Wildflowers Child Care and Preschool

Summer chalk drawing by Anika age 8. Art comes from within!

What Does Neural Plasticity Mean for Parents?

"The research on learning and memory shows that learning is possible and memory can be enhanced across the lifespan, unless the brain is compromised by disease or injury, and even then there is more room for growth than was previously thought possible. Neural plasticity—the way the brain changes across the lifespan—is the mechanism that powers the possibility of change and growth over time.

The brain’s early development is shaped by genetic factors working together with experience. One of the most important early brain-building experiences is sometimes called “serve-and-return,” a caregiver’s affectionate and attentive mirroring of infants’ early babbling, facial expressions, and gestures. When that doesn’t happen—or if it is unreliable or inappropriate—the baby’s brain doesn’t form as expected. This can lead to problems with learning or behavior."

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/going-beyond-intelligence/201809/what-does-neural-plasticity-mean-parents

Celebrating the arrival of summer with sun bread and tie dye!

New playhouse ready for action! Thanks Tio and Nick and the donation from Fabis family.

It’s so powerful to review our assumptions.

Do We Wear Different Thinking Caps?
Differences between Eastern and Western thinking styles influence behavior.

If both Westerners and Easterners were shown a picture of someone tall intimidating someone smaller (without any other additional information), research suggests that Westerners are more likely to think that the behaviour reflects something essential and fixed about the tall person: “He is probably a nasty person.” On the other hand, Easterners are more likely to think that maybe other things are going on between them: “Maybe the tall person is the boss or the father of the small man,” ( Joseph Henrich , University of British Columbia).

To read more:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/non-weird-science/202105/do-we-wear-different-thinking-caps

Have you ever wondered why cold water seems to make you feel better? When I was a kid in primary school, I remember that whenever a child approached a teacher feeling unwell or upset, the teacher would say "Do you want to go and splash your face with cold water?" I used to think "How is that going to help? Surely the teacher is just trying to get rid of this kid..."⠀
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Well, research actually shows that cold-water face immersion produces physiological changes that help us to relax. It does this by switching off the sympathetic nervous system (responsible for the fight or flight response) and stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system (the part which controls bodily functions). It instantaneously brings down your heart rate to make you feel more calm.⠀
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The specific part of the parasympathetic nervous system that's stimulated is the vagus nerve. The vagus nerve is a branching nerve that connects most of the major organs between the brain and colon. It has been described as a mediator between thinking and feeling, so it is frequently referred to when discussing relaxation techniques, in particular, for anxiety.⠀
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Next time you (or your child) are feeling anxious or stressed, try a splash of cold water on your face, a cool shower or bath, or a dip in the ocean. For kids at school, I recommend splashing their face, a cold drink, sucking on ice, or placing an icepack/cold flannel on the back of their neck.⠀
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#polyvagaltheory #vagusnerve #porges #nervoussystem #anxiety #stress #relaxation #neuroscience #evidencebasedpractice #occupationaltherapy #perthot #coldwaterfaceimmersion #divingreflex #cranialnerves

5 Simple Daily Mindful Moments For Parents

5 Simple Daily Mindful Moments For Parents Whether the kid crew is acting mild or wild, chances are, your days would go a little more smoothly if you started and ended them with a few simple mindful moments. Here are 5 daily mindful moments you can add in to your day (not add on) to have less yelling and more peace in your home.

It’s humbling to experience the pure imagination of early childhood. Free play is critical to development, especially the first 7 years.

Becoming Unglued - Giving Your Child the "Alone Time" Both of You Need - Janet Lansbury

Food for thought for parents

Becoming Unglued - Giving Your Child the "Alone Time" Both of You Need - Janet Lansbury HI! I have a question. I would LOVE for my 2 1/2 yr old to play independently! Huge problem: she is glued to my hip, and I do mean glued. She gets tons and tons of one on one quality time with me (both pure, silly fun and also educational) she is extremely happy when … Continued

We give thanks for the maternal influences that shape and guide us. We celebrate mother’s, grandmother’s and women who uniquely love ❤️.

