Here at KCCC we believe that family mealtime is an important part of each day. Jobs, children, after-school activities all contribute to families having to eat on the run. But, making time to sit down and eat together as a family is important and is sometimes the only time when all family members are in one place together.
According to Stanfordchildrens.org when a family sits down together, it helps them handle the stresses of daily life and the hassles of day-to-day existence. Eating together tends to promote more sensible eating habits, which in turn helps family members manage their weight more easily.
Expectations
The purpose of a family dinner may differ from family to family. In one family, good table manners might be the most important thing parents want to teach; in another, it might be communicating with one another, learning how to listen, and learning to respect each other.
Children need to learn a little bit at a time, experts say. If dinnertime is an interesting time of day for your child, he is going to learn how to sit, and say, “How was your day?” and “What was the best thing that happened to you today?”
Communication
Dinnertime is a time of respite from the hustle-bustle of everyday life. Your family can review the day that’s passed and plan for the day that’s coming.
Teach by example
Divide tasks, so Mom alone is not responsible for preparing food, serving, and washing dishes. The chores and joys of feeding, nurturing and cleaning up should be shared.
Don’t discuss things that would embarrass or humiliate family members. Certain subjects children may want to discuss might require more compassion, or more individualized listening. Otherwise, there are no taboo topics.
Build self-esteem
Dinner is a perfect opportunity to build self-esteem in children. By listening to what children have to say, you are saying, “I value what you do; I respect who you are and what you’re doing; what you do is important to me.”
Mealtime can be looked at as an opportunity or as a chore. If it’s viewed as an opportunity, then all sorts of possibilities are created; if it’s viewed as a chore, then the possibilities don’t exist. And it doesn’t matter if the food is filet mignon, or pizza and salad.
Seating
Parents should let children choose their own seats. If they fight over a favorite seat, help settle the dispute peacefully.
Family dynamics
One parent may feed the kids early, with the intention of protecting the other parent from a raucous meal. But this actually can isolate the absent parent from family dynamics and create distance. Certain scheduling conflicts cannot be avoided, but carving out family meal time on a regular basis can enhance family dynamics.
Get up close and personal with an A-7E corsair II Navy Attack Bomber, combat veteran from Dessert Storm that flew from the deck of the USS John F. Kennedy. Be the pilot of a Huey helicopter of Viet Nam fame.
The mission of the Chicago Zoological Society is to inspire conservation leadership by engaging people and communities with wildlife and nature. The Society is known throughout the world for its international role in animal population management and wildlife conservation. Brookfield Zoo is the first zoo in the world to be awarded the Humane Certified™ certification mark for the care and welfare of its animals, meeting American Humane Association’s rigorous certification standards.
In addition to vast formal gardens and picnic and camping grounds, Cantigny offers two history-rich museums: the Robert R. McCormick Museum and the Cantigny First Division Museum, fascinating for children and researchers alike.
The Chicago Botanic Garden is a 385-acre living plant museum situated on nine islands featuring 27 display gardens and surrounded by four natural areas
The only Natural History museum in the Fox Valley area, dating back to 1907. Elgin Public Museum offers exhibits and educational programs with natural history and cultural themes for families, school groups, scouts, clubs, organizations, homeschoolers, and anyone who wants to have fun while learning.
America’s largest railway museum, featuring many piece of historic railway equipment on display, and regular operation on out demonstration railroad. Take a ride on one of our many restored trains and experience a museum in motion.
Fun of the big city museum, close to home. Permanent and temporary exhibits including an 11-foot Mastodon and the world’s largest collections of picture postcards. Enjoy fossils, art and interactive activities with the family.
Step inside and you’ll feel as though you’ve just jumped in to the world’s biggest box of LEGO bricks! With over 3 million LEGO bricks under one roof, what will you discover?
The Mitchell Museum of the American Indian is one of only a handful of museums across the country that focuses exclusively on the art, history, and culture of Native American and First Nation peoples from throughout the United States and Canada. It promotes public understanding of cultural diversity through first voice perspectives.
Naper Settlement is a family-friendly outdoor history museum featuring 13 acres of learning and interactive opportunities for all ages. Located in downtown Naperville. Visitors are immersed in history as they learn about the past and how it relates to the present, from pioneer times to today. Highlights include special events and programs and activities year-round, both on- and off-site.
