Saturday, November 27, 2010

Social and Emotional Skills - 2


10 guidelines that parents may follow for healthy social and emotional development of a child :

1) The earlier emotional education begins, the better.

2) Be a role model.

3) Look for small learning moments that occur in your child's daily life.

4) Get toys and books that encourage a child's emotional development.

5) Understand the reasons behind a child's emotional reaction, and react accordingly.

6) Observe situations from a child's viewpoint.

7) Keep the home environment pleasant, caring and loving.

8) Talk to your child about your culture and the society that you live.

9) Understand and support your child when she is upset and has negative emotions.

10) Explain the importance of sharing.

Activities to help develop social and emotional skills :

1) Sports

Team sports can be a brilliant option. It teaches children to work together to achieve common goals and practice sportsmanship.

2) Hobbies

Help your child socialize with other children who share common interests. This will keep her entertained, and also help her learn from other children. Hobbies like reading and writing or playing a musical instruments can become a reason to meet other like minded children.

3) Art and Craft activities

Art and craft activities help children boost their self-confidence as well as provides them with an channel for expressing their emotions. It promotes creativity and imagination, giving children the confidence to solve problems independently.

4) Board Games

Whether your children are playing with friends or family members, board games provide a great way for them to strengthen their social skills and have fun! While playing board games, make sure that children understand it's rules. Provide your children with any extra stationery that they might need, e.g., paper and pencil to keep score and then leave them alone to have fun! Your children will learn valuable lessons about taking turns, winning, losing and being a good sport.

5) Pretend Play

Teach social skills by playing role-play games of social situations eg. meeting a new people, offering tea / coffee etc. Teach your children the art of getting others to talk about themselves. Help them see that by doing this, they can learn about their friends and share common interests.

Take care and have a nice weekend.

Friday, November 26, 2010

Dad, Rat and Cat

Story for the Day:

He is my dad.
He has a pan.
I have a cat.
My cat bit my dad.
My dad hit my cat with a pan.
My cat ran with the pan.
It fell in a gap.
I ran for my cat.
My dad came in a van.
He pulled the cat and put the pan and the cat, in a rag bag.
There was a rat in the bag.
The cat saw the rat.
The cat bit the rat.
The rat hit the cat with the pan.
Dad came and put the cat and the rat on the mat.
The cat is sad.
The rat is sad.

Exercise:

Download, print and solve the worksheet.

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Social and Emotional Skills - 1


The early years of life is a time of huge development and growth. Studies on early childhood has proved that the first five years of a child’s life have a major impact on his social and emotional development. Depressing incidents in early childhood, can harm a child’s psychological health and effect the development to a large extent. Social and emotional development starts from birth, but these developments tend to be primitive and incomplete, until the child becomes toddler.

Fifteen months onwards, children develop a sense of individuality. A new set of emotions such as of self-importance and of being self conscious, are developed. At this age children develop the ability to work in groups. Many of their behavior patterns are being formed based on their environment. They learn how to share, compromise, cooperate, adjust and take turns with other children.

Big A, who is five-year-old, feels sad when his baby brother cries! Big A’s emotion of unhappiness is the result of his younger brother condition rather than his own. Once, when I fell from the staircase, hurt myself badly and started to cry, Miss A was sad and brought her favorite toy to cheer me up. This type of emotional responding is identified as explicit emotional responding, i.e reactions that are caused as result to another's emotional condition. Children often cry when they hear the other, crying. Throughout early childhood, children are likely to react to another's emotional pain in ways that they themselves find soothing.

Misbehavior in children, to a large extent, also depends on the social and emotional environment at home. Punishing the child without bringing the necessary change the environment, is like treating the symptom without addressing the disease. Making a change in the environment, will not only does benefit the child, but also the parent. Behavior is determined by nature and nurture. Both, the genetics and the environmental factors, determine a child’s temperament. Children learn from observation, and then they imitate. It is very important for us as parents to create the necessary social and emotional environment to up-bring an emotionally healthy and social child.

Next week, we shall discuss activities that aid the emotional and social development of a child. Till then, be loving to your little ones.

Friday, November 19, 2010

The Ram and the Rat.

Story for the day

I have a Ram.
He is fat.
He likes jam and ham.
He has a rag hat.
The hat has a tag.
The rat likes the hat.
The rat is bad.
The rat ran with the hat.
The ram is sad.

Story for the day



I have a Ram. He is fat.


He likes jam and ham.


He has a hat. The hat has a tag.


The rat likes the hat. The rat is bad.


The rat ran with the hat. The ram is sad.

Worksheets

Fill in the blanks.

1) I have a ____.

2) The rat likes the ____.

3) The hat has a ____.

4) The rat ran with the ____.

5) The ram is ____.

Mark the rhyming words.

1) Rat / Hat.

2) Fat / Far.

3) Ram / Jam.

4) Bad / Hat.

5) Had / Sad.

Name the Picture.

Ram / Ham


Jam and Ham / Pan and Van


Rat / Cat


Hat / Mat


Sad / Mad


Have a nice weekend.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Colors

A child's color awareness develops around 18 months. If a child receives proper guidance and help from the parents, it becomes very easy for him to recognize colors. 
  
