early childhood Archives - home is where my story begins...

Using Light in Photography

Becca — Tue, 28 Apr 2015 18:30:00 +0000

I’ve always been a bit afraid of using direct sunlight in photography. Everything I read about light says that direct light is a no-no. It washes out the subject and creates hard shadows. Well, I’m finding that sometimes rules are meant to be broken, when you understand why you are breaking the rules. For example, the other day when I walked into my classroom, I noticed that the light was perfectly hitting my rocks and water bowl. I have a tiny little window on my classroom door and the sunlight was coming in through that one little spot. The rest of the room was still dark and I thought it made the water and rocks really stand out. I snapped this picture and I love the combination of light and dark.

On a different day, when the water jars were set up, I noticed how the light really reflected in our water jars. Again, direct sunlight was not supposed to be ideal, but in this situation I really love it. I also love the transparency of water and glass. In Reggio Emilia (a place in Italy that has inspired teaching in a different way of teaching from our traditional American approach) transparency is one of the key pillars. The idea of transparency in education is inspiring in SO many different ways.

I’ve been playing around with collage in my light-filled photos as well. I think collage is a great way to tell a story. On the computer I use the collage feature in Picasa, which is a free photo editing program. On my phone I use Pic Stitch or PhotoGrid. Both apps have been fun to play around with.

I’m kind of loving these light-filled photos, even though they break all of the rules. I’m such a rebel!

Happy light-filled photo taking!

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My Ebook Is Updated – Are We Ready?

Becca — Mon, 27 Apr 2015 17:00:00 +0000

Several years ago I decided to write an ebook. I had just sent my youngest off to kindergarten and I was thinking, “There were so many things I wasn’t prepared for, when sending my child off to school.” I had been a first and second grade teacher for many years when my son (my first child) started kindergarten, but I was in shock to find out what kids were expected to do in early kindergarten. I was slightly more prepared when my daughter started, but still not enough. When I moved schools and grade levels, and became a kindergarten teacher, I decided to make it my mission to help families prepare for kindergarten. My first ebook was born. I shared it on my blog and sent it to a few kindergarten teachers I knew. Several schools emailed me to let me know that they were printing it and handing parents a copy when they walked in the door to register for kindergarten. I can’t tell you how happy that makes me!

Well, several years have passed since I first put this booklet out there for people to see. My opinions and suggestions haven’t changed much over the years, but I was thinking that the ebook could use a little updating. Over the past few weeks I’ve been updating photos, updating links to different websites, and adding a few things like the kindergarten readiness videos I made with LeapFrog.

Here it is! I’d love it if you’d share this with anyone and everyone who has an young child at home. It’s a free ebook. I really just want to get the message out about kindergarten readiness.

Get The Free Ebook

Click on the link, above, to take you to Gumroad and download the ebook. Please let me know if you have any trouble downloading the book. I switch my provider this time, so I’m hoping I don’t have any glitches.

Please let me know what you think of the ebook!

Happy reading!

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Easter Activities For The Kids

Becca — Thu, 02 Apr 2015 16:00:00 +0000

One of my first assignments, when I started working for LeapFrog, was to create some Easter activities for their Learning Path app and website. They were looking for a range of activities that would work for very young children and something that would be great for the older kids as well. I came up with three activities including sensory play-doh, sensory egg shakers, and a scappy/artsy card for older kids to try. The colors in the play-doh eggs made my heart go pitter patter. Well, after completing this assignment, I sent it off and had the most wonderful response from LeapFrog. They sent me an email telling me that they loved these activities, photography, and my writing so much that they were going to use these as the cover in their newsletter that was slated to go out to 2.75 million people. That totally stopped me in my tracks, friends. It was such a great feeling to know that my work would reach that many people! Since Easter is coming quickly, I thought it would be a good time to share these again. You can click on the links, below, to take you to Learning Path and find out the instructions for each of these activities.

Easter Egg Play-Doh

Sensory Eggs

Scrappy Easter Egg Card

I hope these activities keep your kids busy and you enjoy them as much as we did!

Happy Easter!

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Rocking Chair Pillow

Becca — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 13:00:00 +0000

I was browsing through pictures and ran across a few photos from my classroom. I don’t think I’ve ever shared these on my blog before. A few years ago, I decided that my classroom needed a makeover. My mom recovered my pillows for me and I had lots of fabric leftover.