The Oriental Institute Museum makes accessible to the public many of the highlights of our large collection of artifacts from the ancient Middle East (10,000 BC – AD 650), including objects from ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Syro-Anatolia, Israel, Iran, and Nubia. Many of the objects on display were excavated by University of Chicago archaeologists.
Pleasant Home, also known as the John Farson House, is a historic home located in the Chicago suburb of Oak Park, Illinois, United States. The large, Prairie style mansion was designed by architect George Washington Maher and completed in 1897. Pleasant home is the only Maher building open to the public as a museum.
The St. Charles History Museum is a non-profit organization. The museum holds more than 10,000 photographs in its archive and 15,000 artifacts in its collection. The St. Charles History Museum houses permanent and temporary exhibits, the Colonial Anderson Room, photo and research archives, the Curious Fox Gift Shop, administrative offices, and the storage-preservation repository for the Museum’s collections.
The Children’s Museum in Oak Lawn is a place for families to learn, explore and soar together. It’s a place for children to be creative, role play and build. It’s a place for parents to be the teacher in their child’s life. It’s a place for discovery, learning and fun!
The Museum provides award-winning exhibitions and programs to 70,000 students annually and trains and provides resources for more than 2,000 Chicago teachers. The Nature Museum is one of the city’s best examples of eco-friendly building technology, including a green roof, solar panels, natural light sources and native landscaping. The Academy and its Museum are engaged in important conservation and research work, such as its Butterfly Restoration Project.
Explore, create, build, discover, wonder, think, play, and more! Every visit is an adventure in fun and learning. DuPage Children’s Museum ignites the potential of all children to learn through hands-on exploration.
Come and explore over 200 interactive STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, mathematics) exhibits which inspire education and imagination. Every exhibit is a mini-experiment with information about what to DO at the station and the scientific explanation for what is happening. Bring the entire family! Young and old minds alike will discover science in the world around them.
Wonder Works is 6,400 square feet of fun, a place of creative play for kids birth to age eight. Located in Oak Park, Illinois at 6445 West North Avenue, the children’s museum helps kids, their parents and caregivers unleash their imaginations through art, performance, design, building and more.
At Kaneville Community Child Center (KCCC) we feel that incorporating music into our curriculum is so important. The students participate in a 30 minute music class every other week. We teach music basics such as rhythm, tempo, pitch, dynamics and patterns. We enforce these sounds using clapping, egg shakers and rhythm sticks. Our parents love to watch the students perform in our Christmas and Spring programs.
Music is so important to child development because it helps the body and mind work together. Exposing children to music during early development helps them learn the sounds and meanings of words. Using repetition also helps children’s brains create neural connections to form and stabilize.
Dancing to music helps children build motor skills while allowing students to practice self expression. At KCCC we love to have simple dance parties to get the students moving and to burn off that extra energy. Music allows children to develop social skills while building confidence and creativity. Music instruction also promotes group learning and allows children to practice social skills such as taking turns and cooperation.
Listening to music helps to strengthen memory skills. It stimulates the part of your brain that is responsible for reading, math and emotional development. It can also help to calm a child or relieve stress.
The link below explains the role of music in early childhood, including its importance and role in developing the musical abilities and enjoyment of infants and children, the vocal range, activities, and repertoires appropriate for young children.
We encourage parents to incorporate music into your child’s everyday life. Some simple ways you can achieve this is by listening to age appropriate music at home or in the car. Sing songs before bed or a “Good morning” song when they wake up. Demonstrate how to use simple instruments or make a music craft like a rain tube or maraca.
This book would be an excellent addition to any child’s library. The author explains the life cycle of butterflies in a rhyming fashion which readers of all ages will enjoy. It is a large book with intriguing pages of various sizes and striking art work. The large print and highly detailed, graphic illustrations will easily hold any reader’s attention.
This book is appropriate for Pre-school through grade school levels. The large colorful illustrations make this an excellent book to read aloud to an entire class or during circle time.
Easily relatable to science or seasonal themes, the book contains beautiful two page spreads on Butterfly Identification and Flower Identification. Advice on planting a Butterfly Garden is included on the last page.
Published by Scholastic Inc.
