It occurs to me that with the cold weather we’ve been stuck inside and might be getting bored of the same old routine.  Adding something else to your day might be refreshing for you and your children. Go on a cleaning spree. Toddlers love to help. We see this in class every day.  Give them a few jobs to do like filling a bucket to wash the floors or give them a cloth for dusting.  Working together can be fun.  It might be a good day to inventory all the plants. Tell your child that it’s time to take a look at the plants to see if they are healthy.  It may be time to trim up a few out of control plants. Children can pull out any of the dead leaves and water the plants.

What else can be done on these very cold days?  Go on a hat and mitten hunt. Try to find all the mittens and hats that have been misplaced.  See if gloves and mittens have a match. Give your child a chance to try the mittens on by themselves. Find a basket or container for all your gear and ask your toddler to help you organize everything in a basket. Maybe it’s time to clean out a drawer full of clothes that are getting small. This will encourage the child to try on clothes by him/herself. Parents can point out if the clothes are getting too tight, too small, or just right.

If you have shelves at home for your children’s toys and materials this might be a good time to switch out toys.  Putting something out that hasn’t been out for a while is like working with new materials. If you have 3 different sets of blocks out, put 2 sets away.  Then, on cold days like these pull them out for your child to work with and enjoy. Too many choices for toddlers can make it hard to focus. Limit what you have on the shelf and rotate. Do the same with your child’s books.  So, when it’s too cold to bundle up two or three children to go to the library, let your toddler go pick out books from the collection you have put away. It’s a great way to rediscover what you already have and a great time to pass the time when you’re stuck in the house.

Just a reminder that conferences are coming up. If you haven’t already signed up go on Ivolunteer to see the available time slots. Also, we are closed on conferences days. Our conference days are March 12 and 13.  If one of these days doesn’t work for you, please let me know and we can arrange a time to talk. Since we’re getting close to the end of the school year I would like everyone to sign up so we can discuss your child’s progress and plans for next year.

Hopefully, March will bring some better weather and we can talk about the wonderful things we can do outside with the children.  In the meantime, helping your young child with those self- help skills will get them ready for the primary class and make them more confident as they move ahead.  If your child is staying in the toddler class next year those self- help skills will help them become a helper in the classroom. We have already seen growth in all the new children. We see them participating in snack time, clean up time, putting their own coats and materials away.

Something parents can help us with is letting the toddlers carry their own belongings into the toddler room, letting the children put their own shoes on and put the shoes in the shoe cubby. Let your child walk to and from the car instead of carry them.  We have to let them practice if we want them to do things for themselves. Practice and independence. Two words we love in the toddler room.

Thanks for readying,

Kristy