I decided to make a chair pad for my rocking chair. I tried a few things that I hadn’t done before, like adding a little trim, machine quilting, embroidery, and working without a pattern.

Not too bad, considering I was totally winging it!

I used the scraps to make a few floor pillows for my listening center too.

There’s just something so heartwarming about seeing little people feel like they’re “home” when they are in the classroom. It’s truly a happy place for these little guys!

Happy sewing!

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Kindergarten Readiness

Becca — Sun, 29 Jul 2012 14:38:00 +0000

As many of you know, I’m a kindergarten teacher. I didn’t realize how much I loved kindergarten until I had the opportunity to volunteer in my son’s kindergarten class. He had a fabulous teacher, who made kindergarten seem like the greatest place on Earth. Well, I have to say, kindergarten really is best place on Earth. I packed up my teaching materials and moved from second grade to kindergarten, and I’ve never looked back.

There are so many things I wish I would have known before sending my own kids off to kindergarten. In my ebook, I’ll share my kids’ stories and help you prepare your child for kindergarten. Yes, your child does need to know their letters, sounds, how to write their name, and how to zip up their own coat, but there is SO MUCH MORE to kindergarten readiness.

The link to download my book, on the side of my blog, isn’t behaving properly. I’m working on fixing the problem. Meanwhile, here’s an easy way to read the book. Just, click on the document below. I love technology… when it works!

Happy reading!

Are We Ready – final

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Let Their Confidence Shine – Start Organizing Now

Becca — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 01:25:00 +0000

School doesn’t start around here until after Labor Day, but I know that isn’t the case everywhere. Some of you are gearing up for back to school already. As a teacher, I know first hand that there is a direct relationship between how organized a child is and how well they do in school. Every day I see kids who are rushing in with no backpack, folder, or snack. Then I see the kids who are prepared, calm, and organized. I know which kid I’d rather be. (And which kid’s mom I’d rather be.) Don’t get me wrong, we have chaotic mornings around here too, but there are a few things I like to have in place to help fight off the craziness and help my kids’ confidence shine.

The Homework Station and Art Cubby
This week I reorganized our art area. My kids like to do their homework at the kitchen table. Our art cubby is on the backside of the kitchen cupboards so it’s the perfect place to store everything they need for special projects, writing assignments, and book reports.

If you haven’t noticed, there are a few school supply sales out there right now. NOW is the BEST time to stock up on school supplies for your home as well as school. I always restock my kids’ home art supplies in the fall, but I also buy enough so that when the markers dry up in February, they are ready to go. Guess what, if you buy them in February they will cost 3 times as much.

I need to say one more thing about homework (and I know that preschoolers and kindergarteners have homework too these days). The kids in my school, as well as my own kids, have a folder that they bring home every day. THAT FOLDER NEEDS TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL EVERY DAY! It’s really important and drives teachers CRAZY when kids don’t have their folder. So, have kids put their folders in their backpacks as soon as they are done. Nothing screams, “My parents and I are so disorganized!” like a kid who never shows up to school prepared. (Stepping off my soapbox now.)

Entry Way Organization
That brings me to entryway organization. Very soon, I will be making sure the coats, bags, backpacks, and shoes are ready to go. This is the room the backpacks are hung in. It’s my mini laundry room, turned mudroom, that is right next to the garage door. Making sure my kids’ coats and shoes are organized is a CONSTANT challenge in our house. I really don’t like it when they can’t find the shoes they want in the morning. It just sets the tone for chaos. I find that calm kids are happy kids. Frantic kids who are running around, crazy-upset that they can’t find their grey boots, are not happy kids. We’ll keep working on the concepts of hang up your coat and put your shoes in the cubby.

Library Books
The coat room is also the place for library books. The brown bag is filled with books ready to go back to the public library. The white bin stays there. It’s for library books we are still reading or haven’t started reading yet. Let me just tell you how devastating it is for a five year old when all of their classmates get to check out library books, but they can’t because they couldn’t find their book before school. Keeping the books in one central place helps kids have less chaos as they are heading out the door for school. Their confidence doesn’t shine when they have their heads hanging down because they are so sad that they forgot their books.

