Juggling work, family and fun

Posted on June 16, 2011 by The SEEDS Network

According to answers.com, large numbers of women in the United States began to work outside the home as early as the 1840’s. Today in 2011 it’s extremely common for women to balance work and a home.

The reasons for a woman to work outside of the home vary: financial necessity, passion for their career, the want to challenge their minds…whatever the reason, let’s face it…we ladies work HARD!

I myself do my best to balance being a wife and mother of two small children, directing a medium size child care center full time, instructing 8-10 Zumba® fitness classes a week, co-running a company and website, carving out a little “me” time every once in a while, and being an aunt and sister.

I am just one of millions of women who share similar responsibilities….here are my top three ways I do my best to juggle it all!

1. Stay organized. We have one central calendar in our house. With jukido, dance, lacrosse, birthday parties, board meetings, staff meetings and holidays events; life gets crazy! I have a monthly calendar on my desk in our office, but break it down by the week and have a weekly copy on our refrigerator. Looking at my weekly calendar allows me to focus on one day at a time without feeling too overwhelmed.

2. Making family a priority. No matter how crazy life gets, we try and our best to eat dinner together and talk about our day, have family movie nights, get together with extended family, read together at night, and attend church. However you choose, you must make time to be together….because let’s face it….family really is the most important thing in life. If you have a spouse…it is also important to give priority to your relationship. A simple date night every now again is just what my hubby and I need to slow down and re-connect.

3. Love what you do when you are working outside the home! Sometimes it is hard to find a job that meets your financial needs and is satisfying to your soul. However, if you are able to love what you do, it makes working a lot easier. This is even more important if you work more than one job. After working hard at our school all day, you better believe that my passion for teaching Zumba® fitness helps give me that “second wind” needed to go back out there!

We’d love to hear from you too….feel free to share your tips on how you balance the responsibilities of a woman in 2011!

A Pet Peeve of mine and one that should be yours too!

Posted on June 14, 2011 by The SEEDS Network

I’m not sure why, but the old fashioned term “Day Care” drives me crazy. I think because the title doesn’t even refer to the child is one reason. In more recent years our industry has made attempts to use terms such as Child Care and Early Childhood Education. But still I cringe when I receive a phone call from a distributor looking to sell me products for “my day care children.”

I truly believe that if we early educators are going to gain respect and support for this crucial industry, we must set the tone! We need to insist on using more appropriate terms and explain to the public what we do. I am sure that for some people, they believe that caring for children is easy. Oh-if they only could walk in our shoes for one day …then they would realize that patience, dedication, kindness, love, creativity, endurance, energy, commitment, ability to multi-task, knowledge in social, emotional, physical and academic development, ability to be attentive the entire time you are with children, and passion are all requirements of working in our industry.

Early childhood education is not a career that one chooses because they need a job to “pay the bills.” Educators choose this field because they truly love assisting a child in growing and developing into the best person he/she can be.

I found it interesting when going to www.wikipedia.com to discover the description that was given for “Day Care.” The old-school way of thinking was reflected somewhat:

“…is care of a child during the day by a person other than the child’s legal guardians, typically performed by someone outside the child’s immediate family. Day care is typically an ongoing service during specific periods, such as the parents’ time at work. …”

I was much more pleased to see their more modern description when I searched under “Child Care.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_care)

“…means caring for and supervising child/children usually from 0–8 years of age. In the United States child care is increasingly referred to as early childhood education due to the understanding of the impact of early experiences of the developing child. …”

This gave me a little more hope that our society is heading in the right direction, but don’t settle folks for the title Day Care Worker…..you do much more than care for children everyday…you prepare them for life…so insist on modern terms such as Child Care Specialist, Early Childhood Educator, or my favorite….Experts in preparing Young Children for productive and successful lives!

Saying goodbye to students and families

Posted on June 13, 2011 by The SEEDS Network

As a Director of a child care program, it is bittersweet when the end of the school year rolls around. My heart is always happy for our students who have completed a year of school and I am proud of those students who are ready to move on to the next step in their educational careers… but at the same time I am sad to watch some of our students leave.

As an early childhood professional we form strong relationships with our families. For some of our students that come into care as infants, we watch them grow from a baby into mature children. During those years we form bonds with parents as well. When it is time for a family to leave a program it can be emotional for the child, the parent, the staff and a Director. Each year I dread saying goodbye to families, but the pride in my heart gives me the strength to watch them go.

I make it a rule to never actually say the words “goodbye”….for I know that I will see families around town at the grocery store, at the mall, out to eat, etc. I also make it clear that our families are always welcome to come and visit and to attend our annual family events. Letting go is never easy, but knowing that we will see each other again makes this process a little easier.
It is important for staff to have some kind of closure at the end of the school year. I know that at our center many teachers will have their classes talk about what their favorite part of the school year was. This exercise gives the children a chance to re-live their most memorable experiences while at our school in a positive way.

However your center decides to end the school year, be sure to thank families who have chosen your program, show gratitude towards those have volunteered their time and express your gra

titude toward your hardworking staff. Don’t say goodbye, simply say “see you soon.”

End of school year scrapbooks

Posted on June 12, 2011 by The SEEDS Network

Last week I put together a post about favorite preschool teacher gifts and mentioned having the children putting together a scrapbook. I really liked the idea of each child making a page to put into a class album for the teacher. Turns out, my niece’s 1st grade class was doing exactly that – and I had to share the adorable pages! Their teacher is going to love it!

