Easy Spring Blossoms

It's going to be a few more weeks before things start to green up in Edmonton. Try an easy painting project with your little ones this week and add some spring color to your walls. This activity is great for children 2 1/2 and up.

To start, draw some simple spring shapes on a large piece of paper - we used finger-painting paper and a black permanent marker.

Using finger paint, add swirls of different color paint all over the piece of paper. We used orange, yellow, blue, purple, and red.

Have the children mix the colours together with their fingers, spreading the paint evenly over the different images. Be careful not to mix the paint too much, or you will end up with brown flowers and butterflies! We listened to Vivaldi's Four Seasons while we painted and the children loved to move their fingers to the music. We talked about the different colours they made by mixing the paint together, and they tried different ways to make designs and patterns in the paint.

Allow the paint to dry thoroughly and then cut out the pictures.

We added some construction paper stems and grass to complete our spring blooms. This was a fun activity and everyone really enjoyed it. Now our dayhome walls are a bit more spring-like, even if outside isn't quite there yet!

Re-Thinking Time Out

If you are still using time out to "punish" a child for "bad behaviour" then please read further and try to open your mind and change your ways. This is a humiliating experience for children and rarely achieves the outcome the adult had in mind.

Think instead of using the inappropriate behaviour as a teaching opportunity to teach a child a new behaviour through discussion. Show the child what they should do when this problem arises. Maybe they should use words to tell another child they are playing with that toy, rather than grab it back. Teach the words to say. Adjust the level of language to the child's age and development.

Children need to know that they have your support to get through these situations and will help with the other child who also needs to be taught how to ask, or wait for a turn. You may have to explain to an older child that a younger child does not know he/she must wait for a turn and has to learn this. Teach how to compromise and give a younger child a few blocks of his own so he won't take yours.

Model staying calm and in control for children. Let them know you are there to listen, and help. This calms a child substantially to know you will be there.

Of course, you will still have screaming red faced crying children who flail themselves about and aggressively attack others. At this time, you will need more patience and will have to dig deeper to stay calm. Give the child some space to let it out. This is natural and anger has built to a point where it must come out. Stay quiet and do not upset the child further with insensitive comments. Let the child know he/she is still loved and hold the child when they come to you.

Find a way to solve the problem while the child is upset to distract yourself from anger. Please do not walk away or isolate a child in a room - there are many things wrong with this approach. Keep them close, in view, and touch them gently if they will allow it. The child is not intentionally trying to make you angry. It's all about their own emotion. Keep your emotions in check. When the child is ready, talk about feelings and name them, offer an alternative/compromise that is acceptable. You are still in charge of the situation, you are just recognizing that the child has something to learn. You are the child's teacher.

If you give in at this moment you must know that next time there will be a bigger tantrum. Think of this process not as a power struggle, but an opportunity to discuss and solve a problem that leaves you both feeling good. Chances are, the number of incidents will decrease when new skills to have needs/wants met are learned. It's a process that takes time.

Pfeffernusse: "pepper nuts"

Dunk these hard cookies in tea or hot chocolate for a traditional German Christmas treat!

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
8 tablespoons butter (room temperature)
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon finely chopped orange zest
1/2 cup icing sugar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and pepper.
In a large bowl combine butter and brown sugar. Beat on medium speed until well blended.
Add honey, egg yolk, and zest. Mix until blended.
Place balls of dough on cookie sheet. Press gently to flatten slightly.
Bake until edges are light brown - about 14 minutes.
Remove from oven and place on cooling rack.
Source: Around the World Cookbook by Abigail Johnson Dodge

Gingerbread Play Dough

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1/2 cup salt
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 cup boiling water
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg

Directions:
Mix flour and salt and cream of tartar in a bowl. Add spices until it smells good. Add boiling water (or hot coffee), and oil. Mix and knead with hands to form a soft dough.
Add rolling pins, cookie cutters and colored play dough to decorate each cookie with.
Have fun!

Food Fears

Children need to be exposed to new foods 10-15 times before they will stop fearing it and start eating it. Decrease a child's food fears by creating a supportive and enjoyable eating environment. Having and enjoyable experiences with food will highly influence a child's choice to eat the food - or not.


1.Provide fun learning experiences with food by baking, cooking, making smooothies, and washing and cutting up fruit or vegetables together. Children are able to help set the table and put own dishes in the sink or dishwasher.


2.Sit down to eat with the child to model good habits. Show children you value what the food has to offer by modeling an openness to trying new foods, talk about how good it tastes ( describe colors, tastes, and textures such as crunchy,and stringy). Use dips and sauces to enhance flavour. Allow children to help themselves to a platter of food. Teach table manners in a fun way.


3. Restrict foods like cookies, potato chips, hotdogs, macaroni and cheese.


4. Ask families to bring a food item to taste - maybe from another culture.


Avoid a power struggle! Never pressure a child to eat. Pushing a spoon away, turning the head, spitting food out, holding food in cheeks is a clear communication to stop. This will cause total refusal to eat.


Early childhood (2 - 5 years) is the time to introduce new foods because the variety of foods they will accept is greatest during this time period than later in childhood.