Memories of joyful and meaningful play experiences can bind families together emotionally, even long after the kids have grown up. These five essential elements of play...
Emotional Expression Through Music
One of the many, many benefits of music is that it offers a safe and dependable place to feel our feelings. When we are afraid, sad, or really happy, we can invite music in...
Making Connections: Physical Activity & Mental Health
Child development takes place simultaneously across every domain; the domains all support one another. That means all the elements of your kids’ health are connected – their...
Foundations for Developing Daily Living Skills
Promoting physical health and development, including daily living skills, enables your kids to explore and function in their environment, which supports their development in...
Benefits of Family Style Meals and Snacks
You can download this infographic HERE.“Family style” is when kids and adults sit together for a meal or snack. Food and drinks are served from shared plates, pitchers, etc....
Benefits Of Water Play
You can download this infographic HERE.There are so many benefits to playing in water for kids!
Tips For Transitioning Your Baby To Solid Foods
You can download this infographic HERE.Transitioning your baby to solid foods is an adorably messy and exciting milestone. There can be a lot to think about when the time...
Starting Baby on Solid Foods
You can download this infographic HERE.Starting your baby on solid foods can be an intimidating transition. This overview of new foods to try and when to add them to your...
Early Transitions: Learning to Walk
You can download this infographic HERE.It starts with rolling, and then crawling, and before you know it your baby is walking … and running! You can support your baby...
Early Transitions: Learning to Crawl
You can download this infographic HERE.It all starts with rolling. Whether your baby rolls from tummy to back or back to tummy, or does a half-roll to the side, this means...
Choosing the Right Pediatrician for Your Family
You can download this infographic HERE. There’s a lot to consider when choosing a pediatrician, because you want them to be the right fit for your family. These...
Questions to Ask Your Pediatrician
You can download this infographic HERE. It’s important to feel comfortable with your pediatrician and to have an open line of communication. Well checks are a perfect...
Domains of Development: Strong & Healthy Bodies
Developing strong and healthy bodies has to do with the food children eat, the physical activities they participate in, their ability to help themselves meet basic needs,...
The Domains of Development
The Domains of Development Growing and learning go hand in hand. As young children learn and grow, interact with the world around them, and begin to understand...
Bicycle Safety Tips for Kids
Help set your kids up for a great ride by making sure they have all the right equipment in place. Wearing a Properly Fitted Helmet Adjust sizing pads or fit...
8 Things All Parents Should Know About Play
8 Things All Parents Should Know About Play Give your children time for play and you will see all they are capable of doing when given the opportunity. Children learn...
The Six Cs of Playtime
The Six Cs of Playtime It’s never “just play,” it’s learning. Learning that emerges through play is deep and meaningful to children because they have shaped it themselves....
Outdoor Play and the Domains of Development
The American Academy of Pediatrics says lots of unstructured outdoor play is critical to the health of children. That’s because outdoor play benefits children in every...
5 Benefits of Playing Outside
Kids should play outside! Here are 5 reasons why. When kids are given unstructured time to play alone or with other children, especially outdoors, they make up their own...
Encourage Physical Activity Early in Life
Physical activity can start very early in life as part of your child's everyday play! When you're choosing activities, focus on activities that are fun. If children enjoy...
Good Nutrition | Where to Start
Good Nutrition Where to Start A variety of grains, dairy, proteins, fruits, and veggies is a good starting point for any healthy diet, but the necessary portions of each...
Tips for Helping Your Kids Maintain a Healthy Weight
There’s no great secret to eating healthy. To help your family develop healthy eating habits, simply: Provide plenty of vegetables, fruits, and whole-grain products. Include...
Eat Healthy and Enjoy It
Instead of focusing on foods your kids can’t have, help your kids think about foods they can have, and make eating them fun! Eat the Rainbow Having a variety of colors on...
Why Dancing is Important for Child Development
Dance helps kids develop physically, socially and emotionally, cognitively and psychologically, because dancing involves every part of them – inside and outside.
When is it Safe to Go Outside?
It's always important to protect your children from the sun, and in the summer it's equally important to be mindful of the heat. 80 degrees Fahrenheit or below is considered...
Help Your Child Build Fine Motor Skills
Many of your child’s daily activities require fine motor skills. Your child can do more things for themselves when they have opportunities to practice these skills.
Nutritious Foods for Strong & Healthy Bodies
Assuring your children have access to nutrient-dense foods allows them to reach their developmental milestones with strong and healthy bodies and minds!
How does nutrition affect the developing brain?
Brain development is most sensitive to a baby's nutrition between mid-gestation and two years of age. Children who are malnourished–not just fussy eaters but truly deprived...
Healthy Mealtimes: Feeding Your Baby and Toddler Right from the Start
Food is at the center of our lives. And it’s much more than the fuel that keeps us going. It can be a source of pleasure, celebration, and—sometimes—challenges. Mealtime...
What’s Going On in Your Baby’s Mind in the First Year?
There’s a lot going on in babies’ minds in the first year of life, and their early experiences in the world affect how their brains grow in ways that can last a lifetime....
Infant Sleep Safety
Ask any new mom or dad what they find most difficult in a child’s first year, and they will probably mention sleep deprivation. By a baby’s first birthday, most parents have...
Here’s to Healthy Eating: Habits to Start and Habits to Avoid
Is your child struggling to try to new foods? Ask them if they can lick it! As silly as it sounds, even licking a new food is a way to introduce the taste. You may have to...
“I Helped Mama Too!” Cooking With a Tiny Helper
My 2-year-old loves to cook. In her classroom she is the first one to volunteer for a cooking activity asking, "Can I help you?" At home she enjoys looking at cookbooks and...
Explore the Great Outdoors with Your Child
Children are natural explorers. Set some basic boundaries, and let the child discover. The learning will come. Children use all of their senses to explore. They look and...