Ways to help your child recognize colors :- 

1) Buying toys that have bright colors. Showing different toys or objects of same color so that he can recognize the color family easily.

2) Start with teaching the primary colors like red, yellow and blue, and later adding the secondary colors. 

3) Talk about colors in your daily routine, for example, "I have a red ball" or "Will you wear a yellow shirt or a black shirt?"

4) Point and show as many different colors to your little one as possible. Take him to park and show green plants, red flowers etc. Walk on zebra crossing to show white and black stripes.

5) Play color games. Let your child play with colorful blocks and ask him to point different colors while he plays.

6) Have a red-week or green-week, where you teach your child only one color throughout the week. Repetition will definitely help.

These methods will definitely help to make your child's little world colorful.

By Shreya Dhruve ( Guest Blogger)
Miss Shreya is a teacher at kindergarten classes of K. J. Bhalodia School at Rajkot, Gujarat.

Saturday, November 13, 2010

Language Skills


Babies learn to speak in stages. First, they go gibberish, and then they practice making different sounds, later connecting a variety of sounds together to speak words and then start connecting words together to make meaningful sentences. By the age to 3, most toddlers have started to talk, by interacting with their parents, families and other people around them. They learn by listening to others.

Few toddlers develop sign language gestures to communicate with their parents. At times, your child might cover her face when she's uncomfortable, or hit on the table when she's angry. These frustrations are strong signs that she is trying hard to converse and cares whether we are or not, able understand her. It is important that we help her develop language skills with proper pronunciation and grammar and help her understand and learn the proper usage of words.

Way that you can aid your child's language development-

* Sing nursery rhymes to your child, simple songs, lullabies so she can hear the rhythm and flow of our language.

* Make use of body language in songs, stories, and in everyday activities.

* Name objects as you both look at them and, also describe the size, colour shape and feel of the object.

* Ask her riddles and help her guess the answer.

* Introduce new words by reading picture books, stories and magazines. You can also use words and picture flash cards.

* Have one-to-one conversations with her.

* Engage in conversations about her likes and dislikes.

* Ask lots of open-ended questions. Questions which help her think and which require more than just yes or no answers, e.g "How did you make that picture?"

Talk to her and and also listen to her. Communicate ideas and experiences and have real conversations. Stimulate and encourage her desire to learn more. Do not overwhelm her with unfamiliar words. Respond to her using proper "adult" words and grammar. Don't bother correcting her choice of words or sentence structure too much. Look directly in her eyes while conversing. If her eyes begin to wander, you've probably lost it. As she grows and her vocabulary expands, you can move from simple words and phrases to the more complex ones.

Friday, November 12, 2010

Zat, my fat cat.

Story of the Day:-

This is my dad.
My dad has a cap.
I have a cat, Zat.
Zat is a fat cat.
Zat ran with the cap.
He sat under the fan.
The cap came off.
It fell on the van.
The van ran with the cap.
I ran for my cap.
I fell on the tap.
The tap came off.
It made a big dam.
I was sad.
My Dad was mad.

Story for the Day:-


This is my dad.
My dad has a cap.



I have a cat, Zat.
Zat is a fat cat.



Zat ran with the cap.
He sat under the fan.



The cap came off.
It fell on the van.



The van ran with the cap.
I ran for my cap.



I fell on the tap.
The tap came off.
It made a big dam.



I was sad.
Dad was mad.

Worksheets

#Match the pictures with the words:-


#Fill in the Blanks:-

1) My dad has a ______ ( rat / cap).

2) Zat is a fat_____ ( cat / dad).

3) I fell on the ____ ( tap / dam).

4) I am ____( mad / sad).

5) I ran for my ____ ( van / cap).

#Mark the words that rhyme :-

1) Car / Far

2) Dad / Cat

3) Mad / Fat

4) Dad / Mad

5) Cat / Hat

#Name the picture:-

1) Cat / Fat



2) Dad / Van



3) Fan / Tap



4) Car / Van




5) Mad / Cap


Have a nice weekend.

Friday, November 5, 2010

Ramayana, line drawings.

When my sister, Krupa, asked me to illustrate the Ramayana story that she had retold for our blog, I could not come up with any authentic illustrations. But then I tried imagining the story from a child's view and came up with these funny line drawings. But for those who have not heard of the Ramayana, please read this post and then come back to enjoy these drawings.
















































































Ramayana


The story of Ramayama begins several thousands of years ago in the kingdom of Ayodhya. Ayodhya was ruled by King Dasarath, a wise and good king. King Dasarath had three queens - Kaushalya, Kaikeyi and Sumitra. But, the king had no children. So he thought of holding a yagna to appease the gods. His wish was granted. His queens gave birth to four sons - Kaushalya gave birth to Ram, the eldest son, Kaikeyi gave birth to Bharat, and Sumitra gave birth to twins, Lakshman and Shatrughn.

Ram grew up to be kind, brave and a noble prince. He married a noble princess Sita, daughter of King Janak. King Dashrath, his queens and his sons lived happily in Ayodhya. But as the king was growing old, he decided crown his eldest son, Ram, the king of Ayodhya.

