Discovery Bottles For Your Favorite Bedtime Story!

Does your child just LOVE a great story? They may love it even more brought to life in a discovery bottle!
 
Discovery bottles are an easy activity to go along with a story to make it more fun. We found this awesome activity on TeachPreschool.org.

Example provided by TeachPreschool.org

Materials:
Well it depends on which story you choose. But, it’s recommended that you use a Voss plastic water bottle, water, baby oil, and a drop of dish soap, and/or food color. Depending on the story you can put things in it that relate back to the story’s theme.
 
Directions:
While you read a story to your child have them look at the discovery bottle and describe what they see. You can also display the bottle with the book in their room.
 
For discovery bottle examples visit TeachPreschool.org for more information!
 
This activity lays down the building blocks needed for reading and comprehension development. This discovery bottle activity helps develop your child’s cognitive senses for memory, reading and analyzing. If you try this activity at home, please share pictures of your discovery bottles in the comment section below. We’d love to see the kind of fun you had while putting these discovery bottles together!

Little Angels Preschool in the Ann Arbor area has been serving Saline, Ypsilanti, Milan, Pittsfield Township, and the surrounding areas for more than 20 years. Your child will gain positive self-esteem, confidence and a healthy sense of value through Experienced Based Learning at our daycare center. Call (734) 998-0233 to schedule a tour!

Preschool in Ypsilanti Suggests Tips For Going Back to School

Is your child enthusiastic or unhappy about the new school year?

Does your child find his or her new school intimidating?

Are you having a hard time motivating your child for the new school year ahead?

Don’t worry! We’ve got you covered!

Whether your child is a new or returning student at our preschool in Ypsilanti, there’s always a solution to help ease your child into the idea of going to school.

PBS Parents recommends the following steps:

1. Practice going to school to help your child get familiar with the route and routine.

2. Describe to your child what will likely happen on their first day of class.

3. Ask your child compelling questions about what they’re looking forward to the most, and what concerns they have.

4. Schedule play dates with other children your child may not have seen all summer to acquaint them with familiar faces.

5. Walk your child into the classroom on the first few days.

6. Read books about starting school and how exciting it can be!

We hope these tips will help you and your child shift from summer back to a school schedule with ease. Have you found other ways that get your child excited about school? We’re not talking about bribes, we’re talking about techniques that work without you caving into your child’s demands. If you have any techniques, please share them with us! We always appreciate more ideas! 

Do you know of a parent looking for a quality preschool in Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor or the surrounding area? Please encourage them to contact us to schedule a tour of Little Angels Preschool & Daycare.  

6 Super easy ways to incorporate letter identification to help your child love to read!

Are you looking for simple or fun ways to teach your child letters and words?

Do you want to boost what he or she learns at daycare and preschool?

The time you spend helping your young child learn will pay big dividends when they begin school!  
Between the ages of 2 and 3 most children are able to learn letters and numbers.  If your child is younger, it’s just as important to begin reading to them and teaching them words through songs and nursery rhymes.   

Below are a few ideas to try to help your toddler learn his or her ABCs.  Please feel free to comment below and share what you’ve found successful.  

1. One of the easiest and most practical ways for your child to begin to understand letters is to write their name on all of their artwork.  They will begin to see that letters strung together make words.  
2. Serve them snacks with letters such as alpha-bits, pasta letters, pancakes or letter cookies.  You can also use cookie cutters for lunch meat, cheese and bread.  
3. Play alphabet games often.  For example, if your child is named Jacob or Keisha ask them if they know any other words that start with a J or K sound.  
4. Go to a children’s museum, or a zoo and make sure to point out specific letters like the Z on the zebra habitat.  
5. Whenever you’re sitting and waiting for an appointment, or your meal to come take that time to scan the area.  For example, there are always signs around that label the EXIT or RESTROOM.  
6. Play a version of Bingo that looks similar to a Tic-tac-toe game.  Each square would have a different letter.  You could pull out alphabet blocks from a bag and call out the letter.  Your child could look at the letter and see if it matches one on their card.  Once they get three letters in a row, they could win a small prize or money for their piggy bank. 

The staff at Little Angels Preschool & Daycare in Ypsilanti incorporate learning into your child’s daily life.  We’re always happy to share lesson plans and ideas so you can continue the learning at home.  We all need to work together to support your child as they expand their knowledge and grow to be intelligent, respectful, global citizens of the earth! 
 
You can review a sample lesson plan from Little Angels Preschool & Daycare in Ypsilanti.

Cold Weather Safety Reminders from Little Angels Preschool Daycare Ypsilanti

Does your child enjoy outdoor winter activities such as sledding, skiing, ice skating, building a snowman, or building a snow fort? 

While it’s great to have fun, it’s also important to stay warm in cold temperatures. Cold can mean your child risks frostbite  and hypothermia.

