Then, repeat again, but clap for the B and the I and sing the N,G and O. Repeat until you are clapping all 5 letters.)

If you’re happy and you know it, then your face will surely show it If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday. Seven days The week has seven days (clap twice). (repeat with stomp your feet, shout hurray, peekaboo, slap your knee).

Fingerplays

If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands (clap twice) If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands (clap twice)

HUMPTY DUMPTY Songs &

BINGO MARY HAD A LITTLE LAMB

IF YOU’RE HAPPY AND YOU KNOW IT SUNDAY, MONDAY, TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY, THURSDAY, FRIDAY, AND SATURDAY 230

INDICATORS SECTION 231 Caring for a young child is the most important job. You are the most important part of your child’s life! You are the one who will give your child a Smart Start.

Healthy experiences with loving adults help children develop essential skills they will use in school and throughout life. Early Birds has been designed to empower adults by arming them with materials and information they need to support the development of their young children. The Oklahoma State Department of Education created Priority Academic Student Skills (PASS), a set of standards and skills that address all academic areas for children, from preschool through high school On the next page, you will find a list of some kindergarten standards from PASS. These skills are developed over time with support from caregivers and teachers and cover several developmental areas: motor skills, thinking, and reasoning, creativity, social skills, language and communication skills Please visit the Oklahoma State Department of Education website to view the PASS parent guides for more information, www.sde.state.ok.us.

232

School Readiness Indicators EVERY CHILD IS BORN LEARNING.

The adult’s job is to provide opportunities for play. Play opportunities promote learning. We have provided a variety of activities that contribute to a wide range of developmental skills. We hope you make this playtime with your child a part of your daily routine, even when they are attending elementary school. The more you play, the more opportunities your child has to develop the skills they need for success in school and in life! We encourage you to play with these activities from season to season and year to year until your child loses interest. As your child gets older, they will likely find new ways to play with the same materials, their skills will be more developed and they will demonstrate creativity and ion. To better understand what skills are being developed through your play, please refer to the charts in this section.

Each Early Birds caregiver child activity has been designed to contribute to the development of one or more of the kindergarten PASS. Children that have many opportunities to play alone, with friends, and in purposeful ways with adults will build a solid foundation that will support their learning and success in school. When you use the Early Birds activities with your child, you are helping them develop the skills they will need in kindergarten and beyond, and you are having fun, too! For example, in our winter one-to-two-year-old class, you are given a doctor’s kit and activities to use with the kit. Through these activities, your toddler is developing their attention span, problem solving skills, vocabulary and communication skills, and learning to care for and about someone else.

Playing together is one of the most important gifts we have to share with our children. Enjoy!

Indicators

The more you play, the more opportunities your child has to develop the skills they need…

Your child expresses ideas or opinions. Your child listens for information and for pleasure. Your child uses materials in new and creative ways, and engages in spontaneous and imaginative play. Your child is eager and interested in learning, understands, accepts, and follows rules and routines, and demonstrates independence while learning Print awareness Your child understands characteristics of written language and that we read left to right Phonological and phonemic awareness— Your child demonstrates the ability to work with rhymes, words, and syllables; hears and identifies sounds in spoken language. Phonics— Your child demonstrates knowledge of letters, early word recognition, and letter-sound relationships. Vocabulary— Your child develops and expands knowledge of words and their meanings Comprehension Your child associates meaning and understanding with reading Writing Your child uses writing to express thoughts and feelings Patterns Yourchildsortsandclassifiesobjectsandmakessimplepatterns Numbersense Yourchildunderstandstherelationshipbetweennumbersandtheirquantities Geometry&spatialsense—Yourchildidentifiesshapes. Measurement Yourchildcomparesobjectsandmeasurestheminavarietyofways Dataanalysis yourchildcollectsandanalyzesinformation. MATH LITERACY CREATIVE SKILLS SPEAKING SKILLS LISTENING SKILLS APPROACHES TO LEARNING THESE ARE SOME OF THE SKILLS YOUR CHILD USES IN KINDERGARTEN IN OKLAHOMA: 233 Oklahoma School Readiness Indicators Indicators

Your child interacts with other people in positive, healthy ways Your child participates in a variety of activities Your child uses large motor skills (arms, legs). Your child uses small motor skills (fingers, hands). Large motor Small motor Processes & Inquiry Your child investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Physical Your child describes objects that can be sorted by physical properties The adult’s job is to provide the opportunities for play. Play opportunities promote learning. SCIENCE PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT SOCIAL AND PERSONAL SKILLS Indicators 234

Following are the specific school readiness indicators associated with the activities you will learn about during the Early Birds classes. oral directions understands and follows Vocabulary—expands knowledge of words and word meanings Number sense introduced to the relationship between numbers and quantities; observes counting objects Geometry and spatial sense—develops understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects Science processes & inquiry investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Fine motor increases control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult oral directions understands and follows Approaches to learning—naturally curious; solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult Vocabulary—expands knowledge of words and word meanings (use of position words: under, above, through) Number sense—introduced to the relationship between numbers and quantities; observes counting objects Geometry and spatial sense—develops understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects Measurement compares objects according to observable attributes; introduced to graduated order Science processes and inquiry investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Fine motor increases control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult Oral language— Approaches to learning— naturally curious Oral language BABY BLOCKS 0–1 YEAR STACKING RINGS 0–1 YEAR 235 Learning Activities Indicators Indicators

order

Vocabulary expands knowledge of words and word meanings (use of position words: under, above, through)

oral directions understands and follows

Measurement—introduced to graduated Approaches to learning—naturally curious; solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult Science processes and inquiry investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Fine motor increases control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Geometry and spatial sense develops understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects

Vocabulary expands knowledge of words and word meanings (use of position words: under, above, through)

NESTING CUPS SHAPE SORTER 0–1 YEAR 0–1 YEAR 236

Indicators

Number sense—introduced to the relationship between numbers and quantities

Number sense—introduced to the relationship between numbers and quantities; observes counting objects

Social and personal skills—plays and interacts easily with an adult oral directions understands and follows Approaches to learning—naturally curious; solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult

Geometry and spatial sense—begins to recognize common shapes; develops understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects

Data analysis—observes similarities and differences between objects Science processes and inquiry investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Fine motor—increases control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult Oral language— Oral language—

Vocabulary expands knowledge of words and word meanings (use of position words: under, above, through)

Social and personal skills—plays and interacts easily with an adult Oral language— BLOCKS

oral directions understands and follows

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; uses language for a variety of purposes

Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious Creativity—uses materials in new and creative ways

LINKING

SOFT BLOCK FARM 1-2 YEARS 237 Indicators

Geometry and spatial sense begins to recognize, describe, compare and name common shapes; build an increasing understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects

Social and personal skills—plays and interacts easily with an adult

Approaches to learning naturally curious; solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult

Vocabulary—develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings (use of position words: under, above, though)

Data analysis—describes similarities and differences between objects

Fine motor increases control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Number sense begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to count objects

Number sense—introduced to the relationship between numbers and quantities Geometry and spatial sense—develops understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects

Data analysis—observes similarities and differences between objects Science processes and inquiry-investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Fine motor increases control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

0–1 YEAR

Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious; solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult Oral language—understands and follows oral directions; uses language for a variety of purposes

Measurement compares and orders objects in graduated order Patterns sorts and groups objects into a set and explains verbally what the objects have in common

Indicators

Vocabulary—develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings (use of position words: under, above, through) Number sense begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to count objects

Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings (use of position words: under, above, through)

Data analysis describes similarities and differences between objects Science processes and inquiry investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Fine motor increases control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult

Social and personal skills child plays and interacts easily with an adult

Geometry and spatial sense begins to recognize, describe, compare and name common shapes; builds an increased understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; uses language for a variety of purposes

Number sense—begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to count objects Geometry and spatial sense builds an increased understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects Science processes and inquiry investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Fine motor increases control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious; solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult

PEG PUZZLE MEGA STACKERS 1-2 YEARS 1-2 YEARS 238

Oral language—expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; begins to participate actively in conversations; understands and follows directions

Vocabulary—develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings Geometry and spatial sense builds an increased understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects Science processes and inquiry-investigates and experiments with toy pieces to discover information Fine motor participates in activities that involve small motor skills

KIT BLOCKS & PEGS 1-2 YEARS 1-2 YEARS 239 Indicators

Social and personal skills—plays and interacts easily with an adult; develops increasing ability to give and take in interactions

Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings (use of position words: under, above, through) Number sense begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to count objects Geometry and spatial sense builds an increased understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects Patterns—sorts and groups objects into a set and begins to explain verbally what the objects have in common Science processes and inquiry-investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Fine motor increases control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; uses language for a variety of purposes

Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious Creativity—engages in spontaneous and imaginative play

Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious; solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult

DOCTOR’S

Geometry and spatial sense—begins to recognize, describe, compare and name common shapes; builds an increased understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects Data analysis begins to use numbers and counting as a means for solving problems and measuring; develops ability to record information Measurement measures objects using nonstandard units of measurement; compares objects according to observable attributes Science processes and inquiry-investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Fine motor increases control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult

Writing develops understanding that writing is a way of communicating, for a variety of purposes; participates in writing opportunities

ABC BLOCKS 2-3 YEARS 240

Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious Creativity uses materials in new and creative ways

Number sense begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to associate number concepts, vocabulary, quantities, and written numerals in meaningful ways; begins to make use of one to one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects; counts objects in a set one by one from one through five Patterns sorts and groups objects into a set and explains verbally what the objects have in common; recognizes patterns, can repeat them, and explain them verbally

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; uses language for a variety of purposes; expresses ideas or opinions; participates actively in conversations

Indicators

Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings

Number sense begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities Science processes and inquiry investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Fine motor increases control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands Social and personal skills—plays and interacts easily with an adult

Social and personal skills—plays and interacts easily with an adult; develops increasing ability to give and take in interactions

Vocabulary—develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings

Fine motor demonstrates control of small muscles in hands

SHAKERS GEOMETRIC STACKER 2-3 YEARS 2-3 YEARS

Oral language—understands and follows oral directions; uses language for a variety of purposes; expresses ideas or opinions; participates actively in conversations

Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings (use of position words: under, above, through)

241 Indicators

Creativity participates in activities that foster individual creativity

Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious; solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult

Oral language—understands and follows oral directions; uses language for a variety of purposes; the child will express ideas or opinions; participate actively in conversations

Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; expands listening skills; naturally curious

Fine motor demonstrates control of small muscles in hands Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult; develops increasing ability to give and take in interactions

242

PLAYDOUGH

Indicators

Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious Creativity uses materials in new and creative ways; engages in spontaneous and imaginative play

Vocabulary—develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings

Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious Creativity—engages in spontaneous and imaginative play Vocabulary—develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings 2-3 YEARS

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult; develops increasing ability to give and take in interractions Fine motor—increases control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

JIGSAW PUZZLE

2-3 YEARS

Number sense—begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to make use of one to one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects; counts objects in a set one by one from one through five

Social and personal skills—plays and interacts easily with an adult

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; uses language for a variety of purposes; expresses ideas or opinions; participates actively in conversations

3-4

Fine motor demonstrates increased control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

YEARS

Number sense begins to make use of one to one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects; counts objects in a set one by one from one through five Fine motor—demonstrates increased control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult; develops increasing ability to give and take in interactions; develops increasing abilities to take turns in games

Creativity engages in spontaneous and imaginative play

Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult

Geometry and spatial sense begins to recognize, describe, compare and name common shapes

STRINGING BEADS

Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious; solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult

Number sense understands the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to make use of one to one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects; counts objects in a set one by one from one through five

Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious Oral language understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings

Patterns sorts and classifies objects and analyzes certain patterns; recognizes patterns, can repeat them, and explain them verbally

Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations

Social and personal skills—plays and interacts easily with an adult; develops increasing ability to give and take in interactions

MEMORY 2-3 YEARS 243 Indicators

Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings

RHYMING GAME 3-4 YEARS Indicators 244

Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious Oral language—understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations

