Archives

• 2020
  • January
    • Getting the Environment Right
    • What's New for 2020?
    • Turning Life's Lemons Into Lemonade
    • Give children more time and space to play!
  • February
    • Quality Design for Infant/Toddler Classrooms
    • Getting a Grip: the Handwriting Dilemma
    • Hands-On Learning
    • Plastic Wrap Painting
  • March
    • Preschool Science at Home
    • Simple Activities for Kids at Home
    • What about those wiggly kids?
    • Maple Sugaring Time
  • April
    • Dealing with Bored Kids?
    • Learning from the Weather
    • Rethinking Your Outdoor Space
    • The Power of Fairytales
  • May
    • The Importance of Family Play
    • Post-it Puppets
    • Challenging Behavior in Challenging Times
    • Time to Plant a Garden
  • June
    • What About Toddlers?
    • Supporting Sensory Development
    • Standing Against Injustice
    • Shake 'n Paint
    • Capturing the Joy of Childhood
    • Reopening Childcare
  • July
    • The Ultimate Environment for Sensory Learning
    • Petal Prints
    • The Way Forward
    • Babies are Scientists
  • August
    • Masking Up Magic?
    • Process Art in the Sandbox
    • Math Play with Natural Loose Parts
    • Why Stay Inside?
  • September
    • Courageous Care Givers
    • Shadow Portraits
    • The Healing Powers of Play
    • Let the Children be Free!
    • Skills That Matter
  • October
    • Delivering Play Opportunities to Children
    • Leaf Prints
    • Planet Earth: Right Outside Your Back Door
    • Choosing Optimism
  • November
    • More with Less
    • Liberating Care
• 2019
  • January
    • Inclusion: Finding a Common Understanding
    • Prepared for Learning:
    • Tie-Dyed Coffee Filter Snowflakes
    • Building Connections with Families
  • February
    • Woodworking 101
    • Freedom in Boundaries
    • Blotto Art
    • Beyond the Itsy Bitsy Spider:
  • March
    • Sensory Play
    • Why Kids Need to Play Outdoors
    • Nurturing Creative Thinkers
  • April
    • Dividing a Space to Build Community:
    • Active Play away from Passive Screens
    • Strong Voices for Kids on Capitol Hill
    • Rediscovering Kindergarten
    • The Power of Walls
    • Easy Pompoms
  • May
    • Continuity of Care
    • Raising Intelligent Children
  • June
    • Mud Kitchen in Action
    • Encouraging Mud Play:
    • Pretend Play in a Natural Setting
    • Painting Without Paintbrushes
  • July
    • Guidelines for Outdoor Play Yards
    • The Impact of the First Impression
    • 1000 Hours Outside
    • Facilitating Learning in the Block Area
    • Painting with Water
  • August
    • Setting Up Your Classroom
    • Champion for Childhood
    • Creating a Boy Friendly Environment
    • Collaborative Blow Painting
  • September
    • Organizing, Editing, and Inspiring
    • Texture Rubbings
    • Organizing the Classroom for High Quality Learning
    • Furniture that Supports Children
  • October
    • What Happened to Fine Motor Skills?
    • Waving Your Magic Wand
    • Making Bark Boats
    • The Project Approach for All Learners
    • What Makes a Good Toy?
  • November
    • Building Connections at NAEYC
    • Helping Children Succeed
    • Embracing Process Art in Early Childhood Classrooms
    • The Wisdom of Play
  • December
    • Twig Tree Ornaments
    • Let the Children Be Free!
    • Crisscross Applesauce: It's Time to Move On!
• 2018
  • January
    • Offering Gradual Enrollment
    • Art in the Snow
    • What's Cooking in Your Outdoor Space?
    • How Early Should Kids Start STEM?
    • Live in Perpetual Wonder
  • February
    • Creative Containers
    • Every Moment Matters
    • What Babies Need
    • The Role of the Teacher in Block Play
  • March
    • The Magic of Growing
    • IQ or QI?
    • Catch the Wind
    • Project Work and Nature
  • April
    • Messy Learning
    • Preschool Paper Sculpture
    • Cultivating Food and Life Lessons
    • Rae Pica: The 3 Things That Have Changed
  • May
    • Give Your Tables a Workout
    • Seeing Children Do More with Less
    • Active Art: Shake the Paint!
