Cam had his 18 month checkup yesterday and we received good news! He is now being charted on the average 18-month old growth charts. Basically, his growth was being tracked on the preemie growth chart since birth because he was born at 33 weeks. This meant he was being compared to babies born at the same gestational age. That was fine, but I couldn’t wait for him to just be compared to other kids his age – 18 months, born between 36 and 40 weeks. Cam is meeting all of his growth expectations and the doctor is happy to see his progress and growth. Kids Grow Fast We all know that children grow up in a blink of an eye. There are days that I can’t even believe I have a 4 year old and an 18-month old running around. Blink… I make sure they eat well and I know that has contributed a lot to Cam’s progress. As parents, I know we fight the same dinner table battles. We struggle to get our children to eat their fruits and veggies. Sometimes we just can’t get children to eat at all. I don’t know why some days my kids run like crazy and aren’t hungry come dinner time. It blows my mind. So here are two tips to help you: When your child wants a snack, ALWAYS offer a fruit or veggie first. This is how I got my children to love them! Once they were used to getting them as a snack, there typically wasn’t a problem getting them to eat it during meal time. And if they wanted to skip meal-time, at least I could get them to eat a good snack. My second tip is to empower your child with options. When it’s snack time, allow your child to choose between two healthy snacks. Choice is a motivator for children and adults. Water is Best, but Drink Milk Too Drinks loaded with sugar just slow kids down in my opinion. I have noticed this first hand. That’s right, my kids don’t get hyped up on sugary drinks and run crazy. Instead they tend to get lazy. In addition, my kids don’t digest sugary drinks well at all so I know they need a lot of water every day. Cam’s doctor also made sure he was drinking enough milk each day because milk helps our bones stay strong. Young kids need a lot of calcium in their diets. If your child isn’t a milk drinker, there are other options. My kids eat yogurt and cheese almost daily. And a nice treat is a small serving of ice cream, which is a dairy product! Pack on the Protein You can find protein in many different foods. I grew up eating a meat, veggie and another side for dinner. I have tried to follow this same plan with my kids. My daughter, Capri, requests steak and corn on the cob for dinner daily, no joke. But they both love to eat chicken and rice, tacos, fish, etc. When you provide kids with a variety to choose from, their palates will grow with them and expand upon new tastes. They will also be more open to trying new foods. Don’t Give Up Capri won’t eat red spaghetti sauce or red pizza sauce. She will eat plain spaghetti with a little oil or butter and some garlic and white pizza. I always will offer her a bite of my red sauces when we have them because some day she may like it. I don’t force her to eat things she doesn’t like. We all have different tastes. But I don’t give up on those “yucky” foods either. Just consider them food options that your child doesn’t like yet. Sometimes preparing foods a different way helps kids to realize they are good. Cam didn’t like oatmeal since he could eat it. But every time Capri or I had it for breakfast, I would offer him a bite. And guess what? He gave it another try the other day and realized it was really good. Our tastes change as we mature so keep offering those “yucky” foods they don’t like yet and continue trying new foods and new ways to prepare old favorites. Did your kid’s eating habits change as they got older? I’d love to hear your stories! About the Author: Christine Cox is the blog master for Choosy Kids and owner of The Choosy Mommy. She has always had a passion for writing and is honored to contribute her work to this blog. Most of her writing inspiration comes from her daughter, Capri, who is fun-loving and full of energy, and son Cam, who is learning new things everyday. Click here to learn more about Christine.

Our publications help explain why sugar is in foods and answer frequently asked questions about sugar. Below, you will find a wide variety of resources for parents and kids, educators, health professionals and any person looking to learn more about all-natural sugar.

Tennis is a great physical outlet for young children as they develop motor skills and learn to think quickly on the court. However, physical activity requires proper fueling for growing […]

