In the video, Sam tries to “quantify” his love for me by saying he loves me “big as the sky and big as the house.” He throws in as big as “the tree” for extra emphasis. The “I love you” game becomes a bit of a competition between him and me (I have done this […]
Dropout Indicators Found for 1st Graders Sarah Sparks wrote yesterday, in the blog for Education Week, about the extensive tracking of student success taking place in Maryland. The tracking recently revealed that the early warning signs of a student at risk of dropping out may become visible at the very start of a child’s school career. According […]
As a follow-up to my blog post on Thursday — drum roll, please! — the results of the running race between 6-year old Stella and 3-year old are in: Stella won. The video here shows three-and-a-half year old Sam’s extreme magical thinking put to the test. He wanted to win the running race against his […]
Sam is back! After 16 days at his grandparents’ in Ohio, Sam demonstrates how toddlers are designed to develop by way of shining a lantern on his world and discovering it bit by bit to be ready for school. By experiencing the world around him first-hand and by interacting with parents, siblings and caregivers, he […]
In the video, 40-month old Sam is at a loss for words, which is not uncommon for any of us during times of high emotion. I can’t recall the reason for his upset prior to taking the video, but I am certain it was something “serious” in his 3-year old mind. Because he was at […]
Toddlers want to do for themselves. It’s how they develop the language, social, emotional, sensory and physical skills that will allow them to function more and more independently as the years roll on. However, allowing a toddler to complete a “big boy/girl” or “grown-up” task can result in frustration for the child and in cleaning […]
In the video, 40-month old Sam tries again and again to slide as well as his 6-year old sister, Stella. He works hard to move and control his body in the way he thinks he should in order to slide across the wood floor, but he simply can’t plan the gross motor, or large muscle, […]
Getting Your 0-3 Year Old Child Ready for School and Beyond Here is the url for Robin McCoy’s Review and Giveaway of my Operation Ready By 3 (ORB3) Infant-Toddler Curriculum on her “Inspired by Savannah” site/blog. I shared her initial review of the ORB3 with readers a couple weeks ago, but had to postpone sharing […]
The video of 40-month old Sam is the perfect example of how a toddler misinterprets others’ actions as a direct offense against him (See my blog from 5/20/13 in which I discuss the topic in terms of Sam’s sad feelings.). Sam often feels anywhere from mildly disgruntled to down-right ticked off that I have to […]
Learning to distinguish among all the possible emotional expressions of children 0-3 years old is no small task, especially as a new or first-time parent. From the time a baby is born, we must learn to decipher his cries to know whether he is hungry, thirsty, bored, overstimulated, tired, needs cuddling, or is in pain. […]
Baby and Toddler Land 