    • The Best Way to Understand Math
    • Trouble with Screens
  • June
    • Setting Up Your Mud Kitchen
    • Hands at Play
    • Mud Painting
    • Irresistible Learning
  • July
    • The Power of a Purposeful Environment
    • Petal Prints
    • Life After Nature Preschool
    • Room Design: A Persuasive Argument
  • August
    • Developing a Love of Literacy
    • Cultivating a Culture of Creativity
    • Process Art: Marble Painting
    • What is Wonder?
  • September
    • Lessons from the Bowerbird
    • Shadow Portraits
    • More Than Dress Ups:
    • Inspiring Spaces to Learn
  • October
    • Increasing Family Engagement
    • Making Care Visible and Valued
    • Autumn Display
    • Guiding Block Play
    • Pumpkin Song
  • November
    • Spontaneous Learning
    • Giving Thanks
    • Post it Puppets
    • Oh Boy! Meeting the Challenges of Boys
  • December
    • A Good Time to be a Child
    • How to Make a Circle Star
    • In Defense of Active Learning
• 2017
  • January
    • Sensory Play
    • May I Ask?
    • A New Look In the Corner
    • How Classroom Design Reflects your Philosophy
    • Bundle Up and Get Outside!
  • February
    • The Role of the Teacher in Block Play
    • Teaching Compassion
    • Supporting Language Development
    • Time for a Fine Motor Workout
  • March
    • Outdoor Play—Rain or Shine!
    • Hands-On Learning
    • What's Wrong with an Active Child?
    • Exploring Science: How do seeds grow?
  • April
    • The Impact of the First Impression
    • Why We Must Return to Kindergarten
    • Making a Rain Gauge
  • May
    • Nature Name Hunt
    • Getting the Environment Right
    • Time for Spring Cleaning
    • Sit still and pay attention?
    • Screen Free Children
  • June
    • Making a Mud Kitchen
    • The Importance of Family Play
    • How do you use your outdoor tables?
    • Is Learning a Process or a Product?
  • July
    • How to Set Up Your Classroom
    • Spray Bottle Nature Prints
    • Return of Play
  • August
    • Just My Size!
    • Understanding Numbers
    • Colorful Leaf Prints
    • Designing for Imagination
    • What Happens When You Add Ramps?
  • September
    • Singing through Transitions
    • Teachable Transitions
    • Art in the Sand Box
    • Why are blocks disappearing?
  • October
    • Paper Bag Trees
    • Preparing Children for Life
    • Designing your Pre K Space
    • Creating a Flexible Learning Environment
  • November
    • Let Kids be Kids!
    • Snapshots of our NAEYC Booth
    • Is There an App for Early Learning?
    • Building STEM Skills
  • December
    • Christmas Greetings
    • From the Basics to the Beyond
    • Translucent Christmas Ornaments
• 2016
  • January
    • Making Time for Boredom
    • How to Make a Sock Horse
    • Making the Most of Winter
    • Responding to Challenging Behavior
  • February
    • The Project Approach and STEM
    • Exploring Science: Sprouting Beans
    • Have Kids Changed?
    • The Dual Challenge:
  • March
    • What is Quality?
    • Seed Song
    • Everyday Engineering
    • Building Literacy with Lullabies
    • Outdoor Learning
  • April
    • The Keys to Good Design
    • Why Children Need Outside Time (and lots of it)
    • Rain Painting
    • Soundscapes of Learning
  • May
    • The Power of Fairytales
    • The Reality of Gardening with Kids
    • Babies are Scientists
    • The Potential of Playdough
    • Screen Free Kids
  • June
    • Mud, Marvelous Mud!
    • Painting without Paintbrushes
    • A Solid Foundation for STEM
    • The Risks of Risk
  • July
    • What is the Outdoor Classroom?
    • Petal Prints
    • The Importance of the First Year
    • Defy Gravity with Unit Blocks!
  • August
    • Helping Children Cope with Stress
    • Does Your Classroom Inspire Learning?
    • The Challenge of Boys
    • Shake the Paint
    • Is Care your Pedagogy?
  • September
    • The Key to Understanding Toddlers
    • Embracing Rough and Tumble Play
    • The Wonder of Nature: Raising Monarchs
    • What Has Happened to Play?