Writing develops an understanding that writing is a way of communicating for a variety of purposes; participates in writing opportunities Number sense begins to make use of one to one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects Fine motor demonstrates increased control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult; develops increasing ability to give and take in interactions; develops increasing abilities to take turns in games

Phonological awareness—begins to hear, identify and make oral rhymes; demonstrates the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate individual sounds in spoken words; shows increasing ability to discriminate, identify, and work with individual phonemes; recognizes which words in a set of words begin with the same sound Phonics demonstrates awareness or knowledge of letters; begins to recognize the sound association for some letters

Print Awareness follows words from left to right and from top to bottom on the printed page; understands that printed materials provide information; recognizes that sentences in print are made up of separate words; distinguishes letters from words Number sense—begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to make use of one to one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects; counts objects in a set one by one from one through five Measurement—measures objects using nonstandard units of measurement; compares object according to observable attributes Data analysis begins to use numbers and counting as a means for solving problems and measuring quantities; develops ability to record information

Writing—develops understanding that writing is a way of communicating, for a variety of purposes; participates in writing opportunities

Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult

Science processes and inquiry—investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Fine motor—demonstrates increased control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Creativity—uses materials in new and creative ways

Oral language—understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations

Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings

CONSTRUCTION SET 3-4 YEARS 245 Indicators

Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious; solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult

Approaches to learning solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult

Indicators

Geometry and spatial sense build an increased understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects Science processes & inquiry investigates and experiments with objects to discover information Fine motor—demonstrates increased control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Number sense understands the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to make use of one to one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects Data analysis—begins to use numbers and counting as a means for solving problems and measuring quantities; develops the ability to record information Patterns—analyzes certain patterns; recognizes patterns, repeats them, and explains them verbally

Creativity—participates in activities that foster individual creativity Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings

BALANCING BEARS DRY ERASE BOARD WITH MAGNET LETTERS 3-4 YEARS 3-4 YEARS 246

Social and personal skills—plays and interacts easily with an adult Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious Oral language understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations Vocabulary—developsandexpands knowledgeofwordsandwordmeanings Printawareness followsreadingfromleft toright;beginstorecognizetherelationship orconnectionbetweenspokenandwritten words;beginstounderstandbasicprint conventions;followswordsfromlefttoright andfromtoptobottomontheprintedpage; understandsthatprintedmaterialsprovide information;recognizesthatsentences inprintaremadeupofseparatewords; distinguisheslettersfromwords Phonics demonstratesawarenessor knowledgeofletters;beginstorecognizethe soundassociationforsomeletters Finemotor demonstratesincreased controlofhandandeyecoordinationand thecontrolofsmallmusclesinhands

Socialandpersonalskills—playsand interactseasilywithanadult;develops increasingabilitytogiveandtakein interactions;developsincreasingabilitiesto taketurnsingames;statesfullname

Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations

Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious; problem solves

Socialandpersonalskills playsand interactseasilywithanadult

PLAY MONEY EARLY BIRDS WORDS 3-4 YEARS 4-5 YEARS 247 Indicators

Approaches to learning—demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious Creativity participates in activities that foster individual creativity

Writing—develops an understanding that writing is a way of communicating for a variety of purposes; participates in writing opportunities

Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings

Number sense begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to make use of one to one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects Fine motor demonstrates increased control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations Vocabulary developsandexpands knowledgeofwordsandwordmeanings Printawareness followsreadingfromleft toright;beginstorecognizetherelationship orconnectionbetweenspokenandwritten words;begintounderstandbasicprint conventions;followwordsfromlefttoright andfromtoptobottomontheprintedpage; understandsthatprintedmaterialsprovide information;recognizesthatsentences inprintaremadeupofseparatewords; distinguisheslettersfromwords Phonologicalawareness beginsto hear,identifyandmakeoralrhymes; demonstratestheabilitytohear,identify, andmanipulateindividualsoundsin spokenwords;showsincreasingability todiscriminate,identify,andworkwith individualphonemes;recognizeswhich wordsinasetofwordsbeginwiththe samesound Phonics demonstratesawarenessor knowledgeofletters;beginstorecognizethe soundassociationforsomeletters; Writing—developsanunderstandingthat writingisawayofcommunicatingfora varietyofpurposes;participatesinwriting opportunities Finemotor demonstratesincreased controlofhandandeyecoordinationand thecontrolofsmallmusclesinhands

DECK OF CARDS TRACING SHAPES 4-5 YEARS 4-5 YEARS 248

Oral language—understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings Writing develops understanding that writing is a way of communicating for a variety of purposes; participates in writing opportunities Print awareness—follows words from left to right and from top to bottom on the printed page; understands that printed materials provide information; recognizes that sentences in print are made up of separate words; distinguishes letters from words Number sense begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to associate number concepts, vocabulary, quantities, and written numerals in meaningful ways; begins to make use of one to one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects; counts objects in a set one by one from one through five Patterns sorts and groups objects into a set and explains verbally what the objects have in common Fine motor demonstrates increased control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Indicators

Creativity—uses materials in new and creative ways

Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious; solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult

Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious

Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings Number sense begins to associate number concepts, vocabulary, quantities, and written numerals in meaningful ways; begins to make use of one to one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects; counts objects in a set one by one from one through ten Patterns sorts and groups objects into a set and explains verbally what the objects have in common Fine motor demonstrates increased control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult; develops increasing ability to give and take in interactions; develops increasing abilities to take turns in games

Data analysis describes similarities and differences between objects Fine motor—participates in activities that involve small motor skills

Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious Oral language understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations

Geometry and spatial sense builds an increased understanding of directionality, order, and position of objects

Social and personal skills—plays and interacts easily with an adult; develops increasing ability to give and take in interactions

Approaches to learning solves problems through active exploration; naturally curious Creativity—engages in spontaneous and imaginative play

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; participates actively in conversations Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings Number sense begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities

EARLY BIRDS GAME BUILDING BRICKS 4-5 YEARS 4-5 YEARS 249 Indicators

Vocabulary—develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings Number sense begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to associate number concepts, vocabulary, quantities, and written numerals in meaningful ways; develops increasing ability to count to ten in sequence

Large motor skills—demonstrates basic locomotor movements; demonstrates body and space awareness; demonstrates non locomotor movements; coordinates large arm movements; develops coordination and balance Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult; develops increasing ability to give and take in interactions; develops increasing abilities to take turns in games; states full name, age, and name of parent or guardian

Number sense begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities Geometry and spatial sense builds an increased understanding of shapes

Social and personal skills—plays and interacts easily with an adult; develops increasing ability to give and take in interactions; develops increasing abilities to take turns in games; states full name, age,and name of parent or guardian

BUILDING BRICKS

Vocabulary develops and kexpands nowledge of words and word meanings

PATTERN BLOCKS 4-5 YEARS 250 Indicators

Data analysis describes similarities and differences between objects Fine motor participates in activities that involve small motor skills

Indicators

Dataanalysis—beginstousenumbersand countingasameansforsolvingproblems andmeasuringquantities;developsthe abilitytorecordinformation

Print awareness follows words from left to right and from top to bottom on the printed page; understands that printed materials provide information; recognizes that sentences in print are made up of separate words; distinguish letters from words Oral language understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations

Writing develops an understanding that writing is a way of communicating for a variety of purposes; participates in writing opportunities

Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious; solves problems through active exploration, including trial and error, and interactions with an adult Vocabulary—develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings

Finemotor demonstratesincreased controlofhandandeyecoordinationand thecontrolofsmallmusclesinhands Socialandpersonalskills—playsand interactseasilywithanadult;develops increasingabilitytogiveandtakein interactions;developsincreasingabilitiesto taketurnsingames

UNFIX CUBES 4-5 YEARS 251

Numbersense—beginstounderstand therelationshipbetweennumbersand quantities;beginstoassociatenumber concepts,vocabulary,quantities,andwritten numeralsinmeaningfulways;beginsto makeuseofonetoonecorrespondencein countingobjectsandmatchinggroupsof objects;countsobjectsinasetonebyone fromonethroughtwelve Patterns sortsandgroupsobjectsintoa setandexplainsverballywhattheobjects haveincommon;recognizespatterns,can repeatthem,andexplainthemverbally Measurement—measuresobjectsusing nonstandardunitsofmeasurement

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in a group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations

DICE GAMES BALLS (WITH CHALK) 4-5 YEARS 0-5 YEARS 252 Indicators

oral directions understands and follows

Writing—develops an understanding that writing is a way of communicating, for a variety of purposes; participates in writing opportunities

Finemotor—demonstratesincreased controlofhandandeyecoordinationand thecontrolofsmallmusclesinhands

Writing—developsanunderstandingthat writingisawayofcommunicatingfora varietyofpurposes;participatesinwriting opportunities Numbersense beginstounderstand therelationshipbetweennumbersand quantities;beginstoassociatenumber concepts,vocabulary,quantities,andwritten numeralsinmeaningfulways;beginsto makeuseofonetoonecorrespondencein countingobjectsandmatchinggroupsof objects;countsobjectsinasetonebyone fromonethroughtwelve

Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings

Number sense begins to understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; begins to make use of one to one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects; counts objects in a set one by one from one through twelve Data analysis begins to use numbers and counting as a means for solving problems and measuring quantities; develops ability to record information

Large motor skills—demonstrates basic loco motor movements; demonstrates body and space awareness; demonstrates non loco motor movements; coordinates large arm movements; develops coordination and balance Fine motor demonstrates increased control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult; develops increasing ability to give and take in interactions; develops increasing abilities to take turns in games

Dataanalysis beginstousenumbersand countingasameansforsolvingproblems andmeasuringquantities;developsthe abilitytorecordinformation

Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious

Oral language

Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious, and interactions with an adult

Socialandpersonalskillsplaysand interactseasilywithanadult;develops increasingabilitytogiveandtakein interactions;developsincreasingabilitiesto taketurnsingames

Phonological awareness—begins to hear, identify and make oral rhymes; the child will demonstrate ability to hear, identify, and manipulate individual sounds in spoken words; shows increasing ability to discriminate, identify, and work with individual phonemes; recognizes which words in a set of words begin with the same sound Phonics—demonstrates awareness or knowledge of letters; begins to recognize the sound association for some letters Comprehension—associates meaning and understanding with reading

Social and personal skills plays and interacts easily with an adult SHARING BOOKS WITH YOUR CHILD 0-5 YEARS

253

Fine motor demonstrates increased control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Indicators

Oral language—understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings Print awareness follows reading from left to right; begins to recognize the relationship or connection between spoken and written words; begins to understand basic print conventions

Writing develops an understanding that writing is a way of communicating for a variety of purposes; participates in writing opportunities

Creativity—engages in spontaneous and imaginative play Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention Listening—listens for information and for pleasure

Vocabulary—develops and expands knowledge of words and meanings

Oral language—understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations Vocabulary develops and expands knowledge of words and word meanings Print awareness follows reading from left to right; begins to recognize the relationship or connection between spoken and written words; begins to understand basic print conventions; follows words from left to right and from top to bottom on the page; understands that printed materials provide information; recognizes that sentences are made up of separate words; distinguishes letters from words

Phonics—demonstrates awareness or knowledge of letters; begins to recognize the sound association for some letters Fine motor demonstrates increased control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Social and personal skills—plays and interacts easily with an adult

WRITING SONG SHEETS 1-5 YEARS 2-5 YEARS 254 Indicators

Print awareness—follows reading from left to right; begins to recognize the relationship or connection between spoken and written words; begins to understand basic print conventions

Phonological awareness shows increasing ability to discriminate, identify, and work with individual phonemes; recognizes which words in a set begin with the same sound Phonics demonstrates awareness or knowledge of letters; begins to recognize the sound association for some letters

Oral language understands and follows oral directions; expresses ideas or opinions in group or individual settings; participates actively in conversations

Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious Creativity engages in spontaneous and imaginative play

Fine motor—demonstrates increased control of hand and eye coordination and the control of small muscles in hands

Approaches to learning demonstrates a positive attitude and attention; naturally curious

Comprehension—demonstrates progress in the ability to retell and dictate stories; remembers and articulates some sequence of events

RESOURCES SECTION 255 Caring for a young child is the most important job. You are the most important part of your child’s life! You are the one who will give your child a Smart Start.

