A Call for Courtesy

We always hear every generation saying 'iba na talaga panahon ngayon' (times have changed). One alarming thing that changed is that the lack of courtesy nowadays.

These are very simple and common but without teaching the child, we are missing a lot.

Let me make a short checklist to remind us all of what has been passed and what we might be missing.

1. Doors and Knocking
   - knock before entering a room
   - to enter and exit doors quietly
   - to open and close cabinets and drawers quietly 

as early as 18 months, children can practice doing this

2.Silence Game
   - practice to be silent , use an hourglass, look at the second hand of a clock
   - listen to the sound around you, listen to each other's heartbeat
   - practice waiting for turn to speak

Using what we have at home, a digital timer would suffice,
this will take a lot of practice and patience

3.Telephone / Cellphone Answering
  -don't forget to say Hello and Goodbye, (I noticed a lot are just hanging up after speaking especially on cellphones)
- when answering, getting someone to the phone, calling someone, remind to get the name, message and saying 'wait for a moment', instead of just passing the phone
- practice how to call , get a calling card handy for the child to have in case of emergencies

I gave her a card with my number for her to practice calling,
 you'll be surprised at how easy they remember

4. Coughing, Sneezing, Blowing the Nose, Burping, Yawning
   Sometimes we find children's blunder cute but it is not a good habit to grow.
 -sneeze on arm not on hands
 - practice covering mouth, washing hands and blowing on tissue
- say excuse me

5. Being Excused
- when leaving a group, table,  practice how to excuse yourself, take turns
- when passing in between people, normally you go around, this is only when there is no other choice
- when interrupting conversations

6. Being on Time, RSVP
I have organized enough parties, activities and seminars to know that this has really, REALLY gone bad.

- I would like to see the term Filipino time be erased in anybody's vocabulary.
- Give the host a time to plan, they are paying for your seat already please at least tell them that you are not coming at least a week before to adjust the food and seats
- Make a routine chart and schedule of how to make your time fit

I am guilty of this. Why? because I consider the time others will arrive,
now we are trapped in a loop where everybody thinks it will start an hour or so later

7. Offering Help
Teach the child to be independent and helpful.
Doing everything for your child spells disaster when they grow up. A doting parent might say "they are so helpless" (They are not really helpless at two years old, you'll be surprised at what they can do just give them a chance to learn)

- make a dialogue on offering help and help them discriminate who are in need of help

7. Gadgets Usage
If possible, no gadgets and tv for children under 2 yrs of age.

- no gadgets on meal time
- no gadgets on movie houses and church
- please stop using the gadgets while talking to someone

Remember, you are setting an example to your children, practice what you teach.

Noodles from Scratch

This month's theme is Jazz Kitchen, singing, dancing to Jazz music and of course activities to make it memorable

1. Book:

2. Practical Life & Math
Grocery list, ingredients listing , money counting, and measuring are among the things you can learn in this simple task

Count, pay and go

3. Project Noodles from Scratch
Learn cooking terms by doing and seeing it

insisted on making noodles just like the animals in the book

mixing and measuring

kneading the dough

cutting by an adult (start with banana slicing for your child)
the one we did is still too thick

twirling some noodles for drying, we tried different shapes

4. Cooking: 

tomatoes, cheese & mushroom

Viola, finished product

5. Music : Singing and Drums
- Note reading: quarter note and eighth note, getting a beat

pum pa dum dum

Happy Eating, Reading and Singing everyone!

A Wedding and a Wedding Anniversary

October so far has the most wedding anniversaries I know of (based on my circle of friends).  This month my daughter is chosen to be one of the flower girls in my nephew’s wedding, as every mother, I am excited!

Weddings in the Philippines are a big event. Guests could range from 200-800, this one is close to 400.

For this joyous event we did several activities to make it more memorable.

1.       Vocabulary: Wedding, Vow, Family , Ceremony, Reception

What happens during the ceremony? To answer that, we watched our wedding video.

(This brought tears on our eyes J)

2.       Movement: Practice Walking

Walking the line is another Montessori inspired activity.

Shown below is the wedding march.

3.      Virtue Development: Patience

Waiting for your turn, falling in line

4.       Book: Planting a Rainbow

We talked about flowers, colors and arrangement.

5.       Culture: Dining, Lauriat, Chinese Traditions

6.       Activity: Care for the Flowers

Spray and watering plants, cleaning up the mess

Celebrating our 6^th Anniversary and looking at our children, it has been a busy, crazy, happy, frustrating, fulfilling year for us. I knew two kids will be a handful, yes it is a handful of fun and a pocketful of kisses!

Wool, Weave , Baaaa!

1. Book
We are currently rowing (reading five days in a row) Ask Mr Bear. A book to go along, we used Charlie Needs a New Cloak.

It is about the process of sheep shearing, weaving and making a cloth.

2. Practical Life Activity
Something as simple as weaving can have several benefits:
  - Development of fine motor skills, manual dexterity and manipulative skills
  - Development of concentration
  - Building self-confidence

We were aiming to weave a new cloak, we weaved a bracelet instead.

3. Art & Science
Dye a cloth.

4. Field Trip

See some Sheep , watch a sheep being sheared, or watch someone who is looming.

Be creative and make it fun, that is the time children learn most.

Dressing Themselves

Children want to do everything on their own.
They find a sense of fulfillment when they achieve something new.
With Yayas (Nanny) at their side, we sometimes forget the lesson they learn by doing it on their own.

1. Clothes- Zip it up

2. Stockings- right, left and pull it up

3. Lace the Shoes

4. Wearing Shoes- don't forget to show how Velcro works

5. Accessorize with a bag, zip, snap and hook

Make allowances for time, be patient. Remind them that their skills get honed with persistence and practice. Happy teaching.

Lacing Activity

Lacing activities are good in developing fine motor skills, hand and eye coordination, concentration and  keeping them happily busy.

Some things you may want to try doing at home.

1. Do a LACING CARD

print or draw, 

cut along the outline carefully, 

laminate or stick to a sturdy board for durability 

and punch holes

Use a yarn in a big needle, or anything similar

Use simple shapes to complicated designs depending on skills and interest of the child

2. STRING THOSE TOYS

This book turned toy lacing activity has become a challenge to my daughter since she was 2+. She started with putting in in a few holes but not the whole book in a string. She has the do 'not disturb I'm concentrating' look evertime she does this.  

When your child is busy on her task, do not disturb, talk, praise or break her concentration, you loose that moment of developing her problem solving skill.

3. Match it with a BOOK: The Very Hungry Caterpillar

4. STRING THOSE SHOELACES!

Sometimes the simplest activities can do a lot of wonders for a child.

Saturday Wash Day

Turning chores into fun learning day.

One thing I love about toddlers and preschoolers is that they love to help.

1. Color Sorting

Whites, reds, black

2. Develop Patience

Don't let your child play with the knobs, designate a task for them. Teach them the order of things.
Make a photo chart for younger kids.

3. Follow instructions

We follow a step by step procedure, use the same routine when washing.

I plug the water and power supply, put soap.

Little daughter puts in the clothes, wait and watch while I set it up.

She presses play and brings out laundry.

Excited to press the button

4. Clean up

Make it a habit to clean up after.

Volunteer cleaner, meticulously wiping it dry

5. Balance 

 Hook and hang on the clothesline

6.  Word of the day- Steam

Time to iron. My daughter helped refill the water and watched from a distance.

Set limits. Instead of telling them don't, teach them how to and let them learn the practical life.