Little Learners Club

💡 Did you know?!

💡 Little Learners Club goes beyond art and sensory classes. We believe we are only as strong as our community as a whole. It is our responsibility as community members to help provide access to quality enrichment programs regardless of a familiy's financial means.

💡 Our classes are limited to 10 members per session. 8 of those spots are reserved for paid registrants and the other 2 are pro bono spots gifted to families in need of additional assistance.

💡As a nation, our teachers, educators, caregivers, and childcare workers are underpaid and undervalued. At Little Learners Club we have some of the most knowledgeable leaders with a variety of degrees and extensive experience. In order for us to operate at the highest level it's imperative to compensate our lead teachers and support staff appropriately.

💡 In order to provide legitimately commensurate wages, as well as give back to the community we dwell in, we strongly encourage you to donate a few extra dollars at your registration check out! We appreciate any aid our club members can provide so that we're able to support our team and the community that supports you!

Welcome to Little Learners Club!

💡 The economy is changing, the labor force is shifting and now more than ever C-Suite leaders are looking for out-of-the-box thinkers!

💡With the introduction of AI and expansion of innovation in every industry it's important to place as much focus on "soft-skills" as much as critical thinking.

💡 Soft skills refer to creativity, communication, adaptability, and team-work among many other attributes derived from early exposure to different forms of art!

📖 What We're Reading Littles Edition 📖

📖 Most of us already know the magic of Oliver Jeffers but this book made me fall in love with his work in a different way. Fables are usually especially near and dear but I personally carry many of the lessons I was read as a child with me today.

📖 This particular fable is the true tale of recognizing that what we already have is all we need. Power and greed overcome a man, Fausto, and it becomes his ultimate fate.

📖 Running with the idea of less is more and working with what you have can translate to the way we play with our Littles in so many ways. We can provide incredible developmental resources out of ordinary things. We can stimulate our Littles to reconsider the way we play by simply challenging them to use the tools they already have and recreate with their own innovations and curiosity.

📖 Aside from the life lessons and depth of self reflection this fabulous fable can provide, the visuals are simple, stunning, and are sure to spark a narrative on every page!

🥛 Yes, not only do we accommodate, support, and love our currently nursing Mamas but we even have experienced NICU RNs and lactation specialists on our team!

🥛 No, this is not an offering of LLC classes but we feel it's important to have a team of teachers who know what you're going through any time you show up to class for your Little and for yourself so that WE can show up for YOU!

🥛 From our friends at www.breastfeeding.support
Sensory processing and breastfeeding: Breastfeeding involves a baby giving feeding cues when hungry, being held in close contact, using touch, taste, sight and smell to find the ni**le and coordinating suck, swallow, breathe to breastfeed. If a baby has a problem with sensory processing this could affect the steps involved in breastfeeding in a variety of ways. Examples of issues that can impact on feeding include;

If a baby is super-sensitive to touch, he may not like being held, cuddled or rocked

If a baby is overly sensitive to light or loud noises this may distract him from feeding properly in certain environments

If a baby is very sensitive to hunger they may become disorganised and unable to feed. Babies with feeding difficulties and poor weight gain are more likely to have sensory processing difficulties

If a baby is hyper sensitive to movement and body position it may make positioning both more difficult and more important. Many babies don’t like to be on their backs to feed and prefer to be on their tummies with gravity pulling them down against their mother’s body

If a baby is orally defensive for example doesn’t like the breast deep in his mouth or has a heightened gag reflex it can make breastfeeding challenging . Conversely some babies may seem to be unaware of when a soft ni**le is in their mouth (Watson Genna, 2017)

If a baby has difficulty sucking and swallowing, this can make breastfeeding more difficult

If a baby is very fussy it may be difficult to calm him so that he can breastfeed

If a baby is so placid they are happy whether fed or not fed and do not cue for feeds, it can be difficult to ensure they have enough calories.

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🪴 The power of plants is STRONG! Use this blooming time of year to introduce the functions of multiple senses!

🪴 Touch: Gentle hands, explore the idea of plants being living things. Ask questions like "what does it feel like?" Take note of reactions; does your baby pull away and cringe or giggle to the touch a petal on their cheek!