Extreme mood swings – feeling extremely sad or angry without warning Difficulty caring for yourself or your baby foggy or having trouble completingtasks

Less interest in things you used to enjoy just going through the motions Changes in your eating or sleeping habits Any other feelings or thoughts that arescaryorupsetting Depression and anxiety during and after birth may affect your baby. The bond between the important adults in a baby’s life and your baby is critical for a smart start. That bond, especially between you and your baby, ensures your baby’s needs are met and feelings of trust and love are established. Depression and anxiety make it difficult to respond to your baby’s needs and develop a trusting, close relationship. And if there are older children in the home, they may be missing your support as well. Early treatment is best for your family and will helpyoufeelbettersooner. Contact a Health Provider If You Experience:

256

Many emotions are experienced during pregnancy, childbirth, and the first months withyourbaby.Itisexcitingandhopeful,but may also include anxiety, sadness, and feelingoverwhelmed.Ifthesefeelingslastfor more than a few weeks, they may be signs of depression and anxiety and can be treated, duringpregnancyandafteryourbabyarrives. “Baby blues” commonly begin within the first 3 days after delivery, and may last for two weeks. New moms may experience mood swings, crying spells, anxiety, and difficultysleeping. You did not cause these feelings, they are medical conditions. Many people report these feelings, you are not alone. Please seek treatment promptly from your medical providertofeelbetter.

Postpartum Depression

Intenseanger,worry,orunhappiness

Research shows that some women start to feel depression while they’re still pregnant. You might hear the term “perinatal depression” to describe this situation. The word “perinatal”describesthetimeduringpregnancyorjustafterbirth. Researchers believe that depression is one of the most common problems women experience during and after pregnancy. According to a national survey, about 1 in 8 womenexperiencespostpartumdepressionafterhavingababy.

We now know that women may also experience anxiety around the time of pregnancy, beyond just being nervous about having a baby. Anxiety during and after pregnancy is as common as depression, and may even happen at the same time as depression. So, you also may hear “perinatal depression and anxiety” or “perinatal mood and anxiety disorders”usedtodescribeallofwhatwomenmightfeel.

Depressionandanxietymaygetinthewayofdoingeverydayactivities,liketakingcareof yourself and your baby. They are long lasting and won’t go away on their own. But they aretreatable,whichiswhyit’simportanttogethelp!

Postpartum Depression

No matter what you call them, depression and anxiety that happen during pregnancy or afterbirtharerealmedicalconditions,andtheyaffectmanywomen. Postpartumdepressionisonenameyoumighthearfordepressionandanxietythatcan happenduringandafterpregnancy.Butitmightnotbethebestwaytodescribewhat womenfeel.

What are Depression & Anxiety?

Depression feeling sad, empty, and/or “down” and anxiety feeling nervous, worried, and/orscared areseriousmedicalconditionsthatinvolvethebrainandmayoccurduring pregnancy or after birth. These feelings go beyond what people may experience when they have a bad day or are nervous about an upcoming event. They are also more than “justfeelingmoody”orhavingthe“babyblues.”

Are You Talking About Postpartum Depression?

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The word “postpartum” means “after birth,” so “postpartum depression” is talking only about depression after the baby is born. For many women, this term is correct: they start feelingdepressionsometimewithinthefirstyearaftertheyhavethebaby.

Postpartum Depression Are There Any Treatments For Depression or Anxiety During Pregnancy or After Birth? Yes, there are treatments, and they can help you feel better. Treatment can reduce your symptomsormakethemgoawaycompletely. Many treatment options are available for depression or anxiety during pregnancy or after birth. Some women may participate in counseling (“talk therapy”); others may need medication.Thereisnosingletreatmentthatworksforeveryone. Your provider may ask you a set of questions, called a screening, to learn more about what you are feeling. Together, you can find the treatment that is right for you. Some treatments for depression and anxiety that occur during or after pregnancy are listed below. 258 RESOURCES NAMIOklahoma 24HourHotLine 1 800 522 9054 CrisisTextLine TextNAMIto741 741toconnectwithatrainedcounselorforfree NationalSuicidePreventionHotLine 1 800 273 8255 WhatisPostpartumDepression&Anxiety? DepressionDuring&AfterPregnancy RecognizingPostpartumDepression PostpartumDepressionFactSheet

Breast Feeding Exclusivebreastfeedingforthefirst6months.Thereisnoneedtointroduceinfantformula or other sources of nutrition for most infants. Beyond 6 months, breastfeeding should be maintainedalongwithnutritiouscomplementaryfoods. There are continued benefits from breastfeeding beyond 1 year, and up to 2 years especially in the mother. Long term breastfeeding is associated with protections against diabetes,highbloodpressure,andcancersofthebreastandovaries. For moms who can't breastfeed or who decide not to, infant formula is a healthy alternative.Formulaprovidesbabieswiththenutrientstheyneedtogrowandthrive. TheAmericanAcademyofPediatricsrecommends: The U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend exclusive breastfeeding, for about 6 months, and then continuing breastfeeding while introducing complementaryfoods until your child is 12 months old or older. This provides your child with ideal nutrition and supports growth and development. You can read the full recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics or the U.S. DietaryGuidelinesforAmericans.

TheCDCrecommends:

Feeding Your Baby

Know your options Your baby needs proper nutrition to grow up to be healthy and strong. Whether you breastfeed or formula feed, it's important to do your research before your baby arrives. The next few pages provide information and resources about feeding your baby. Remember to alwayschoosetheoptionthat'sbestforYOUandYOURBABY.

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Feeding Your Baby Benefits of Breast Feeding 260 Breastfeeding is good for both you and your baby. Breast milk is the best source of nutrition for most babies. As your baby grows, your breast milk will change to meet his or her nutritional needs. Breastfeeding can also help protect you and your baby against some shortandlong termillnessesanddiseases. Breast Feeding Resources TheCDC:AboutBreastfeeding CDCBreastfeedingFactSheet ProperStorage&PreparationforBreast Milk TheOfficeonWomen'sHealth Breastfeeding TheOfficeonWomen'sHealth BreastfeedingFactSheet WhattoLookforwhenBreastfeeding Weaning First2WeeksBreastfeedingSurvivalGuide BreastfeedingGuide Formula Feeding Formanycaregivers,breastfeedingisnotanoption,foravarietyofreasons.Ifyouarefeeding your baby infant formula, there are some important things to know such as how to choose an infant formula and how to prepare and store your infant’s formula. The resources below providehelpfulinformationonthesetopics Formula Feeding Resources TheCDC InfantFormulaFeeding ChoosinganInfantFormula InfantFormulaPreparation&Storage HowMuch&HowOftentoFeed FormulaFeeding FormulaFeedingDo's&Dont's

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) provides some helpful guidelinesregardingjusthowmuchsleepchildrenneedatdifferentstagesintheir development. Keep in mind that these numbers reflect total sleep hours in a 24 hour period. So if your child still naps, you’ll need to take that into account when youadduptheirtypicalsleephours. What Time Should Your Child Go to Bed? Childhood Sleep Guidelines Childhood Sleep Guidelines 261

Place your baby to sleep on their back for every sleep. Place your baby to sleep on a flat, firm sleep surface. Keep soft objects, loose bedding, blankets, and other items that could increase the risk of entrapment,suffocation,orstrangulationoutofthe crib. Place your baby to sleep in the same room where yousleep,butnotthesamebed. Keep your baby away from smokers and places wherepeoplesmoke. Donotletyourbabygettoohot. Useapacifieratnaptimeandbedtime. Scheduleandgotoallwell-childvisits. Donotuseproductsthatclaimtoreducetheriskof SIDS/SUID.

American Academy of Pediatrics SAFE SLEEP GUIDELINES 262 Safe Sleep Guidelines

Babiesshould ALWAYSbe placedon theirBACKS tosleep. American Academy of Pediatrics SAFE SLEEP GUIDELINES 263 Safe Sleep Guidelines

My Friends & Feelings

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Resources

Hug your child! When they are babies, hold them, rock them, and sing to them. Feed them when they are hungry and change them when they are dirty or wet. Say kind words. Be friendly towards your child, other family members, friends, and people you interact with in your day to day life. Show compassion toward others. Make thoughtful comments when you see someone in despair or something sad. Comfort your child when they are sad, hurt, or sick. Help your child recognize their feelings and them with words.

If you watch television together, talk about what is happening and how people are feeling, including how their behavior affects others. Apologize when you make mistakes, to your child or to anyone else.

YOUR CHILD LEARNS THE MOST FROM HOW YOU BEHAVE TOWARD THEM AND OTHERS...

FRIENDS Make sure your child spends time with other children their age, like at the library and at the park. Help your child recognize their feelings and express them with words. Encourage your child to think about other children’s feelings and wants. Sharing is difficult. Be sure there are enough toys for each child to use and that you help them negotiate if there is a problem. Encourage your child to make amends when they make a mistake. How can they make the situation better?

Read books and talk about how the characters are feeling or how their behavior impacted others in the story.

Logical consequences are the best when your child misbehaves that are directly related to the problem.

PARENTING:

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If they throw a toy, put it away.

Point out how your child’s behavior impacts someone else. They need to know that their choices affect other people. Help your child identify their feelings and give choices.

Resources

If they are not nice to someone, they spend time alone. If they won’t turn off the television, no more television for the day.

Offer your child choices. Let them feel they have some control and power in their life.

When your child misbehaves, Help them identify their feelings. “You look angry.” Tell them the rule. “We don’t hit people.” Or “Use your words when you are mad.” Give choices. “You can tell them what you want, or you can find another toy.”

It is important to enforce consequences with your child. If your child is throwing dirt, ask them to stop, or you will have to leave the park If they throw it again, leave the park You teach your child to be accountable and take responsibility. This applies to everything, not just doing something "bad" or being in trouble:

“If you get marker on the table, wash it off. If it happens again, you have to put the markers away.”

"Would you like to wear the red shirt or blue one?" "Do you want water or milk?" “If you spill your milk, clean it up.”

My Friends & Feelings

Resources

State the rule or expectation. We can’t assume children know what we don’t tell them. Tell them what you want them to do, like use walking feet, sit in the chair, use kind words.

Empowering

It is important to acknowledge and label feelings "You are feeling sad because we have to leave the park I feel sad too "

CHOICES Choices empower children. Choices provide opportunities for critical life skills like examining consequences, choosing, and living with consequences Choices put the responsibility on the child instead of the parent Find opportunities for choices your child can make, like what shirt to wear, hair up or down, blue coat or red Do not give your child choices when they should not have them like to ride in a car seat, go to school…

WHAT IS A MAJOR GOAL FOR OUR CHILDREN? Fostering self-esteem and self control. Empower children to make decisions, consider consequences and accept responsibility for choices and actions

Setting Limits with Preschoolers

You are responsible for enforcing limits. You are responsible for enforcing the limits. Follow through is important.

Don’t deny feelings. Having socially unacceptable feelings like hate, anger, jealousy, or greed, does not mean the child is bad.

FEELINGS

WHY ARE LIMITS IMPORTANT? As parents, we are in control of our home environment. We facilitate healthy growth and development within certain boundaries. Reflecting feelings, communicating limits, and offering choices empower children while maintaining respect for the parents.

Parents & Children

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NaturalConsequencesoccurnaturallywithno interference. Acknowledgefeelingsoraction. Communicatethelimit. Tellchoices.

We want our children to make decisions based on what is right and wrong. We often try and influence children through rewards and punishments, using bribes and threats. This is sometimes effective, but does not teach them how to make decisionsindependently.

A child is running, they fall down or bump intosomething. You throw a ball in the house, something breaks. If you refuse to wear your bike helmet, youcan’trideyourbike.

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As children grow and spend more time away from their parents, it is critical that they base their behavior on their values and knowledge of what is right and wrong. We don’t want them to make decisions according to what their peers are telling them or if they feel they will be caught andpunished. Children must be given opportunities to makechoicesthroughouttheirchildhood.

Resources

If you throw toys, you must pick them up orputthemaway. Ifyouspillsomething,cleanitup.

