All hail the humble blanket! It is perhaps one of the best, all time classic playthings. Besides being a welcomed, cozy comfort for children of all ages, a blanket can be played with about a gazillion different ways. It is such the perfect toy that this year it has been inducted into the National Toy [...]
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“What is the big deal about blocks?” Melitsa Aliva asked me this question earlier this week. We were recording a podcast for her show, Raising Playful Tots , based in the UK. Blocks have been a longtime favorite of mine, and I have been advocating even more for block play as the pushy digital world [...] Drawing hearts is important work for many young children. Hearts aren’t too easy to draw, either. It takes practice to draw a passable, if not perfect heart, but the motivation is often high. I have watched the scenario unfold time and again in the early childhood classroom. One child (often a girl with an [...] We were sitting around our campfire Saturday evening when my son said, “I’m glad we did this instead of watching TV.” I smiled and added, “Me, too.” It was our first campfire in many months, and we had a great time talking, laughing, watching the beautiful blaze, and toasting a few marshmallows. The lure of [...] When my twin sons were just 3 years old they started begging to watch the Transformers movie, rated PG-13. They first learned about it when we were selecting “On Demand” shows for them to watch. The Transformers promo frequently appeared in the corner of the screen, offering endless enticing explosions. I couldn’t believe my little [...] Peggy Orenstein’s book CINDERELLA ATE MY DAUGHTER wasn’t the book I hoped it would be – it was better. I was hoping she’d knock the marketing giant flat on its exploitative keister and that her book would make a strong and irrefutable case against Disney’s shameless and relentless marketing to young girls – opening parents’ [...] I probably shouldn’t write this post today – because I am so agitated. Two related essays I’ve read in the last day or so have really got me irked. The first was an essay by Micheal Levine, The iTot Challenge: Getting Young Children Ready in the Jetsonian Age published in the Huffington Post. Michael Levine [...] Is it just me or does the iPad seem to be on everyone’s mind these days? This morning on NPR’s Morning Edition, the iPad was described as “widely popular”. Yesterday in the NY Times, the article Math that Moves: Schools Embrace the iPad, looked at the advantages of using iPads in the classroom. It [...] The other day a friend sent me the link to the Good Housekeeping Best Toy list for 2010. I checked out the list and thought,”Ugh!” So many of the toys on their list are EXACTLY the kinds of toys I steer parents away from. Today, I’ll offer some alternatives to the Good Housekeeping Best Toys [...] A big thank you to The Early Years Institute for the wonderful conference on Friday. The conference, “We Interrupt This Program: Playing and Learning in the Age of Hyper-Media”, brought together many folks fighting the good fight on behalf of children. The Early Years Institute is a young non-profit organization aimed at “helping communities value [...] |
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