Ciao Baby. Cool Baby Kid’s Final Post.

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 new baby. Shopping habits turned quickly from the latest lipgloss to finding the ultimate stroller. With some time off of work, all of the above converged as I turned my wiki of cool baby finds into a blog while somewhat unsure of exactly what blogging was all about. Cool Baby Kid was born in 2007 and has seen at least four major re-designs all with a singular focus…brining cool picks and tips to families. From baby products to educational ones, naturally over the years CBK evolved with my own interests. For instance, always a Disney lover, in 2011 when our family joined Disney Vacation Club (DVC), I began to infuse the site with weekly doses of the mouse.

 

Along the way, as with all bloggers who have been in the business of sharing their thoughts online, life happened. In 2009 I met Bridgette (Experimental Mommy) at BlogHer and together we realized bloggers who balance other life tasks–motherhood, careers, fitness–were truly Double Duty Divas.  A network of women bloggers to support each other, eventually adding post opportunities as it grew to over 1,000 members, the Divas became a springboard to Reviewers Retreat, the first blog conference geared 100% to blog/brand relationships.

 

Needless to say, double became triple duty and while relinquishing my blog was once unfathomable, the time came to streamline so many tasks and so, with a heavy heart but an excited one too, I leave Cool Bavy Kid begins to managing the Double Duty Diva blog. Together with the Diva team including Angie at My Four Monkeys and Jena from Ramblings of a Healthy Chic, I can now be found in my new Diva home.

 

Ironically this final CBK post is being finished on the morning of BlogHer12. Three years ago at BlogHer09 the new chapter of my blogging career was set in motion when I walked the streets of Chicago in slippers with two fabulous ladies from New Orleans that I hardly knew, Bridgette and Renee from What Mommies Need. Now, they’ve become close friends, business partners and an integral reason while I’m completely comfortable moving on from Cool Baby Kid to my new role. I will miss cool picks and tips but hope you’ll join me at DoubleDutyDivas.com.blog. The Divas can also be found on Facebook and Twitter although I will be blogging and tweeting as Cool Baby Kid keeping my CBK Twitter handle.
Ciao Cool Baby.

Introducing Elmo’s Musical Masterpiece for Wii & DS

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!

Cool Tip

You can purchase both games on the Sesame Street Store.

Summer Learning Time #BeatSummerSlide

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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.”

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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.

Cool Resources

Pretend Play Paradise at Please Touch Museum, Philadelphia

Roadside Attractions

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.

Woodside Park Dentzel Carousel

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.

 
Cool Tip:

Follow Please Touch Museum on Twitter and Facebook for updates, special events and more.

Top 5 Lakeshore Educational Software Picks

Can Do! Phonemic Awareness Interactive Games

Why We Love It:This game show is out of this world as learners spin the wheel and answer questions promoting phonemic awarness. Users get practice in beginning, middle and end sounds guided by a cool robot appropiate for ages 6-7 yrs.

Numbers & Counting Adventures Interactive Activities

Why We Love It: As a Language Arts teacher I focus on reading and writing skills and sometimes neglect mathmatical ones. This is a great games for learning numbers, sequential order and more. Ages 4-6.

Tiki Challenge: A Blends & Digraphs Interactive Game

Why We Love It: Learning blends and diagraphs are an important part of reading instruction. This fun game for future "Survivor" viewers gives feedback and printable assessment for progress monitoring. Ages 6-7 yrs.

Beginning Operations Adventures Interactive Activities

Why We Love It: The audio instructions make this software a perfect independant learning excersise in beginning math. The drive through diner is a huge hit with my son, and I love the pre and post assessment worksheet included. AGes 4-6 yrs.

Phonemic Awareness Interactive Games

Why We Love It: From syllables to rhyming words, this game show creates phonemic awarness while fun characters interacte with learners in three games for kids age 4-6 years with feedback for positive reinforcement.
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A sample product was provided for review purposes; all opinions are 100% our own.

Cool Tip

Follow Lakeshore on Facebook and Twitter for more learning product news and updates.

Toddler and Preschooler Reward Charts

Cool Tip

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.

Parenting Lessons: How Elie Wiesel Taught Me to Stay Positive

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…”

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