When they are in situations away from us, where the consequences can be severe, they are empowered with the skills to consider their options and make responsible decisions for which they will havetobeaccountable. Limit setting with preschoolers is a safe, effective way to help them become competent individuals, demonstrate self control, make decisions based on reasoning and experiences, and teach them how to be accountable for their behavior.

Choices empower children to consider options and make responsible decisions.

“I can see you really want that toy. We don’t grab things from others. You can ask her for a turn or wait until she is done. If you wait, you canplaywiththistruck…”

Logical consequences are imposed by someoneandarerelevanttothemisbehavior. Whenalogicalornaturalconsequenceismore relevant and meaningful, it will be easier to rememberandapplytonewsituations.

HANDLING INAPPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR SELF DISCIPLINE

If you insist on carrying a doll in a store, youhavetocarryit.

Natural consequences are not always practical and are sometimes dangerous, so logical consequencesaremostoftenused.

NATURAL & LOGICAL CONSEQUENCES

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Cover sharp corners and edges on your countersandtables. Read Baby Food Labels. Serve baby food with no added starch, sugar, flour, or salt. Choose food with just a few ingredients of onlythestuffyouwantthemtoeat.

Healthy, Safe, & Strong

Take your baby to all their well-child checks andgetalloftheirimmunizations. Notify your child’s doctor if you have questions or concerns about your child's development. Don’t layer lots of blankets or stuffed animalsaroundyourbabywhiletheysleep. Use gentle soaps and shampoo. Your baby's skinisverysensitive. Hold and snuggle your baby often. You cannotspoilyourbaby. Feed your baby when they are hungry. Don’t make them wait a long time. They haveatinybelly. Give plenty of safe space to explore. That is howyourbabylearns. Give your baby lots of tummy time. Tummy time helps their neck and back get strong and helps them learn how to crawl before walking.

Resources Go around on your hands and knees to see what your crawling baby sees. Take care of anydangerouscordsoropenoutlets.

Your Baby....

Make sure your child’s car seat is installed correctly and that they are always buckled up! Always watch your baby. They love to pick up small things and put them in their mouths. Coverelectricoutlets. Have locks on cabinet doors you don’t want them in and be sure you have moved all poisonsandcleanerstothetopshelf. Never water down your baby’s formula, it willnotgivethemthenutritiontheyneed. Make sure cribs are not beneath windows that have long cords for the blinds. Babies cangetstrangledinthecords! Always place babies on their backs to sleep, notontheirtummies. Neverleaveyourchildalonenearwater. Don’t give your child soda or sweets. They don’tneedthematall. Comfort your baby when they are upset. Thatishowtheylearntocareaboutothers. Put sunscreen on your baby when you are outside. Make sure you have the poison control number posted/entered into all of your phones.

YOUR TODDLER… Make sure games or things with small pieces are out of reach. Toddlers love to get into thingsandputthemintheirmouths. Offer a variety of foods at mealtimes. Even if they have strong preferences for certain foods,don’tstopgivingthemvariety. Introduce new foods in small portions and with familiar foods. Sometimes you have to introducesomethingmore thanonce.

Resources

Healthy, Safe, & Strong

Give your child a variety of healthy foods.Don’t let them fill up on unhealthy snack foods. Good choices are: cut up fruit, applesauce, cheese & crackers, dry cerealthatisnotsugary. When cooking, try and use the back burners and make sure the pan handles are pointing toward the back of the stove. Your toddler will try to reach up andgrabthehandles. Make sure your child’s car seat is installed correctly and that they are alwaysbuckledup. Make sure poisons are out of reach on highshelvesorlockedcabinets. Make sure they have been to all their well-child checks and get all of their immunizations. Notify your child’s doctor if you have questions or concerns about your child’s developm Make sure they are in different positions all day,likeon their back, tummy, and sitting up. They need to see things a lot of different ways. Talk about the food they are eating. What is it? How does it feel? What color is it? Use wordslike,creamy,soft,cold,andwarm.

Pull their high chair up to the table so they canbewiththerestofthefamily. Tell them how much they are eating. “Two spoonfuls of carrots—yummy!” “You just ate threecrackers.” When you begin to serve your child table food near their first birthday, make sure you serve small, cut up pieces of food for your baby to eat with their fingers. Don’t put too muchoutatonetime.

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2-3 YEARS

Give them a five minute warning before it is timetocleanuporgosomewhere.

Healthy, Safe, & Strong

3-5 YEARS

Give them a chance to play with other children their age for short periods of time. They do need you to watch them. It is still hardforthemtoshare. Give them time to play outside. They need torunandclimb. Give them a spoon and help them use it. Be patient with them, they still like to use fingers. Givethemacuptodrinkfromwithalid.

Resources

Give your child a lot of water to drink. Avoidsugarydrinksandcaffeine. Keep a routine and get your child to bed on time. They need plenty of rest for their brainandbodytogrow. Don’t make your child clean their plate. It can lead to overeating. Your child knows whentheyarefullandtheyneedtobeable to keep sensing that in their body. If they say they're done and want cookies ten minuteslater,youcanoffertoheatuptheir dinnerorgivethemahealthysnack. Cuttheirfood into small pieces,so they do notchoke. Please give them lots of fruits and vegetables. Remind your child to use manners at the table. Clean up their spills and say please and thank you. Teach them how to use a napkin. Make sure they have a spoon and fork and thattheyusethemboth.

Modelgoodtablemannersandexpectgood behaviorfromthem. Slow down so meals can be relaxing and enjoyable.Talkaboutyourdayandwhatyour plans are for the evening or for tomorrow. Giveeachperson aturntotalk. Establishabedtimeandtryandkeeptoit. Givethemhugsandkissesastheygotobed. Remindthemtogotothebathroombefore bed.Thishelpswithpreventingaccidents.

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They can drink out of a cup at the table and theydon’tneedalid. Theycanaskformorefoodwhen needed, so pleasedon’tputtoomuchontheirplate.

Teach your child to wipe their noseand try to blow it. Teach them to wash their hands after they use a tissue and after they go to the bathroom. Keep phones, doorknobs, countertops, and tables cleaned and disinfected. Try and reducethespreadofgerms.

If your child does not “finish” their meal, that does NOT mean they can eat junk food later on. Wrap up their plate and put it in the fridge to re heat or only offer healthy choices. Get your child to the dentist for a cleaning and check up. Make sure you are showing themtheproperwaytobrushtheirteeth.

Make sure your child wears a helmet on theirtricycleorscooter. They are getting older, but they still need tobesupervisedoutside.

Remind your child of the safety rules when you are at the park or somewhere else. They may start to wander or explore. Remind them not to talk to strangers, stay closetomom,etc.. Don’t give them a sugary snack in the evening. Give them something healthy and light. Please give them toys and clothes for dress up.Theyliketoplaydress-upandpretend. Make sure you know what they're watching on your phone, tablet and TV. Sit with them andtalkaboutwhatyouarewatching.Thisisa greattime to talk about people's feelings and behaviors. Run around with them outside. They have a lotofenergyandtheylovetorun,chase,hide, andjump. Modelphysicalactivityandanactive,healthy lifestyle. Let them see you make healthy decisions like eating a balanced diet, exercising,andworkingintheyard. Provide time and safe places for them to run andplayoutside.Usesunscreen. Make sure your child’s car seat is installed correctlyandthatthey'realwaysbuckledup!

Resources

YOUR PRESCHOOLER...

Teach your family to cough into the inside of their arms (bent) and not into their hands.

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Make sure your child drinks low-fat milk and lots of water. Too much juice is not goodforthem. Serve your child small portions and let them ask for more. Don’t make them clean their plate. That will just teach them to overeatandnotlistentotheirbodywhenit tellsthemtheyarefull.

Remind them that they need healthy food to make them strong, and that food iswhatmakesthemgrow. Make eating a pleasant time with them. Smileandtalk.Don’trushthem. Keep a routine at bedtime. Read some books,brushteeth/gums,singsongsto them,snuggle. Settle down for bed. Calm activities help themfallasleep. Make sure they have plenty of time to play.Theylearnbestthroughplay. Readtothemeveryday. Establish a routine and stick to it. Give themapredictableschedule.

OTHER TIPS... Always use sunscreen when your child is playingoutside. Teach your child to float on their back and never leave them close to the water by themselves. Make sure they drink a lot of water when theyareplayingoutsideintheheat. Ask your child’s doctor or the health department if you have any questions or concerns about your child’s physical, social, or cognitive development and get to all of theircheckups. Makesureyourchildknowstheirname. Teach your child YOUR first name and last name,youraddressandphonenumber. Make sure they get to the doctor when they'resick. Makesuretheygetplentyofsleep. Love and support them. Thinking and reasoning develop more when there is plentyoflove. Never leave them alone in the car by themselves, even if they are asleep, or you arerunningintothestoreforjustaminute.

Healthy, Safe, & Strong

Resources

Snuggle with them. Give them hugs and kisses and tell them you love them beforetheygotosleep. Eat together as a family. They like to talk to everyone and they need to learn to listentoothers. Try and keep their routine throughout thedayandgetthemtobedontime.

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Share your name and phone number with people you meet at Early Birds. We can use all thefriendsandsupportwecanget. Enjoy being a parent/caregiver. You are the most important person in the world to your littleone! Try to find adult time. You can get worn down dealing with young children all day and you needsomeadultinteraction. Take a walk. Use a stroller and get out of the houseforafewminutes.Getsomefreshairand get your body moving. It will relieve stress and increase energy and your baby/young child will enjoy the ride. Walk around the mall, park, or neighborhood. Make sure you have POSITIVE people that appreciate you and help you feel good about yourself. People you can talk to, like family and friends. Close your eyes and think of one person you trust and know you can share your feelings with. Now, the next time you are feeling stressed or overwhelmed as a parent, reach out tothatperson. Drink plenty of water. Dehydration can cause headachesandirritability. Healthy adults raise healthy children. Please take care of yourself. Schedule time for yourself in your week. Plan and try to keep to a routine. Knowing your schedule and what to expectcanrelievestress. Be ready for changes and expect a few bumpsintheroad.

Make sure your child gets to bed early andyougettobedandgetyourrest.You will give the best care when you are well rested. Keep a sense of humor. There are lots of funny moments in life, especially around youngchildren.

Setyourpriorities. You don’t have to get everythingdone,manythingscanwait.

Healthy You!

Resources

Organize play dates with friends who have children. Let the kids play and you canvisitandhaveadulttime. Keep a journal or talk to a friend. Don’t keep stressful feelings bottled up. There areresourcesouttheretohelp.Checkour resourceguideformoreinformation. Swaptimewithafriendorneighbor.You watch their child and let them watch yoursforanafternoonorevening. Take some time for yourself. Watch a favoritemovie,TVshow,orread.

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Get to the doctor and get the care you need if you are not feeling well. Don’t neglectyourcare. Invitefriendsovertovisit.Staysocial. Get moving. Go somewhere, clean out thecloset,putonsomemusic,dance...

Practices Healthy You! Help us become aware of patterns in our behavior that may hurt us without passing judgmentonourthoughtsorbehaviors Identify automatic thoughts and actions which can often mean unhealthy habits andanegativeframeofmind Remind us we have a choice in how we respondtostressfulsituations Train our brain to stop going from the situationtoourreaction Allows us to insert awareness be thesituationandthereaction Allows for a more conscious choice newperspective Helps us live in the present, regretting the past and worrying thefuture Mindfulnesspractices: 274

To Begin Mindfulness helps us improve our focus and concentration, understand our emotions, respond wisely to difficult situations, and improve our overall well being. It allows us to be present and fully engaged in whatever we are doing at the moment. We notice our thoughts, feelings,senses,whatourbodyfeelslike,andwhatishappeningaroundus.

Mindfulness

To be mindful means to pay attention to what is happening in the mind, body, and immediate environment. It also involves staying present in the moment while remainingcuriousandcompassionate.

While happiness and joy may not be the immediate results of doing a mindfulness exercise, doing them consistently can help put an end to excessively ruminating on the past and worrying over the future. Mindfulness activities can help you develop more self compassion. Mindfulness is the practice of being at ease with what is. The more you practice, the easier it gets to be more accepting of whatever feelings are present.

