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Finding age-appropriate DS and Wii games isn’t always easy as the selection is less than extensive. While “E” for everyone is technically appropriate, we purchase mainly “EC” for Early Childhood (for our 4 and 5 year old) which tends to be more educational and attainable for our target age group. Sesame Street characters have proved the most trustworthy of this category, and I don’t hesitate to try out each new title that hits the market. ALl new “Sesame Street: Elmo’s Musical Masterpiece” is no exception.
Here’s a sample of the new game on DS:
Sesame Street” Elmo’s Musical Masterpiece retails for $19.99 and is available for DS, Wii and Nintendo DS. As you can see from the above clip, my four year old son is obsessed with catching falling instruments. Exploring music in various forms and even touching on the more academic side of music, both the Wii and DS games are age-appropriate and educational–my two prerequisites for gaming at this age.
As a teacher, I’ve often asked about limiting gaming and hoe much time we allow. The choice is individual for each family, but we actually utilize technology as a part of learning time. This is the main reason we focus on EC ratings and limit non-educational apps on the iPad, for instance. While a few minutes of Where’s My Water is fine, if kids are going to be connected personally I like there to be a value to it, especially at this young age. Sesame Street knows how to make entertainment and education not mutually exclusive which is one reason they’re easy to advocate!
You can purchase both games on the Sesame Street Store.
The teacher in me feels compelled to integrate “Learning Time” into each day of summer vacation. Follow #BeatSummerSlide on Twitter to follow our progress, get new preschool learning resources and share ideas. This particular workbook is Sylvan Learning “Grade K.”
As a Language Arts teacher, I can testify to the dreaded “summer slide” though currently in our district only 8th graders heading to honors classes have summer reading requirements. From preschoolers to high schoolers, all students would benefit from a program to stay sharp and continue the skills they’ve begun to build on during the school year.
With a four and five year old at home and the older one heading to Kindergarten in the fall, I will turn into “homeschool mom” this summer, designating a “Learning Time” each day to work on reading, writing and more. Making it easier for me to stay structured, the experts at PBS KIDS and Scholastic with their Summer Reading Challenge will send daily emails with literacy-building tips and activities. In addition, you’ll also receive book suggestions and discounts, free downloads of PBS KIDS shows and a daily chance to win $1,000 and other great prizes.
Last evening we kicked off our own Summer Reading program during a Reading Party complete with Super Why notebooks, “There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Chick” from Scholastic Publishing, Word Girl stickers, bookmarks and more. And while I’m a pro with 8th graders, teaching little ones is still new territory to me, so it’s great to know our Summer Reading Challenge coach is none other than Angela Santomero, Creator, Executive Producer and Head Writer of SUPER WHY!
Join our family this summer and share your progress by using hashtag #summerslide on Twitter where I’ll be chronicling our daily Learning Time and hopefully getting ideas from readers as well.
Disclaimer: We received sample products for review purposes; all opinions are 100% our own.
We recently had the opportunity to visit the Please Touch Museum, The Children’s Museum of Philadelphia. The first museum in the nation designed for children ages seven and under, it’s “learning through play” philosophy is evident throughout the 156,000 square foot of space it occupies in Memorial Hall, a grand building and new home of Please Touch since 2008. Founded in 1976′ it now houses six exhibit zones in addition to the restored Woodside Park Dentzel Carousel dating back to 1908.
We started our day in River Adventures where the kids donned water-resistant smocks and played in an elaborate water table exhibit racing boats, rubber ducks and getting their hands wet. Next door in Rainforest Rhythm our preschoolers ran from one instrument to the next, likely amazed we were letting them touch everything in sight. A ride on the carousel and quick bite at the Please Taste Cafe, and we were ready to roll.
