Top 25 ECE blogs from HiMama
Looking for craft ideas or physical and fine motor activities?
Check out these blogs which were selected as the favourites of early childhood educators for 2017.
Sun Safety
Sun safety is not just about summer–it’s a year-round practice. But with summer here, it’s also a time when more families are out enjoying the beautiful Canadian summer. It's an opportunity to help parents and to also review your program practices. The
Canadian Dermatology Association offers many resources that you can share, including:
• tipsheets for parents, daycares and summer camp;
• posters and colouring pages; and
•
a cartoon video for kids on sun safety.
Helping Newcomers Prepare for Emergencies
What can you do to help newcomer families during Emergency Preparedness Week? Like all families, newcomer families need help in understanding and preparing for emergencies they may face in their new communities. The week of May 2 -7, 2017 is dedicated to helping all families in Canada be prepared.
Take a look and see all that is available to share with the newcomer families in your community.
Webinar: Trauma Informed Care for Refugees and Children
What are the effects of trauma on immigrant children? How is mental health screening done? What are some options for helping children who have experienced trauma? Recorded in November 2016,
this webinar discusses issues that children face when exposed to trauma and helps caregivers learn to respond appropriately.
Breaking the Stigma: Can Children with Special Needs Learn a Second Language?
Some families and professionals believe that it’s too difficult for a child with special needs to learn a second language, but
research shows that children with special needs can become bilingual. In a study of children with language impairment, Down syndrome and autism spectrum disorder, researchers confirmed that children’s ability to learn is based on their age, the degree of their disability, their intellectual capacity and their proficiency in their first language.
40 Fine Motor Skills Activities
Before a child can learn to write they need strength in their hands and fingers and hand-eye coordination. Here are
40 fine motor activities for babies to five year olds that help to build these skills. These ideas are not only well-explained but are simple, open-ended and make use of art, sensory play and simple manipulative games.
CNC in Action: Special Needs
When ‘Sarah’* joined the Toronto District School Board Rexdale CNC program, she did not engage with either the children or the toys in the room. Diagnosed with autism, Sarah needed different supports. The child care staff welcomed her with open arms and wanted to help her integrate into the program. They started off with keen observation, hard work, and a request for funding.
In the end, they improved the CNC experience for not only Sarah, but the other newcomer children as well.
Risks of Sleeping in Car Seats: Keeping Children Safe
Shepard Dodd was not even 3 months old when he died after being put to sleep in a car seat at daycare. It is not safe for babies to be in a seated or semi-reclined position to sleep.
When sleeping, a baby's head can fall forward because their muscles are under- developed, and their airway can become constricted.
Anaphylaxis Education, Anytime, Anyplace
AllergyAware.ca offers free online courses to increase awareness of anaphylaxis, including a course designed specifically for child care staff/caregivers called Anaphylaxis in Child Care Settings. Available in English and French, the interactive course takes about 30 minutes to complete and ends with a short review quiz. When this quiz has been successfully completed, participants can download and print a personalized certificate of completion.
WEBINAR: Trauma-Informed Early Education Classroom Design – Designing Spaces for Recovery from Trauma
This webinar is part of the Trauma Reduction in Early Childhood Series. Educators will look at creating spaces that support children who have been impacted by trauma. It’s an opportunity to look at play and space design principles for children who have experienced trauma and to brainstorm ideas for your program space. The
webinar is 1.5 hours and there is a certificate of completion.