Here are some cold weather safety tips 

to help keep your children safe from 

frostbite and hypothermia:

• Wear appropriate clothing (i.e. layers, fleece, wool) 
• Bring children inside periodically to warm up 
• Make sure boots are not too tight 
• Have them wear a hat and/or ski mask to cover extremities (i.e. ears, nose) 
• Keep their clothes dry 
• Offer them a hot beverage after they come inside

If frostbite or hypothermia does occur, seek medical attention immediately! If the affected area is not treated in a timely manner your child may lose a limb … or worse!

At Little Angels Preschool & Daycare Ypsilanti, we’re dedicated to our students’ health and well-being. We want to ensure the safety of our students and families. So, before you bundle up to make snow angels, learn ways to prevent your child from getting nipped by Jack Frost!

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Little Angels Preschool & Daycare Preschoolers and Staff Bake Cookies and Get Connected to the Elderly

Little Angels Preschool & Daycare will celebrate National Senior Citizens Day on August, 21, 2013.  The preschoolers will bake dozens of cookies and deliver them to the Ypsilanti Senior Home and to the CHS Group.  CHS, which shares space in the same building that is home to LAPD, assists the elderly and people living with Alzheimer’s, Autism, Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis and other challenging health issues.  

Celebrate National Senior Citizen’s Day along with Little Angels Preschool & Daycare. 

See the press release for this event. 

http://www.prlog.org/12184786-little-angels-preschool-daycare-ypsilanti-deliver-sweet-treats-to-michigan-seniors.html

There are several volunteer and school-based programs throughout the country that encourage interaction between children and the elderly or “inter-generational connections.”  This concept appears to be successful in many ways.  Elders have extra time to spend mentoring and passing their wisdom onto the children.  Children learn social responsibility and compassion for elders.  Children also reciprocate by bringing an immense amount of joy to the elders.  Thereby, reducing the elder’s depression, loneliness and boredom.

One such program is The Grace Living Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  The Grace Living Center houses two classrooms with 60 kindergarten and pre-kindergarten students with 170 elders.  The “grandmas” and “grandpas” mentor the children with their academic and social development through reading, dramatic play, crafts and more.  There have been proven results of higher competency in reading and vocabulary. Children also learn more about aging including illness, physical limitations such as mobility, eyesight loss, hearing loss and ultimately even death. 

There are many ways to encourage your child’s “inter-generational connections.”  Spend time with grandparents, elderly family members or neighbors.  The elders can teach your child skills such as fishing, knitting, cooking, story telling etc.  Your child may help elders learn about technology perhaps with e-mail, Facebook, games, cameras, iPods or iPads.

If your child doesn’t have an elderly relative or neighbor close by, here are several alternative suggestions:

• Volunteer at an assisted living home.

• Read to the elderly and allow the elderly to read to your child.

• Serve and/or deliver Meals on Wheels.

• Volunteer with a pet therapy program that takes pets to assisted living homes.

• Be a pen pal to an elderly person.  Everyone loves getting mail!

• Do crafts together.  It will help fine motor skills in children and the elders!

We all can learn a great deal from our elders.  Listen to their life stories: happy moments, times of struggle, proud accomplishments, regrettable mistakes and so much more. 

 

Read more about The Grace Living Center posted by Lisa Morehouse

http://www.edutopia.org/grace-learning-center-prekindergarten-community

How to Help Develop Your Child’s Love For Reading. Preschool Daycare Ypsilanti

Are you trying to help develop your child’s mind and get them prepared for school? 

One of the best ways to instill the importance of education is to teach them to enjoy reading.  Reading is not only a way to increase knowledge, it’s also a great form of entertainment.  And don’t kids and adults both love doing fun things?   

Start early by reading to them with age-appropriate books.  They’re never too young to start.  You can even read to babies.  Many infant books also have noise and different textures added to further stimulate your child. 

Choose good books that are age-appropriate so they’ll enjoy them.  Try to choose books about topics they’ve shown interest in or that they can relate to.  Once they begin to enjoy reading, then open them up to new ideas, genres and topics.

When your child is old enough, enroll them in a library program.  They often have coordinating games, crafts and speakers that go along with the stories. 

Set up a special reading area in the house.  It could be under a blanket fort or a spot with a comfy chair and lamp.  Encourage them to decorate with pictures of their favorite book characters. 

Set aside family time for reading.  You can all read the same book or enjoy your individual materials.  It may be best to make it a routine, like after dinner or bath time.  It is also important for them to see you reading and hear you talk about the book you’re reading.    

Reading doesn’t have to be just books or the iPad.  Try sharing newspaper articles, magazines and blogs.  Tons of games also require reading like board games, crossword puzzles, coloring books, word searches and more. 

Never make reading a punishment.  Nothing will make them dread it more than being forced to read!

Make colorful bookmarks with your child and track their progress with reading charts to help celebrate each chapter read.  You may also want to reward them with something positive, perhaps with a new book they have been wanting or watching a movie made from a book they’ve previously read. 

At Little Angels Preschool Ypsilanti | Daycare Ypsilanti we incorporate reading into our daily routine.  Please contact us if you need suggestions on appropriate books for your child’s age and ability. 

www.littleangelsypsilanti.com         734-998-0233       littleangelspsd@yahoo.com