By: The Choosy Kids Team In some parts of the country, cooler weather is on the way. Parents often have to search high and low to find fun indoor activities to keep kids moving and learning. If you live where the sun is still shining down and it is warm, you may be looking for some winter or holiday crafts to do with the kids to ring in the holiday season. Choosy Kids has all of your indoor and outdoor activities covered with our 100 Seasonal Active Learning Ideas - Winter Edition list! We’d also like you to try to participate too! Think you and your children (nieces/nephews/grandchildren/students/children you watch after/friends, etc.) could complete 10 ideas? 20? 50? All 100? Tell us how many you think you can complete and show us your completions! Share your photos and completions with us on our social media pages (Facebook or Twitter). Remember to tag us (@choosykids) and use the hashtag #100ChoosyIdeas. Build a snowman Do snow angels Throw snowballs Catch snowflakes in your mouth Go sled riding Go skiing Drink hot cocoa with marshmallows Walk up and how hills holding hands with a friend Watch a movie with your family Play dress up Make snowflakes out of paper Find flowers outside Decorate for your holiday Make a gingerbread house Have a dance party with Choosy Kids music Have a tea party Make pinecone ornaments Won't be getting snow in your area? Make your own! Make rock candy Make a cave of stars Go ice skating outside Go ice skating inside - Just get some wax paper, step on it and skate across any surface! Do some apple painting Make gifts for other people Create colorful watercolor art piece. Try adding salt on the paper while the watercolors are still wet, or use aluminum foil to create patterns. Create sculptures with styrofoam and bamboo skewers. Check out this awesome blog for “How To” Build your own toddler drop box. Create a variety of shapes! Build a snow castle Play a game of snowball toss. Set up foam cups and use cotton balls to see how many your child can make within the cups. Complete some of the free activities on choosykids.com Play where in the world is Choosy?! Print a picture of Choosy and hid him. Allow your child to see if they can find Choosy. Have an indoor beach party. Pretend it’s a warm summer's day, and break out the summer gear. Participate in RAOK - Random Act of Kindness Draw in the snow. Use food coloring as paint and make the freshly fallen snow your canvas. Build a bird feeder and watch the winter birds come for a meal. Play outdoor hockey. Create a family movie Make a winter wreath Make a time capsule of your family belongings. Create a box which includes photos, postcards, or anything at all you would like. Hide the box and revisit it next year. Check if any parades are in town and go enjoy the festivities. Have breakfast for dinner - make sure to include a plenty of fruits and veggies. Create a garden sensory bin If you have a GPS capable phone, why not participate in Geocaching? Make up your own game. Let your children participate by creating the rules Try some water experiments (such as ice experiments with salt). Create a list of the outdoor changes between winter and summer Bundle up and head to the park for some outdoor fun. Prepare your garden for winter Make snow prints in the snow Create a paper clip chain Experiment with baking soda, vinegar and color With a chalkboard, write your child’s name out with chalk and let them trace over it with water Create popsicle stick sleds Create snowflakes from popsicle sticks Create farm animals from paper plates and cotton balls. For even more fun, can you create a Choosy plate mask? Build a cardboard playhouse Use coffee filters to create snowflake. Create a bucket and throw them up in the air for indoor snow effect. For even more fun, have your child match the ones that are similar. No snow? No problem! Use newspaper to create an indoor snowman! Create your own holiday and winter decorations. Make homemade play dough Build a marble race track. Read a new book everyday. You can check out Choosy’s Holiday Tale online! Put strips of tape hanging from the doorway and let your children to throw cotton balls at the tape. Bowl indoors Create jewelry from beads Have a color scavenger hunt with toys. Create a sensory experience with beads and water Create an indoor hopscotch board. Create an indoor balance beam Pretend a grocery store trip. Encourage your child to choose the healthy option! Use cotton swabs and watercolor paints to create the perfect pointillism art piece. Create a playscape table Create suncatchers Create and arrange magnetic faces Decorate aprons for the holidays Create a band with pots and pans, and be like Choosy’s band! Play charades Allow your child to explore their sense. Ask questions like, “ What color is that” , or “ Is that object rough or smooth” Use boxes as stacking blocks Create a cardboard wearable car Play peek a boo. If you need some music to accompany the game, check out Choosy Kids’ CD “Our Special Time” Create a collage from old magazines Make smoothies with fresh fruit Tape together paper, and trace your child, then let your child trace you. Sing together Take a trip to the library! Blow bubbles inside and see how many you can pop. Play with magnets on the fridge Create your own stickers, using a print, tape and water Use mason jars to decorate and create vases Create a pom-pom rug together Create yarn ball garland If you are beginning to miss the flowers, why not create yarn flowers? Make simply party hats from paper Create your own crayons with a variety of shapes and sizes Create paper towel butterflies Create winter finger puppets Create snowflake magnets Talk about safety tips for winter and the importance of staying safe when playing outside during the winter Create ice balloons

Children, like adults, need to practice good habits for optimum health. Proper nutrition, safety in and out of the home, and healthy practices such as exercise and wearing sunscreen will decrease your child's chances of health problems in the present and future. Teaching and modeling such behaviors can help your child embrace them for...

