Posts Tagged ‘child care’

Children’s Educational software

Friday, January 15th, 2010

At The Goddard School, parents are interested in educational software applications appropriate for children.  Here are some suggestions for ages 3 years to 6 years old and areas of cognitive development focus.  If you’ve some other suggestions that you like, let us know!

Computers for small children
Image by petaj via Flickr

CURIOUS GEORGE
Ages 3 through 5
* Creativity
* Shape Recognition
* Color Recognition

LEARNING IN TOYLAND
Ages 3 through 5
* Number Recognition
* Animals Sounds
* Telling Time
* Shape Matching
* Following Directions
* Shape Recognition
* Visual Discrimination

CASPER
Ages 3 through 5
* Memory
* Listening Skills
* Mouse Control
* Mix and Match

I SPY JUNIOR
Ages 3 through 5
* Word Recognition
* Problem Solving
* Letter Recognition
* Matching Words to Objects

ELMO’S PRESCHOOL
Ages 3 through 5
* Turn Taking
* Sound Discrimination
* Problem Solving
* Sound Patterns
* Letter Recognition
* Animal Names
* Color and Shape Recognition
* Counting

LEGO PRESCHOOL
Ages 3 through 5
* Number/Letter Recognition
* Spatial Relations
* Color Recognition
* Creativity

READER RABBIT PRESCHOOL
Ages 3 through 5
* Critical Thinking
* Shape Discrimination
* Recognizing Patterns
* Auditory Perception
* Counting
* Number and Letter Recognition

BLUE’S CLUES BIRTHDAY ADVENTURE
Ages 3 through 6
* Shape Recognition
* Problem Solving
* Matching
* Logical Thinking
* Visual Discrimination
* Spatial Perception
* Deductive Reasoning
* Color Recognition

MR. POTATOE HEAD
Ages 3 through 6
* Problem Solving
* Following Directions
* Counting
* Shape Recognition
* Matching

Visit our website @ http://www.goddardschool.com//Schools/Cedar-Park-TX/Schools.gspx &  follow us on Twitter @  http://twitter.com/GoddardSchoolCP

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Bonding With Your Infant

Sunday, December 20th, 2009

At The Goddard School of Cedar Park, infants as young as six weeks are cared for in our infant suite. Bonding with your baby is a natural and ongoing process and will become a precious part of parenthood to be cherished. Let’s explain by giving some examples and insights.

The bonding between parent and infant will always unique is one of the most intimate type of interactions that can take place. There is first the sense of discovering each other and then becoming familiar with one another. Your baby will depend on you because he knows that his needs are being met by you in the most simplest of ways.

Mother and baby
Image by ECohen via Flickr

They will feel your face and get to know your individual scent as you do theirs. They’ll start recognizing your shape, your voice, your sounds and many other things that are new to their world. They trust you from the start because they have no choice but soon they look forward to your voice and know they want your love. They know they depend on you not just for their needs but for interaction and affection.

Some time after you start bonding with your infant, you may experience an epiphany. It’s the realization that this baby is a part of you and in fact is an extension of yourself yet will grow to be their own person. You are everything to this infant’s world as they are to yours. Other than the baby’s everyday needs, they need interaction and the more they get the more chance they have of being a self-assured and well-adjusted individual.

In addition to physical contact, eye contact is important for many reasons to the emotional bonding with your child. They learn from your eyes – when they see them twinkle when you laugh, for example. It helps to teach trust and to gain trust, it helps to identify each other and it helps to establish an unspoken familiarity seen in the eyes of each other. It will start with you but will extend on into their lives and continue to benefit them as they grow and mature.

Bonding with your infant at first is usually strong and can be overwhelming but most wonderful at the same time. Talking to your baby and looking into their eyes often while being gentle, being funny and being affectionate gives them that positive emotional connection with a parent that will be with them for the rest of their life. Trust, needs, wants, appreciation, emotion, comfort, familiarity, confidence, security, self-worth and self-esteem and many of life’s lessons all start with the bonding that occurs in your infant’s first months.

Visit our website @ http://www.goddardschool.com//Schools/Cedar-Park-TX/Schools.gspx & follow us on Twitter @ http://twitter.com/GoddardSchoolCP

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All Sorts of Sports at Goddard School

Saturday, October 24th, 2009

Students at The Goddard School® located in Cedar Park, TX, benefit from our organized sports program provided for children.

Children develop teamwork skills as they engage in organized sports including soccer, baseball and basketball in the Sports Mix program, developed by Trampoline™. The most important aspect of this program is to teach children why we play sports – to have fun!

Sports from childhood. Football (soccer) shown...
Image via Wikipedia

~Age-appropriate team activities help children
develop cooperation, sharing and teamwork skills.
~ Children acquire physical skills while learning the appropriate terminology and rules of organized team sports.
~ Physical activity has been associated with the development of basic motor skills including spatial awareness, rhythm and creative expression.

