Ten days ’til Christmas! Planning simple holiday themed activities helps to channel some of that palpable energy. The trick is to keep the projects simple. When kids’ sensory systems are overloaded with multi-colored lights, never-ending Christmas music and constantly changing routines, they don’t need any motor planning challenges. Activities that incorporate easy to do steps […]
Benefits: When the push pin is held correctly, the muscles required for grasping a pencil are strengthened. Both hands are used, thereby building the habit to use two hands while working. Visual attention is required to make sure the pin is exactly on the line. Dots should be close together, so simple spatial planning/reasoning is […]
Leaf Collecting is a time honored tradition of childhood. Shuffling though piles of leaves and searching for the most beautiful specimens can be a delight for children. Bending over to pick up each spied treasure and making a bouquet of the collection can easily fill an afternoon. Here are some benefits of leaf collecting: Visual focus: […]
Come Join me in New York! The pages of this website are filled with ideas on how and why sensory motor play helps children learn, behave and generally lead healthier, happier lives. I am happy to announce that I will be giving a day long intensive workshop in NY this November at Bank Street College […]
Each year at the Truro Community Children’s Garden, an animal is selected as the featured “pet” for the year. The nascent gardeners learn about them, draw pictures of them and feature them in garden displays as the season draws to a close. Last year the children selected chickens. They learned about the obvious benefit of […]
As the school year ends, parents and teachers are always asking me how to help their children with handwriting. Especially as the “Summer Activities” get doled out. I can’t think of a bigger kill joy than asking a six year old to sit inside and copiously copy letters and complete hand writing drills. Moving the […]
May is a crazy month for most of us. End of school parties…projects…grading…barbecues…sports…the list goes on and on. And that’s just the START for a farmer. There are many tasks to accomplish and the calendar does not wait for a free day or nice weather. This past week, the school garden had a long list […]
We’ve all had our share of rainy days this spring. So, what to do when the temperature plummets (yet again), the wind whips and rain drums against the windows? I squeezed into three layers of clothes, dreading my three hours in the raw, biting cold. Happily upon arrival, I discovered that Stephanie, our expert farmer, […]
With a cheshire cat smile, a third grade girl held up both hands and said, “I have dirty hands!” Her friend chimed in, “That’s part of gardening-getting dirty!” Temperatures may still hover in the uncomfortable 40 degree (F) range with a biting cold wind, but the garden cries out for food and care, so the […]
A nice way to get students re-energized, have fun and build critical foundation skills all at the same time is by introducing a simple balloon. Before you roll your eyes and click to a new site, consider what can happen with this inexpensive object when structured the right way. Benefits: Visual attention and visual tracking […]
Back in prehistoric times (that is before electronic devices…) I spent large swaths of my summer vacation figuring out how to spend my time. When I had early morning trips to the park and the purchase power to buy “GIMP,” I’d spend the afternoon covering wire hangers decoratively with the plastic laces or making perfectly […]