Friday, May 30, 2014

Session 8 - Summer Activities

Slide 1 - Structuring The Summer
Ways to establish a routine during Summer break
·        summer will be less structured, but try to develop a basic routine
·        calendars/schedules
o       monthly family calendar
o       weekly calendar of activities
o       child’s individual schedule for the day
·        prepare child for any predictable disruptions - bbqs, family gatherings, day trips, weekend trips, extended travel, time with new/different caregivers
  • although summer is a time to relax, basic structure will help children to understand expectations
Slide 2 - Activities At Home
Get Outside!
·        water and sand tables
·        nature walks - even in own backyard
·        anything you might do inside, try to take it outside
o       art projects, sensory experiences, etc
·       gardening
·        obstacle courses
·        scavenger hunts
·        picnics
  • kiddie pools
Slide 3 - Activities in the Community
·         Burlington Playgrounds
o       Wildwood - Bedford St
o       Rahanis - Mill St
o       BECC and elementary school playgrounds
·        Simonds Park wading pool
·        Recreation Department Programs
·        Burlington Public Library
  • Burlington Reservoir
Slide 4 - Activities in Surrounding Communities
·         Water Parks - Belmont and Billerica
·        Indoor Playgrounds - VinKari Safari in Woburn, Jump On In in Woburn, Inside Playground in Watertown
·        Walden Pond
·        Acton Discovery Museum
·        The Butterfly Place, Westford, MA
·        Boston Children’s Museum
·        New England Aquarium
·        Stone Zoo
  • Museum of Science
Slide 5 - Challenges and Concerns
·         travel
·        transition from school to summer break
·        transition back to school at the end of summer break
·        transition to a different classroom/building at the end of summer break
  • behavior regressions from change in routine
Slide 6 - Resources
·         Burlington Recreation Department - www.burlingtonrecreation.org


Monday, March 10, 2014

Information Session 5: Fine and Gross Motor Skills

Motor Skills Overview


  • There is a vast range of what is considered typical for motor skill acquisition
  • Skill development can be influenced by exposure, interest level, individual development 
  • Common to see bursts of development 
  • Children enter preschool with a base of motor skills, these skills are fine tuned and built upon during the preschool years 
  • It is OK for a preschool student (3’s and 4’s) to descend stairs non-alternately, they will first ascend alternately (takes less strength and control than descent) 
  • Encourage active gross motor play, but also activities that require the child to slow down, balance and steady their body (Simon Says, Follow The Leader, etc.)

  • If w-sitting is primary sitting posture work to incorporate other positions (see w-sitting blog as well as core activities blog to help with this)

  • Certain skills, such as scissor use and coordination,  are not a part of natural development and  will only develop through direct teaching and exposure.
Fine Motor Skills


  • Small Muscles 
  • Hand Strength 
  • Grasp Development 
  • Sensory Integration 
  • Motor Planning 
  • Visual Motor Integration 
  • Bilateral Coordination 
  • Daily Living Skills – dressing, tooth brushing, feeding 
  • Oral Motor 
Gross Motor Skills


  • Big Muscles 
  • Heavy Work 
  • Core Strength 
  • Motor Planning 
BECC Supplemental Curricula


  • Handwriting Without Tears
    • Mat Man
    • Grasp Development
  • Brain Gym
    • Series of 26 movements designed to optimize learning
Fine Motor Activities


  • Writing Implements – crayons, markers, colored pencils, paintbrushes, etc 
  • Cutting 
  • Crafts using pincer grasps 
  • Tactile experiences – putty, play dough, sand and water play 
  • Tweezers 
  • Peeling Stickers 
  • Lacing 
  • Puzzles and building manipulatives 
  • Mazes/Magnet Mazes 
Gross Motor Activities


  • Obstacle courses 
  • Balancing – beams, therapy balls, rocking horses, stepping stones 
  • Climbing Structures 
  • Trampolines 
  • Scooter Boards 
  • Get outside when you can! 
Accommodations


  • Writing Tasks 
    • Small, broken crayons 
    • Slanted surfaces/easels 
    • Hold a pom pom with pinky and ring finger 
  • Verbal and Visual Cues 
    • Alligator fingers 
    • Helper hand 
    • Visual task analysis to facilitate motor planning 
Therapists Blog - becctherapists.wordpress.com


  • Great resource for activities and ideas 
  • Our Speech and Language Pathologists, occupational therapist, physical therapist and BCBA contribute to this blog 
The following are the gross motor posts that may be useful:
·         Benefits of Physical Activity (1/13)
·         Core Strengthening Activities (3/13)
·         Motor Planning (4/11)
·         Indoor Gross Motor Activities (11/13)
·         Fun Inexpensive Outdoor Games (5/13)
·         Why Should I Stop My Child From W-Sitting? (10/13)
·         Coming Soon in March blog post on bilateral integration and sequence


The following are the fine motor posts that may be helpful:
·         Developing a Dominant Hand (11/13)
·         Fun February OT Activity Ideas (2/13)
·         How to Work on Prewriting Skills Without Picking up a Pencil! (3/13)
·         Scissor Skill Development (5/13)
·         Summer OT Activity Ideas (6/13)
  • Fun Hand Strengthening Activities (11/13)

Monday, February 10, 2014

Information Series Session 4: Reading at Home

Burlington Public Schools Early Childhood Information Series: Session 4
Reading At Home
 www.beccinformationseries.blogspot.com
Reading to children helps to foster many areas of development including but not limited to:
● Language Development (vocabulary and communication)
● How to handle books
● Attending (concentration and memory retention)
● Joint Attention
● Logical Thinking


There are so many books choices out there... How do we narrow down which forms of literature are right for our children?