Camping Packing List PLUS Expert Camping Storage Ideas - Printable!

Organization!

Camping Packing List PLUS Expert Camping Storage Ideas - Printable! Looking for the best camper organization tips for a successful family outing? Check out our ultimate camping packing list + camping storage ideas now.

Craft week in progress.

Connection: the foundation of learning in early childhood

It is so important to understand how children learn best at each developmental stage. Learn more about how we approach science with young children.

Connection: the foundation of learning in early childhood In Waldorf preschool and early childhood, we don't focus directly on academic learning. Instead, we are laying the foundation for later learning by connecting children with themselves, each other, and the world around them.

Couldn't agree more with this perspective from Dr. Meghan Owenz:

"The more a child has the ability to work through their boredom by finding new activities, the less they’ll be bored because their creativity will start to grow. In fact, you should do a little dance every time you hear your child whine that they’re bored because something amazing is about to happen."

She shares more wisdom and guidance in her new book, "Spoiled Right" and on her website: Screen-Free Parenting

The Case for Napping Outdoors

The Case for Napping Outdoors Is napping outdoors really healthier for babies? Linda McGurk takes a look at sleeping outside in any kind of weather.

Computer screen time is damaging eyes — especially for children

Since the pandemic, kids have spent a great deal of time just learning online, which may hurt their vision. But there are some easy hacks that can help.

.... Here is the best advice: Go outside.
An analysis of 27 studies suggests it is the combination of long screen time and less time outdoors that puts young children at greatest risk of myopia. One study of first-graders in China (average age of 6) found that those who were given 40 extra minutes of outdoor time at school were 9 percent less likely to develop myopia over the next three years.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/kids-computer-eye-strain/2021/04/23/2f4ca928-988c-11eb-a6d0-13d207aadb78_story.html

A Beautiful day to celebrate May Day! We took flowers to the neighbors, did circle time outside, face painting and enjoyed eating on the patio. We can even hear Borah band practice outside while playing. Feeling the season deep into our beings.

A beautiful day is never lost on children.

Prancing ponies! The joy of spring is upon us. We love spending extended time outside gardening and playing in the mud kitchen.

Happy earth day! We planted a peach tree and carrots. We can’t wait to see them grow.

Children who continually have direct experience caring for our planet will feel connected for a lifetime.

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This remains one of my favorite things about homeschooling!

Slow mornings, leisurely meals, freedom to let the children play and explore instead of pushing them on to the next lesson.

How have you prioritized a simple and quiet life for your children? #homeschoolcompass

>> http://bit.ly/2TYkTvZ

Prompting Without Pushing: Guiding children through fear

How to support your adventurous child.

Prompting Without Pushing: Guiding children through fear It can be difficult to know how far to push kids when recreating outdoors. Psychologist Bridgett Ross offers some tips for managing fear in children.

Timeline Photos

Waldorf colors of the day

What is the color of the day and how does it help young children?

Waldorf colors of the day Using the Waldorf colors of the day to add rhythm to your life.

How Children Read Differently From Books vs. Screens

Scrolling may work for social media, but experts say that for school assignments, kids learn better if they slow down their reading.

Because we use screens for social purposes and for amusement, we all — adults and children — get used to absorbing online material, much of which was designed to be read quickly and casually, without much effort. And then we tend to use that same approach to on-screen reading with harder material that we need to learn from, to slow down with, to absorb more carefully. A result can be that we don’t give that material the right kind of attention.

To read more:
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/16/well/family/children-reading-screens-books.html?referringSource=articleShare

Spring is upon us with muster and bluster! It’s wonderful to watch children’s faces as they entered our transformed space. We’ve been waiting for you lady spring!

It’s been a wonderful week of creating color and birthdays.