🪴Smell: This is a great opportunity to practice guidance phrases like "can you kneel down to get close to the flower?" Or "We are going to use a one finger touch when smelling this flower please." Also, discuss the scent; do they like it? Can they think of something with a similar smell?

🪴 Lavendar is an especially fun plant for the kids to incorporate both touch and smell as they can gently graze their fingers on the purple stems and then sniff the beautiful lavendar for the remainder of your walk!

🪴Sight: Identify colors, shapes, shades, and sizes! Mix up your sentnace aytucture to reinforce descriptive words. For example: "Look at those beautiful yellow tulips! Those tulips are very yellow!"

🪴 Happy Spring everyone!

👨‍👧‍👧 Parenting can be frustrating but we can ease tension by better understanding our Little's learning style and how they process new information and instructions.

👨‍👩‍👦 Often times it's hard to comprehend or have a wide lense of interpretation for how regularly react to new activities when we're in the heat of the daily routine. This is why structure art classes can be extremely beneficial for caregivers and parents. In our classes there is no right or wrong way of creating art and exploring sensory tools. There's only lessons learned. Seeing how your Little follows the teacher' lead, guides themself, or mimicks the Little next to them can be very telling. And more often than not they're executing instructions in a very different way than you would or even the other kids have. These can be excellent indicators of their personal learning style which can create a stronger foundation for their overall development.

👩‍👩‍👧‍👧 Little Learners Club classes will also give you a better sense of your Little's physical reactions to new materials or emotional reaction to receiving or needing help. It's always nice to test these waters in a controlled and easy environment and while there's extra hands to help as opposed to your own kitchen table where a mess might add to everyone's emotions and there's no reinforcement to deescalate.

👩‍👦‍👦 Being able to attend weekly art and sensory play will give you an in depth look at your Littles progress as well as a leg up on how to better assist in your child's specific development style!

🖼️ When words are difficult we often turn to creativity. Whether it's a sewing hobby, journaling, wood working, or painting - a creative outlet has infinite benefits to furthering our communication and mental health.

🖼️ When your Little is struggling with words or emotions, taking some quiet time to watercolor or blast Taylor Swift and rage finger paint - it can be the best way to convey emotions or press the reset button!

🖼️ As the old saying goes "a picture *IS* worth a thousand words!"

✍🏾 Every time our Littles pick up any writing tool they are getting one step closer to becoming a skilled writer!

✍🏽 The outcome of the scribble isn't important, the objective is to exercise the OVER 30 MUSCLES in the human hand that are working together in complex ways that require stength and movement practice!

✍🏼 Your Little will start to learn ways in which coloring tools affect their art and will begin to problem solve their own grip and dexterity!

✍🏻 Penmenship may not be at the top of your priority list at 18 months but you will thank yourself when they reach 8 years! Letter writing can be especially frustrating for kids with underdeveloped fine motor skills. Often times our sensory sensitive Littles tend to struggle with handwriting due perfectionism among the hypersensitive crowd or "sloppiness" within the hyposensitive crew. Creating familiarity with lines and general hand agility in the infant and toddler years with playful scribbling can help hone this skill in the elementary years. And their teachers will thank you! 🫡

💦 Gross Motor Skills with WATER! 💦

🪣 Let's hear it for Hand-Eye coordination! Let your littles pour, squeeze, stir, or even paint with water! Start small with getting half the bucket full. Eventually (and quicker than you think) you'll hear them say things like "I won't spill a drop!" Accuracy will inherently improve when helping pour milk or filling pots for mac n cheese!

🪣 Introduce math & science concepts! Water is the perfect way to present the idea of volume and weight as kids start to implement gross motor skills in their every day life. Start with using phrases like "how much water will fit in this bucket?" Or "do you think you can lift this bucket of water?" You can also introduce floating objects. "Do you think this duck will float on top or will you have to reach to the bottom of the bucket?" You will start to see your Little develop incredible problem solving skills once they are given the tools to understand the *hows and whys* of sensory play.