Queen Kaikeyi had a wicked maidservant named Manthara. She poisoned Queen Kaikeyi's mind saying that if Ram became the king, he would take away the status of being a special queen from her and kill her son Bharat. In this fear, Queen Kaikeyi insisted that King Dasaratha exiled Ram to the forest for 14 years, and Bharat, her son, be made the King.

King Dashrath did not wish send away Ram. But many years back, when Queen Kaikeyi had saved his life and he had promised her that she could ask of him two wishes, which he would grant, no matter what. Kaikeyi used this promise to exile Ram and crown her son, Bharat, the king of Ayodhya. Ram obeyed his father’s promise and left for the forest with his wife Sita and along his younger brother Lakshman.

Bharat was furious with his mother. He went to find Ram into the forest and pleaded him to come back, but Ram denied, saying that he must respect his father's promise and asked Bharat to return to Ayodhya. King Dasarath, broken-hearted, died of sorrow. Bharat refused to be the king. He took care of the kingdom on behalf of his brother Ram, as he believed Ram was the true king of Ayodhya.

Ram, Sita and Lakshman lived in the forest for many years. One morning, a female demon, called Surpanakha saw Ram, and fell in love with him. She begged him to marry her. Ram refused, saying he was already married. She then asked Lakshman, who also refused. Surpanakha threatened to eat Sita if neither of the brothers married her. In anger, Lakshman cut off her nose and ears. Surpankha got angry and in pain, went complaining to her brother Ravaan for help. Ravaan was a powerful demon who ruled over the golden kingdom of Lanka with his ten heads and twenty arms.

On hearing Surpankha's story, he was enraged. He was determined to teach Ram and Laxman a lesson. He sought the help of another demon called Marich. Marich turned himself into a golden deer and allowed Sita to see him in the forest. Sita was charmed by the beauty of the deer. She requested Ram to catch the deer for her so that she could keep it as a pet. Ram followed the deer deep into the forest. When he did not return for a long time, Sita sent Lakshman to look for him. As soon as Sita was alone, Ravaan came, disguised as a holy man asking for food. As soon as Sita stepped out of her hut to give him the food, Ravaan grabbed her, and took her into his flying chariot and carried her off to Lanka.

When Ram and Lakshman came back they found Sita missing. As soon as they came to know what had occured in their absence, Ram and Lakshman went to find Sita. On the way, they were helped by all the animals of the forest, mainly the bears and the monkeys. Among the monkeys, Hanuman, the man-monkey, became Ram's strongest ally and dearest friend. Hanuman was the son of the Wind God, and had the ability to fly over mountains and oceans and had a big monkey army.

Hanuman went to look for Sita. He found her sitting sadly, in one of Ravaan's gardens, surrounded by demons. Hanuman managed to whisper in Sita's ear that Ram was searching her, and now that he knew where she was, Ram and his friends would be here soon to save her. Hanuman was caught by Ravaan and in order to punish Hanuman, Ravaan lit fire to his tail. The mischievous monkey, not only managed to get away, but also jumped on several tree tops and houses

Ram, Laxshman and their monkey army, left for lanka to rescue Sita. They were joined by Vibhishan, the brother of Ravaan, who believed Ravaan had done immoral act in abducting Sita.

The war between Ram and Ravaan went on for several days, with none of them winning. At last, Ram used an extraordinary arrow given to him by the gods - and shot Ravaan in the chest, and Ravaan was killed on the day of Dashera.

Ram and Sita were reunited and their fourteen years of exile were over. They returned to Ayodhya. Ayodhya was decorated with flowers and lamps to welcome them. It was a dark night and pitch black out. Villagers came to know of their come within reach of kingdom and to help them find their way, light divas and lamps outside their homes so they could safely find their way home. Entire kingdom of Ayodhya was lighted. The festival of Diwali is celebrated on the evening they reached his kingdom.

And thus began the celebration of Diwali; the festival of lights.

Thursday, November 4, 2010

At

I almost forgot to write about the words from the 'at' family.

Following our usual study pattern, write down the letters 'at' in colored ink on a flash card. Then, write down individual consonants as b, c, f, h, m, p, r, s and t on separate flash cards. After doing so, place the 'b' flash card in front of the 'at' card and read aloud the word, 'bat'.

b + at = bat

Now, replace the 'b' flash card with the 'c' flash card to make the word 'cat'. Say it aloud several times, till your child is able to blend 'c' and 'at' sounds to make word 'cat'.

c + at = cat

This excercise should be repeated with all the listed consonants and by the end of this excercise, your child should be able to read these words with ease :

Bat






Cat





Fat






Hat






Mat






Pat






Rat






Sat






Sight words for the day:

Have
Is
With
My
Fell
For
The
Give

Silly story for the day:

I have a cat.
He is Zat.
Zat is a fat cat.
Zat sat with my hat.
The hat fell on the rat.
The rat sat on the mat.
Zat ran for the rat with the bat.
Give Zat a pat.
Zat is my cat.

Worksheet for At family:






Next week, as promised, we will read stories from the 'A' family and will solve worksheets.

Wishing you all a very Happy Diwali.