  • October
    • What Makes a Good Toy?
    • Creative Containers
    • What Happened to Fine Motor Skills?
    • Make your own Magic Carpet
    • Tap into your Musical Memory
  • November
    • Hammering Log: A Starter Set for Woodworking
    • Thank you Bev Bos!
    • Make More Time for Play
    • Creative Containers
  • December
    • The Season for Giving
    • A Lasting Gift
• 2015
  • January
    • What is Inclusion?
    • A Place Just for Teachers
    • Tie-Dyed Snow Flakes
    • The Wisdom of Grandmothers
  • February
    • The Importance of Dramatic Play
    • Lessons from the Bowerbird
    • Indoor Gardening
    • The Tools of STEM
  • March
    • STEM is Everywhere!
    • The Best Toys
    • Inviting Learning
    • Easy Pompom Project
    • Compassion Deficit Disorder
  • April
    • Vintage Vase
    • Rediscovering Kindergarten
    • Symbolic Play
    • Creating a "Yes" Environment
  • May
    • Pebble Mice
    • Care vs. Education?
    • Start Summer with a Splash
    • It Smells Really Quiet
  • June
    • Weathering Storms: Nurturing Resilient Children
    • Art: Process or Product?
    • Setting Children up for Success
    • First Steps
    • The Value of Loose Parts
  • July
    • Encouraging Engineering: The Dreaded "E" in STEM
    • Art You Can Wear!
    • The Power of Curiosity
    • What do you use your tables for?
  • August
    • Science is Wonder
    • Texture Rubbings
    • Encouraging Constructive Play
    • Do we need to redefine "play"?
  • September
    • Water Play: See it in action!
    • Successful Transitions
    • Creating Clay Creatures
    • Empowering Mathematical Minds
    • Setting Up Your Classroom
  • October
    • Inviting Creativity: The Teacher's Role in Art
    • Making an Autumn Basket
    • Connecting Children to Nature
  • November
    • Celebrating our Profession
    • Framing Transient Art
    • Connecting Animals and Children
    • An Empty Box
  • December
    • Celebrating Childhood
    • Christmas for the Birds
    • The Project Approach to Learning
• 2014
  • January
    • Feed the Birds!
    • The Stuff of Childhood
    • What Will It Be Next?
    • The <i>Real</i> Core Standard: Play
  • February
    • How To Make Oobleck
    • De-clatter Your Classroom
    • Never too old to play!
    • Exploring Sand Play
  • March
    • Making Binoculars
    • Montessori in the Outback
    • When the Tables Turn
    • We need more sticks and grass!
  • April
    • Gardening with Children
    • Green Thumbs and Green Hair
    • Learning Outside the Box
    • Go Outside and Play!
    • Are You a Leader?
  • May
    • Celebrating Dandelions
    • Joy: the Most Powerful Stimulus for Learning
    • When is a Table not a Table?
    • Screens off. Play on!
  • June
    • What do Children do with Mud?
    • Do Your Children Go Barefoot?
    • A Special Place for Play in Special Education
    • What Does Your Third Teacher Do?
  • July
    • Mountains of Bubbles
    • What Do Blocks Do for You?
    • Nature Play Every Day
    • The Wisdom of Play
    • Tribal Learning
  • August
    • The Test of Time
    • The Power of Purposeful Environments
    • Young Mechanics
    • The Goldilocks Dilemma
  • September
    • Screens versus Children?
    • Building STEM Skills with Blocks
    • Foraging for Color
    • A Gift For You
    • Making Language Come Alive
  • October
    • The Right to Play
    • Making Nature Bracelets
    • On a Child's Level
    • Giving Children a Natural Start
  • November
    • Defending Play
    • The Big Questions
    • Making Paper Bag Trees
    • Physics in Preschool?
  • December
    • Christmas Greetings
    • The Village Lends a Hand
    • Making Icy Ornaments
    • Home Away From Home
• 2013
  • September
    • Of Frogs and Teachers
  • October
    • Once upon a time...
    • Reading at Five?
    • Smarter Than a Duck
    • Collecting Treasures
  • November
    • Foundations for Learning
    • Toddlers and Boundaries
    • Learning Happens
    • Making Bark Boats
  • December
    • A World Worthy of its Children
    • Why Play with Blocks?
    • A Great Place for Babies