By: Jenn Ripepi, MD, The Choosy Pediatrician The loss I am referring to is not small losses but eventual big losses. But how we handle small loss can be building blocks to bigger losses. Resiliency is the catch word I'm talking about and there is more research about how important resiliency is to become well-adjusted adults. Let's Start With a "Little" Thing Like a Lost Toy What we say to our children is important for them getting prepared for larger disappointments. For example, if we downplay the loss by calling the child's concern unimportant, we are not showing empathy for their attachment to the object. Conversely, if we spend an inordinate amount of time looking for the object or, worse yet, replacing the lost toy whatever the cost, then we may give more importance to the object rather than to the feelings about the object. Tricky, huh? So How Do We Go About This Task? One way is to ask children to try to express their feelings about the loss. Maybe using an example of your own. Using words like sad, lonely or worried may help. Ask about what children think they can do to help get over those feelings or what you can do to help. Older children may be able to imagine what they can do to recover from the toy being gone from their daily life. Maybe they could draw a picture of themselves playing with that toy as a reminder of the fun they had. Or maybe it wasn't really that important and they move on quickly. No need to fret that they have not dealt with it. They have moved past it. They have shown resilience! Now Something a Bit Bigger Like a Pet Whoa! That's pretty big to some families. Or maybe it's not a pet but a bird or bug which you notice on a walk. Sometimes that can be a powerful encounter. Again, consider asking questions of children or telling them your feelings of sadness, emptiness or loneliness for the death or physical loss of an animal. These feelings of grief may go on a while if your pet was deeply involved in your family life. Let children know that whatever they feel is OK. Sometimes recalling memories or looking at pictures of your pet and telling happy stories about how the pet enriched your lives is helpful. Stating gratitude for having known your pet whether it is a fish or cat or dog or horse shows children that you accept that sometimes animals are in our lives for just a brief time or a long time. Now On To People Heavy subject. Maybe it's not people who have died but people who have moved away or who we've moved away from. Sometimes the person is still with us physically but is unreachable emotionally--like the loss of a friendship. These are very difficult topics and many of us have trouble discussing them at all. But giving voice to these concerns is the way that children learn how to express those whirling churning feelings inside themselves. Saying things like "Mommy is crying because she feels achy inside since Gramma is gone." or "Sometimes I get frustrated because I can't understand why my friend Pete won't talk to me anymore." Apologizing for our feelings does not show resiliency. Denying what we feel inside is not a healthy adjustment. Expressing those emotions and showing our children healthy ways to deal with them like taking a break for vigorous exercise when we feel frustrated, a walk when we feel overwhelmed or helping someone else out when we feel detached from others are great ways to deal with strong emotions. Drawing, writing, pretending and physical activity are ways children can begin to deal with these. Overeating is not a good way to deal with emotions. It can be difficult to lose sight of that sometimes. Healthy Responses is Key Teaching children to deal with loss by not trying to "fix" it, overreact to it or blame it on others does not help them to become resilient. Using healthy responses, giving voice to our emotions and supporting children to find their way through loss can go a long way to them becoming healthy, adjusted adults. Has your family had to deal with a loss of any kind? I’d love to hear your story so we can all help each other with healthy responses. About the Author: I have been a pediatrician for over 25 years. My husband and I have been privileged to raise 4 bright and healthy children. I have tried to gather wisdom from the families I have been blessed to meet during my journey. I believe in practical and flexible parenting to help raise healthy adults. I love to garden, hike, travel and cook and I am looking forward to hearing from Choosy followers.

We provide Childcare with a variety of fresh produce such as fresh fruit and vegetables, poultry, meat, fish, dairy, bread and cereals.

Active Start for Healthy Kids PDF By:Stephen J. Virgilio Published on 2006 by Human Kinetics When it comes to physical activity and proper n...