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Mindfulness Practices

What is Mindfulness? Activities

Why is Mindfulness Important?

There are many benefits including psychological, cognitive, and even physical. Psychological benefits include increased happiness, satisfaction, and sense of meaning while decreasing stress and anxiety. Cognitive benefits include increased attention and problem solving. Physical benefits include improved immune function and decreased chronic pain. For more information on benefits of mindfulnessvisit: https://positivepsychology.com/importan ce of mindfulness/

The cool thing about mindfulness is that it can be practiced by anyone even kids in any place, at any time. So whether you want to learn to get in touch with your own emotions or teach mindfulness to your children, there's something out there for you. We've asked experts to round up the best mindfulness activities you can incorporate into your daily routine, share with others, or use whenever you are feeling overwhelmed. Pick a couple, try them out every day for a week, and note what you've learned about your mental landscape.

Our

The purpose is to train our mind to live in the present, removing worry about the past or the future. To do this, we focus on our breathing and bring our attention back when it wanders. It enhances our ability to focusourattentionandcanevenreducethe stresshormone,cortisol. minds will wander, we become distracted. distraction

don’t ignore it and refocus on our breathing. Sit cross legged, back straight on the floororachair. Takeadeepbreathandcloseyoureyes. Simply breathe in and out, slowly, focusingonyourbreathing. Notice how the air fills your lungs and leavesyourlungs. Briefly acknowledge the distracting thoughts and bring your focus back to yourbreathing. It may be helpful to silently count whileyoubreathetohelpyoufocus. Begin with 5 to 10 minutes at the sametimeeachday. Five Senses •Notice5thingsyoucansee •Notice4thingsyoucanfeel •Notice3thingsyoucanhear •Notice2thingsyoucansmell •Notice1thingyoucantaste 276 The 4-7-8 Breathing •Exhalecompletelythroughthemouth •Inhalethroughthenosefor4seconds •Holdthisbreathandcountto7 •Exhalethroughthemouthfor8counts •Repeatfourtimes

will

Mindfulness Meditation

Activities Mindfulness Practices Healthy You!

Acknowledge the

If helpful, count steps up to 10 and then start back at one again (you may need to count out loud with your children at first to establish the practice). With each step, pay attention to the liftingandfallingofyourfeel.

Shiftawarenesstothesenseofsmell. Now move to vision colors, objects, anythingyousee Notice your feet again touching the ground and the movements of your body witheachstep. Remember to keep this open awareness of everything around you, wherever you are.

Helpful Tips to Use When Practicing Mindfulness Set a specific time and place for your mindfulnesspractice. Try to focus on the present moment, withoutjudgment. Allow yourself to do nothing and just beinthemoment.

Mindfulness Walking - Can be Done With Your Child or Alone

Beginwalkingatanaturalpace.

Activities cont.

Try not to think about the past, plan thefuture,orlookatthetime. Notice your judgments and let them pass. When anxious, always return to the presentmoment. Don’t be too hard on yourself when your mind wanders during your practice.

Mindfulness Practices You!

If something else captures your attention, come back to the sensation ofwalking Expand your attention to sounds (consider putting a time limit of 1 minute withchildren).

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Before you begin your usual grind, take a fewmomentstocenteryourself. Setting aside a little time in the morning to set intentions helps you start the day with a clear mind. This can include journaling, movement, reading, or meditation. Be flexibleanddowhatfeelsbest. For specific examples, you can start with yoga and notice what your body needs in that moment, or read an uplifting book to setapositivetonefortheday.

Healthy

If you find that you are more of a night owl than an early bird, forming your own morning practice can feel difficult. In that case, find time in the afternoon or the evening to settle your mind. All you need is 10minutes. Intention Setting Exercises

Deep Breathing Exercise

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The quality of our breathing tells us a lot about where our headspace is at. Chances are, if you're feeling a bit anxious, your breath may feel short, shallow, or constrained. So one simple way to relieve stress is to practice deep breathing through thediaphragm. Taking long, deep breaths when feeling cluttered, distracted, or ungrounded begins to relax the nervous system and draws the attention to the present moment, which in turn promotes a feeling of intimacy with the body, with the earth, and with the natural spaciousness that is inherent in each moment. If you're new to deep breathing exercises, try the four count method. Breathe in for four seconds, then breathe out for four seconds.Repeatthisfivetimes.

Mindfulness Practices You!

The Name Game

This game is simpler than Eye Spy and yet it can be a powerful tool to curb spiraling thoughts. First, look around you and name three things you can hear, then two things you can see, and finally one sensation that you feel. By doing this, you are grounding yourself by increasing your awareness of your body and yourenvironment.

Activities cont.

The Wiggle and Freeze Game

Healthy

Mindfulness Practices You!

This is a great activity to do with your kids. In this game you and your kid (or friend), wiggle, bounce around, or dance until you say"Freeze!" Then everyone freezes and takes a moment to notice what they can feel in their body perhaps movement, tingling, heat, shaking, buzzing, or something else. You can repeat it as many times as you’d like! It’s a fun way to move around, and to start cultivating a greater awareness of bodily sensations, which is a core component of mindfulness practice.

Make Your Own Stress Ball

Thisfuncrafthastheaddedbenefitofgiving your kids an excellent mindfulness tool. Take colorful balloons and insert a funnel in the neck. Help your kids carefully pour in the filling of your choice. Try flour, sand, or cornstarchforsquishystressballs. You can also use dry rice or birdseed for a firmertextureandalessmessyexperience. Once the balloons are filled, tie them up and letthekidsdecoratetheoutsidewithpaint or stickers. Stress balls allow kids to physically relieve any negative feelings with just a squeeze. They are also great as an objecttofocusonwhilemeditating.

Blow Bubbles

Blowing bubbles is also a mindful activity. It gets kid out of their heads and focus on blowing bubbles. Want to challenge them and get them to focus more? Challenge them to blow the biggest bubble they can! Watch as they light up with attempt after attempt.

Practicing mindfulness isn’t just about the presentmomentandthesenses.Mindfulness activities for kids can be grown up activities, too. Reminding your kids to think of the things they’re grateful for will not only teach mindfulness, but also invoke more positive emotions. Plus, it might even surprise the adults with the responses they get! You’d be surprised how bright and creative some of the answers are. It may even give you as an adultnewthingstobethankfulfor. Make it a part of your daily routine like while having breakfast, picking them up from school, or putting them to bed at night. Simply ask “What are you thankful for today?” If they repeat a previous answer, ask “what else?” You can even follow up with them “Why are you thankful for that?” or “How does being thankful for that make you feel?” If your child is struggling, share with themwhoorwhatyou’rethankfulforfirst.

Kidslovebubbles!Haveyourkidsbreathein slowlyandthenrelaxastheyexhaleintothe bubble wand. Tell them to visualize their anxious thoughts inside the bubble and watch as the bubble floats away into the air and pops. After the bubble is gone, so are their worries. This exercise is a good way to teach your kids about mindful breathing, which can help them calm down quickly in stressfulsituations.

Gratitude Exercise

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Ithelpstosharpenyourfocus It can be used to increase positive thoughts. Ithaslittleornocost. Gratitudejournal Exercisestocheckin ColoringorDoodling Benefits JournalingExamples Promptstogetstarted I am aware of my interests and pass which provide me with stimulation inspireme.Ifeelgratefulfor… I think of the home that I live in, and I re on how it provides my family and me w safe, secure, stable place for us to live. gratefulfor… I am grateful for the food that I have eat my life. I reflect on the meals that I shared with friends, families, and collea Iamgratefulfor… Mindfulness Practices Healthy You! Journaling for Mindfulness 280 Activities cont.

Additional Tips for Mindfulness with Children

Teaching Children

•Exhalecompletelythroughthemouth •Inhalethroughthenosefor4seconds •Holdthisbreathandcountto7 •Exhalethroughthemouthfor8counts •Repeatfourtimes Mindfulness Practices Healthy You!

Three deep breaths help children calm themselves. Practice taking three deep breaths when your child is calm to be prepared to use the strategy when calmingisneeded. When mindfulness walking with children, guide them through the process using simple directions and modeling. Connecting the activities to book characters or family members helps engagethem.

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Mindfullness

Once you have established your own practice, you are ready to integrate mindfulness practices into your family. Children as young as 4 or 5 can learn to use simple breathing techniques to support self-regulation. If your child is not interested, stop and try again another time. Participating with them in the mindfulness activity is the best way to encouragecooperation.

MindfulnessMeditation:Start with sitting quietly and still for 30 seconds. Make sure your child has something to focus on (sounds, smells, sights, breathing). Each week,youcanincreasethetimeslightly.

Five Finger Starfish Meditation: Spread fingers out like a starfish. Use the pointer finger from the other hand, gently trace the outline of the starfish hand, slowly going up and down each finger. Combining touch and focusmayimmediatelyhelpcalmyourchild

Children are concrete thinkers. When breathing it is best if they can “feel” the breath, by touching their belly or using their hand to feel the breath come out of their mouth or nose. Tummy breathing works best, where you exhale slower than youinhale.Startwith10breaths.

Mindfulness Practices Healthy You! RESOURCES MindfulnessWebsites:mindful.org GuidedMeditation,mrsmindfulness.com YouTube guidedmindfulness, leftbrainbuddha.com Apps:UCLAMindfulApp,Headspace,10% Happier,Calm,Aura GuidedMeditation Journalwriting&guidedmeditation 282 SOURCES TheImportanceofMindfulness:20+ ReasonstoPracticeMindfulness. positivepsychology.com/importance-ofmindfulness/ JournalingforMindfulness:44Prompts, ExamplesandExercises. positivepsychology.com/journaling-formindfulness/ 15MindfulnessActivitiestoReduceStress andIncreaseCalm. www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/we llness/g32267191/mindfulness-activities/ https://declutterthemind.com/blog/mind fulness activities for kids/

Text for Baby 283 A free service that includes weekly text messages, appointment reminders, and an app with health information and helpful tips duringpregnancyanduntilyourbabyturns1.

Freetips,information,and resourcestohelpallparents andcaregiversgivetheirchild abrightbeginning. Bright By Text 284

Enroll for Your Early Birds Class www.smartstartcentraloklahoma.org TakehomeaFREEkitoflearningmaterialswitheachclass! Learn about child development, tools for school readiness, andmore! Classes offered virtually and in person, and in English and Spanish.Classesofferedvarybylocation. Early Birds is for anyone caring for children under 5 to support caregivers as a first and influential teacher of young children. Early Birds is for caregivers caring for children from prenatal through 5 years old. 285

Resources Smart Start smartstartcentraloklahoma.org/parenting resources Access online Live Binder for 300+ community resources. The Harbison Early Education & Kiwanis Community Center 2411 NW 1st Terrace, Oklahoma City, 73107 Bright by Text Text SMARTSTARTOETA to 274448 www.brightbytext.org www.smartstartcentraloklahoma.org/bright-text parentPro Home Visiting Services (405) 271 7611 www.parentpro.org 2-1-1 or 211Oklahoma.org Utility assistance, rent assistance, WIC, child care assistance, community clinics, COVID-19 Call Center and more. Dial 2 1 1 www.navigateresources.net/hlok/ Legal Aid Services Of Oklahoma, Inc. 1-888-534-5243 www.legalaidok.org Report Child Abuse Confidential reporting child abuse and neglect. 1 800 522 3511 www.OKHotline.org Mental Health and Substance Abuse Assistance 1 800 662 HELP (4353) www.samhsa.gov/about us/contact us Sooner Start Early Intervention www.sde.ok.gov/soonerstart WIC - Oklahoma Women, Infants and Children Program Oklahoma State Department of Health 123 Robert S. Kerr Ave, Oklahoma City, 73102 (405) 426 8500 or 1 888 655 2942 Community Resources Statewide Oklahoma Smart Start Central Oklahoma Smart Start OKC SmartStartOKC Smart Start Central Oklahoma 286