Types of Literature:

● Story Books
○ These books have a specific beginning, middle, and end
○ Great for sequencing and retelling
○ Lend themselves nicely to answering and asking /wh/ questions

● Predictable Books
○ Include repetitive text or concepts
○ Great opportunity for choral responding
○ Likely the first books that kids will learn to “read”
○ Can build phonemic awareness
○ Often incorporate rhyming text

● Books on Tape/E-books
○ do not take the place of reading to your children, but can certainly be used as a fun tool that kids can do independently.

● Informational Books
○ Can be used to teach and explore non-fiction concepts
○ Often include great illustration or photography of things in real life
○ Do not need to read the whole book, but can pull out concepts to aid in learning to make connections
○ Seasonal books lend themselves to great real life connections and exploring

● Nonsense Books
○ Books where the actual text do not have a true story line, but are just fun to read!
○ Includes Dr. Suess

● Wordless/Limited Word Books
○ Lend themselves to facilitating language based on illustration
○ Can be used to teach “word bubbles” or the concept that
characters talk to each other in books just like we do


Activities to Follow Up:

● Act it out
○ make costumes
○ retell the story
○ take turns being different characters
○ make props

● Create a follow up group book
○ Brown Bear, Brown Bear (Naomi, Naomi, what do you see?)
● Make a list of connections
○ text to self
○ text to text

● Scavenger hunts/Obstacle course

● Changing part of books
○ What would happen if?

● Write a book
○ Scribble
○ Dictate
○ Illustrate
○ Use technology


What great things have you done with literature in your homes?
What are the challenges you face?

Thursday, January 30, 2014

Early Learner Series Session 3: Morning and Night Time Routines

Burlington Public
Schools Early Childhood
Information Series:
Session 3
Morning and Night Time Routines
www.beccinformationseries.blogspot.com

Why is it important to create routines?
● Allow everyone to understand what is expected
● Routines create an increased number of practice opportunities
● Gives a clear starting and ending point

How to establish routines?
● Make a list of everything that needs to be done during a given amount of time
● Prioritize the order in which you want things to be done
● Figure out how long the routine will take
● Make sure that there are aspects of the routine that involve skills that they have
already mastered

Teaching and Implementing Routines
● Never assume that kids (or adults!) know what is expected of them unless it’s been taught.
● Children will need to be taught not only what is expected of them, but how to flow through routines in the order you want them to
● Make sure everyone knows how to get help
● Build in supports as needed

How to teach the routine?
● Skills Training Model
○ Instruction - Tell what to do
○ Model - Show what to do
○ Practice - Give practice opportunities
○ Feedback - Give information on how it went
What supports can be used?
● Visuals
○ Schedule
○ First/Then
○ Check list
○ Reminders
● Small Reinforcement Systems
○ Adding in small incentives for various aspects of the routines
■ Can be individualized to each person’s level of
functioning
What to do when...
● The routine changes unexpectedly ● The routine changes expectedly
Being Prepared for Challenges
● Give yourself ample time (especially in the teaching phases)
● Set up clear expectations for everyone before starting the routine.
● Have all supports in place before you begin the routine
● Predict difficult moments when possible
Q &A
What are you challenging areas?
What questions do you have about routines in your home?

Early Learner Series Session 2: Opening the World of Learning

Burlington Public Schools Early Childhood Information Series: Session 2
Opening the World of Learning (OWL)



What is OWL?
● Created by Judy Schickedanz, Ph.D. and David Dickinson, Ed.D.
● A comprehensive early literacy program
● Every classroom in the Burlington Early
Childhood Center uses this program
● Arranged into six thematic units

Six Thematic Units
● Family
● Friends
● Wind and Water
● The World of Color
● Shadows and Reflections ● Things that Grow

What is each unit comprised of?
● Story time books
● Information books
● Predictable books
● Key vocabulary words
● Let’s find out about it
● Songs, wordplay, and letters
● Small groups
● Center activities

Other OWL Facts
● 5 day cycle
● Supplemental materials including books,
music, and activities are often used
● Program provides tools for monitoring
progress
Language Based Curriculum
● Gives opportunities for children to engage in conversations about curriculum
● Books lend themselves to rich discussions including the use of questioning
● Key vocabulary words are used across activities

Specific Activities
Even though the curriculum is language based, it is comprehensive in that it focuses on literacy, math, motor development and social development
Center Activities
● Sand and water (sensory)
● Book area
● Art area/table
● Art area/easel
● Blocks
● Puzzles and manipulatives
● Dramatic play
● Writing center

Small Groups
● Typically three small groups per day that children rotate through at their own pace. This varies by classroom.
● Small groups focus on academic, language based skills
● Cross-curricular

Supplemental OWL Units
● Created by the teachers of the Burlington Early Childhood Center
● Based on the format and content of the published OWL curriculum
● Comprised of seven thematic units
Seven Thematic Units
● Farm/harvest
● Family traditions ● Snow
● Community
● Transportation ● Five Senses
● Camping

Accommodations
● No one curriculum is a perfect fit for every child
● Teachers adapt and differentiate instruction based on the individual needs of each student
● Accommodations occur in all areas of a child’s development, not just academic tasks