The Parent Rap

I found this great video about parenting and just had to share it!  It is so funny, yet so true!  What part can you relate to the most?   Happy New Years!

Norma Honeycutt, Director

12 Days of Autism

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas!!

I had the opportunity to visit the Festival of Trees on Friday, November 30th. For those of you who are unaware of this awesome tradition, companies and organizations around the county sponsor and decorate trees that will be delivered to other organizations around town for the month of December. Before the trees are delivered to their destinations, they are put on display at the F&M Trolley Barn.

12 Days of Autism Tree

While there were many beautifully decorated Christmas trees, one stood out among the rest.

"Twelve Days of Autism" was sponsored by Blake and Linn Evans and were decorated by North Rowan Elementary K-5 PACSS Classes!

In place of ornaments and tinsel were items that represent the life of a child with autism.

12 Days of Autism
- On the 1st day of Christmas my students gave to me 1 IEP that gives me heartburn.

IEP file

- On the 2nd day of Christmas my students gave to me 2 covered ears.

Sensory Overload

- On the 3rd day of Christmas my students gave to me 3 augmentative communication devices.

"Merry Christmas" PECS

- On the 4th day of Christmas my students gave to me 4 timers beeping.

Timers

- On the 5th day of Christmas my students gave to me 5 flapping hands.

Flapping Hands

- On the 6th day of Christmas my students gave to me 6 crazy teachers.

Autism Puzzle Piece

- On the 7th day of Christmas my students gave to me 7 same meals.

Mac'n'cheese Meals

- On the 8th day of Christmas my students gave to me 8 restricted interests.

Seek Sensory Bags

- On the 9th day of Christmas my students gave to me 9 sensory toys.

Sensory Balls and Toys

- On the 10th day of Christmas my students gave to me 10 precious children.

Sensory Calming Brush

- On the 11th day of Christmas my students gave to me 11 weighted vests.

Mini-Weighted Vest

- On the 12th day of Christmas my students gave to me 12 picture cues.

Picture Cues

This was an amazing and eye-opening piece of art! Hope you enjoyed the tree as much as I did!

Katie Zink, ITFS/P

A new take on the Elf on the Shelf

Life is all about having fun and "Playing". 

 I believe that you  are NEVER too old to stop playing! 

Our staff at Partners In Learning value play with the children in their classroom and I believe that it is my role as the director to keep that "play" alive for them.  One of the latest traditions that many families have established at Christmas is The Elf on the Shelf.  It's a fun story of an elf that watches the child and reports to Santa if they have been good or bad.  He hides everyday and the child has to find him.

This year, I decided to use the little elf "Alfie" to "play" with our staff.  Each day he would hide and be up to mischief of all sorts for our staff to find.  The teacher that found him each day received a prize.  The teachers really got into it and had a wonderful time.  The pictures below will tell some of the stories:

 

 Always Playing, Norma Honeycutt, Executive Director

Get your Children Involved in Holiday Festivities!!

In the midst of the Holiday festivities, take the opportunity to encourage your child's development while participating in all of your favorite traditions.

While wrapping Christmas presents, point out the shape of the gift, "This box is square, look how big it is!" Make sure to notice the color of the wrapping paper and any shapes or patterns, "Look at the penguins skating on the wrapping paper!"

Wrapping Presents Together

When opening presents, ask your child questions about what they just opened, "Tell me about your new gift!" Encourage children to say thank-you and to spread the Christmas spirit.

What's Inside?

While decorating the tree, have your child wrap the tinsel. When they can't reach any higher on the tree, encourage them to say "help please" or "pick me up please" and help them finish wrapping the tinsel around the top of the tree.

Decorating the Tree

Bake and decorate cookies together. I decorated cookies with my CBRS children this week and the kids LOVED it!

Make different shapes, I made snowmen and gingerbread men. As your child, "Would you like to decorate the snowman or the gingerbread man?"

The children got to choose which color icing they wanted to use first, "Do you want red or green?"

"I want green"

Next came sprinkles! While some children decided to dump them all on the cookie at once, others put them on one-by-one.

One at a time

There are so many different opportunities to expand children's vocabulary and development during the Holiday season, take advantage of them!

We at Partners In Learning wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

Katie Zink, ITFS/P

"POP" goes the bubble! [Oral Motor Skills]

Does your toddler drool excessively? Is their speech delayed? