Let’s Play!

As an educator, I am always reading, researching and learning. I try to read books that bring value to my teaching craft and to my parenting style. This brings me to my latest reflection. How many of you are sitting on a couch trying to relax and just when you think you have a moments of silent. BOOM! something happens. If I had a dollar for everytime my son is slamming into me when I am trying to have a moment of relaxation, I could retire already…ha! 

Kids love to play! They love to explore and get dirty. They love to pretend and rumble and tumble. My son loves to wrestle and ram into things. He pretends to have horns and bumps me with his head. He laughs so hard and as much as I want him to stop, I start laughing with him and he bumps me even more. Parents, our kids need to play! Whether they are 2 years old or 12 years old, kids need play! It looks differently for each child. 

Did you know play is not only helps create a fantasy world, but also helps with emotional regulation?

Here are a few different types of play:

Fantasy Play- exactly what it sounds like, kids are creating their own world, it might include talking animals or house play such as mommy and daddy. Did you know this type of play helps with higher thinking order in children? My son loves creating scenes in his head that are related to legos or Harry Potter. He loves putting on his Slytherin robe and running around the house casting spells on everyone.

Constructive Play- Children use materials to create something and it’s organized, systems are in place. During this type of play helps kids learn to problem solve, connecting with other kids, and having a deeper understanding of things. My son loves getting boxes and creating cars and televisions. He enjoys using the glue gun and making armor for his battles.

Games with rules play- Playing games with rules helps children learn about order, structure, turn taking, and learning to lose. That is definitely a hard one, but an important one. We play daily board and card games. My son loves chess because he beats me every time. He is learning patience, turn taking, and negotiating when he plays with me.

Rough and Tumble Play- This is the hardest play to understand. Even I have a hard time with it. Every time I see my son playing super heroes or cops and robbers, I cringe! I have gone as far as stopping him knowing that he is enjoying using his body in different ways. When kids play “roughly” they develop their social and physical skills. They also learn social cues such as when someone gets hurt, they will have empathy and adjust their play. My son wrestles daily and I am learning to enjoy it.

So the next time you see your child in play, don’t stop them, don’t ask them what they are doing, just watch them. You will learn so much!

XOXOX

Leticia

This book is a great resource in reminding me about the importance of play. https://www.amazon.com/Purposeful-Play-Teachers-Igniting-Learning/dp/0325077886/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3QW3BZZGFZL4B&keywords=purposeful+play&qid=1675221382&sprefix=purposeful+play%2Caps%2C142&sr=8-1

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Christmas Gift Guide For The Child In Your Life

What do our kids need? What comes to mind when I ask that question? Some might say toys, while others might say clothes, or the latest gadget. In the end our children need love and family. The rest is just the icing on the cake. Don’t we gift our children daily with a roof over their head, food on the table, back to school clothing and supplies. The list goes on and on. Christmas is whatever you family wants it to be. I love hearing about family’s Christmas traditions. As we start to make new traditions in our new home in a new state, I think about the special memories we are making together. The fun experiences of doing family activities or giving him opportunities to explore skills he’s never explored before.

So what do we want to give our kids for Christmas? We want them to rip open that present and smile with that gleam in their eyes. Whatever it is you choose to give them, consider one of these gifts to add to your bundle of gifts.

1. Who doesn’t love comfy pajamas? Support a BIPOC small business and order pajamas for the entire family. These comfy PJ’s come in beautiful neutral colors. https://goumikids.com/
2. Capture your family moments by using “an old fashioned” instant camera and create a monthly album together. Capturing moments is important for a our little ones. It helps them recall events, it helps them write stories, and most importantly keep traditions alive. https://kidamento.com/en-us/collections/all-products
3. Work on a little velocity and speed activities with your kids and try out the stomp rocket. Our son loves this activity and is entertained for a long time!https://www.amazon.com/Stomp-Rocket-Ultra-Rockets-Packaging/dp/B0006O8Q7Y?th=1
4. This game is for the entire family! Go on a scavenger hunt together using the find and seek game. Find and Seek
5. Kids love bubbles, this a great gift for elementary kids. It comes with a set of wands in different sizes.bubble wands
6. If you have a backyard, consider an outdoor projector as a gift. You can have movie nights with the family and make it a new tradition outdoor projector
7. Kiwi Co is still my favorite gift! You can buy a monthly, tri-monthly, or yearly subscription. This is definitely a family fun activity. The activities are geared towards their age range and it goes all the way up to 12 years old. Kiwico
8. I think kids should have tons of books to read. Children love story books! It’s ok if your child reads the same book over and over. The point is to teach children a love for reading. https://mijabooks.com/ Mija Books is located in Lakewood, Ca. but the owner also has an online store. There are a diverse selection of books for children of all ages. So fill up your child’s home library now.
9. Looking to maintain Spanish in your home? Check out Spanish Word Game. Make learning Spanish fun through this interactive game for kids learning Spanish.
10. Lil Libros carries some wonderful board books for younger childrenLil Libros these are great introduction books and they have books for K-2 children as well.
11. Who doesn’t love Lakeshore!? If you haven’t gone, you need to go! It is THE teacher store for everything learning. I found this awesome marble run for kids of all ages. https://www.lakeshorelearning.com/products/blocks-manipulatives/building-sets/super-fun-marble-run-master-set/p/PP239/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=ppc&utm_campaign=nbdsa&gclid=Cj0KCQiAnNacBhDvARIsABnDa6-6aLetPwe26Szhv-Tzah4fSa7BGFq55E9XLGobTgCZgTfAP0ytd1MaAvdzEALw_wcB
12. Some other ideas are kid magazine subscriptions such as, Highlights and https://www.nationalgeographic.com/ National Geographics for Kids

Whatever you get your children this holiday season, I hope it’s something you all can enjoy together. Start making those family memories.

XOXO

Leticia

It’s The Most Wonderful Time of The Year!

It’s that time of year! The decorations come out in full force, radio stations play Christmas music until the new year. It can be so exciting for our little ones. Ever since our son was born, we’ve made it special for him in so many ways. I remember feeling so over whelmed the first few months of his life that Christmas came so fast! I didn’t have decorations up or gifts for our son. Luckily, my husband took care of all of it. We got our tree and one evening my husband arrived with a bag full of gifts for our 4 month old baby! It was the most adorable thing ever. I remember he bought him books. That is where our son’s love for books began!

Through the years, we’ve carried on our traditions of giving books, visiting Santa at Macy’s Herald Square, going to Rockefeller Center and seeing the tree and light show, viewing all the windows on 5th ave, going to the ice skating rink at Central Park. The list goes on and on! So many fun things to do during the holidays when you live in New York City.

We now have a new life on the west coast, where the weather is warm during the holidays. We are now creating some new traditions. We decided to start with a wooden advent calendar. Our son loves his grandmother’s wooden calendar so we decided to invest in one of our own.

We decided to mix up the advent calendar with family activities and special sweet treats. We wrote down activities such as a bike ride, playing in the park, visiting Barnes and Noble. Family time is so important and sometimes we get very busy that we forget to step out of our daily routines and do something fun. So we changed it up and wrote on tiny scrolls, curled it up and put an idea in each drawer. He gets to open his first drawer in 24 hrs. What a treat!

XOXOX

Leticia