Resources j g Love INC. of Greater Cushing 203 W Moses, Cushing, 74023 (918) 225 1125 www.loveincofcushing.org Skyline 500 SE 15th St, Oklahoma City, 73129 (405) 632-2644 www.okcskyline.org/frc 287 Community Resources Central Oklahoma Clothing Resources Northcare 2617 General Pershing Blvd, Oklahoma City, 73107 (405) 858 2700 www.northcare.com Latino Community Development Agency 420 S W 10th St, Oklahoma City, 73109 (405) 236 0701 www.lcdaok.com Community Services, Inc. Shields Building 4720 S. Shields Blvd, Oklahoma City, 3129 05) 634 4400 ww.hopecsi.org vot, Inc. 01 NE 50th St, Oklahoma City, 73104 05) 235 7537 www.pivotok.org Valley Hope Addiction Treatment & Recovery 1 800 544 5101 Cushing (918) 225 1736 100 S Jones Ave, Cushing, 74023 Oklahoma City (405) 654 1463 2816 NW 58th St #103, Oklahoma City, 73112 www.valleyhope.org/locations/oklahoma Counseling Resources Payne County Youth Services 2224 W. 12th St, Stillwater, 74076 (405) 377 3380 www.pcys.org Stillwater Life Services 1509 W 8th Ave, Stillwater, 74074 (405) 624-3332 www.stillwaterlife.org Wings of Hope 3800 N. Washington, Stillwater, 74075 (405) 372 9922 www.wingsofhopeok.com Counseling Continued Logan, Okfuskee, Pottawatomie, Oklahoma, Grady, Canadian, McClain, Seminole, Payne, Lincoln, Cleveland, Hughes

Resources y (405) 271-5072 or 1-877-871-5072 www.oklahomafamilynetwork.org Sooner Success (405) 534 8000 www.soonersuccess.ouhsc.edu Rainbow Fleet 1105 NW 45th St, Oklahoma City, (405) 521-1826 www.rainbowfleet.org/early educ center 288 Community Resources Central Oklahoma Education 5751 E. Reno Ave, Midwest City, 73117 (405) 737-2010 www.missionmiddel.org/masters market.html Food Payne County Youth Services 2224 W. 12th St. Stillwater, 74076 (405) 377-3380 www.pcys.org Central Oklahoma Community Action Agency 410 S. Lewis, Stillwater, 74074 (405) 624-2533 www.cocaa.org Wings of Hope 3800 N. Washington, Stillwater, 74075 (405) 372-9922 www.wingsofhopeok.com Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma 3355 S Purdue Ave, Oklahoma City, 73179 (405) 972 1111 www.regionalfoodbank.org Housing Oklahoma City Housing Authority 1700 NE 4th St, Oklahoma City, 73117 (405) 239 7551 www.ochanet.org Community Action Agency of Oklahoma City & OK/CN Counties 319 SW 25th St, Oklahoma City, 73109 (405) 232 0199 www.caaofokc.org City Rescue Mission 800 W California Ave, Oklahoma City, 73106 (405) 232 2709 www.cityrescue.org Habitat for Humanity (405) 377 0403 505 E 18th Stillwater, 74074 www.stillwaterhabitat.org Homeless Alliance 1724 NW 4th St , Oklahoma City, 73106 (405) 415-8410 www.homelessalliance.org Stillwater Housing Authority 807 S Lowry, Stillwater, 74074 (405) 372 4906 www.stillwaterhousing.org Food Continued

Resources Community Action Agency of Oklahoma City & OK/CN Counties 319 SW 25th St, Oklahoma City, 73109 (405) 232 0199 www.caaofokc.org Oklahoma City Indian Clinic 4913 W Reno Ave, Oklahoma City (405) 948-4900 ext. 469 www.okcic.com Community Health Centers of O Central Oklahoma Healthy Start Intitiative Oklahoma County 3017 N. MLK Ave, Oklahoma City, 73111 (405) 427 3200 Pottawatomie County - 130 N. Broadway, Suite 300, Shawnee, 74801 (405) 395 0806 www.communityhealthok.org/healthystartok 289 Community Resources Central Oklahoma Legal SoonerRide 1-877-404-4500 www.oklahoma.gov/ohca/individuals/soon erride.html Substance Abuse Addiction Hotline 1-888-498-7279 Oxford House (405) 519-1910 www.oxfordhouse.org/index ry Mahoney Memorial Health Center 716 NE 36th St, Spencer, 73084 05) 769-3301 ww.communityhealthok.org version Hub 220 NW 10th Street, Oklahoma City, 73103 (405) 594-8843 www.diversionhub.org/ Transportation Medical Early Settlement Mediation - Oklahoma County Oklahoma State University Oklahoma City 900 N. Portland Ave, Oklahoma City, 73107 (405) 945 8664 www.osuokc.edu/mediation

Resources (580) 323-4373 Opportunities Inc. Woodward Office 1007 Main St Woodward, 73801 (580) 256-2899 oard donnahunter@wowdb.org 290 Community Resources Northwest Oklahoma Beaver, Woods, Noble, Kingfisher, Cimarron, Ellis, Kay, Grant, Woodward, Texas, Major, Dewey, Blaine, Garfield, Harper, Alfalfa Vita (Tax assistance)/Housing Assistance/Health Services/Food Pantry/Emergency Services Employment Assistance

Resources CASA of Southwest Oklahoma 601 SW C Ave. Ste 101 Lawton, 73501 (580) 355 5520 www.casaswok.com Child Care Subsidy Program – DHS 2609 SW Lee Blvd. Lawton, 73505 (580) 250 3600 www.okdhs.org/services/cc/Pages/ChildCareBenefits.aspx Crossroads Youth & Family Services 2402 SW E Ave. Lawton, 73505 (580) 248 0474 (405) 321 0240 www.crossroadsyfs.org/ McKinney Vento (Homeless Youth) 753 NW Fort Sill Blvd, Lawton, OK 73507 (580) 357 6900 ext. 2311 MIGHT Community Development Resource Center 714 SW 45th St Lawton OK (580) 595 4808 www.mightcdrc.org Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma 291 Child Assistance/Youth Services Beckham, Comanche, Greer, Harmon, Jefferson, Roger, Mills, Tillman, Caddo, Cotton, Custer, Jackson, Kiowa, Stephens, Washita

Resources Cameron Baptist Church 2621 SW C Ave. Lawton, 73505 (580) 355-4854 www cameronbaptist com Centenary United Methodist Church 704 SW D Ave. Lawton, 73501 (580) 355 5660 www.lawtoncentenary.org/missionopportunities Goodwill Industries of Southwest Oklahoma Location 1: 1203 SW Lee Blvd. Lawton, 73501 (580) 355 2163 Location 2: 616 NW Sheridan Rd. Lawton, 73505 (580) 699 3292 www.goodwillsont.org Lawton First Assembly 2201 NW 82nd St, Lawton, 73505 (580) 536 9325 www.lawtonfirst.org/compassion 292 Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma Clothing Assistance Salvation Army 1306 SW E Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 355 1802 www.salvationarmyaok.org Suits for Success 210 SW Texas Ave, Lawton, 73501 (405) 820-0096 (580) 248 8811 Sonrise Super Thrift Location 1: 602 SW Sheridan Rd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 353-1433 Location 2: 1324 NW 53rd St, Lawton, 73505 (580) 699 2288 Central Baptist Church of Lawton 901 SW B Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 353 6750 www.lawtoncentral.com

Resources Cameron University Psychology Clinic 275 SW 27th St, Lawton, 73505 (580) 581 3153 www.cameron.edu/cpc Christian Family Counseling Center 5002 SW Lee Blvd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 531 4512 www.cfccok.org/services Jim Taliaferro Community Mental Health Center 602 SW 38th St, Lawton, 73505 (580) 248 5780 www.drugrehablawton.com Marie Detty Youth & Family Services 605 W Gore Blvd, Lawton, 73501 (580) 248-6450 www.mariedetty.com Open Arms Behavioral Health Counseling Center 6221 W Gore Blvd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 351-9998 www.openarmsbehavioralhealth.com Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services 1802 NW Ferris Ave. Lawton, 73507 (580) 585-4200 www.okrehab.org/job-seekers/home 293 Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma Counseling & Rehabiliation Services Pregnancy Resource Center of Southwestern Oklahoma Pregnancy Counseling 319 SW C Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 536 4040 www.prclawton.org/services Substance Abuse Comanche Nation Prevention & Recovery Center 8501 NW Madische Dr, Lawton, 73507 (580) 492 3614 Outpatient Center 8 SW D Ave, Suite D, Lawton, 73501 (580) 357 3449 www.comanchenation.com/departments/h ealth-programs/prevention-recoveryreintegration The Next Step TLP, Inc. 2315 SW H Ave, Suite 5, Lawton, 73505 (580) 917 0266 Valley Hope Addiction Treatment & Recovery 100 S Jones Ave. Cushing, 74023 (918)225-1736 www.valleyhope.org/locations/oklahoma/ Youthcare of Oklahoma 602 SW A Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 262 8945 www.okdrs.gov/guide/ok counseling services inc dba youthcare ok claremore

Resources www.cameron.edu/sec Goodwill Career Development Center GED Prep Classes 1901 W Gore Blvd, #C, Lawton, 73501 (580) 699 5580 www.goodwill.org/goodwill for you/ The Next Step TLP, Inc. 2315 SW H Ave, #5, Lawton, 73505 (580) 917 0266 Adult Literacy Roundtable 110 SW 4th St, Lawton, 73501 (580) 581 3450 ext. 6 www.lawtonok.gov/departments/library God's Chosen Ministries Inc. 121 SW B Ave, Lawton, 73503 (910) 633 0191 www.godschosenministry.com 294 Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma Employment & Education Assistance Workforce of Oklahoma 1711 SW 11th St, Lawton, 73501 (580) 357 3500 www.ok.gov/oesc/Job Seekers/Workf orce Services/Lawton Adult Basic Education 4500 SW Lee Blvd, Building 100 Rm. 148, Lawton, 73505 (580) 250 5685 Y I E L D Inc. 4500 W. Lee Blvd. Lawton, 73505 (580) 250 5686 Western Oklahoma Workforce Development Board 1222 10th St, Ste. 115, Woodward, 73801 (580) 256 8553 www.wowdb.org donnahunter@wowdb.org

Resources (580) 248-3110 www.birthright.org Centenary United Methodist Church 704 SW D Ave, Lawton, 73507 (580) 355-5660 Center for Creative Living 3501 SW Elsie Hamm Dr, Lawton, 73503 (580) 248 0471 www.centerforcreativeliving.org Food 4 Kids Program- Lawton Public Schools (580) 355 1140 Holy Family St. Vincent DePaul Society 12 SW 7th St. Lawton, 73501 (580) 536 6351 Holy Cross Lutheran Church 2105 NW 38th St. Lawton, 73505 (580) 357 7684 www.holycrosslawton.org/community ministry Hungry Hearts Feeding Ministry 701 SW D Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 704 9224 www hungryheartsfeedingministry com Lawton First Assembly 2201 NW 82nd St, Lawton, 73505 (580) 536 9325 www lawtonfirst org 295 Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma Food Assistance Lawton Food Bank 2800 W Gore Blvd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 357-5396 Lawton Mobile Meals 2800 W Gore Blvd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 357-5396 www.facebook.com/lawtonmobilemeals Lovesick Ministries 1107 SW Summit Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 574-4974 M28 Ministries 2001 SW D Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 695 5196 www.m28ministries.org SNAP Program 2609 SW Lee Blvd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 250 3600 www.okdhslive.org/popups/ProgramFA QSEnglish.aspx#FoodStampFAQ St. John’s Missionary Baptist Church 1504 SW N H Jones Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 357-3542 The Salvation Army Food Bank 1306 SW E Ave, Lawton, OK 73501 (580) 355 1802 WIC 1010 South Sheridan Rd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 585 6625 www wicprograms org/li/73501 coman che county health department