By: Christine Cox, The Choosy Mommy Note: Be sure to click on the links to find recipes, tips and holiday surprises! ‘Twas the night before a winter’s holiday and Choosy was busy, making sure the holiday was healthy and nifty. It was important that the stockings be hung by the fire, and on that eve he would wear his best attire. The gifts needed be wrapped tightly with ribbon and lace, and the perfect meal be ready for dinner at his place. But Choosy found an issue as he checked items off his list: the toe of the stockings just were not right, and he couldn’t get the packages squished in there tight! Choosy thought and thought about what the solution could be, until he realized, of course, use a fruit from a tree! Choosy ran to the kitchen where the fruit bowl sat, picked up the roundest fruit he could snatch. An orange could perfectly fill the toe of the stocking, and leave a healthy treat for holiday morning snacking. He shoved that orange into the stocking toe, and it made it round, wouldn’t you know! Since the stockings were finished, he checked that off the list. Now it was time to look his best! Red hat and red shoes were festive you see, but he needed something else, something made beautifully. Choosy looked in his drawers and all in his closest, but that special something was misplaced - he must have lost it. He sat and thought about what else he could wear, Ah! That’s it, something for his neck and his green hair! He made a scarf, wrapped ‘round his neck in a knot. This truly made him more festive, did it not? He smiled in the mirror, all proud of himself. Wouldn’t you know, he could pass for a holiday elf! Now onto the presents, everyone’s favorite part! And Choosy knew these gifts should come from the heart. Choosy loves music and dancing, indeed, so his gift to everyone was his newest CD! After moving and shaking to the songs that he loved, it was time to cook a meal to be proud of. A holiday feast of sorts, the finest for his friends, made with healthy ingredients, plus yummy odds and ends. Cranberry relish and mashed potatoes for sure, a holiday ham big enough for 20 or more. He gathered some fruits and some veggies and made a nice display. It would be a fancy and healthy holiday! Everything was ready, and Choosy was tired. It was time to go to night-night and get snuggled in all tight. Choosy closed his eyes and dozed off to sleep, And the snow outside fell quietly, not making a peep. Happy holidays to all from Choosy and his friends. Remember to be safe and healthy this holiday season – THE END! Please remember to share this on Pinterest and watch our video version below! About the Author: Christine Cox is the blog master for Choosy Kids. She has always had a passion for writing and is honored to contribute her work to this blog. Most of her writing inspiration comes from her daughter, Capri, who is fun-loving and full of energy, and newborn son Cam. Click here to learn more about Christine.

Purpose Integrated 24-Hour Movement Guidelines provide specific recommendations on screen viewing (SV), moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and sleep to improve health of children and youth. However, few studies have examined whether these guidelines are met in young children, particularly in Asia. We evaluated adherence to integrated and individual guidelines and its predictors in 5.5-year-old Singaporean children. Methods Growing Up in Singapore towards Healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) is a mother-offspring birth cohort study. At age 5.5 years, child SV was reported by parents. Movement behaviours (MBs) were measured continuously using wrist-worn accelerometers over 7 consecutive days and nights. For accelerometer data including ≥3 days with ≥16 h/day we estimated mean (±SD) daily MVPA, SV and nighttime sleep duration across the week. Adherence to integrated (Canadian/Australian) guidelines was defined as meeting all individual guidelines: ≥60 min of MVPA/day, ≤2 h of screen time/day, and 9–11 h of sleep/night. Socio-demographic and maternal predictors collected at pregnancy enrolment and at 26–28 weeks’ gestation were examined by multivariable logistic regression. Results Of 864 children followed up age 5.5 years, 547 (63.3%) had both valid ActiGraph and questionnaire data (51.7% boys and 58.3% Chinese ethnicity). Children averaged 101.9 (± 88.7) min/day SV, 67.3 (± 23.7) min/day MVPA and 480.6 (± 57.2) min/night sleep. Few children met integrated guidelines. Specifically, the proportions of children who met none, SV, MVPA, sleep and integrated guidelines were 11.2, 70.2, 59.6, 13.7 and 5.5%, respectively. Multivariable analysis showed that maternal activity and television (TV) viewing were associated with meeting integrated guidelines (insufficiently vs. highly active (OR [95% CI]): 0.11 [0.01, 0.95]; 2–3 vs. ≥ 3 h TV: 3.52 [1.02, 12.22]). Examining higher adherence to individual guidelines, Chinese ethnicity, younger maternal age and lower maternal TV and sleep time were associated with greater SV; male sex, Malay ethnicity, higher birth order and higher maternal activity level were associated with greater MVPA; and older maternal age was associated with adherence to sleep guideline. Conclusions Beyond individual behaviours, consideration of the full spectrum of MBs may be important to improve children’s health. However, few Singaporean children adhere to integrated 24-h movement guidelines. Maternal behaviours as early as during pregnancy could be important targets for future interventions aiming to promote these MBs in children.

