Tag: play

A Tranquil Isle in the Sea of Busyness

By Holly Koteen-Soule We all know that sleep is essential for rejuvenation, and if you find yourself paddling hard all day long, you may also want to find a quiet mooring place somewhere in the middle of the day. Naps give young children a chance to rest and recharge, but calm times during waking hours are also necessary for children…

Getting the Most from Play Dates: Teaching Kids about Friendship

Some children are born social butterflies, eagerly navigating the waters of making new friends with relative ease. And some children need more support when it comes to meeting new people and developing friendships. It’s common for children – even adults, really! – who are naturally quiet or reserved to feel uncomfortable with initiating a conversation. Young children are often just beginning to learn how to read social cues, share toys, and take turns in a conversation.   No matter…

Creative Thinking & Imagination for Child Development

by Cassie McKeown, Bright Horizons Early Education and Preschool Cleo, a 4-year-old preschooler, excitedly told her Mom, “…and then we drank purple milk that came from a purple cow.” Webster defines imagination as “the ability to form a picture in your mind of something that you have not seen or experienced; the ability to think of new things.” Every child is…

Planning a better playdate

We all know we need playdates. They give our little ones a chance to socialize with a peer and for us — actually, the benefit is exactly the same for us. But we’ve all had playdates that fizzle or leave us with more stress than we started with. What went wrong? This handy little primer will help you iron out…

10 activities you can do with an infant

“Umm … now what do we do?” I distinctly remember having this thought a couple weeks after my baby was born. Her first days home were a flurry of us trying to figure out how, basically, to keep her alive. How to sleep. Where to sleep. How the heck to feed her. Trips to the doctor to check her low weight. Getting the diaper…