Resources Comanche County Health Department 1010 S Sheridan Rd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 248 5890 www.oklahoma.gov/health old/county health departments/comanche county health department/services html Comanche County Home Health Location 1: Comanche County Memorial Hospital 3126 NW Arlington Ave, Lawton, 73505 (580) 585 5575 Location 2: 1010 S Sheridan Rd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 248-5890 www.ccmhhealth.com/home health and hospice Calvary Baptist Church – Hearts that Care Volunteer Health Clinic- Dental Care 1313 WGore Blvd, Lawton, 73501 (580) 353-2008 ext 2 (580) 354 9007 www.calvarybaptistlawton.org/dental clinic DHS – Children & Low Income 2609 SW Lee Blvd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 250 3600 www.okdhs.org/services/Pages/default2.aspx Jim Taliaferro Community Mental Health Center 602 SW 38th St, Lawton, 73505 (580) 248-5780 www.drugrehablawton.com 296 Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma Health Services Lawton Community Health Center 3811 W Gore Blvd, Bldg 6, Lawton, 73505 (580) 355 5242 www.lawtoncommunityhealthcenter.com/ser vices community Lawton Council of the Blind First Presbyterian Church 1302 SW A Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 695 1936 or (580) 536 1650 www.okcb.accountsupport.com/membership/ lawton-chapter Oklahoma Healthy Aging Initiative 3811 W Gore Blvd, #8, Lawton, 73505 (580) 699 3978 www ouhsc edu/ohai/About/Our-Story RAIN HIV/AIDS Patient Services 1103 SW C Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 353 7900 www rainoklahoma publishpath com/hiv Rx for Oklahoma 2 SE Lee Blvd, Suite #200, Lawton, 73501 (580) 353 5616 www kibois org/KIBOIS Rx html Southwestern Home Health 1908 East Gore Blvd, #A, Lawton, 73507 (580) 248 7060 or 1 800 605 7944 www swhomehealth com/services html Sooner Start Early Intervention Location 1: 1010 S. Sheridan Rd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 585-6610 Location 2: 2500 N Lincoln Blvd Oklahoma City, OK 73105, (405) 521 3301 www.sde.ok.gov/soonerstart Variety Care 201 1st St, Grandfield, 73546 (405) 632 6688 or 1 866 388 6688 www.varietycare.org

Resources www.lawtonhousing.org/properties.aspx Deer Park Housing 2403 NW 23rd St, Lawton, 73505 (580) 355 4296 Comanche Nation Housing Authority 1918 E Gore Blvd, Lawton, 73501 (580) 357 4956 www.comanchehousing.com Garrett's Landing 1321 SW 27th St. Lawton, Ok 73505 (580) 357 1900 Golden Age Apartments Low Income Housing for Elderly & Disabled 1006 SW E Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 250 1700 https://affordablehousingonline.com/housin g search/Oklahoma/Hollis/Golden Age Apartments/10074670 297 Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma Housing Assistance Goodwill Village Apartments Low Income Housing for Elderly & Disabled 1505 SW 11th St, Lawton, 73501 (580) 353 0912 https://affordablehousingonline.com/ho using search/Oklahoma/Lawton/Goodwill Village/10016044 Habitat for Humanity 1006 SW E Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 250 1700 www.habitat.org/us ok/lawton/lawton ft sill hfh Lawton Housing Authority 1327 SW Wisconsin Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 353 1894 www.lawtonhousing.org/default.aspx Lawton Pointe Apartments 2213NW, NW Hoover Ave. Lawton, 73505 (580) 357 6889 www.lawtonpointe.monroegroup.com Old Towne Square Apartments 911 SW E Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 699 3837 Villanova Apartments 305 NW 4th St, Lawton, 73507 (580) 248 2550

Resources www.legalaidok.org Catholic Charities 103 SW C Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 353-1811 www.catholiccharitiesok.org/gethelp/immigration-legal-services Early Settlement Mediation of Southwestern Oklahoma 2800 W. Gore Blvd, Lawton, (580) 581-5420 adrs.oscn.net/? fbclid=IwAR2b qHd dJpuc1pQ4Ds4 7evMy n1j48Uw08-4FI4UJucm5dSunHkL2ednk 298 Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma Legal Services Lawton Legal Aid 323 SW C Ave. Lawton, OK 73501 (580)-248-4675 www.legalaidok.org Legal Aid Services Agricultural Worker Program Migrant Hotline: 1-866-439-0916 Teen Court 814 SW C Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 250-1466 Wichita Mountains Prevention Network 1318 SW Lee Blvd, Lawton, 73501 (580) 355-5246 www.wmpn.org

Resources Comanche Nation Workforce 1608 SW 9th St, Lawton, 73502 (580) 492-3257 www.comanchenation.com/departments/career educational programs/workforce Comanche Nation Childcare 1001 SW C. Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 699 3991 www.comanchenation.com/departments/family services/child-care Comanche Nation New Pathways 8503 NW Madische Rd, Lawton, 73501 (580) 792-3743 www.comanchenation.com/departments/family services/new pathways Comanche Nation Housing Authority 1918 E Gore Blvd, Lawton, 73501 (580) 357 4956 or 1 877 263 7042 www comanchehousing com Comanche Higher Education 1608 SW 9th St, Lawton, 73502 (580) 699-7218 www.comanchenation.com/departments/career educational programs/higher education Indian Child Welfare 2210 W Gore Blvd, Ste 3, Lawton, 73501 (580) 492 1140 www.comanchenation.com/departments/family services/indian-child-welfare Kiowa Higher Education www.kiowatribe.org/higher education highereducation@kiowatribe org 299 Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma Native American Services Kiowa Alcohol and Drug Abuse (405) 247 9009 www.kiowatribe.org/alcohol and drug abuse Kiowa Housing Authority 1701 E Central Blvd, Anadarko, 73005 (405) 339 8100 www.kiowahousing.com Kiowa Social Services (405) 648 4080 www.kiowatribe.org/social services Kiowa Teen Suicide Prevention (580) 654 6363 www.kiowatribe.org/teen suicide prevention Kiowa Workforce (580) 654 6418 www.kiowatribe.org/workforce Wichita Education Services (405) 247 8612 www.wichitatribe.com/programs/education.a spx Wichita RISE (Raising Interest in Suicide Education) (405) 247 8817 www.wichitatribe.com/programs/rise.aspx Wichita Social Services (405) 247 8630 www.wichitatribe.com/programs/social services.aspx Wichita Family and Children Services 1 1/4 Miles North on Hwy 281, Anadarko, 73005 (405) 247-8627 www.wichitatribe.com/programs/family and children services.aspx

Resources Cohen Veterans Network Mental Health Care for Veterans, Active Duty, and Family Members 4202 SW Lee Blvd, Bldg B, Lawton, 73505 (580) 771 2662 www.red rock.com/military family services DAV-Disabled American Veterans Service Center 4704 NW Motif Manor Blvd, #5, Lawton, 73505 (580) 248 8387 www.dav.org Family Support (580) 442 6818 Military OneSource 1 800 342 9647 MWR-Fort Sill 3334 Sheridan Rd, Fort Sill, 73503 (580) 442 0930 www.sill.armymwr.com 300 Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma Military & Veteran Services Operation Homefront 608 SW D Ave, Fort Sill, 73501 (580) 581 0772 www.operationhomefront.org Lawton Fort Sill Veterans Center 501 SE Flower Mound Rd, Fort Sill, 73501 (580) 351-6511 www.oklahoma.gov/veterans/veteranscenters/lawton.html Supportive Service for Veteran Families (SSVF) (918) 588 8459 VA – HUD VASH (405) 456 5793 Veterans Affairs Outpatient 1310 BW 47th St, Lawton, 73505 (580) 531 4700

Resources n ok ASCOG AAA 802 W Main St. Duncan, 73533 (580) 736-7036 www.ascog.org Center for Creative Living 3501 SW Dr. Elsie Hamm Dr, Lawton, 73505 (580) 248-0471 www.centerforcreativeliving.org/ Oklahoma Healthy Aging Initiative www.ouhealth.com/oklahoma center for geroscience/healthy aging services/oklahoma healthy aging initiative ohai / 301 Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma Senior Citizen Services 901 SW 17th St, Lawton, 73501 (580) 699 2821 or (580) 353 7522 www.familypromiseoflawton.com New Directions 317 SW C Ave, Lawton, 73505 (580) 250-1123 or (580) 357-6141 The Salvation Army 1306 SW E Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 355 1802 www.salvationarmyusa.org/usn/provide shelter Comanche Nation Women's Shelter (580) 492 3590 or (580) 492 3591 The Next Step TLP, Inc. 2315 SW H Ave, Ste #5, Lawton, 73505 (580) 917-0266 or (580) 585-2414 ww.transitionalhousing.org/li/the next ep tlp incService Animal Services Paws with Love Therapy Dogs 1401 NW 82nd St, Lawton, 73505 (580) 699 7007 www.pawswithlovetd.com Shelter Services

Resources Alcoholics Anonymous & Family Support Group – Way Out 1302 SW 13th St, Lawton, 73501 (580) 536-9511 Alcoholics Anonymous – Open Door Group 1204 SW F Ave, Lawton, 73501 www.okcintergroup.org/meetings/opendoor-group-24/ Comanche Indian Tribe Substance AbuseIntake: 8503 NW Madische Rd, Lawton, 73501 (580) 357 3449 Outpatient: 807 SW F Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 492 3752 Depression/Bipolar Support Gr 110 SW 4th St. Lawton, 73501 (580) 483 4942 Compassionate Friends Grief Support 1402 NW Arlington Ave, Lawton, 73507 (580) 291 7425 302 Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma Support Groups Cameron Baptist Church Grief Support 2621 SW C Ave, Lawton, 73505 (580) 355-4854 Heartbeat Grief Support Group 3401 W Gore Blvd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 536 7078 Narcotics Anonymous Support Group 3401 W Gore Blvd, Lawton, 73505 NA Narcotics Anonymous 532 South West 11th St, Lawton, 73501 NAMI – Mental Health Support Group Commanche County Memorial Hospital 3401 W Gore Blvd, Lawton, 73505 (580) 583 8126 OK2BU – LGBTQ Community 1529 W Gore Blvd, # C2, Lawton, 73501 (580) 238-1291 Tax Assistance Goodwill VITA Program 1203 SW Lee Blvd, Lawton, 73505 OR 616 NW Sheridan Rd, Lawton, OK 73505 (580) 355-2163 OR (580) 699-3292 www.goodwillsont.org/services vita.php Great Plains Improvement Foundation 2 SE Great Plains Blvd, Suite #200, Lawton, 73505 (580) 353 2364 www.okdrs.gov/guide/great plains improvement foundation

Resources DAV Disabled American Veterans 4704 NW Motif Manor Blvd. #5, Lawton, 73505 (580) 248-8387 www.dav.org/veterans/i need a ride LATS – Lawton Area Transit System 611 SW Bishop Rd, Lawton, 73501 (580) 248 5252 www.ridelats.com Red River Transportation- Medicare Patients (580) 255 7883 www.cadcconnections.com/public transportation SoonerRide – Medicare/Medicaid 1 877 404 4500 www.oklahoma.gov/ohca/individuals/soonerride. html 303 Community Resources Southwest Oklahoma Transportation Services Location 1: 1010 NW 82nd St, Lawton, 73503 (580) 536 8729 Location 2: 12 SW 7th St, Lawton, 73501 (580) 355-7837 www.holyfamilylawton.org Lawton Housing Authority Support Service 609 SW F Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 595 0063 www.hud.gov/states/oklahoma/renting/ene rgyprgms Lifeline Program 811 SW D Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 699-2020 www.fidelitycommunications.com/lifeline LIHEAP Program – DHS 2609 SW Lee Blvd, Lawton, 73505 580) 250 3600 www.okdhs.org/services/liheap/Pages/ New Directions, Marie Detty Youth and Family Service Center, Inc. 580) 357 6141 The Salvation Army 1306 SW E Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 355 1802 www salvationarmyaok org/home/ways-wehelp/children families/housing Utilities & Rental Services C. Carter Crane Center for Empowerment and Advancement 1203 SW Texas Ave, Lawton, 73501 (580) 248 0936 Catholic Charities 106 SW A Ave, Lawton, 73507 (580) 353 1811 www.catholiccharitiesok.org/lawton Utilities & Rental Services Cont.

