October 03, 2009
“The Children Are Watching”
The Preschooler
brings you the latest ideas and suggestion for fun and simple activities with your child.If you like this e-zine please forward it to a friend.
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The Preschooler
Research shows that children learn through the modeled behavior they see at home and at school. Being a parent and a teacher is more than a full time job. We are always busy doing things. Getting supper ready, house work, teaching manners, good behavior, working on letter recognition and making sure our children are growing up confident, with positive self esteem and self worth. Between all that we tend to forget that the children are watching. They are watching how we react when we are stuck in traffic. They are watching how we talk on the phone to yet another ‘cold call seller’. They watch how hard we work and how happy we really are. They see right through us. It's a scary thought isn’t it? Every action we do is being watched, learned and than repeated by our children. We are teaching even when we don’t try or want to. Knowing that we are being watched makes us think twice before we act. If you want to change your child’s behavior you must first change your own. Be mindful of your actions.
Exciting News!
Since Preschools 4 All went live in January 2009 my sons have been watching me spend a lot of time in front of the computer. I try to work when they are sleeping or playing but they still see me busily typing away. I try to be aware and not let it interfere with our lives but at the same time I think it is a great lesson for children to see their parents passionate about their work. Finally after many months of designing this website (and still much more to come) I received my first google cheque!!! Definitely something to celebrate! The better news is that there is already another cheque on the way!Want to learn how you can make money on the internet? Read my About Me page.
Teacher's Corner
My lesson plans for Fall are up on the site. Read them to learn about the big ideas and main concepts of the theme. They also include art activities for preschoolers.For those of you that may want a lesson plan format, I created a variety of formats and you can download them for FREE by visiting this page.
Tip of the Month for Parents
Use you child’s interests as a spring board for learning. A few weeks ago (when it was still sunny in this part of the world) my son decided he wanted money. I used his interest as a way to practice math skills, social skills, fine motor skills and building his self esteem. Read more about our money adventures by clicking here.Back in May I interviewed John Lanza the creator of the Money Mammals. In my interview with him he had some great advice on how to teach children about money.
Overheard
My friend Sherry had a board outside her classroom with the title ‘Overheard’. She would write things she ‘overheard’ kids say in class. I decided to do an overheard section on the site.Let me begin by sharing my overheard story:
My son had a play date this week with a girl named Jacqueline from his class. On the drive home (best time to overhear conversations) Jacqueline was telling him that her parents nickname her Bean.
“Not a Jelly Bean, just Bean.” She said.
“A beautiful bean” my son added with a big ‘I am in love’ smile on his face. Share your 'overheard stories' and I will post them in the next e-zine.
Reading T.I.M.E.
October is a great month to read books about Fall and Colours. Check out my favorite books for Fall.Have the T.I.M.E. of you life,
Z. Meltzer
Director