🪣 When there's no fear or consequence attached to water your Little will have a greater will to focus on a task like consecutive pouring or measuring and the ability to enhance their concentration for longer durations. As your toddler begins to prep for pre-K this will become especially important!

🪣 For increased sensory play you can add soap (to create bubbles and transfer them to their forearms and hands), dry sand (and compare the differences in weight and shapes you can make with dry vs wet sand) or slime! All of these added substances open the window of conversation for comparing textures like smooth vs rough, slimey vs soft, gritty vs slippery. The more they can recognize these words and attach them to a feeling the more vocabulary they will have when tying to communicate their own discomfort or phsyical needs.

🪣 Water play is supposed to be fun! Get some mates and make it a team building and cooperation activity without them even knowing! Have all the Littles contribute to filling a bucket a quickly as possible and see how they work together with their skills and ideas!

📖 What We're Reading Littles Edition!
The Not Bad Animals by Sophie Corrigan

📖 So much of what makes parenting and caregiving difficult is miscommunication and misunderstanding. This holds true for almost all interpersonal relationships. Sophie Corrigan sheds light on acknowledging differences in a way that highlight the benefits of the attributes that make us unique.

📖 The less we have to explain ourselves and the more we can just see and accept what others bring to the table the more cohesively we can all live.

📖 This is truly a sweet read and excellent bookshelf grab from a young and progressive author from across the pond!

📖 What We're Reading Wednesday Adult Edition!
Nothing To See Here by Kevin Wilson

📖 Do not shy away from this hilarious, laugh out loud, poignant, outlandish but all too relatable novel! I put this book off because when I read I like to escape from the chaos of kids and caregiving. But boy, do I regret not picking up this page turner up sooner!

📖 Nothing To See Here is a silly journey of dark humor, real life emotions, combusting children (seriously), parent and friend dynamics, reflective moments and a chuckle on every page!

📖 More books by Kevin Wilson include Now Is Not The Time To Panic and The Family Fang

💡 Fact: You read that right! We know how impactful art can be on a child's development and school systems across America have taken note! 💡

https://aasa.org/uploadedFiles/Policy_and_Advocacy/Resources/ESSATitleIVSummaryofFindings-070219.pdf

👂🤚 Sensory myths 👅👃

1. Sensory processing issues go beyond sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch. Body awareness (also known as proprioception) and balance and/or spacial awareness (known as the vestibular sense) can be common challenges for those struggling with sensory sensitivities. These sensitivities tend to translate in a way that most would perceive as clumsy, hesitant with physical activity, uncoordinated, too daring. If a child has had a negative experience relating to balance or body awareness they may be reluctant to try again thus, leading to a slower development of their motor skills. A child's motor skills can be heavily affected by these other two senses and often times have the greatest impact on their development.

2. It can be easy to see an overlap in tendencies, struggles, and even solutions when it comes to development and diagnoses but not every child with sensory sensitivities or sensory processing disorder has ADHD and it is not a form of autism spectrum disorder. While they may co-occur, it is important to acknowledge they are their own issues.

3. There is no such thing as a child being too sensitive and no sense in an approach such as toughening up. Children managing a sensory processing disorder are finding their way in a world that feels even more overwhelming than it should. An inability to focus, shorter patience, difficulty with crowds, stronger opinions on food and clothing all come back to the simple fact that they are experiencing everything around them in a heightened or sometimes desensitized way. Toughening a child up will not create a solution. Forcing your sensory sensitive child to wear a cotton t-shirt despite their refusal because it's itchy is like forcing another child without sensory issues to wear sandpaper lined t-shirt. We simply wouldn't do that. Understanding your child's style of sensory processing (hyper or hypo sensitive) will create empathy and guide you towards adaptive options to help your child manage processing the outside world. They will carry these solutions with them for the rest of their lives.

👖 Clothing can be a trigger for anyone with sensory sensitivities. While this is extremely common in kids (and adults), the majority of brands have not adapted to inclusive designs, materials and functionality.

👖 Here are 4 of our favorite companies who are elevating sensory sensitivities into sensory SOLUTIONS - and have your kids looking stylish while doing it!