Friday Notables - Cookie's Week

Cookie's Week by Cindy Ward is one of those perfect books for toddlers. The text is short, has a simple repetitive pattern, and features a very cute and mischievous cat.
The book follows a little black and white kitten named Cookie over the course of a week who simply can't seem to stay out of trouble, for example "On Monday, Cookie fell in the toilet." which is then followed by the result of Cookie's actions, "There was water everywhere." Tomie dePaola does a beautiful job illustrating the moment right before Cookie gets into trouble and the following mess and disorder that ensues. Although you rarely get to see a full illustration of cookie (often it is a tail or a paw), dePaola's pictures capture the curiosity and resulting surprise of a little cat. Chances are after a few read-throughs, your toddler will be able to begin predicting what will happen next to Cookie and may start adding their own commentary to Cookie's mishaps such as "a mess!" or "Oh no!"

Midweek Creations - Texture Boards

Texture boards are a great extension for a basic skill like coloring for many toddlers who have really begun to show control over direction and pressure when using the crayons. I recommend creating this project while out of the reach of children because it does use hot glue which could cause burns. Enjoy!

What You'll Need:
8 x 11 or larger piece of cardboard (I like to use the large rectangles from a recycled cereal box)
Hot glue gun and hot glue

Very simply, create a pattern on the cardboard with the hot glue. Feel free to get creative with your design although geometric shapes do tend to work best and allow you the opportunity to talk about different shapes. Once the hot glue has cooled the board is ready to introduce to your toddler. You may have to help them place their paper over the texture board the first few times and show them that a design will now come through their artwork.

Montessori Mondays - Real Life Pictures

Within a Montessori environment is an active pursuit to keep materials and objects as real as possible thus most materials are made of wood or stainless steel and children use water, paper, rice, and beans for practical life work. Another big, but sometimes overlooked, goal for Montessori environments is to provide as many real-life pictures or real looking illustrations of people, animals, and objects. The idea behind real life pictures is to ground a child in reality and introduce symbolism at a very basic level. To clarify, Montessori was not opposed to imagination and creativity, but believed that children first need to be able to have a clear grasp on what reality is to create a solid paradigm for learning about the world before creating their own variations on the world. Real life pictures are one of the most basic forms of symbolism that many of us take for granted, but small children are naturally drawn to real life or real looking pictures. When reading a book with toddlers, one that shows real life pictures of animals almost never needs text. The children are absorbed in the image. However, many books with cartoon illustrations that show animals out of proportion or color are often more driven by the text and, in my experience, tend to be less popular. This is not to say eliminate all illustrations and art from your child's world, but instead provide real life pictures for everyday learning and introduce art in activities such as "matching like images."

Montessori Mondays - The Perfect at Home Shelves

Earlier this week I posted about creating a special section for your child to keep his own cleaning supplies and many of you may want to also begin displaying your child's toys and materials on small shelves like you would find in a Montessori environment. Unfortunately, shelves specifically designed for children can be expensive or time consuming to make. A great solution to this problem are wooden shoe shelves that you can find in many stores today. They are the perfect size for young children and since many are small can stand alone, be placed together, and can be easily moved when needed for cleaning. I would recommend finding some with more rounded corners just in case your child tumbles towards the shelves at some point, but there are many cost effective varieties suited to almost any decor.

Midweek Creations - Father's Day Hammer

If your child's dad has his own workshop in the back of the garage, here is a great gift even small toddlers can make that will last a long time. Enjoy!

Here's what you'll need:

• a hammer with a wooden handle
• paint and paintbrush
• sealant spray

Allow your child to paint the hammer's handle however she likes. Just be very observant as the metal part of the hammer is sometimes sharp. Once the paint dries, spray the handle with a sealant spray that you should be able to find at a craft store to help preserve your child's artwork.

Montessori Mondays - Cleaning as part of Practical Life

An important part of Montessori practical life work is to provide an opportunity for children to learn to care for their materials and environment. Around the age of one this need to care for and take ownership of a space surfaces, especially if your young child sees you cleaning and caring for things on a daily basis. While you don't want to give your child access to all the same cleaning chemicals and materials you use, you may want to set up his own little cabinet, shelf, or space in the closet for items that he can use to help clean. As you are setting up this separate space for him, it is important to talk about why some chemicals and cleaning supplies are only for adults to use. Here are a few suggestions of items that you may want to include in your child's cleaning space:

• small dustpan with broom
• small spray bottle and clean cloth for cleaning windows
• baby wipes for helping you wipe down their materials
• dusting cloth
• small towels (washcloths are the perfect size for small hangs) for wiping up spills (I like the idea of color coding these, for example: blue towels for wiping spills on tables and brown towels for wiping up floor spills)
• small laundry basket for placing dirty towels in
• small pair of gloves (if you often clean with gloves, chances are your toddler will want his own pair too)

Friday Notables - Nuby Nibbler

Today's Friday Notable is a product known as the Nuby Nibbler. This is a great alternative to your traditional plastic teething rings as it allows you to place pieces of frozen or cold fruit in a small net that helps assure that your child won't choke on the fruit and yet be able to use even the back gums to gnaw on the fruit. While some reviews say the net is difficult to clean after use, many recommend this over similar products that use a net as it is removable and replaceable nets can also be purchased. The Nuby Nibbler can also be used to begin to introduce solid foods to a young toddler transitioning from baby food. Best of all it is BPA free. Check out the product more by clicking here. Have a great weekend.