During birth to 2 years, babies are motivated by an innate need to know about things. At 3 to 4 years, children tend to wonder about a lot of things. They wonder about scary things, how things work, nature, origins, and the world around them. At 5 to 6 years, they tend to increase their awareness, observe and notice a lot of differences. The…

In this article, the author presents lively and interesting ideas on renewing children's interest in group-time meetings. Come springtime, teachers usually find that interest is flagging at their class group-time meetings. It is at this time of year that children often need something extra special to inspire and motivate them in the classroom. The…

In this article, the author discusses group-time meetings for children as a way of helping them reflect on what has happened over the past school year and look ahead to new experiences. By inviting children to talk about their experiences over the past year, one can help them recognize and think about the changes that have taken place during the…

The process of creating handmade books with children is a great way to experience communication through art and words. One of the important literacy skills children need to learn is "concepts of print." These include the basic understanding of what a book is, the ability to recognize the front and back covers, and the capacity to turn the pages…

This article discusses summertime safety activities for children. As children participate in the summer safety activities, they learn how to identify problems and communicate their ideas and feelings about potentially dangerous situations. They learn how to think through the problem and create solutions. The author presents a few ideas to go with…

This article discusses the importance of humor and how it helps to understand children's thinking from birth to 6 years. The article presents three sections describing how a young child's sense of humor reveals much about the way he thinks. The first section is entitled "Giggles!" written by Carla Poole. Intended for babies from birth to 2, Poole…

The shift at the beginning of the year from the summer at home to the fall at school can be both an exciting and an anxious time for young children. Often, there is a fine line between the two emotions, with one considered positive and other negative. Awareness of how to manage these feelings in a teacher's group is essential to creating the right…

As every early childhood teacher knows, providing children with activity and material choices, stimulating multi-sensory activities, and positive support and novel challenges can truly inspire children's love of learning. Now there is the additional support of brain research. Marian Diamonds of the University of California at Berkeley reports that…

This article features energizing and surprising activities for children at group time. In the drawing activity, children are asked to give instructions on how to draw a picture using vocabulary and descriptive language. In the mailbox activity, children will be surprised to discover that they have mail at group time. Mailboxes can be used for…

In this article, the authors discuss how children develop their motor skills at different age levels. Newborn's movements are jerky and uncoordinated. Spending lots of floor time with a baby lying on her back or stomach helps her develop coordination, balance, and muscle strength during her earliest months. As locomotion enters a baby's life, she…

The beginning of the year is the right time to establish a climate of kindness, caring, and sharing for a teacher's group-time meetings. Group time is often a teacher's first "formal" introduction to the children, and a time when a teacher sets the stage for creating a sense of community. By demonstrating a teacher's loving acceptance for all…