Happy Mother's Day

May 10, 2012

     Happy Mother's Day, Blogging Moms!  This week, we would like to dedicate our blog to our own wonderful Mothers and fabulous children.

     As time passes, we come to realize how precious life's moments are and how quickly today's hectic schedule suddenly becomes tomorrow's memory. When we were growing up, our Moms were the heart of our homes, always tending to the needs of the family. After we became mothers, it was apparent how diligently they worked to maintain a balance in the home. It is this devotion and example they provided  that helped to develop our own mothering philosophy.

    With out warning, we find ourselves on the outskirts of the empty nest stage of life and are faced with the stark reality that our own children are ready to take on this world by themselves.  One day, you are a young, nervous parent bringing a small bundle wrapped in a blanket home from the hospital. Before you know it,  the SUV is loaded down with all their belongings, the bedroom is empty, and you are dropping them off at their college dorm room . The years in between are just a blur!
   Dr. Dobson describes a perfect analogy in his book, Life On the Edge (Word Publishing 1995). He describes the launching of a young adult as follows:

   The task of raising kids is rather like trying to fly a kite on a day when the wind doesn't blow. Mom and Dad run down the road pulling the cute little device at the end of a string. It bounces along the ground and shows no inclination of flying.

   Eventually and with much effort, they manage to get it fifteen feet in the air, but great danger suddenly looms. The kite dives toward electrical lines and twirls near trees. It is a scary moment. Will they ever get it safely on it's way? Then, unexpectedly, a gust of wind catches the kite, and it sails upward while Mom and Dad feed out line as rapidly as they can.

    The kite begins pulling the string, making difficult to hold on. Inevitably, they reach the end of their line. What should they do now? The kite is demanding more freedom. It wants to go higher. Dad stands on his tiptoes and raises his hand to accommodate the tug. It is now grasped tenuously between his index finger and thumb, held upward toward the sky. Then the moment of release comes. The string slips through his finger, and kite soars majestically into God's beautiful sky.

   Mom and Dad stand gazing at their precious "baby" who is now gleaming in the sun, a mere pinpoint of color on the horizon. They are proud of what they've done-but sad to realize that their job is finished. It was a labor of love. But where did the years go?

On this Mother's Day, we want to encourage you to just sit back, relax and take some time to "just be" with your kids. Get out the crayons and color, take a nature walk, play a board game, bake cookies together...Most importantly turn off the t.v, cell phone, computer, etc. and engage your children in conversation! It will be the best Mother's Day gift you will receive!
Happy Mother's Day!!!! It's the best job in the world!

The Three Little Pigs

May 1, 2012

Happy May 1st, blogging Moms!  Today, we are reading "The Three Little Pigs" and focusing on the letter P, the color pink, sequencing and rhyming words.

Theme:  The Three Little Pigs

Materials Needed:  pink construction paper, scissors, google eyes, glue, crayons or markers and pink pipe cleaners.

Developmental Skills:  Letter sound and recognition, beginning word sounds, color identification, short vowel "i" words, sequencing, fine motor skills

Activity:
Read the story of The Three Little Pigs to your child.  Use different voices for the different characters and read with a lot of expression.  By modeling voice and expression, it will help your child to develop their own oral reading fluency as they get older.  Oral reading fluency is necessary for reading comprehension.
On pink paper, trace a large letter P and outline it in black marker, an oval for the body, 2 ears and 3 legs.  Let your child cut these out with scissors.  Assemble the shapes into a pig, as you see in the picture.  Add google eyes and details.  Glue on the tail using a pink pipe cleaner, or ribbon.  Glue the pig on to a blue background paper.
The Three Little Pigs is a perfect story to teach simple rhyming words.  Using index cards, write the letters "ig" on one card in black.  Write the letters p, b, w and d on separate cards in red.  Help your child to build words using the cards, i.e. pig, big, wig and dig and read them out loud.  If you would like to extend this activity, draw a picture of a big pig with a wig digging in the mud. 

Extension Activities:
Discuss sequencing with your child.  Which house does the wolf go to first, next and last?  What would happen if the house made out of bricks was the second house?  How would that change the story? 
Mix red paint and white paint to make pink.  Your child can finger paint or make thumbprint pigs by dipping his/her thumb in the paint and adding piggy details.
There are many cute craft ideas on the internet including paper bag puppets and paper plate masks.  You can download free coloring pages to accompany the story. 

Teacher's Tip:

Echo reading encourages your child to begin the first steps of the reading process.  Echo reading is when you read a sentence and your child repeats it.  The story of The Three Little Pigs is a wonderful tool for echo reading  For instance, the repetitive phrase "I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house in" can be anticipated throughout the story.  Again, this is why it is important for you to model expression and tone while reading aloud to your child.  It is essential for young children to be read to out loud every day.  This is a great way to settle down together and end a hectic day in a quiet manner.  These are the moments you will look back on and cherish with your little ones.