Ants in Your Pants?

There numerous media campaigns inciting kids and families to get outside and move. As I’ve been doing some author visits as part of “March is Reading Month” celebrations, my experiences this remind me how important indoor movement is for young learners, too.

As an adult, I get itchy and twitchy when I have to sit still too long in a seminar. Imagine my sympathy for the kids at some of my visits to elementary schools! They often have to sit on hard wood or concrete floors for 45-minutes or so while I talk about the writing life and share my books. I incorporate interesting props and sometimes a song or two to help engage the kids, but what they really need is to stretch their legs.

During my visit to the Perry Child Development Center in Ypsilanti this week, the staff did something that helped the kids get out their wiggles and focus their brains: they had them get up and move.

Mid-way through the sessions and again at the end, physical education teacher Vincent Levigne put on a music & movement CD. It wasn’t disruptive or disorderly. In fact, it was the opposite—what a delight to watch 100 kids paying 100% of their attention to moving their bodies correctly to “the robot dance” or a song called “I read a book!” And what pleasure on their little faces! After a single song, the kids were able to sit back down, completely refreshed and re-focused.

It was a stark contrast to some schools I’ve visited where teachers forcibly removed fidgety kids from the group. I know they are trying to be helpful/polite to me, the speaker. But I don’t think author visits should benefit the author, they should benefit the kids. I don’t want to teach kids how to be a quiet, passive, audience. I want to show them how engaging with the world can lead to an exciting and rewarding pastime or even career. Hats off to Media Specialist Diane Bunge and the staff at Perry who make teaching choices that keep kids their number one priority.

What does this mean for GH parents and teachers?

• Gretchen’s House programs have always encouraged kids to move, indoors and out. Though the sight of kids moving around the room during instruction may look disorganized to outsiders, it actually helps many kids stay engaged.
• If your KG or first grade child is fidgety, make sure s/he get movement breaks when working on homework. Wiggly kids often do better staying on task if they are allowed to stand rather than sit at the desk.
• If your family will be doing an activity that requires sitting still and paying attention for a long stretch (for example movies, weddings, or church), make sure your kids get time to move before, during and after the event. Even a brisk walk down the hall can help.

--H.V.

Play Symposium: March 29, 9 am-1pm

In cooperation with the Rudolph Steiner School and the Alliance for Childhood, Gretchen's House would like to invite parents and community members to participate in an educational symposium on the importance of play. This event focuses on the fact that open-ended, free play is disappearing from our children's lives. We'll show the PBS documentary, "Where Do The Children Play?", followed by a panel and discussion on the barriers to open-ended play. After lunch, we'll conduct a variety of active workshops for adults and adults with kids.

Read more information by clicking this link: Play Symposium Details

You may register by completing this form and mailing it to the Rudolph Steiner school at the address on the form. Please note that we cannot guarantee childcare or lunch for people who register the day of the event. More detailed menu information will be available following registration.

Further reading/listening on the importance of play:

• Old-Fashioned Play Builds Serious Skills: an NPR piece by Alex Spiegel
• Taking Play Seriously: an article in the New York Times Magazine by Robin Marantz Henig (you may need to register to read this one)

We hope to see you there!

-- Admin

Summer Camp Registration

For over 22 years, Gretchen's House SCamp has provided 5-11 year-olds with opportunities to explore a variety of interests and activities, at their home base and in the local community. Simming, crafts, games, and group projects are just a few of the fun, stimulating activities that Summer Campers do every week.

We are currently accepting registrations for school-age Summer Camp (SCamp) at four of our Ann Arbor locations: Mt. Vernon, Traver, Oak Valley, and Dhu Varren. Families who register before May 2, 2008, receive a discount on tuition. For more information, download the complete brochure and enrollment materials here. Returning SCamp-ers can download the enrollment paperwork here.

--Admin

Children's Chairs for Sale

We have changed out some of our furnishings and are offering used children's chairs for sale to parents and other care providers. These chairs are mostly manufactured by Community Playthings and retail for $50-70 new; we are asking only $5 per chair. They are sturdy wood, easy to clean and refinish, if desired. Most are stackable for compact storage.

The 10-inch tall chair is pictured above, more pictures are below. We haven't figured out how to caption photos on this blog, but the descriptions are as follows, in order top to bottom: 6.5" chair, 5" chair, stool, 12.5" chair, and booster chair.

Please contact Administrative Assistant Shauna Dillard if you are interested or need more information.

-- Admin

PAG Meeeting Location Change

The Parent Advisory Group meeting on March 4th will be at GH-Mt. Pleasant, not W.I.S.D. as listed below. Please make a note of it.

Welcome!

To those of you who are here as a result of the flyer we sent home, thanks for stopping by. Please note that the navigational bar at right lists archived posts by subject. We'd love to hear your feedback about this new tool, and we're open to suggestions for future posts. E-mail us or leave a comment. Thanks!

-- G.H.

Family Game Night

With the super cold temps keeping us indoors more than usual, it's easy to get a little stir crazy. Why not pass the time with family game nights? Set aside one night or time every night -- to play together.

You may be thinking, "I don't have any extra time in my schedule. Here are some ways to squeeze half an hour of fun into the day:

• Don't do everything yourself. Do a five or ten minute pick-up where everyone cleans as much as they can, then let the rest wait. When your kids are grown, which will they remember and appreciate more: a clean house, or fun times?
• Play while dinner cooks. Most casseroles bake half an hour.
• Play in between loads of laundry.
• Turn off the television and video games.

Besides the camraderie, playing games has important developmental benefits.

• Kids who play games with supportive adults play better with their peers.
• Many games encourage cognitive, language, and/or fine-motor skills. They also help teach important social and problem-solving skills: taking tuns, compromising, strategizing, and dealing with disappointment.
• Game-playing is a great way to help siblings learn to get along better. Big sibs can help younger sibs. Younger sibs enjoy a shift in power when games of chance let them win over big sibs. Both can witness the fact that it's sometimes hard for game players of all ages to lose, and see how other people handle disappointment (effectively or not so much, as the case may be).

I once babysat for a family who insisted I let the kids win every time we played games in order for the kid to develop healthy self-esteem. Bad idea! Kids are smart. They know when they're being soft-soaped. Instead of building self-esteem, letting kids win destroys it because it sends the message that kids can't win on their own. A better plan is to play with kids as though you were their age. Which is to say, don't play no-holds barred Monopoly with a five-year old. Allow yourself to be distracted or single-minded, in the way that kids are. Talk about the way you play to help your child develop strategies, and offer to coach if they want it. Then again, back off if they don't.

You can play lots of luck-based games with a deck of cards: crazy-eights, spit, go fish, old maid, war, etc. Start out with cards face-up until they get the hang of it.

Some other games grouped by age:

2-3: Memory, 25-50 piece jigsaw puzzles, who stole the cookie from the cookie jar

3-4: Connect Four, pick-up sticks, checkers, Boggle Junior, Guess Who, dominos

4-6: Monopoly Junior, Clue, Yahtzee Junior, Othello, Pictionary

6-10: Chess, Yahtzee, Boggle, Battleship, Trouble, Scrabble

(These age ranges aren't absolute, but based on the manageable frustration level for average kids. Older kids can play any of the younger games.)

If your favorite game is missing critical parts, many manufacturers make it easy to order replacements: Hasbro, Milton Bradley & Parker Brothers. For older games, try secondhand stores or ebay.

--H.V.