Resources Help In Crisis, Inc. 205 N. College Ave, Tahlequah, 74464 (918) 456-0673 www.helpincrisisinc.org/ Kings Aid Station 706 Cherry St, Tahlequah, 74464 (918) 458-0350 Bartlesville – Mary Martha Outreach (918) 337-3703 www.cceok.org/marymarthaoutreach Broken Arrow-Ministry of Compassion (918) 994-1451 www.cceok.org/broken-arrow 304 Community Resources Northeast Oklahoma Clothing Resources Miami Clinic 203 2nd Ave SW, Miami, 74354 (918) 542-6412 Muskogee Clinic 1139 N. Main St, Muskogee, 74401 (918) 687-7064 Sallisaw Clinic 1108 N. Wheeler, Sallisaw, 74955 (918) 775-5513 Stilwell Clinic 716 S. 2nd St, Suite 103, Stilwell, 74960 (918) 696-6212 hlequah Clinic 11 S. Muskogee Ave, Tahlequah, 74464 18) 207-0078 ulsa Clinic 103 S. Yale Ave, Ste B, Tulsa, 74135 (918) 382-7300 Vinita Clinic 120 E. Illinois Ave, Vinita, 74301 (918) 256-9961 Counseling/Substance Abuse CREOKS Behavioral Health Services www.creoks.org Bartlesville Clinic 401 S. Dewey Ave, Ste 108, Bartlesville, 74003 (918) 336-0810 Counseling/Substance Abuse Adair, Craig, Delaware, McIntosh, Nowata, Osage, Pawnee, Sequoyah, Wagner, Cherokee, Creek, Mayes, Muskogee, Okmulgee, Ottawa, Rogers, Tulsa, Washington

Resources Stilwell Public Library 5 N. 6th St, Stilwell, 74960 (918) 696-7512 www.eols.org Hulbert Community Library 210 N. Broadway, Hulbert, 74441 (918) 772-3383 www.eols.org Tahlequah Public Library 120 South College, Tahlequah, 74464 (918) 456-2581 www.eols.org Stanley Tubbs Memorial Library East Cherokee Ave, Sallisaw, 74955 (918) 775-4481 http://www.sallisawok.org/136/Library Cherokee County Public Library 123 S Grand Ave, Cherokee, 73728 (580) 596-2366 www.cherokee.okpls.org Head Start 1400 Hensley Dr, Tahlequah, OK 74464 (918) 431 1888 305 Community Resources Northeast Oklahoma Libraries/ Education q g (Cherokee County) 122 E Choctaw St, Tahlequah, OK 74464 (918)-453-1327 Indian Capital Technology Center: Adair County (918)-696-3111 Cherokee County (918)-456-2594 Muskogee County (918)-687-6383 Sequoyah County (918)-775-9119 Adult Learning

Resources (918) 371 4082 Jay 1501 Industrial Parkway Rd, Jay, 74346 (918) 253 8279 Nowata 1018 Lenape Dr, Nowata, 74048 (918) 273-0050 Salina 904 N. Owen Walters Blvd, Salina, 74365 (918) 434 8402 Sallisaw 3400 W. Cherokee, Sallisaw, 74955 (918) 775-1120 Stilwell Industrial Park Rd, Stilwell, 74960 (918) 696 5171 Vian Peace Center Pantry 208 Scheley St, Vian, 74962 (918) 773 8000 www.vianpeacecenter.com 306 Community Resources Northeast Oklahoma Food Ozark Ridge Affordable Housing 1331 W Ozark St, Tahlequah 74464 (918) 453 2717 Muskogee Housing Authority 220 N. 40th St, Muskogee, 74401 (918) 910-5489 www.muskogeehousing.org/ Tulsa Housing Authority Central Office (918) 582 0021 www.tulsahousing.org/ Skywood Dr, Stilwell, 74960 (918) 696 3957 Garden Walk of Tahlequah 18165 W 798 Rd, Tahlequah, 74464 (918) 456-0561 www.gwtahlequah.com Housing

Resources 307 Community Resources Northeast Oklahoma Transportation Muskogee County Transit Authority (918) 682-1721 www.muskogeecountytransit.org Pelivan Transit System www.pelivantransit.org ▪ Miami (918)542 1356 ▪ Claremore (918) 341 7300 ▪ Owasso (855) 735-4826 ▪ Grove (918) 786-7516 ▪ Pryor (918) 735 4826 2130 W. Okmulgee, Muskogee, 74401 (918) 683 8080 MHC Hulbert Health Center 127 E. Main, Hulbert, 74441 (918) 772-1232 NEO Health Muskogee 1328 S. York St, Muskogee, 74403 (918) 683 0470 www.neohealth.org/clinics/nm/ NEO Health Westville Family Medical Center 761 Buffington, Westville, 74965 (918) 723 3997 www.neochc.org/clinics/wfmc/ NEO Health Women’s Care Center 1500 E. Downing St, Suite 208, Tahlequah, 74464 (918) 456 2496 www.neohealth.org Medical

Resources Southern Oklahoma Ambulance Service 517 Grand Ave, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 223 1226 www.soas.net 308 Community Resources South Central Oklahoma Medical Legal Sara s Project 814 16th Ave NW, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 226 7283 www.sarasprojectok.org/ Counseling Arbuckle Life Solutions, Inc. 9 10th Avenue NW; Ardmore, 73401 (580) 226-1656 www.arbucklelifesolutions.com Changing Course Foundation 107 S 5th Street, Davis, 73030 (214) 477 2673 www ccfdn net Counseling Inc. 102 N Neshoba Street, Tishoming (580) 371-3551 www.counselingincok.com/contac us. Hilltop Equine Therapy, Inc. 9435 N. Meridian Road, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 220 7444 Naomi House, Inc. 1105 E Street NW, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 798-0397 www.naomihouse.org/contact.html Legal Aid Services Of Oklahoma, Inc. 14 E Street SW, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 226 4863 OR 1 888 534 5243 www.legalaidok.org Learning Programs Arbuckle Area Council, Boy Scouts Of America 411 State Hwy 142 W, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 223 0831 Camp Fire Heart Of Oklahoma, Inc. Ardmore, 73402 (580) 223-5889 www.campfirehok.org Cities In Schools, Inc. 1405 4th Avenue NW Ardmore, 73401 (580) 223 8762 www.citiesinschoolsardmore.org/ Counseling Continued Marshall, Johnston, Pontotoc, Carter, Love, Murray, Garvin

Resources g Center, Inc. 502 G Street NE, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 226-3321 www ainsworthcenter org The Grace Center Of Southern Oklahoma 11 “A” Street NW, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 223 2027 www.ardmoregracecenter.com HFV Wilson Community Center 625 E Main, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 223 0136 www.hfvwilsoncenter.com Hickory Creek Child Center, Inc 1408 4th Street NW, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 223 7111 www.hickorycreekchildcenter.com Madill Community Day Care 410 Brookside Drive, Madill, 73446 (580) 795 5030 Take Two Academy 611 Maxwell Street NW, Ardmore, 73402 (580) 221-3037 www.taketwo.ardmoreschools.org/ Texoma Autism & Behavior Intervention School 100 E Street SW, Suite 200, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 221 0315 www.tabischool.org/ Carter County Group Homes 49 Heritage, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 657 2047 309 Community Resources South Central Oklahoma Learning Programs Con Shelter/ Housing Ardmore Habitat For Humanity 301 W Main, Suite 30, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 223 1540 www.ardmorehabitatforhumanity.com Broadway House, Inc. 221 2nd NW, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 226-3252 www.okdrs.gov/guide/broadway house inc Catholic Charities South Central Oklahoma 801 Hailey Street, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 798-2305 www.catholiccharitiesok.org/ Family Shelter Of Southern Oklahoma Ardmore, OK 73402 (580) 226-3750 www.familyshelterofsouthernok.net/ Carter County / Ardmore Self Help Housing Office 414 S. Commerce, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 226 3030

Resources 309 Community Resources South Central Oklahoma Food Our Neighbor’s Cupboard 105 N. Neshoba, Tishomingo, 734 (580) 219-0665 www.ourneighborscupboard.org INCA Community Services 202 S Capitol, Tishomingo, 73460 (580) 371-2353 www.incacaa.org Transportation Big Five Community Services 201 A Street SW, Ardmore, 73401 (580) 223-4613 www.bigfive.org/index.php? pageID=140975 2

Resources Child &Adult Care Food Program 502 W. Duke St, Hugo, 74743 (580) 326 9332 www.liftca.org/cacfp/ Early Learning Centers www.liftca.org/early-learning-centers/ Antlers Early Learning Center 611 SW “B” Street, Antlers, 74523 (580) 298 6405 Broken Bow Early Learning Center 1008 North Park Drive, Broken Bow, 74728 (580) 584 9801 Hugo Early Learning Center 113 West Lowery St, Hugo, 74743 (580) 326-9172 Idabel Early Learning Center 1203 SE Quincy St, Idabel, 74745 (580) 208 2801 Swink Early Learning Center 500 Jourdan St, Swink, 74761 (580) 873-9336 Head Start / Early HS / Early HS Childcare 1 866 326 7581 or 1 580 326 7581 www.liftca.org/head start 2/ 310 Community Resources Southeast Oklahoma Prenatal, Youth, Children Healthy Start www.liftca.org/healthy start/ Hugo Healthy Start 104 N E St, Hugo, 74743 Antlers Healthy Start 603 SW B St, Antlers, 74523 Idabel Healthy Start 312 NW Texas, Idabel, 74745 Broken Bow Healthy Start 300 Broadway, Broken Bow, 74728 Atoka Healthy Start 371 West 10th St, Atoka, 74525 Clayton Healthy Start 1301 Pine St, Clayton, 74536 Help Me Grow Oklahoma www.liftca.org/help me grow oklahoma/ Mentoring Program 603 S.W. “B” St, Antlers, 74523 (580) 298 2921 www.liftca.org/mentoring program/ YouthBuild 2204 East Jackson St, Hugo, 74743 (580) 326-9490 www.liftca.org/youthbuild/ Atoka, Choctaw, Haskell, LeFlore, Pittsburg, Bryan, Coal, Latimer, McCurtain, Pushmataha

Resources Homes & Properties for Sale www.liftca.org/homes properties for sale/ Homebuyer Education www.liftca.org/housing-homebuyereducation/ Bryan County 400 West Main, Suite D, Durant, 74701 (580) 920 2479 Choctaw County 500 E. Rosewood, Hugo, 74743 (580) 326 5165 McCurtain County 312 NW Texas St. Idabel, 74745 (580) 286-9348 Pushmataha County 603 SW B St, Antlers, 74523 (580) 298 2921 Housing Counseling www.liftca.org/housing-counseling/ Self-Help Housing www.liftca.org/self help housing/ 311 Community Resources Southeast Oklahoma Housing Hugo Homeownership Center Choctaw County 500 East Rosewood St, Hugo, 74743 (580) 326-5434 Idabel Homeownership Center McCurtain County 312 NW Texas St, Idabel, 74745 (580) 286 6472 Antlers Homeownership Center Pushmataha County 601 SW “B” St, Antlers, 74523 (580) 298 5572 Durant Self Help Housing Office Byran County 400 West Main, Suite D, Durant, 74701 (580) 920 2479 Weatherization www.liftca.org/weatherization 2/

Resources McCurtain County 312 NW Texas St, Idabel, 74745 (580) 286-9348 Pushmataha County 603 SW B St, Antlers, 74523 (580) 298-2921 312 Community Resources Southeast Oklahoma Social Services 500 E. Rosewood Hugo, 74743 (580)-326-5434 (580)-372-0806 312 W. Texas St. Idabel, 74745 (580) 286-9348 (580) 372-0816 hoctaw County Drug Free ommunities Support Program 09 N. 4th St, Hugo, 74743 580) 326-3351 Transportation Antlers (580) 298 6565 (888) 270 3344 Broken Bow (580) 584 6033 (580) 584 6037 Clayton (918) 569 7325 Hugo (580) 326 3466 (888) 766 9839 Idabel (580) 286 5384 (800) 348 7433 https://liftca.org/transportation/ Mental Health Services Volunteers Americorps (580) 326 7581 www.liftca.org/volunteer/ RSVP (Age 55+) 603 S.W. “B” St, Antlers, 74523 (580) 298 2921 www.liftca.org/rsvp age 55/

CARING FOR A YOUNG CHILD IS THE MOST IMPORTANT JOB. Remember to Read, Talk, Sing, Play, and Hold everyday. Learn more at: www.earlybirdsok.org 313