Calling all teachers, health professionals, and medical experts! We caught up with some of our favorite leading Registered Dietitian Nutritionists in

Cutie Sue Wins the Race: Children's Book on Sports, Self-Discipline and Healthy Lifestyle: 3 : Melton, Kate: Amazon.in: Books

Any time is a great time to introduce a lifelong love of physical activity to your students. By instilling the importance of regular physical activity in children when they’re young, you can help build a foundation for future physical health. May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month, so there’s no better time to […]

Homeschooling with toddlers and preschoolers in the house can be challenging, to say the least! Coming up with creative ways to keep them occupied, engaged, and out of trouble can test the patience right out of the best of us. Dr. Craft’s Active Play understands this challenge and has designed Active Play! Fun Physical Activities for ... Read more

New research adds urgency to the drive to prevent obesity in young children. Parents are crucial, experts say, but need help.

The health of children can be maintained and improved through a balanced diet and regular physical activity. Young children are more likely to engage in physical activity, which is important for their physical, emotional, cognitive and social development. Healthy eating habits and physical activity behaviors during the first five years of life are critical for children's health. One of the key factors affecting immunity and growth is adequate nutrition. A well-balanced diet must include adequate amounts of vitamins, carbohydrates, fiber, proteins, minerals and fats. Each of these nutrients is essential for children's overall development and growth. Children who are physically active perform better in school and have better brain function compared to children who are less physically active. This book unravels the recent studies on child development and behavior. It also aims to shed light on the importance of nutrition and physical activity for children. Those in search of information to further their knowledge will be greatly assisted by this book.

Children, like adults, need to practice good habits for optimum health. Proper nutrition, safety in and out of the home, and healthy practices such as exercise and wearing sunscreen will decrease your child's chances of health problems in the present and future. Teaching and modeling such behaviors can help your child embrace them for...

By: Christine Cox, The Choosy Mommy Did you know that only about 50% of Americans actually floss their teeth daily, according to the American Dental Association? That leaves only half of the population to teach their children the importance of flossing and how to do it properly. Now is the time to make a change. When Can A Child Floss? As soon as your child has two teeth beside each other, start a flossing routine. I personally have found the floss sticks to be a great help as they are easy to get in between teeth. After speaking with my dentist, he said they are wonderful, as long as you are moving them around once between the teeth. That got me thinking…how can I teach my children how to floss their own teeth? Get Creative! Hands-on learning is one of the many ways children can learn. By doing hands-on learning and experiments at home, children can dive deeper into their thinking and retention when doing whatever the lesson is in real life. I looked around my living room trying to think of a way to teach my daughter how to floss and then it came to me! Mega blocks and Legos! In this example, I used the Mega Blocks to represent her teeth and put playdough in the space between to represent the plaque that can get stuck in between and on our teeth. I gave her the exact floss stick that I have always used to floss her teeth and explained to her the representation of teeth and plaque. After a quick lesson of how to properly insert the floss stick between the “teeth”, she went straight to trying it on the Mega Block. She learned quickly to move the floss stick up and down on the Mega Block to make sure she got all of the playdough out. I was so pleased with this activity and she really grasped a good understanding of how to floss her own teeth. Not Just For Kids Everyone should floss their teeth at least once a day. Daily flossing helps remove plaque from in between and on the teeth where it can easily create cavities. If your child is still drinking from a bottle, and has two teeth beside each other, flossing is even more important to make sure you get all of the excess milk off of the teeth. At the same time, removing plaque helps reduce the risk of gum disease or gingivitis which can result in bleeding and inflamed gums. A great resource for additional information about keeping children's teeth health is from the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. Do your children floss with your help?? At what age did you introduce it? About the Author: Christine Cox is the blog master for Choosy Kids and owner of The Choosy Mommy. She has always had a passion for writing and is honored to contribute her work to this blog. Most of her writing inspiration comes from her daughter, Capri, who is fun-loving and full of energy, and son Cam, who is learning new things everyday. Click here to learn more about Christine.

