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Musings of a Freelance WriterStephany Springer (43,257)     Stephany Springer   Celebrate America Recycles Day On Nov. 15Posted Tuesday, October 27, 2009 (11 days 13 hours ago.) Viewed 42 times. America Recycles Day is Nov. 15. I have to admit that this day means more to me this year then it ever has in the past. At my own home this year, we have gotten a new trash service. With that new service came a recycle bin that we can put out each week. I was shocked by the accompanied list at how much can be recycled. At first I thought that we would never be able to do it and keep everything straight. Just not enough time, I thought. But then my son said something profound. "Sometimes I worry about all of that," he said. "What," I asked. "The earth dying and us not having enough trees to breathe," he said. His knowledge came from school and he seemed very concerned. I felt a lump in my stomach and realized recycling is the least I could do. So we started as a family recycling. You will not believe how the kids fight over who gets to throw the item in the recycle bin. Since we are competitive by nature, I have to boast that our bin is the fullest every week on the street. I was shocked at how much we could be recycling and how much less our trash output was every week. America Recycles Day is the only nationally recognized day dedicated to encouraging Americans to recycle and buy recycled products. This year will be the 12th year to celebrate the day. On Nov. 15 each year, millions of people become better informed about recycling because of this day.Take the time out to learn more and visit an event in your area. Go to http://www.americanrecylesday.org The site has useful information including area events and a calculator to see how recycling impacts earth. You can type in how much cans, paper, glass or plastic you recycle and it can calculate how much you are helping the environment. Very interesting stuff. 
Permalink Comments (0) Six Early Literacy Skills Your Preschooler Needs To Know Before KindergartenPosted Friday, October 23, 2009 (15 days 11 hours ago.) Viewed 81 times. Preschoolers are like sponges so it is imperative that they develop these literacy skills to prepare them for a lifetime of learning at the top of the class. Early literacy is about helping your child get ready to read. Experts say there are six early literacy skills that every preschooler should know in order to help the reading process. Print Motivation-Preschoolers should have a joy of books and reading together. This is easy to accomplish by exposing them early to the library, storytime and picture books. You can start fostering this as early as infancy. Print Awareness-Preschoolers should know that print on a page has meaning and is read in a certain direction. Big picture books and pointers are a great way to model this as well as using your finger to point to the words while reading. Vocabulary-It is important for preschoolers to begin building their vocabulary by knowing the names of things. This starts as a baby and should be continued. While shopping in the store, point out items. On trips, point out buildings and trains. Play I-Spy, kids love that and it teaches them vocabulary. Letter Knowledge-There is a reason as parents we sing the ABC song until we are blue in the face. Preschoolers should learn that different letters have different names and that sounds go with letters. There are so many great toys available today that teaches this concept. You can also show them this every time you eat dinner- Oh, Apple sauce starts with A- or a. Narrative Skills-This is probably a preschoolers favorite. They love to tell stories. It is essential for preschoolers to develop the skill of understanding, describing and telling stories. As busy as you are, it is essential to listen to your child and have them even tell you about their day! Phonological Awareness-I know it is a big word, but it just means the awareness of sounds in words. Preschoolers should hear and play with smaller sounds in words. What difference does all of this make? You should shape your preschoolers experiences around these six early learning skills. If you are a mom, plan out your day so that each of these areas are addressed. If you are a teacher, make sure every one of these areas are stressed to your preschoolers throughout the day.
