Child Care Specialists of the Black Hills

02/18/2023

12/05/2022

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This water bottle at the supermarket is worth £0.50.

The same bottle at a hotel is £3, and at an airport, £5.

Same bottle, same brand. The only thing that changes is the place. Each place gives a different value to the same item.

When you feel worthless, change places, don't stay there.

Have the courage to change your circle of influence and go to a place that sees your value.

Surround yourself with people who KNOW YOUR WORTH!

11/28/2022

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Crawling is actually a stage that happens BEFORE sitting up!

Some children crawl on all 4s
Some children crawl on their bellies.
Some crawl like a bear, straight legs and using their feet instead of their knees.
Some children might miss the stage
completely ? Every child is unique ♥️

Do you want to know WHY at The Curiosity Approach, we encourage freedom of movement and therefore don’t prop up babies? We don’t sit babies up, prop them, park or get them to balance.

Because when we do this we are not allowing children the opportunity to crawl, the time and space to master crawling and THEN get into the sitting position themselves.

Babies progress from rolling over to being on their fronts. To then supporting themselves on their forearms

They then begin to straighten their arms lifting their trunk of the floor
Shifting their weight to their shoulders, allowing their knees to draw up.

Watch in fascination as a baby’s natural development unfolds and they come into a crawling all 4s position.

Why some babies might bum shuffle instead? 👍🏼

Some babies might bum shuffle instead of crawling because they have an urge to move, to reach things.

Movement is a driver and an URGE they have to figure out how to get out of this seated position that they have been sat or ‘parked’ in ! They want to move 🙌🏼♥️

Do they fall forward onto their face and get back onto their tummies ( they don’t understand to use their hands to cushion the fall )
or maybe they sit waiting for an adult to come move them, rescue them.
Do they learn to cry to get assistance ?

Perhaps they have been placed in a seated position and have worked it out, found a new mode of movement, skipping the crawling stage completely? Starting to hitch forward on their bum?

All children are utterly unique, amazing and different. Adapting to situations. 💯♥️

But what about crawling ? It’s important we recognise the importance of crawling for all children. The evolutionary stages of coming up into a standing position.

If children miss out crawling
Primal reflexes may get stuck if we don’t provide opportunities for crawling for all children. This can cause difficulties later on
EG - with sitting still at school, shoulder strength and stability.

Difficulty with strength in pivotal joints, strength and eventually hand writing skills. ( see previous posts on handwriting)

Research also suggests skipping the crawling stage can be a contributing factor and cause fussy eaters! 😳🤯

Why? Because they haven’t been through the process of textural input for hands

It’s OK ! This isn’t all doom and gloom if a child has missed the crawling stage 🥰
We can instead look to offer physical activities to help children experience the stage that they missed🙌🏼♥️

Offer lots of crawling about games
Crawling through tunnels
Clambering under nets,
Swinging
Rope swing
Climbing trees
Yoga
Physical movements
Digging
Tug of war games
Working / playing off the ground - leaning on hands / supporting body weight.
Hanging upside down from a climbing frame.
Playing on the floor
Painting vertically
Pushing and pulling heavy objects

Remember previous posts on pivotal joints ? See all the connections coming together! It’s child development and the natural stages of unfolding as children have autonomy over their own bodies and freedom to move.

Let’s reflect WHY as Early Years educators we are propping up babies, sitting them up before they are ready and let’s consider what development we may be interrupting?

We have spoke previously about understanding stages of development when it comes to handwriting! To not rush those pre requisite skills in a hurry for children to hold a pencil!

Then WHY shouldn’t we give as much consideration to not rushing the ‘sitting up’ stage for babies and refrain from putting them into positions they can’t get into naturally and unaided ?

Sitting up comes AFTER crawling. Give babies the time and freedom to get into the seated position unaided. THEMSELVES

Tomorrow we discuss container babies and sedentary life styles. Why not join us for more info.

This informative post and others will get written up as a PDF download - once complete 🙌🏼
Sign up to our mailing list or for our next 2023 practitioner course.
www.thecuriosityapproach.co.uk to never miss an update from us 🙌🏼♥️

https://thefnc.com/research/crawling-is-important-for-childhood-brain-development/

11/19/2022

Yes!!!

11/14/2022

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11/12/2022

YES!!! 💕💕

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11/12/2022

Studies show this to be very true. Another reason to take the kids outside!

HOW TO BEST PREPARE PRESCHOOLERS FOR FUTURE READING AND WRITING

There's no need for pencils or paper. Preschoolers don’t need to learn letters at this age either.

“Getting ready to read and write does NOT need to, nor should it, involve sitting still, OR letters, OR paper, and pencil. There are so many other important things that need to happen, and happen a LOT, before a child can successfully read and write.” - Denita Dinger, author and early childhood educator

• Children need a strong sense of body awareness (developed through active free play)
• Eyes need to track
• Core muscles (stomach & back), shoulders, neck, hand, and finger strength should be adequate
• Children need basic coordination of both fine and gross motor skills
• Children need time to make lots of mistakes and learn perseverance

Children gain these foundational skills through FREQUENT outdoor play opportunities!

Let children....

Blow more bubbles.
Swing, spin, and roll down hills.
Hang upside down from the monkey bars.
Climb more trees.
Build more forts.
Make more mistakes.
Struggle more, give up less.

Ample outdoor play opportunities lay a strong foundation by organizing the brain and preparing the body, so that reading and writing can become a meaningful experience.

11/12/2022

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Agreed! Thank you to Conscious Parents ❤️

11/01/2022

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Shamelessly stolen from another childcare provider but I can't find the post now to credit - sorry 🤦‍♀️ I think this is beautiful 💕

10/21/2022

This is everything!

Dr. John Gottman says “the greatest gift you can give your baby is a strong and healthy relationship between the two of you”. Take the time to invest in your relationship so you can be that solid foundation for your children.

10/14/2022

We are a group of Family Child Care providers in and around the Rapid City area. Family child care offers parents a setting different than centers. As providers we are a constant in the children’s lives as long as they are in our care. We have the ability to individualize care for the children’s needs. While each program is unique in their own ways, our love for quality child care is strong in our community.

Every childcare option is unique. Family childcare is the setting where families are truly interviewing the provider as much or more than the program setting. They get to choose a person who feels like the right fit for their family.