Father’s Day gifts preschoolers can make

Posted on June 12, 2011 by The SEEDS Network

It’s not too late to come up with a Father’s Day gift that your child can make (and the special man in their life will love!) Here are some great ideas that we have made at preschool, and some that we have found around the web (click on the links to see photos and detailed description of each idea).

1. BBQ sauce – If it’s grilling season where you live, then this BBQ sauce will make a tasty gift. If your child likes to cook, he/she can help you measure, mix and pour the ingredients. The child can make their own BBQ sauce label – or you can print some labels here.

2. Footprint Bookmark – Use paint and brush it onto the bottom of the child’s foot. Press their foot onto cardstock. When dry, use scissors to siloutte around the foot. Laminate the foot (or use clear contact paper on both sides). Punch a hole at the bottom of the foot and thread some yarn through. Adorable!!

3. Father’s Day Cookie Gift (from Pre-K Pages) – Decorate a Pringles can and fill it with homemade cookies!

4. BBQ Apron (from education.com) – This would go very well with the BBQ sauce!!

5. Father’s Day Wordle Gift (from Pre-K Pages) – Quick and easy to make online using a free “Wordle” website.

6. Keychains (from Brick by Brick) – Keychains made by stringing wooden beads is a useful gift, and great for young children to practice their fine motor skills.

What kinds of gifts are you/have you helped children make for Father’s Day?

Favorite preschool teacher gifts

Posted on June 8, 2011 by The SEEDS Network

As the school year draws to a close, many children and families try to find ways to show their teacher how much they appreciate them. As a preschool teacher, I am always humbled when given gifts by the children at our center. As a parent, I so appreciate my children’s teachers, and try to seek fun, thoughtful and creative ways to express my (and my child’s) gratitude for all they’ve done. In many preschool and child care settings, there are multiple teachers and caregivers that parents want to express their appreciation to. So, I thought it would be neat to list a few favorite and inexpensive gift ideas that I’ve either received, given or heard about.

A heartfelt card – Of course! Ask any teacher, coach or mentor, and the gift that they treasure the most is a handwritten note from a child or parent letting them know how much they made a difference in the life of a child!

Books or gift card to a bookstore – I haven’t met a teacher yet who didn’t love books! Many teachers even stock their own classroom libraries with children’s books, and a gift card is a great way to help them. Or if you know the teacher’s favorite children’s author, you can get a nice hardcover book by that author.

Magazine subscription – This can be tailored to a teacher’s hobbies or interests (like cooking or scrapbooking) – or you can get a subscription to a children’s magazine that can be used in the classroom.

Candy bar message – This idea came from Renee on our Facebook page during Teacher Appreciation week. Give a candy bar with a cute saying on it, such as a Milky way (“you’re outta this world“) or Skor (“we scored when we got you as a teacher“), etc. I think this is so cute, and coupled with a hand-drawn card from the child, it is thoughtful, yet inexpensive.

A scrapbook – As a scrapbooker, I personally love this idea! One idea is to give a blank scrapbook and some basic supplies so the teacher can put together an album themselves of a favorite trip, holiday or even the school year. Another idea is to put together an album with snapshots of the entire school year (this definitely requires some advance planning, as you would need to have a good supply of photos throughout the year). This is a good project to involve other families in, to help with gathering pictures and putting together pages. This can be taken to another level by having each child in the class (with help from a family member) put together 1 page of the album with pictures of the child, a drawing by the child and a special message from the child.

Homemade mix – These are simple, inexpensive and the child can help to create them. First, get some nice large jelly jars. Some ideas of mixes to put in them are: homemade pancake mix, chocolate chip cookie dry ingredients (layered in the jar), hot chocolate mix with mini-marshmellows, etc.

What are some of the most fun and unique gifts you’ve either received as a teacher or given as a parent? Please share … I want to get a jump start on my own end of year gift-giving!

Staying motivated at the end of the school year

Posted on May 20, 2011 by The SEEDS Network

As the weather improves and our minds begin to wonder to the beach it is important to try and stay motivated in your classroom. Sometimes it is hard to stay motivated after working a long and hard 9-10 months…especially when it’s hot and humid.

When the end is in sight, you may begin to putter out quickly. There is no doubt that you have worked hard all year, but your children deserve 100% of your time and energy right up until that very last day. Look at this time as an opportunity to plan some fun activities to keep you and your class excited…here are some suggestions:

1. Beach Party Day
2. Field Day
3. Classroom pizza party
4. Hawaiian Luau
5. Bring a parent to school day
6. Teddy bear Picnic
7. Water Fun Day

The key is to plan activities that will keep you and your class motivated, cool, learning and having fun all at the same time.

Taking time for you throughout the day will also give you more energy during the last few weeks. You may find that taking a walk during your break will give you that little boost you’ll need to get you through the day. Take time to enjoy the sunshine, breathing in that fresh spring air feels so good!

Directors…support your teachers at the end of the school year by celebrating their hard work. Plan a year end celebration for staff and volunteers, and/or organize a special end of year event for your entire school. These types of functions give your staff something to look forward to while showing them how much you appreciate their commitment and dedication. Even little staff surprises, like make your own sundaes, helps makes these last couple of weeks fun and exciting.

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