Writing Tips
Is your child to young to build writing skills?  Definitely, not. Even babies
can learn skills that help with writing. The following activities will help
your child become the best writer he can be:

Talk a lot. Talking to children of all ages, including babies, builds vocabulary.
A large vocabulary will help your child write everything from school reports
to personal letters.

Read to your child – even if he’s an infant. With older children, point out
words you’re reading. This emphasizes the connection between reading
and writing.

Make up stories with your child, then write them down.  Let your child
illustrate them. Encourage your child to “write” even if he can’t make
letters. Give him plenty of things to write with, such as, crayons, pencils,
paintbrushes, and chalk. Scribbling and drawing are great practice for
writing.

Make letters with different material, such as paint, cookie dough and clay.
Practice spelling familiar things such as your child’s name or “Mom.”  Don’t
worry it you can’t tell what your child has written. Learning to write takes
lots of time, practice, and encouragement.

 Source: Parenting Magazine
 

Self-Esteem
Having responsibilities is a great self-esteem builder for all children.
Offer them encouragement and praise their efforts.

Discipline
In developing effective discipline for your child, what you do is much more
important than what you say.  Listed below are some suggestions for helping
parents’ actions match their words:

Quickly plan how you will back up your words with actions. As soon as you
tell your children what you want them to do, ask yourself, “What do I do if
they don’t listen?” Decide on consequences that  will be effective. Make sure
your child understands that he can choose whether to receive the consequence
or not.  “If you don’t clean your room after I asked you to do it, you are
choosing to be disciplined.”

Forgive and forget.  Don’t carry grudges, especially with your children.
Once you have disciplined your child, the incident is over. Don’t be bullied.
Children may cry, whine or yell when they get disciplined.  The calmer you
remain, the less likely they are to try those tactics again.

Plan how to catch your children being good.  Most children want to do things
that will please their parents. Using praise is a great way to keep children
doing the right things.

 Source: Assertive Discipline for Parents

                             Consider these facts:

•   Most early childhood programs operate on very limited budgets.

•   A good learning environment for children and a good working 
    environment for adults.

•   Most early childhood programs operate on very limited budgets.
    Parent fees - the largest source of income for many programs are
    insufficient to fully cover the cost of high quality.

•   Many early childhood programs cannot afford to pay staff
    decent wages and benefits.

•   Nationally, centers are experiencing a 40% turnover is staff each year.

•   Turnover hurts children and families.

•   When staff turnover is high, children’s language and social development suffer.
    Both are critical areas for children’s school success and emotional adjustment.

•   Parents whose children attend programs with high staff turnover worry
    more about their children. They feel less adequate as parents and miss
    their children more while at work. 

            To provide a high quality program there must be:

•   A good relationship between adults and children.

•   Knowledgeable teacher-caregivers who understand how children
    grow and learn and how to work effectively with families.

•   Adequate staff compensation to attract and keep good staff.

•   A good learning environment for children and a good working
    environment for adults.

 Source: Child Our Concern Magazine