Permalink Comments (0) Where The Wild Things Are Review: Not A Kid MoviePosted Saturday, October 17, 2009 (21 days 15 hours ago.) Viewed 62 times. I grew up reading the book, Where The Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. When the movie was made. I was ecstatic. After watching the movie, I have to admit some disappointments. I don't think the writers strayed from the book especially since Sendak was one of the producers. However, I do believe they added too much of the back story to make the movie suitable for kids and a memory of the book we had come to love. The movie shows a Max that is dealing with loneliness stemming from a mom who is overworked and single for whatever reason. At one point, you see her dating right before Max throws his fit. He has a sister who refuses to acknowledge him and what looks to be no friends. I think if you go to see the movie, know that it is different from the book. As far as understanding it, my nine year old did not get all the depth of it. He even stated it was not like the book and he wished they would have kept it the same. There are some funny parts for kids. The monsters fighting with dirt balls and thrashing things. But it had this sixties had too much drugs and this was my vision undertone to it all. As for being suitable for kids, I have heard several other moms say they thought the monsters were too scary. My own daughter who is five never was scared of the monsters. She was bored at times and did not understand all of what was going on. In summary, I think it is an ok movie for adults. I think it is a waste for kids, too different from the book they loved. I think it is always a risk to recreate a loved children's book and i feel they did not live up to expectations. The characters do come to life. Costumes and sets were amazing. The best part by far is the music in the film. It was well worth the admission. The story needed much less.
Permalink Comments (0) Camping Activities For Preschool ClassroomPosted Wednesday, October 14, 2009 (24 days 7 hours ago.) Viewed 50 times. Fall is a great time to explore camping in the preschool classroom. Many parents camp in the fall because of the cooler weather and crunchy leaves. Camping is a theme that can reach preschoolers on all their sensual levels. The smell of the outdoors, the crunchy sound of the leaves, the sight of the beautiful outdoors, the feelings of putting together a tent and the taste of roasted marshmallows. It is a week that the kids will love. Here are a few activities to make the theme of camping come alive in your classroom. Art Art is my favorite time of the day with these fun activities. Sleeping bag-Have parents donate a large white sleeping bag or a $1 from each parent. Take fabric paint for the kids to decorate. You can cut out stamp shapes of tents, leaves, fish, etc. or let the kids be creative to create their own sleeping bags. They will enjoy the finished project. Campfire-Take a black construction paper and allow the kids to glue pretzel sticks as wood for the fire. Then you can sponge paint red and orange or use fruit roll-ups. Be sure to glue marshmallows on the top of the fire. Binoculars-Collect toilet paper rolls for the kids to use. Decorate with stickers of bugs or other things you might see while camping and glue the two rolls together. Homeliving Put up a tent for the kids to play in. Be sure to include some laterns, sleeping bags, flashlights, etc. You can even make a pretend fire out of butcher paper. The kids will love to pretend to camp. If you do not have time to put tent up, have the kids help you the first day. They will love seeing it all come together. Fishing Make fishing poles using bamboo stick and string. Be sure to tie a strong magnet to the end. Laminate different letters of the alphabet and place magnets on the letters. Allow the kids to take turns fishing and telling you what letter they caught. Sensory table Place earthworms in soil in the table. You can get them or any kind of worm from a bait or sporting store. The kids love holding them and watching them dig. You can also have a worm race by taking them out and putting them on wax paper. The kids love it. Campfire lunch Plan a fun picnic lunch outside in nature. Make hotdogs and fruit cups for the kids. If your school allows, visit a local park that has hiking trails for the picnic lunch. Snacks Kids will love making trailmix together. Have each child bring an assortment of pretzels, chocolate chips, mini marshmallows, cereal, etc. Then take turns pouring it in a big sack. Let each child shake to mix it up. Simple Smores-Allow the kids to spread fudge frosting and marshmallow fluff on graham crackers using craft sticks. Yum! Songs These are just a couple of songs that we love to do during this theme. A Camping We Will Go A camping we will go A camping we will go Hi Ho to the forest we'll go A camping we will go *additional verses: We'll pitch the tent right here... We'll sleep in a sleeping bag... We'll hike in a field of grass... We'll roast hotdogs by the fire... Going on a bear hunt is a fun, song to sing and you can also get the book to read along with it. These are just a few suggestions to get your creative juices flowing. Enjoy the week and allow the kids to enjoy nature.
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