By: Christine Cox, The Choosy Mommy I can’t even believe these words are coming out, but next year I will have a child in KINDERGARTEN! Time has gone by so fast and I just can’t get over that my oldest child will be going to full-day school next year. As a parent, I lay in bed at night and wonder if she is even ready. She seems so young to be in school all day, but she loves going to pre-school. She says it is one of her favorite things to do (besides soccer and swim class)! How are parents to know if their child is ready, besides being the right age? I attended a meeting at my daughter’s pre-school and here is a list of readiness skills to practice for kindergarten (as recommended by teachers). ABC’s It is all about the alphabet in kindergarten. From identifying all 26 capital letters, to knows their sounds from beginning to end, the teachers agreed that the ABC’s are most important for kindergartners. 1,2,3… Numbers rank high on what they should know, but according to these teachers, they only expect a kindergartner to know 1-12 (verbally and identifying). In pre-school, my daughter learned up to 30 which is a lot, but once you get past 20 it is pretty easy. Colors, Patterns & Shapes Yes, these three things are what you would expect a kindergartner to know. But my child, my natural born leader, doesn’t “learn” from me. She thinks she is always right, even if I try to correct her (we are working on this.) Thankfully, she did go to pre-school to learn these things from her teachers. I can say, however, that flashcards helped her a lot with color recognition and shapes. Puzzles also work wonders! My 18-month old son is just getting into puzzles. We have a shape puzzle that actually says the shape when you place it in the correct spot. Needless to say, 'oval' is a new favorite word around here! Fine Motor Skills: Writing & Cutting Here is the biggest one in my book. Writing is a skill that takes more than memorization. Children who are ready for kindergarten need to be able to print their first name with the first letter being capital and the rest lower case. This takes practice. In the first year of pre-school, my daughter learned all of her capital letters and how to write her name with those. And this year, she is reviewing the capitals and learning lower case. In the beginning it was confusing to her that she had to write her name with the lower case letters too, but she is getting much better at it. Luckily her name isn’t long! Also, writing and cutting are fine motor skills that are not being learned as quickly with this generation. This article about learning fine motor skills says that children aren’t learning the art of holding a pencil/crayon/paintbrush/cutting with scissors like they used to because of the touch screen technology that is now available. I mean, my 18 month old does know how to open the iPad, touch and swipe! Words All I have heard for the past week was, “Is snowflake a compound word? What about basketball? Butterfly?” Kids soak up knowledge fast and are curious about words. As a piece of advice, be their teacher at home and go with the flow when they are interested in something like this. I found books that had compound words in them and pointed them out as we were reading. They are also expected to know rhyming words in kindergarten. So same thing. I would fine books that rhymed and we’d practice those words. Dr. Suess is the best for this! Once we were done reading the story, I’d ask her to retell it to me because the teachers also expect this. It has to do with understanding! Last Note from the Kindergarten Teacher One of the kindergarten teachers made these points at our meeting: Teach your children to tie their shoes. This is a fine motor skill that is being learned later in life and should be learned before kindergarten. Get your child off of video games and touch screen technology and read a book together instead. Read to your children every day. They will learn more than just the story they hear. Teach your children how to use the water fountain. Pushing that button might be hard, but they will need to know how to do it! If you have a child who is in kindergarten, or is already past this level, what were they expected to learn that I haven’t mentioned? How did you or your child deal with the stress of this milestone? About the Author: Christine Cox is the blog master for Choosy Kids and owner of The Choosy Mommy. She has always had a passion for writing and is honored to contribute her work to this blog. Most of her writing inspiration comes from her daughter, Capri, who is fun-loving and full of energy, and son Cam, who is learning new things everyday. Click here to learn more about Christine.

