A'Royal Academy

It's Back to School Season! 🎉 ✏️ 🚌
We are celebrating by opening our doors to every child ready to play and learn! Experience memorable learning moments, fun classroom activities and playing with friends!
Fill up that backpack and ready your school supplies and enroll today!

𝙏𝙞𝙥𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙃𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙤 𝙏𝙖𝙡𝙠 𝙩𝙤 𝙆𝙞𝙙𝙨 𝘼𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙍𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙨𝙢 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙎𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙅𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙚 💗

💡 Babies notice physical differences, including skin colour, from as early as 6 months. Studies have shown that by age 5, children can show signs of racial bias, such as treating people from one racial group more favourably than the other. Ignoring or avoiding the topic isn’t protecting children, it’s leaving them exposed to bias that exists wherever we live. Children who encounter racism, can be left feeling lost while trying to understand why they are being treated a certain way, which in turn can impact their long-term development and well-being.

💡 How to talk to your child about racism
The way children understand the world evolves as they grow, but it’s never too late to talk to them about equality and racism. Here are some age-appropriate ways to start that conversation and explain that racism is always wrong:

💡 Under 5 years
At this age, children may begin to notice and point out differences in people they see around them. As a parent, you have the opportunity to gently lay the foundation of their worldview. Use language that’s age-appropriate and easy for them to understand.

💡 Recognize and celebrate differences – If your child asks about someone’s skin colour, you can use it as an opportunity to acknowledge that people do indeed look different, but to point out things we have in common. You could say, “We are all human, but we are all unique, isn’t that amazing”!

💡 Be open – Make it clear that you’re always open to your children’s questions and encourage them to come to you with them. If your children point out people who look different – as young children can often do from curiosity – avoid shushing them or they will start to believe that it’s a taboo topic.

💡 Use fairness – Children, especially those around 5, tend to understand the concept of fairness quite well. Talk about racism as unfair and unacceptable and that’s why we need to work together to make it better.

💗 Remember: It’s OK not to have all the answers.

💗 There are no others, just other people.

💗 Being silent cannot be an option.

(c) Unicef Parenting

Always fun at A'Royal Academy

It's back to school and we're looking for a passionate educator to be part of our team! We value service and dedication and compensates with packages and benefits! If this is something you'd like to do, apply and message us today!

Reading to young children is proven to improve cognitive skills and help along the process of cognitive development. Cognitive development is the emergence of the ability to think and understand; it’s “the construction of thought processes, including remembering, problem solving, and decision-making, from childhood through adolescence to adulthood” (HealthofChildren.com). It refers to how a person perceives and thinks about his or her world through areas such as information processing, intelligence, reasoning, language development, attention span, and memory.

When you begin reading aloud to your child, it essentially provides them with background knowledge on their young world, which helps them make sense of what they see, hear, and read. In fact, many educators and researchers postulate that “It is the talk that surrounds the reading that gives it power, helping children to bridge what is in the story and their own lives,” rather than just the vocalization of the words. Introducing reading into your young child’s life, and the conversations that it will prompt, helps them to make sense of their own lives, especially at a young age.

The hitting. The kicking. The screaming. The screeching. 😣
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Your toddler's brain is still under construction 🧠🚧🏗️ Especially the areas that help with emotional regulation, rational thinking, impulse control (hello hitting 👋) and language. So:
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1️⃣ We can't expect them to express and manage their emotions like an adult.

2️⃣ We have the power to TEACH them - over time, with patience and constant repetition - new ways to express and manage emotions.
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How do we respond to a physical display like hitting, kicking or biting?
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Here’s a solid game plan, and one that shows your toddler that it is NOT okay to hit, while also supporting their emotional growth:
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IN A CALM, CONFIDENT TONE:
1️⃣ ✨SEE THEM✨⁠
“You're feeling mad right now”⁠

2️⃣ ✨OK the Feeling✨⁠
“It's okay to feel mad"⁠

3️⃣ ✨BOUNDARY✨⁠
“It's not okay to hurt someone"⁠

4️⃣ ✨ACT ON BOUNDARY✨⁠
“I'm going to hold your hands now to keep you/me safe"⁠
- OR⁠ -⁠
"I'm going to move baby sister/myself now to keep her/me safe"⁠
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What if my 15-month-old is hitting and just thinks it's funny? What if my 4-year-old is hitting his sister HARD, on purpose? 🧐⁠
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Same calm script, all hitting scenarios.⁠🤯 ⁠
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Why? When you meet physical displays with a big "NO!!!! GET IN YOUR ROOM" or any other type of BIG reaction, we're actually accidentally giving attention to the undesired behavior. It sounds crazy, but your toddler brain craves attention THAT much, that yes, he will unknowingly repeat bad behavior, just to get that dose of attention.🤯⁠
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✨Later, in a calm, unrelated moment, TEACH✨
"Earlier, I could see you were really mad. It's okay to be mad, it's not okay to hit someone. What could we do instead of hit? Ohhhh yes, tell her you were still playing with that toy! Use your angry chalk, yes!”
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So stay cool, stay calm, stay consistent. You got this. 💯

Source: Big Little Feelings