Singing: I think it’s one of our inalienable rights, something everyone should be able to fully engage in and enjoy. Unfortunately too many (my husband being one) have been told at some point in their lives…usually as a child…that they can’t sing and, traumatized, they stop. That is flat out cruel. YES, some people have better pitch than others, so what! Singing makes you feel good and is good for you by exercising your lungs and heart and releasing endorphins...Nature's feel-good hormones. So … [Read more...]
Father TIME
My mission of promoting, supporting and advocating for play all stem from my core value of insuring the health and wellness of young children. It’s in that same context, insuring a child’s health and wellness, I bring up the topic of fathers. As a mother, and now grandmother, I know…and society reinforces…the critical role I played in raising my children. My contributions are acknowledged by every level of society. This is not the case for fathers; to the detriment of their … [Read more...]
Why Puppet Play is Important
A world of imaginative, open-ended PLAY opens up when your kiddo plays with puppets. Puppet play, a sub-set of pretend play, is a type of PLAY young children are naturally drawn. Like dolls, children have been playing with puppets for a long, long time. For a toy to have that kind of staying power they must be very special. And such is the case with puppets! Puppets engage and entertain children. They have FUN all the while growing and learning in several key areas of development! Puppet … [Read more...]
PlayAbility: The Word for 2017
For me PlayAbility™ has four components: Children, adults, toys and the play environment. Young children inherently 'know' how to play when given the time, materials, space and freedom to play. Dr Lawrence J Cohen said: "The single most important skill that parents can acquire is playing." To facilitate that this year, along with PlayAbility™, I’ll be adding more PLAY-based learning activities parents, grandparents and/or caregivers can use with the kidlets. To help them become more confident … [Read more...]
Guest Post by Jill Goetz of Savvy Parents Safe Kids
We want the holidays merry; we want our children to experience wonder and joy that'll eventually be treasured memories. Child safety expert and public speaker, Jill Goetz of SavvyParentsSafeKids offers this guest post to help parents support their children in setting up and then respecting boundaries when friends and family come knocking for the holidays. ___________________________________________________________________________ The Holidays are here! November, December and January are … [Read more...]