Category Archives: Early Childhood Education
Shadow Exploration
Spend a little time on Pinterest and you’ll probably start to think that learning for kids happens best during carefully curated play experiences. Spend any time with a toddler and you’ll soon discover that the most amazing learning occurs when … Continue reading
Posted in Early Childhood Education, Museum Fun at Home
Tagged experiment, exploration, science, shadow, STEM, teachable moments, toddler
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“Reading” Wordless Books
Have you ever tried to read a wordless book with your child? Even for someone who is an enthusiastic and confident reader, I get a little stuck with those. Without words to guide you, it is easy to feel a … Continue reading
Posted in Early Childhood Education
Tagged books, engaging, preschool, quiet activities, reading, toddler, wordless books
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My Son Wanted Pink Shoes
One of the hard things about being a Mom to a toddler is figuring out age-appropriate ways to start teaching “big life lessons.” Like the idea that “no means no” or how the color you like doesn’t define who you … Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Early Childhood Education, Uncategorized
Tagged boy color, girl color, life lessons, pink, shoes, teachable moments, toddler
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Letters from Camp: Miss Manners
I am a thorough teacher. I plan curriculum, triple check materials and show up early. What I CAN’T plan for is when a kids asks a difficult questions…and you have to answer on the spot. Below are four situations I … Continue reading
Letters from Camp: Curating an Exhibit
One of the hardest “justifications” you face as an educator is proving that learning took place. Grant funders might ask it…or supervisors…or parents…or it could be just an internal question that you pester yourself with. At this camp, we were … Continue reading
A Lesson on Simple Machines…Simply Worked!
I’ve made no attempt to hide the ups and downs of museum and early childhood education. I’ve talked openly about museum visits that go wrong and the ups and downs of classroom management. But, can I tell you how excited … Continue reading
Letters from Camp: Kids These Days
We had two “Youth Teaching Assistants” (YTAs) attached to our group for the week. 10th graders with more self possession then I could have claimed at that age! The problem was, that made it hard to remember they didn’t’ have … Continue reading
Looking at Children’s Books with a Literary Eye
I was catching up on podcasts in the car this morning and a Slate Culture Gabfest from a few weeks ago caught my attention. Taking inspiration from a New York Times piece exploring Goodnight Moon from a writer’s perspective, they … Continue reading
Letters from Camp: Let Them PLAY!
Many new, or infrequent, teachers seem scared of “down time.” In their view, any time when the kids are not actively moving forward in a planned way is A) lost teaching time and B) chaos just waiting to happen. What … Continue reading
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