ISBN: 0-439-42449-6
Reviewed by Christine Banko
Christine Banko is a retired teacher with a background in Child Development, Art, Special Education, and Learning Disabilities.
All children enjoy being read to, and reading to them actually improves their language development on so many levels. They learn to listen and anticipate that all the words will create an interesting story. They learn that stories have a beginning, a middle, and an end. They learn that books hold all kinds of information, and they notice that words are found everywhere, on cereal boxes, newspapers, street signs and buildings. They learn that a cook book tells you how to make something. They see that older children and grown ups read all kinds of things to find out all kinds of information.
All of these things reinforce their literary appreciation. As they get older they begin to realize that they can create their own stories. If they have access to books, magazines, and newspapers in the home, and see parents and siblings reading, they learn how to use these resources when they want to find information or create their own stories.
Inevitably they will discover the joy of reading – reading for pure enjoyment. They will see they can travel anywhere and experience all kinds of situations just by opening a book. They will meet characters so interesting they won’t be able to put the book down. And it all started when you read them that first story!
Anyone experiencing “First Day Jitters”? The first days can be an anxious time even scary for some children (and some moms and dads, too!). They will be walking into a new room or school with all of these new kids, and new grownups, and new “stuff” and maybe Mom looks a little teary-eyed that her “baby” is growing up so fast. It’s no wonder some kids might suddenly cling to their parents in a panic and cry! Here are some tips for getting through the first few days:
Try to act confident yourself. If you seem anxious and unsure about leaving your child, your child will pick up on that and start wondering if there really is something to worry about!
Be consistent with good byes. We will greet your child and you can give hugs and kisses and say good-bye. We promise to embrace your child and help ease him/her into the classroom!
Make sure to say good-bye when you leave. Trying to “sneak out” when the child is busy and not looking sometimes makes the kids panic a few minutes later, and may make separation even more difficult the next day.
Arrive on time! It seems to be easier on most children if they arrive just before the classroom door is opened. This way they can enter the classroom with their friends! It can be much harder when they arrive after all of the other children have settled into activities.
Separation problems sometimes show up on the second or third day, just when you thought you were getting off easy! It is also common for children to have difficulties when there are major changes in the home. Let us know if there is anything happening at your house that you think is important for us to be aware.
As teachers and parents, we really do understand how hard this can be. We know that you are entrusting us with a very precious gift, and we feel honored that we will be your child’s first teachers.
If your child is having an especially hard time, make sure you have added the communication app of your classroom’s choice (we use Remind) and the school or teacher may be able to send you a quick note or picture to ease your anxiety about how your child is doing through their first day(s). Make sure the school and teacher have the correct emails and phone numbers so that they may give you a call or send a quick note.
Remember, that some children will acclimate right away and some may need up to two weeks to really feel comfortable and safe as they get to know their classmates, teachers, routines, and the rules of their classroom.
Using encouraging words towards children can have a powerful positive effect on them. Positive reinforcement can condition a child to repeat the praised behavior. Weather its academic or an extracurricular achievement your child benefits from encouragement and positive praise. Giving praise can improve self-esteem, increase motivation to achieve, and enhance perseverance.
Believe it or not there is a right and wrong way to praise a child. Here are some tips on using words of encouragement for kids effectively.
Praise Sincerely and Honestly
Although we want to praise our child purposely to encourage certain behaviors we do not want to use insincere words because it can be harmful to your child. Praises that are inconsistent to their behavior can lead to self-criticism and even intentional sabotage.
Be Specific and Descriptive
Point out specific aspects of the child’s performance and describe what behavior led to good results. This also shows the child that you have paid attention and that you care.
Praise Their Effort
When children can relate their effort to the praise they learn that they have the power to control or improve through hard work and practice.
Avoid Controlling or Conditional Praise
Praise that is given with the intent to manipulate or control a child can be harmful and affect a child’s self-worth.
Avoid Easy-Task Praise or Over-Praise
Praising an easy task can be perceived as insincere and lowers expectations of the child’s competence. Children who are over-praised will expect praises every time they complete a task.
Avoid Comparison Praise
Children who are praised by comparison can lose motivation faster. Social-comparison praise teaches children that winning, not learning, is the goal.
Use this link to learn about the Do’s and Don’ts of Encouragement!
