It’s lunchtime, and there are four hungry children who were, just moments ago, playing blissfully outside and are now invading the quiet stillness of the house. How do you simmer the cries of, “Mom, we’re hungry!” and “Miss Laura, what are we having for lunch?” Easy. You turn the eating area into a diner.
I scrambled to create a makeshift menu that was comprised of nothing more than turkey sandwiches, turkey roll-ups and various condiments from which to choose. Of course, the menu also had a beverages section.
The children were seated at the first available table (which also happened to the only table at which four small children could sit). “Hello, and welcome to Lola’s Diner. Will this table be okay?” The cries of hunger pains turned into shrieks of filled-to-the-brim excitement.
Using a fancy metal tray, I approached the table as their waitress and took their drink orders. I filled the orders and listened as they spouted off their lunch choices. After reading back the order, I quickly went to work as the chef.
When the meal was over, they were happy not to have to clear their dishes and were arguing over who got to pay the bill. Lola’s Diner had been a success. The children returned to playing outside with tummies full and ready to take on new adventures. My roles as hostess, waitress, and chef were now over, and it was back to being Mom and Miss Laura, roles to which I was glad to return.
Note: “Lola” is what my best friend’s younger daughter used to call me instead of Laura. She now calls me that just because she knows I love it!
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Written by Laura on November 16, 2011
If you are anything like me, poetry may be a bit bewildering to you. After listening to or reading a poem, you may think to yourself, “Wow! That is beautiful.” It is also quite possible that the word, “What?” popped into your head amidst your confusion.
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Written by Laura on November 7, 2011
I have never met anyone who didn’t laugh at least a little when they saw a movie clip that has been dubbed over in another language. I always wonder if the words that the narrator is saying in English are even close to those that are actually being spoken in the original language of the film. Your child may also get a chuckle out of a similar activity.
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Written by Laura on October 28, 2011
Although we certainly would not expect a preschooler to be reading fluently and with expression at the age of three or four, they can, at this age, repeat what you have shown them how to do. One way to do this in which your child will most likely begin to mimic your behavior without any prompting from you, is to teach them some action rhymes.
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Written by BRWI Staff on October 17, 2011
With all of the wild weather we have been witnessing across the globe, now is the perfect time to teach your little one the basics of meteorology. I am not suggesting you need to go into wind streams and how to map a weather pattern. However, even preschool children can enjoy learning about temperatures, precipitation, and clouds. And, although they may not use them correctly, a colorful map w
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Written by BRWI Staff on June 10, 2011
If most people were asked to write a poem, the resulting piece of writing would probably be a short, rhyming story. Although there are numerous other, more advanced ways of writing poetry, this simple, elementary style is perfect for preschool children.
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Written by Laura on May 6, 2011
Part of being able to read with expression, is identifying the feelings of the characters. Young children who are not yet able to read are still able to understand character emotions based on what is happening in the story. As the adult reading the story, you can help your child make a connection between how a character feels and how you read the words.
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Written by BRWI Staff on April 4, 2011
It may seem impossible to teach reading fluency to a child who is not yet able to read. However, reading fluently involves more than simply being able to decode the words. In order to read fluently, a person must be able to chunk groups of words together and say them in a steady fashion. A reader must make the words on the page sound natural and flowing.
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Written by BRWI Staff on February 11, 2011
Children also like to watch videos of themselves. They can be home videos of years gone past or videos made of them playing just a few minutes beforehand. There is simply something about seeing themselves recorded on video that captures their attention. Use this interest to help your child evaluate their own expression and fluency.
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Written by Laura on December 15, 2010
When my older son was just beginning to read, I quickly noticed that he was able to sound out short words where each letter in the word had one sound. He ran into difficulty when there were two letters together that made one sound. These combinations, such as “sh”, “ch”, and “th” are called digraphs. There are also other common blends, such as “cl”
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Written by Laura on October 27, 2010
Our goal is to give you the tools and confidence to teach your preschooler the joy of reading and writing.
Sponsored by Bridges Reading & Writing Institute -- teaching the JOY of reading and writing to students in preschool through 12th grade.