Reference Papers
Preschool and grade school teachers send home lots of papers. With two kids in school now, I know I’ll have lots to keep track of. I bought one of those magnetic, stick to the fridge, file holders at Staples. Then I bought five folders and labeled them. I have one for each kid, one for me, one for my hubby, and one that just says Home. That way when I need to know what time my son has football on a particular day, I know the schedule is right there. I also keep classlists, teacher contact info, PE days, and all that good stuff in there.

Home Management Binder
That brings me to my favorite part of my back to school organizing.

My home management notebook has so many wonderful forms and checklists in it. (Hint: You can google just about any form you’re looking for and it pops right up for you to print.) I have dividers for menus, shopping lists, chores, emergency contacts, babysitter information, family birthdays, and much more.

I think I’m well on my way to an organized start to the school year. Then the Holidays will get here and everything will be thrown into a tailspin. Oh well, at least in September and October we’ll be organized. I even organized my junk drawers earlier this week.

What is your best back to school organization tip? Leave your best ideas in the comment section. We can all use all the help we can get!

Also, check out the Healthy Routines Facebook Page to find more ways to get your kids ready for a new school year.

As a member of Clever Girls Collective, I was selected to participate in the Healthy Habits program sponsored by Kimberly-Clark and Colgate-Palmolive. The content and opinions expressed here are all my own. #healthyhabits #cgc

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We’ve Been Robbed!

Becca — Tue, 08 May 2012 15:00:00 +0000

Those darn squirrels! They are so cute, scampering across my yard, but they drive me crazy. Every year, we battle it out with the sunflowers. The minute my sunflowers bloom, the squirrels attack. They nibble the head off of the flower, drag it away, and leave me with a green stick with leaves on it. Pretty. A few weeks ago, my daughter planted a few sunflower seeds in some egg shells.

We put them on the front porch, but guess what! They are ALL gone now! I’m sure it was those pesky squirrels. They can probably smell sunflower seeds from a mile away. We’ll try again.

Happy planting!

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Card Table Playhouse

Becca — Tue, 08 May 2012 04:48:00 +0000

My daughter has been working on a little project. We have been seeing these card table houses on Pinterest and blogs. They are so adorable! Well, my daughter asked if she could make one. Of course, I said she could. I love to see her sew!

We had most of the felt and the card table was folded up in the garage. She drew a picture of the house she wanted to make and we started working. She drew her pattern onto the felt and cut everything herself. I made the MAIL letters for her, but she did almost everything else. She still wants to add a window and a flower box to the side. I’m so proud of her work! At first, I was thinking it would be tough for me to let go and let her create, imperfections and all. I’ve been really impressed with the quality of her work! I’d claim it for my own, if I wasn’t so proud of her.

I’ll share some pictures when it’s all done. For now, it’s the perfect little playhouse, even if it’s not quite finished!

Happy sewing!

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Home and Family Friday

Becca — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 02:28:00 +0000

I absolutely love this idea, to Make a Memory Jar. Kids Activity Blog could be my new favorite place to visit. I’ve always been a collector of “treasures” like shells, sand, rocks, and other really important things. My husband loves the fact that I store most of these treasures in bins in the garage. My daughter seems to be the ultimate collector as well. She started getting tired on the last hike we went on. Pretty soon, we noticed that her coat was looking very heavy. She had been collecting pretty rocks and saving them in her pockets!

I can’t wait to see the fun activities you have to share this week! We love to see recipes, crafts, or projects you’ve done around the house or with your family. I would be so happy if you’d grab my button and become a follower. It just makes me feel happy. I’m on Facebook too, if you’d like to follow along there as well.

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Becca — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 12:00:00 +0000

My Enjoying Preschool At Home e-course is open for registration! I’d love to have you join us!

I decided to start this online preschool resource for parents, as a way to support families who could not afford preschool, or would like to supplement their current preschool curriculum. Registration for Enjoying Preschool at Home begins today. The e-course will begin in mid-April, and run for 6 weeks. During those six weeks, I will provide a weekly video with ideas, lessons, and lots of fun learning experiences for your preschooler. We will also form an online community through Flikr, where we can post pictures and share experiences with other families in the course.

The cost of the course is $49. You can register for the course and pay online by clicking this link. Once you have registered, please send me an email. Let me know that you have registered, a little about your preschooler and yourself, and what you are hoping to gain from this course. I will tailor this course for you, so be honest and let me know your needs! Please send emails to homeiswheremystorybegins@gmail.com.

I can’t wait to meet you! Let the preschool fun begin!

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