Summer math loss is real. As much as we like children to embrace the summer holidays with sheer abandon, unshackled from routine and workbooks, all the fun can come with an unintended consequence. If children are not engaged in intellectually … Continue Reading
Get the Kids Outdoors with Geocaching
For the little Jakes and Fancy Nancy Clancys who are tired of the same old paddling pools and pebble painting, here is treasure-hunt in a modern avatar. Fun, free and family-friendly, geocaching is perfect for getting the kids outdoors and … Continue Reading
Why Should You Encourage Children to Read?
There was a time when the regal hardbound encyclopaedias, dictionaries and atlases were looked up to as supreme sources of information. They offered fascinating nuggets of wisdom, enriched our vocabulary and enlightened us with answers to mind-boggling questions. Mark Twain, … Continue Reading
Forest Kindergartens: Beyond Logs, Leaves and Free Play
When Friedrich Froebel first came up with the concept of kindergarten (children’s garden), what he envisioned was an enriching environment that offered unstructured time and joy for the little minds. But as the educational landscape evolved and competition stiffened, the … Continue Reading
Kindergarten: The Story Behind
To many, kindergarten is an American version of a preschool or nursery, but with a strange German name. Did you know kindergarten has its origins in Germany and was founded nearly two centuries ago as the first organised system of … Continue Reading
The Importance of Encouraging Curiosity in Children
From clever quips and brilliant observations to a barrage of questions that catch you off guard, curiosity in children can come dressed in many fascinating guises. Some of them might leave you agape with wonder while some test your patience … Continue Reading
How to Teach Persistence to Preschoolers
‘Tis a lesson you should heed – Try, try again; If at first you don’t succeed, Try, try again. Then your courage should appear; For, if you will persevere You will conquer, never fear Try, try again. –William Hickson … Continue Reading
Childcare and Early Years Lexicon
From au-pair and childminder to the interchangeably used preschool, daycare, day nursery and kindergarten, we take a look at some of the commonly used terms in childcare and Early Years education. Au-Pair An Au-Pair is a young person, aged between … Continue Reading
Why is Constructive Play Important in Early Years
From cardboard-crate-turned-pirate-ships, kitchen-roll-tube telescopes and muddy trenches in the fields to meticulously built lego police stations, constructive play can manifest itself in just about any form for the imaginative little minds. Apart from all the fun it holds and the … Continue Reading
Tips to Handle Stress in Toddlers
Stress and anxiety aren’t quite the emotional reactions you would think a doe-eyed toddler could possibly experience so early on in life. Regular tantrums, coughing fits, thumb-sucking or constant complaints of tummy aches and many of the behavioural changes that … Continue Reading