December is National Safe Toys and Gifts Month

December 8, 2016

In recent years, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has created a robust toy safety system, by requiring testing by independent, third party testing laboratories around the world; enforcing stringent lead and phthalates limits for toys; imposing some of the most stringent toy standards in the world; and stopping violative and dangerous toys at the ports and in the marketplace before they reach children’s hands. These combined efforts continue to foster the confidence of American families as they prepare to shop for toys this holiday season.
Safety tips to keep in mind this holiday season:
Balloons
Children can choke or suffocate on deflated or broken balloons. Keep deflated balloons away from children younger than eight years old. Discard broken balloons immediately.
Small balls and other toys with small parts
For children younger than age three, avoid toys with small parts, which can cause choking.
Scooters and other riding toys
Riding toys, skateboards and in-line skates go fast, and falls could be deadly. Helmets and safety gear should be worn properly at all times and they should be sized to fit.
Magnets
High-powered magnet sets are dangerous and should be kept away from children. Whether marketed for children or adults, building and play sets with small magnets should also be kept away from small children.
Once gifts are open:
Immediately discard plastic wrapping or other toy packaging before the wrapping and packaging become dangerous play things.
Keep toys appropriate for older children away from younger siblings.
Battery charging should be supervised by adults. Chargers and adapters can pose thermal burn hazards to young children. Pay attention to instructions and warnings on battery chargers. Some chargers lack any mechanism to prevent overcharging.
Toy Safety Guides
The CPSC provides free safety alerts, guides, posters, brochures, handbooks and other materials which you can use to help spread consumer product safety information in your community.
Choking Hazard: Plastic Film on Toys and Other Children’s Products »
Strings and Straps on Toys Can Strangle Young Children »
Ingested Magnets Can Cause Serious Intestinal Injuries »
Balloons Can be Suffocation Danger to Kids »
Caps for Toy Guns »
Electric Toy Safety »
Child Safety Protection Act Fact Sheet »
CPSC Warns Consumers of Dangers with Toy Chest Lids »
Button Battery Safety Quiz »
Source: http://www.cpsc.gov/en/Newsroom/News-Releases/2014/Global-System-of-Toy-Safety-Works-to-Keep-Kids-Safe-This-Holiday-Season-Recalls-Down-Port-Seizures-Up-/

10 Things Every Parent Should Know about Play

November 28, 2016

10 Things Every Parent Should Know about Play

by Laurel Bongiorno

1. Children learn through their play.

Don’t underestimate the value of play. Children learn and develop:

cognitive skills – like math and problem solving in a pretend grocery store

physical abilities – like balancing blocks and running on the playground

new vocabulary – like the words they need to play with toy dinosaurs

social skills – like playing together in a pretend car wash

literacy skills – like creating a menu for a pretend restaurant

2. Play is healthy.

Play helps children grow strong and healthy. It also counteracts obesity issues facing many children today.

3. Play reduces stress.

Play helps your children grow emotionally. It is joyful and provides an outlet for anxiety and stress.

4. Play is more than meets the eye.

Play is simple and complex. There are many types of play: symbolic, sociodramatic, functional, and games with rules-–to name just a few. Researchers study play’s many aspects: how children learn through play, how outdoor play impacts children’s health, the effects of screen time on play, to the need for recess in the school day.

5. Make time for play.

As parents, you are the biggest supporters of your children’s learning. You can make sure they have as much time to play as possible during the day to promote cognitive, language, physical, social, and emotional development.

6. Play and learning go hand-in-hand.

They are not separate activities. They are intertwined. Think about them as a science lecture with a lab. Play is the child’s lab.

7. Play outside.

Remember your own outdoor experiences of building forts, playing on the beach, sledding in the winter, or playing with other children in the neighborhood. Make sure your children create outdoor memories too.

8. There’s a lot to learn about play.

There’s a lot written on children and play. Here are some NAEYC articles and books about play. David Elkind’s The Power of Play (Da Capo, 2007 reprint) is also a great resource.

9. Trust your own playful instincts.

Remember as a child how play just came naturally? Give your children time for play and see all that they are capable of when given the opportunity.

10. Play is a child’s context for learning.

Children practice and reinforce their learning in multiple areas during play. It gives them a place and a time for learning that cannot be achieved through completing a worksheet. For example, in playing restaurant, children write and draw menus, set prices, take orders, and make out checks. Play provides rich learning opportunities and leads to children’s success and self-esteem.

Laurel Bongiorno, PhD, is the director of Champlain College’s graduate program in early childhood education, with specializations in teaching and administration, in Burlington, Vermont. She has taught preschool, directed early childhood programs, and studied parents’ perceptions of preschoolers’ learning through play.

© National Association for the Education of Young Children — Promoting excellence in early childhood education

12 Ways to Support Language Development for Infants and Toddlers

October 18, 2016

12 Ways to Support Language Development for Infants and Toddlers
By: Julia Luckenbill
When you talk to your child, you support her language development.  Think about what you are saying from your infant or toddler’s point of view.  If she could talk, she might ask you…
1.  When I point to something, tell me what it is. While you are telling me, look at it and point to it too.
2.  Use a gesture along with the word you say, so that I can say it too.  If you tell me it is time to eat, tap you lips.  I can imitate the gesture and tell you when I’m hungry.
3.  Talk to me about what you are doing. Tell me what will happen next, so I will know what to expect.
4. Talk to me about what I am doing. Using words to describe my actions and feelings helps me learn those words too.
5. Take turns chatting back and forth with me.  Listen to what I am saying –then imitate my coos or babbles.  If I’m older, you can reply to my questions and ask your own.  I like open-ended questions that don’t have right or wrong answers.
6. Model bigger and better sentences.  If I say, “Two cat,” you can say, “You have two cats on your shirt!”  I learn a lot from you.
7.  Sing with me.  It’s easier to learn words in songs.  I can learn about rhymes, the ABC song, the colors of my clothing, and the names of my friends.
8. Take me to the library.  Read me a book, let me decide how you do it and when we are done. Let me mouth board books, handle them and decide which to explore. Check out the thrift store and buy me a few board books (wipe them with a damp cloth). At home, attach felt tabs to them, and I will be able to turn the pages more easily, all by myself.
9. Make books about me.  When I see myself in a book, I will learn that books can be about things in my life.
10. Show me the words on things.  When you point out words in books and on containers, I begin to understand how printed and spoken words are connected.
11. Be playful while I learn:  I like to ask you what shape the cookie cutter alphabet has made.  You can say, “You made the letter L,” or ask, “I wonder what letter you made?” It’s less fun to be asked, “What’s this?” 
12.  Give me time to learn and explore.  There’s no rush to learn the names of colors, letters, and things.  I will learn them in my own time.
 
 Article Credit www.naeyc.org