Early Childhood Learning Center

Happy Spring! This morning we distributed a memo with safety reminders for morning drop-off. If you are utilizing the car line, please make sure to:

• Stay In Your Car. Staff Members Will Help The Students Out Of The Car.
• Never Drive Around Another Vehicle.

We need everyone's help to make our morning drop-off procedures a successful process, while keeping it safe and speedy.

We have many upcoming events during the month of April. Please refer to the Important Dates Section below.

• April 2nd - One Session Day For Parent Teacher Conferences 12:05 PM Student Dismissal
• April 3rd - One Session Day For Parent Teacher Conferences 12:05 PM Student Dismissal
• April 4th - Family/Staff Bingo Night & Mini Tricky Tray 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
• April 9th - Wonderful Wednesday At 1:30 PM
• April 9th - Special Education Resource Fair (1:00 PM - 3:00 PM)
• April 17th - One Session Day 12:05 PM Student Dismissal
• April 18th - April 25th - Schools Closed For Spring Break
• April 30th - One Session Day 12:05 PM Student Dismissal

Thank you to all the families and staff members who supported the Panda Express Fundraiser!

Four practical tips to incorporate into your daily life at home.

Fostering equality and kindness in preschoolers is essential for their social and emotional development. Here are four helpful tips to use at home:

1. Model Kindness and Equality in Daily Life: Preschoolers learn a lot through observation, so it’s important for parents to consistently model kindness and equality in their interactions with others. Parents can show kindness by saying please and thank you, helping others, and treating everyone with respect. When they treat all people equally regardless of age, gender, race, or background children will begin to understand and reflect those values.

2. Promote Inclusive Play: Create opportunities for their child to play with a diverse group of peers. Encouraging children to play with others from different backgrounds, abilities, or cultures teaches respect for diversity and inclusion. Parents can remind children that everyone deserves respect and kindness, regardless of differences.

3. Set Clear Expectations for Behavior: Children thrive when they know what’s expected of them. Parents should set clear rules for treating others with respect and kindness. When a child shows kindness, praise it. If a child displays unkind behavior, parents can calmly explain why it’s hurtful and how to make amends.

4. Teach Positive Language: Model and teach positive language that supports kindness and equality. Parents should correct hurtful language and offer alternatives. For example, if a child says something unkind, parents you can gently ask, “How would you feel if someone said that to you?” and help them rephrase in a way that shows kindness and understanding.

By instilling these values in preschoolers early on, parents can help shape their child’s sense of fairness, compassion, and respect for all people skills that will serve them well throughout their lives.

What is "self-talk?"

Children learn that self-talk means talking to themselves in a quiet voice or inside their heads. They use self-talk to help them focus on what they need to do. Most children can learn to monitor their time and avoid frustration if they know change is coming. They can finish what they are doing, put away materials, and prepare for the next event. Some children worry and feel insecure when they don’t remember what will happen next. Suggestions are given to help children develop the skills to handle transitions. The “Self-Talk” strategy includes how-to use self-talk with children by modeling it.

Children can use "self-talk" with their families and at school to help them:

• Focus/Pay attention (Actively Engage)
• Remember what to do (Following Directions)
• Keep doing a task (Sustaining and Persisting)
• Control their body or words (Self-Regulation)
• Complimenting themselves and giving themselves a "pep-talk" (Resilience and Self Confidence)

Practice "self-talk" at home during bedtime routine, "We have to brush our teeth and put on our pajamas. Let's remind our brains with self-talk, "Brush our teeth and put on pajamas." Continue at other times, "We are going to the movies, let's remind our brains of what our bodies need to do with self-talk: I sit in my seat quietly at the movies." Adults can model giving themselves a pep-talk: "I have to bring this heavy garbage can to the curb, I can do it! I can carry it out slowly and steadily. I can do hard things."

Imagine you’re going to the grocery store, and your child has already had a chocolate bar for the day. You say, "No more candy for today." Later, as you pass the chocolate bars in the store, your child starts crying and throwing a tantrum on the floor, asking for more chocolate. Managing emotional outbursts can be challenging for young children, especially considering how their brains develop. In children aged 3-5, the part of the brain responsible for impulse control is still growing. This means that children may struggle with things like waiting for what they want, sharing with others, or controlling their emotions. As a result, they might act out by snatching toys, hitting others, or having tantrums when they don’t get what they want right away. Research also shows that between the ages of 30 and 54 months, children begin testing boundaries and learning what is acceptable behavior. This is a normal part of their development.

From a behavioral perspective, here are some strategies to help you manage emotional outbursts and develop a plan for your child:

1. Teach appropriate ways to express emotions and desires: Use consistent consequences to show your child the right and wrong ways to express their feelings and needs.
2. Validate their preferences, needs, and wants: Let your child know you understand their feelings and acknowledge their emotions.
3. Teach replacement behaviors: Help your child learn positive alternatives to manage their emotions.
4. Set clear boundaries for availability: Make it clear to your child when an item or activity will or will not be available.
5. Be proactive and consistent: If you can predict an emotional outburst, communicate the rules with your child ahead of time to help them prepare.