Do you have any picky eaters at your house? Do you have kids who would rather eat fruit snacks than any fruit or vegetable you give them? My kids are

" Circle Time Activities For Young Children" FREE S&H to USA address only. From Yoga to physical activities, health & nutrition, musical experiences and emotional & stimulating feelings, this aged book introduces Teachers, Parents, Children and other instructors, to the many ways young children learn to enjoy interactions, fun & effective activities, organized play and how to get-along with others. Presentation of Circle Time when the children learn to gather in a circle for fun, play, sharing of songs, fingerplays, stories and other gatherings offers an effective and eventful means of bringing togetherness and a chance for calming down. Table of contents is broken down on a school month-month schedule of suggested events and participation. Holidays, science & nature, music, workshops, games, monthly curriculums and other child development projects are provided to enrich communication skills for the children. As-is, softcover, plastic-coated cover with spiral binding is still neat, clean and unmarked. The spiral binding is slightly worn out but still holding the book intact. The back cover has a rip on the top from handling & shelf-wear. Can be taped. No other noticeable scars. (see closeup views). Book measures 11" x 9" x 1/2". Insured delivery via USPS. Cost of return shipping will be at the expense of the buyer.

Whether you are teaching one child about the power of good health, or an entire school, this simple nutrition game is an easy lesson to teach. When I taught this mini lesson & game at our elementary school, I had over 600 kids at the school taking a cup of our smoothie, and even trying to come back for seconds!

All about teaching preschool! Great ideas for preschool activities, standards-based curriculum, preschool assessments, and documentation.

There are a range of digital Munch & Move resources available to assist educators working in early childhood services to implement the Munch & Move key messages. These include:

Children who carry out regular moderate to vigorous exercise are more likely to succeed academically, compared with those with low levels of physical activity, researchers say.

We provide Childcare with a variety of fresh produce such as fresh fruit and vegetables, poultry, meat, fish, dairy, bread and cereals.

The importance of exercise & keeping active for children under five: we explore benefits & recommendations for physical activity in under 5's

By: The Choosy Kids Team In some parts of the country, cooler weather is on the way. Parents often have to search high and low to find fun indoor activities to keep kids moving and learning. If you live where the sun is still shining down and it is warm, you may be looking for some winter or holiday crafts to do with the kids to ring in the holiday season. Choosy Kids has all of your indoor and outdoor activities covered with our 100 Seasonal Active Learning Ideas - Winter Edition list! We’d also like you to try to participate too! Think you and your children (nieces/nephews/grandchildren/students/children you watch after/friends, etc.) could complete 10 ideas? 20? 50? All 100? Tell us how many you think you can complete and show us your completions! Share your photos and completions with us on our social media pages (Facebook or Twitter). Remember to tag us (@choosykids) and use the hashtag #100ChoosyIdeas. Build a snowman Do snow angels Throw snowballs Catch snowflakes in your mouth Go sled riding Go skiing Drink hot cocoa with marshmallows Walk up and how hills holding hands with a friend Watch a movie with your family Play dress up Make snowflakes out of paper Find flowers outside Decorate for your holiday Make a gingerbread house Have a dance party with Choosy Kids music Have a tea party Make pinecone ornaments Won't be getting snow in your area? Make your own! Make rock candy Make a cave of stars Go ice skating outside Go ice skating inside - Just get some wax paper, step on it and skate across any surface! Do some apple painting Make gifts for other people Create colorful watercolor art piece. Try adding salt on the paper while the watercolors are still wet, or use aluminum foil to create patterns. Create sculptures with styrofoam and bamboo skewers. Check out this awesome blog for “How To” Build your own toddler drop box. Create a variety of shapes! Build a snow castle Play a game of snowball toss. Set up foam cups and use cotton balls to see how many your child can make within the cups. Complete some of the free activities on choosykids.com Play where in the world is Choosy?! Print a picture of Choosy and hid him. Allow your child to see if they can find Choosy. Have an indoor beach party. Pretend it’s a warm summer's day, and break out the summer gear. Participate in RAOK - Random Act of Kindness Draw in the snow. Use food coloring as paint and make the freshly fallen snow your canvas. Build a bird feeder and watch the winter birds come for a meal. Play outdoor hockey. Create a family movie Make a winter wreath Make a time capsule of your family belongings. Create a box which includes photos, postcards, or anything at all you would like. Hide the box and revisit it next year. Check if any parades are in town and go enjoy the festivities. Have breakfast for dinner - make sure to include a plenty of fruits and veggies. Create a garden sensory bin If you have a GPS capable phone, why not participate in Geocaching? Make up your own game. Let your children participate by creating the rules Try some water experiments (such as ice experiments with salt). Create a list of the outdoor changes between winter and summer Bundle up and head to the park for some outdoor fun. Prepare your garden for winter Make snow prints in the snow Create a paper clip chain Experiment with baking soda, vinegar and color With a chalkboard, write your child’s name out with chalk and let them trace over it with water Create popsicle stick sleds Create snowflakes from popsicle sticks Create farm animals from paper plates and cotton balls. For even more fun, can you create a Choosy plate mask? Build a cardboard playhouse Use coffee filters to create snowflake. Create a bucket and throw them up in the air for indoor snow effect. For even more fun, have your child match the ones that are similar. No snow? No problem! Use newspaper to create an indoor snowman! Create your own holiday and winter decorations. Make homemade play dough Build a marble race track. Read a new book everyday. You can check out Choosy’s Holiday Tale online! Put strips of tape hanging from the doorway and let your children to throw cotton balls at the tape. Bowl indoors Create jewelry from beads Have a color scavenger hunt with toys. Create a sensory experience with beads and water Create an indoor hopscotch board. Create an indoor balance beam Pretend a grocery store trip. Encourage your child to choose the healthy option! Use cotton swabs and watercolor paints to create the perfect pointillism art piece. Create a playscape table Create suncatchers Create and arrange magnetic faces Decorate aprons for the holidays Create a band with pots and pans, and be like Choosy’s band! Play charades Allow your child to explore their sense. Ask questions like, “ What color is that” , or “ Is that object rough or smooth” Use boxes as stacking blocks Create a cardboard wearable car Play peek a boo. If you need some music to accompany the game, check out Choosy Kids’ CD “Our Special Time” Create a collage from old magazines Make smoothies with fresh fruit Tape together paper, and trace your child, then let your child trace you. Sing together Take a trip to the library! Blow bubbles inside and see how many you can pop. Play with magnets on the fridge Create your own stickers, using a print, tape and water Use mason jars to decorate and create vases Create a pom-pom rug together Create yarn ball garland If you are beginning to miss the flowers, why not create yarn flowers? Make simply party hats from paper Create your own crayons with a variety of shapes and sizes Create paper towel butterflies Create winter finger puppets Create snowflake magnets Talk about safety tips for winter and the importance of staying safe when playing outside during the winter Create ice balloons