The Goddard School also offers, for children 3 years through school age, advanced dance (ballet and other formal movement) and martial arts.

Visit our website @ http://www.goddardschool.com//Schools/Cedar-Park-TX/Schools.gspx & follow us on Twitter @ http://twitter.com/GoddardSchoolCP

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Active Artists at The Goddard School!

Monday, October 19th, 2009

Students at The Goddard School® located in Cedar Park, TX benefit from our art exposure program provided for children ages 6 months to 5 years.

It is never too early to introduce children to great artists and artwork from around the world. For example, our infant suite proudly displays the work of young artists even before they turn one year old! Sensory art activities is a wonderful experience for even a baby.

The Art History for Kids program takes children on a journey through time and geography, from cave art to modern art. Influential artists and the contributions their art has made to culture and society are explored in terms that young children can understand.

goddard_school_cedar park

~Art History for Kids is a cross-curricular program that presents projects ranging from painting and sculpting to puzzles and large motor activities.
~ Age-appropriate vocabulary, hands-on activities and games expose children to the culture and history of influential artists and their artwork.
~ The Goddard School is affiliated with art museums across the country to augment the learning opportunities in the Art History for Kids program.

Visit our website @ http://www.goddardschool.com//Schools/Cedar-Park-TX/Schools.gspx & follow us on Twitter @ http://twitter.com/GoddardSchoolCP

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Children’s activity from Goddard

Monday, September 14th, 2009

The Goddard School® located in Cedar Park, TX recommends trying new activities with your child!

Weather Window Activity
Materials:
Clear dishwashing liquid
Pre-mixed tempera paints in a variety of colors
Aluminum foil muffin pan
Paint brushes
*Children should have adult supervision throughout this activity.

Directions:
1. An adult should mix about 1 Tbsp. of dishwashing liquid with 1/2 Tbsp. of paint. The mixture should have a creamy consistency, like house paint.
2. Pour various paint colors into the wells of a muffin pan to create a pallet.
3. Children can paint ‘sunny day’ scenes on windows and sliding glass doors. Use a different brush for each color.

TIP: Keep paint away from windowsills and woodwork. To remove the artwork, or to fix a mistake, wipe with a moist paper towel.

For more information, visit our website at http://www.goddardschool.com//Schools/Cedar-Park-TX/Schools.gspx

Child Development and Learning

Thursday, September 10th, 2009

The Goddard School FLEX Learning Program, based on the latest research in how children learn, provides the optimal environment for a young child’s development. The program’s foundation is the learning continuum that encompasses developmental guidelines with formative assessments, child-focused lesson plans, a creative and fun environment and a personalized child-centered approach that meets each child’s needs.

FLEX Learning is delivered by professional, trained teachers who use assessment results to select the materials and activities that create a fun, challenging and safe learning experience. The result is a confident learner who is ready for school!

The key elements of FLEX Learning are:
1. Developmental guidelines, state standards and formative assessments;
2. Child-focused lesson plans from the Goddard Curriculum Guide;
3. Creative and fun learning environment; and
4. Child-centered learning and teachable moments for a personalized approach

FLEX Learning incorporates seven core, academically accepted learning domains. These are the standard learning domains that are included in most state guidelines for quality early childhood education and are part of the curriculum requirements for most accreditations. The domains are:
1. personal and social development;
2. language and literacy;
3. mathematical thinking;
4. scientific thinking (including technology);
5. social studies;
6. creative expression; and
7. physical development.

Yoga is incorporated into the school’s curriculum and has many benefits for our children.

Yoga actually helps children concentrate better and develop skills essential to reading because a lot of the poses require gazing off into the distance while concentrating a specific point. Better concentration skills mean a better ability to read and do math, plus there’s always the benefits of exercise.   Starting at an early age really helps with muscle control as well.

From postures to breathing techniques, children stretch in fun and interesting poses such as the “downward dog” or the “sitting mountain.”

Parents see a difference at home with their children, as it relaxes a child and they often come home with a new yoga pose to tell the parents about.

View local news coverage by KXAN NBC of Goddard School’s yoga program at this link CLICK HERE

Educational software, 2 years+

Monday, June 22nd, 2009

Parents frequently ask about appropriate educational software for their children. Here are some recommended for children as young as 2 years old.

READER RABBIT TODDLER
Ages 2 through 3
* Listening Skills
* Fine Motor Skills
* Matching Letters
* Matching Animals Sounds
* Counting
* Rhyming Words
* Patterns
* Shape Recognition

CRAYOLA
Ages 2 through 4
* Color Recognition
* Color by Number
* Mouse Control
* Memory

SESAME STREET TODDLER
Ages 2 through 4
* Mouse Control
* Open-ended Art
* Introduction to Shapes, Letters and Phonics
* Number Identification
* Counting
* Special Relations
* Conversational Skills

BOB THE BUILDER
Ages 2 through 4
* Matching
* Keyboard Skills
* Left and Right Directions
* Following Directions