Activity stations are a daily occurrence at TLC. Stations are mainly used in the toddler and preschool classrooms to give the children the freedom to make choices and try multiple fun activities. Our teacher take great care planning these activities to target motor skills and get the children thinking about colors, shapes, problem solving and more.
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Look below to see what Ms. Kendra worked on with the Toddler class today. It is important to give children the tools to discover new ways to play with their toys as it encourages creativity, discovery, and problem solving. You might notice that your child is getting bored of their toys, but as we know, having too many toys can be overwhelming and actually discourage productive play. Helping your child find new ways to play with the toys they already have is a great solution. If you are wondering about ways to engage your child in learning through play, any of our teachers would be happy to share some of their strategies.  The strategy Ms. Kendra uses here encourages the children to experiment with the different toys in the room that can be used for building. Here we see magnet tiles, wooden blocks, Legos and toys from the loose parts bin. This not only encourages creativity but it also allows the children to learn cause and effect and practice problem solving. For example, they can figure out which parts are going to stand on their own to be the foundation, which loose parts will stick to the magnets, how tall a tower can be built before it falls down, and more.
We are so lucky as teachers to experience and aid in the development of your child's milestones. Our dear Sofia and Nina both recently starting walking and their teachers were so excited to finally let them out of the stroller and walk their daily walk path with their friends. 
At TLC, we love our children and take such joy in seeing them progress through the stages of development. We love to celebrate each and every child's achievements with them and their families. If you walk the halls of TLC you will surly hear a classroom cheer on a friend for walking, using the potty, completing activities and much more.
Our teachers have so much fun coming up with creative ways to decorate for the seasons. Take a look at how Ms. Alyssa decorated the Toddler 1 door for fall with pictures of the children and a craft they did as a class.  Below you can see action shots of the Toddler 1 class painting leaves they collected together outside. After they dried, Ms. Alyssa laminated them to preserve the art and hung them on the door, as you can see above.  A closer look at the painted leaves.
Here at TLC, we make sure that when a child moves up to a different classroom, the transition is as comfortable and as seamless as possible. Here you will see Sutton during her first week moving from Young Explorers to a Toddler classroom. During the transition week, we slowly introduce the child to their new classroom. We start off with short visits in the beginning of the week and lengthen those visits each day. By Friday they spend their first full day in their new room! It may seem like a big step to most, but we find that through continued routine and structure, it is very easy for a child to pick up on their new expectations. It is a huge benefit for the child to be able to see their peers following routine, engaging in activities, and using effective communication. Very soon after a child is brought into a Toddler room, their communication skills blossom as they pick up on how their peers deal with issues, play with each other, and communicate with their teachers. As you can see below, Sutton saw her peers decorating the potted branches and eagerly engaged in the activity with minimal teacher instruction. After their colored pasta noodles dried for a couple days, Ms. Ashley's preschool class finally got to assemble their necklaces! Take a look!
Take a look at what Ms. Ashley's preschool class discovered yesterday. Did you know food dye will color raw pasta?! The class practiced their colors, making sure to emphasize the beginning sounds of each word and having the children identify the first letter of the words. After the lesson, they got to pick a dye color and shake their bags until their pasta turned a new color! Stay tuned to see the adorable necklaces they will make with their colored pasta later in the week.
What better to get us through these last couple days of the week than the adorable faces of our TLC infants and young explorers?! Reinvent the way your child plays with their toys. With this activity, your small children are going to be amazed that their toys are sticking right to the wall! Take this opportunity to work on words with your child and explore which of their toys do and don't stick to the cling wrap. What you need: Cling wrap, tape and flat toys, like puzzle pieces or magnets. Tape your cling wrap to the wall and show your child how it works. If they try to rip the cling wrap down, try your best to redirect them by gently guiding their hand to grab a toy from the wall, play with them so they see how it's done and cheer them on when they get it right. Once they get the hang of it, start pointing out words, hand them different toys to try and stick to the wall and enjoy their smiling face!
Need an activity to try out with your little one? Why not try out what Ms. Kendra's Toddler 1 class came up with. Ms. Kendra set up plastic ramps with a long strip of paper at the end. She had the children dip their toy cars in paint and watch them fly down the ramp. The paint leaves stripes on the paper that creates a really cool, abstract looking painting. A helpful tip: water down the paint so the wheels can turn easier and the paint spread farther. Look below to see how Ms. Kendra displayed their art.  After the kids covered the paper in paint, Ms. Kendra cut out square pieces and framed them on the wall. This is such a fun way to create wall art with your child that they can be proud of and brings back great memories!
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Welcome to TLC blog!Welcome to the TLC blog! Here you will discover all the different activities we do at TLC with our wonderfully curious children. ArchivesCategories
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