Kinesthetic Learning Ideas - over 20 ideas!

By: Christine Cox, The Choosy Mommy Did you know that only about 50% of Americans actually floss their teeth daily, according to the American Dental Association? That leaves only half of the population to teach their children the importance of flossing and how to do it properly. Now is the time to make a change. When Can A Child Floss? As soon as your child has two teeth beside each other, start a flossing routine. I personally have found the floss sticks to be a great help as they are easy to get in between teeth. After speaking with my dentist, he said they are wonderful, as long as you are moving them around once between the teeth. That got me thinking…how can I teach my children how to floss their own teeth? Get Creative! Hands-on learning is one of the many ways children can learn. By doing hands-on learning and experiments at home, children can dive deeper into their thinking and retention when doing whatever the lesson is in real life. I looked around my living room trying to think of a way to teach my daughter how to floss and then it came to me! Mega blocks and Legos! In this example, I used the Mega Blocks to represent her teeth and put playdough in the space between to represent the plaque that can get stuck in between and on our teeth. I gave her the exact floss stick that I have always used to floss her teeth and explained to her the representation of teeth and plaque. After a quick lesson of how to properly insert the floss stick between the “teeth”, she went straight to trying it on the Mega Block. She learned quickly to move the floss stick up and down on the Mega Block to make sure she got all of the playdough out. I was so pleased with this activity and she really grasped a good understanding of how to floss her own teeth. Not Just For Kids Everyone should floss their teeth at least once a day. Daily flossing helps remove plaque from in between and on the teeth where it can easily create cavities. If your child is still drinking from a bottle, and has two teeth beside each other, flossing is even more important to make sure you get all of the excess milk off of the teeth. At the same time, removing plaque helps reduce the risk of gum disease or gingivitis which can result in bleeding and inflamed gums. A great resource for additional information about keeping children's teeth health is from the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. Do your children floss with your help?? At what age did you introduce it? About the Author: Christine Cox is the blog master for Choosy Kids and owner of The Choosy Mommy. She has always had a passion for writing and is honored to contribute her work to this blog. Most of her writing inspiration comes from her daughter, Capri, who is fun-loving and full of energy, and son Cam, who is learning new things everyday. Click here to learn more about Christine.

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