Heading downstairs to two of our favorite exhibit spaces, Wonderland and City Capers, the kids we’re already asking to come back. A maze of hedges, mirrors, maxing flowers and a Mad Hatter Tea Party invited parents to chase their children a la Alice in Wonderland. As with many exhibits, a special area designed for tots three and under allowed the little ones to explore their separate areas. The biggest hit of the day and area whre we spent the most time, City Capers, was in itself worth the two hour trip. A pretend play paradise, we snapped pictures of out little doctors giving X-rays, construction workers building a wall and fast food workers ringingly burgers. Replacing “don’t touch” and “put that back” with “here’s your cart” and “what else are you going to buy?” in a mini-grocery store made me promise myself to start saving old grocery boxes so we could play at home too. We made the day trip to Please Touch with another family, and as we roamed from exhibit to exhibit the kids could not have been having more fun.
A brand new exhibit, Railway Play, sponsored by Century Foundation, is the first new permanent exhibit at the Museum since moving to Memorial Hall in 2008. Celebrating the 1876 World’s Fair in Phaldelphia, this rail-themed space is a child train lovers paradise. My son enjoyed ringing the train bell and shoveling “coal” as he mostly ignored my mini-lesson on fossil fuels. Rounding out our day was a visit to Roadside Attractions. With a real bus, mini-tram and cars galore, our little drivers had the time of their lives getting behind the wheel.
If ony we lived closer to take advantage of special events such as the Storybook Ball on April 21st or even for an extra special kids’ birthday party. If you do plan a visit with your preschoolers (highly recommended!) check out these visiting tips.
Follow Please Touch Museum on Twitter and Facebook for updates, special events and more.
A sample product was provided for review purposes; all opinions are 100% our own.
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Use reward charts such as the one pictures for 3-5 year olds to reward good behavior. We use this Pirate chart and Fairies and Flowers chart from Supernanny.com. Remember to reward specific (attainable) bahaviors consistently.
Teaching the Holocaust through literature to my 8th grade students always evokes strong emotions, as it should, that reverberate through my daily life. This year we read Night by Elie Wiesel, a haunting and vivid story about an Auschwitz survivor who, despite the horrors he once faced, continues to have faith in humanity while confronting injustice and indifference in the world. In an Oprah Winfrey interview he uses his favorite words, “And yet” forcing my own reflections about what that phrase means. He faced unimaginable evil, and yet still believes in God, in humanity. Thoughts of the 1.5 million innocent children who perished continue to remind me how incredibly lucky I am to come home from work to the smiling faces of my own preschoolers.
At age three, in what was the scariest night of my life, my daughter had a seizure…a moment I relieved for countless nights afterwards. In the two years since after learning she has a seizure disorder I was always grateful “and yet” sad and confused with the struggles our family now faced. Looking back, the uncertainty of her diagnosis was the most difficult moment. Since that time medication has kept seizures under control. “And yet” every time she wakes in the night my heart races. Could it be a seizure? A worrier by nature (or genetics perhaps since I seemed to have inherited this particular trait from my mother), I was once again disheartened two weeks ago to sit across from a doctor to hear another diagnosis. This time, ADHD. I educate myself wondering how these co-existing conditions will manifest themselves as my daughter begins to transition into a formative school year next Fall.
Rather than spending time wondering why this precious little girl can’t seem to cut a break, Elie Wiesel’s favorite phrase reverberates in my mind. I’m determined to be her #1 advocate and be sure she enjoys every advantage available to her. I’m grateful for the comfortable life we were given void of even a fraction of the struggles victims of injustice, past and present, endure. Are there challenges? Of course. “And yet…”
The Cool Baby Kid story dates back to pre-blogging when I created a website for my classroom using Netscape. No teacher I knew managed a website, and I had limited knowledge of creating one. After finding out my first child was coming into our family July 2006, my focus online became a site for the … [Read More...]
The Cool Baby Kid story dates back to pre-blogging when I created a website for my classroom using Netscape. No teacher I knew managed a website, and I had limited knowledge of creating one. After finding out my first child was coming into our family July 2006, my focus online became a site for the … [Read More...]
The Cool Baby Kid story dates back to pre-blogging when I created a website for my classroom using Netscape. No teacher I knew managed a website, and I had limited knowledge of creating one. After finding out my first child was coming into our family July 2006, my focus online became a site for the … [Read More...]
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