Moving On Up: A Goodbye Poem for Infants Who Are Transitioning To Toddlers

Get ready to get out the hankies! Your little ones are moving on. Just yesterday they were scooting around in diapers and now their walking, babbling, toddlers. What's an infant teacher to do? Be sure to give them a proper sendoff in way of a Goodbye poem.

This will fill their parents hearts with joy and yours with a sweet and sentimental way to let go of that precious little one you cared for for only a short amount of time.

Hint: Remember to print out on cardstock and add a colorful border. This really adds a little pizzazz and durability to you document.

Child’s Name Here

When you first entered the room you were very small,

So tiny you couldn’t even crawl.

Now look at how you’ve changed

Toddling around like it’s nothing at all.

I’ve enjoyed every passing day,

Playing in the sun, finger-painting rainbows

And even seeing you turn one!

I wish you lots of luck as you move to the toddler room,

Hoping that you will have lots of fun and enjoy learning too!

Best Wishes,

Your Name

Date

Shape Up!: Shape Puzzles

Who says babies can't shape up? Why, yes they can with this shapely learning experience that's as easy as 1, 2, 3! This activity promotes spacial awareness, early geometry and color identification skills that I guarantee will leave your little ones smiling with glee.

What You Will Need

• Colorful Scrapbook Paper
• Laminator
• Laminating Sheets (Available at Sam's Club and office supplies stores)
• Scissors 

Instructions

1. Gather Supplies.
2. Cut out several simple shapes such as a triangle, square and circle.
3. Place shapes in lamination sheets and put through laminator.
4. Cut out laminated shapes with scissors. 

How To Perform the Activity

1. Introduce the children to the shapes. Identify each shape: "Look this is a square". Point to an object in the room that is square and so on.
2. Place half of the shape on the table and say "Let's make a (shape's name)".
3. Help the babies locate the matching shape half. Make it a silly game by producing incorrect matching pairs such as a triangle half matched with a circle half etc.
4. When they locate the matching pair, say "Oh, look the mommy square found her baby square" and make a kissing sound to show that the halves match. Continue with other shape halves.
5. Continue activity until the childrens' attention span wanes. 

Extension Activity

😊 Create other free form shapes such as flowers, boats, and houses with the shapes to show babies how shapes make up everyday objects!

I Made a Flower: Possible Extension Activity

Add a Little Glitter To Your Life: Shaving Cream Glitter Sensory Bags

Glitter is a four-letter word to most infant teachers. It's a choking hazard, messy and a tad too sparkly for our littlest homies, but don't push glitter to the side just yet. Glitter has a shining possibility that will light up your infant's eyes more than a bottle at feeding time!

Shaving Cream Glitter Sensory Bags are a phenomenal option for this otherwise sticky situation. Look below for an easy way to incorporate glitter into early learning.

What You Will Need

• Quart-Sized Ziploc Bags
• Shaving Cream
• Paint
• Glitter
• Shipping Tape

Instructions

1. Gather supplies.
2. Open the quart-sized Ziploc bag and fill with a small amount of paint. If you would like to show how secondary colors are created, place a small amount of two colors of paint.
3. Squeeze a nice amount of shaving cream into the bag.
4. Layer with another layer of paint.
5. Add a generous amount of glitter.
6. Remove air from the bag by gently pressing down and sealing the top.
7. Use shipping tape to seal the top of the bag so the shaving cream/paint/glitter cannot "make an escape" during the activity. 

Performing The Learning Activity

1. Sit children down at the table. 
2. Tell the children that they are going to feel something "cold and very squishy". 
3. Demonstrate ways that you can squish the bag: pinch, press, gently pound, or roll the bag. 
4. Help the babies do this. 
5. Use descriptive words such as mixing, the color's names, cold, gooey etc. 
6. Continue until attention span wanes. 

After the Fun: 

After proper squishing has taken place, the bags should resemble a flattened pancake. 

Glitter Never Looked So Good!

Do You Have A Dime?: Buying Infant Toys on the Cheap

Who doesn't love the bright, shiny, glow of a brand-new toy? I know I do and so do my infant charges, but those beautiful toys cost a ton of dough. So what's an infant teacher to do, leave the toy on the shelf. Yes, indeed! Because I have found more deals then you can possibly believe. Just check out these deals and you will see what a joy toy shopping can be!

Discount Stores

Visit your local Tuesday Morning for a wide variety of gorgeous brand-new toys that won't break your budget. They are manufactured by top name brands and cost a fraction of the price of pricey toy stores.

Ross Department Stores offer a number of toys for unbeatable steals. They are far cheaper than even my favorite stores T.J. Maxx and Marshalls.

T.J. Maxx and Marshalls are two sister brand discounters that push value to the limit. Get ready to dig into a minefield of stuffed animals, puzzles and other toys your kids are craving.

Dollar Tree is the place to be when looking for thrifty sensory bin and art supplies. I recently scored a huge pack of sidewalk chalk and shovels for my sand and shells sensory bin. Talk about making a dollar scream.

Charities

Goodwill and The Salvation Army are two of the most massively ignored stores for toy shopping. A recent find was an adorable and sparkling clean Fisher-Price puzzle made from super durable and colorful plastic.

Hope the previous deals have you running to your local stores for a deals galore.

Uh-Oh!: Dealing With High-Maintenance Infant Parents

A perfect definition of a high-maintenance parent is that parent who brings 100 changes of clothes, an assortment of creams for their child's face and bottom and demands that they be fed only certain foods even though they have nary an allergy. They may even call or e-mail several times a day to "keep in touch".

Parents of infants are some of the most difficult, picky parents you will ever meet. Most often they are first time parents who need to feel as pampered and cared for as their children. They are very demanding and may even provide step-by-step instructions on how their child should be cared for.

Below you will find a list of ways that will help you cope with these highly-stressful and challenging parents and their often adorable and sweet offspring.

1. Make sure to talk about their child in a respectful and light-heartened tone. Choose and praise simple choice or activities the child performed during the day such as: "Raleigh designed a beautiful block structure today" or "Liam's fine motor skills are really improving!, He is now beginning to hold his cup more easily." 
2. Supply the parents with pictures and notes of their child's progress. Many schools now offer electronic portfolios/daily sheets that perform this function. If your school does not have this form of technology, you can create files for each of your students using a word processing program such as Microsoft Word and place them within a class folder. You could even attach the photos or notes to a daily e-mail to the parents. 
3. Design a Parent Board for your classroom. Items to place on this board may include a weekly menu, class newsletter, and lesson plan. Make sure the display is neat, bold, crisp and attractive. Die-cut letters, boarders and bulletin board paper purchased from a teacher or dollar store will add a look of professionalism to your display. 
4. Show interest in both the child's and parents' lives. Ask how their recent vacation went, how was their weekend, did they have a nice Easter, Hanukkah, Christmas? etc. Creating a more personal parent-teacher relationship will define how well you school year will go. Make sure to make a good first impression and continue to tweak and redefine your communication techniques based on your parent's personalities. 
5. Maintain open lines of communication. Make sure parents feel that they can stop by on a daily basis in order to see their child or call or e-mail at any time. 
6. Try to remain flexible, but set some boundaries. Most of your infant parent's needs will be fairly straight forward such as "please place this cream on during diaper changes" or "feed them ABC brand baby food during lunch", but sometimes they are trickier and more complex. For these demands, be sure to ask your daycare director if she/he feels the demand is able to be met.

I hope this list helps you on your educational journey with infants and their lovely, but sometimes high-maintenance 'rents. 

It's your turn: How do you deal with high-maintenance parents at your daycare/school? Please comment below!

Hey Baby!: Story time Tips for Babies

Babies are a tough crowd. Their attention span makes a New York Minute look endless and they love to feel and tear at the pages of books. So what is an infant teacher gonna do? Pack up the stories and run for the hills. No way, Jose! The following tips will have you up for the great baby book challenge called story time in no time flat!

1. Make sure the plot line is simple and baby friendly. You can't go wrong with the following topics: cuddly creatures (dogs, kitties, and bunnies), colors, flowers and things that go: cars, trucks etc.(especially for boys).
2. Text should be minimal. Overly wordy books don't mesh well with a baby's short attention span. Rhyming and silly sayings bring out the giggles. 
3. The books you choose your be "baby-proof". You know those little teethers love to chew on books like beavers. Board books are the best bet. These books have babies in mind. They are made out of coated cardboard that is basically indestructible.
4. Bold and colorful illustrations are a bust. Itty-bitty, black and white or plain drawings will leave babies looking for another activity as fast as possible. 
5. Develop a daily story time schedule. While babies are too young to understand temporal concepts, they crave a set schedule. Plan to perform your story time at a time of day when the babies are fully rested and fed in order to receive their undivided attention. 
6. Create story time rituals. Sing a welcome and closing story time song. My favorite is a shortened version of Laurie Berkner's "These Are My Glasses". If you do not feel comfortable with your own singing voice, you can find this song on her Buzz, Buzz CD. 
7. Add props to the story time experience. A fun activity is dancing with scarves to music, blowing bubbles at the end of the story time, retelling a short song or rhyme such as "Mary Had a Little Lamb" using a felt or flannel board or magnet board. These are very simple to buy or make. See a future post on how to make a flannel board. 
8. Your voice should be lively and bright. Make silly voices for various characters and funny faces. Remember, babies as well as adults tend to not listen to monotone voices. When working with babies you need to swallow your pride and be prepared to become a dancing bear. 
9. Most importantly, have fun and be yourself! The babies will love you!

Best Authors For Babies

Sandra Boyton 

Byron Barton

Karen Katz (Lift-the-Flap books are especially fun!)

These Are My Glasses by Laurie Berkner
These are my glasses,
This is my book.
I put on my glasses,
and open up the book. 
Now I read, read, read
and I look, look, look. 
I put down my glasses, 
and whoop close up the book. 

Laurie Berkner singing "These Are My Glasses" 

Come To Your Senses!: Sensory Bin Ideas for Babies

Babies thrive on interactive sensory experiences. While water play tops the list of  ideas, why not make a splash by using the following educational as well as fun add-ins in order to spice up your infant's sense of wonder and curiosity.

These sensory experiences add up to an introduction to mathematical: volume and weight, science: states of matter and texture, and language learning: proper names of objects that will leave your littlest Einstein with a grin on his/her face!

So come to your senses and give your infant an activity to remember!

• Cornstarch and Water (Goop) 
• Cooked and Dyed Spaghetti (Use food coloring to dye the pasta) 
• Yarn or Ribbon 
• Jello
• Chocolate Pudding
• Easter Eggs and Easter Grass 
• Extremely Large Buttons 
• Blocks
• Colorful Wrapping Paper 
• Sponges (You can add water for some fine motor wringing practice!)
• Habitats Sensory Bins (Ex. farm animals or zoo) Safari Ltd.'s Toob sets are perfect for these tantalizing thematic activities. 
• Shredded newspaper
• Colorful Balls
• Cornmeal (Use plastic shovels to have children dig for all kinds of items such as plastic shells.)

See the links below the pictures to get started with you discoveries!

Goop Recipe

 Jello and Cars 

Easter Egg Hunt Sensory Bin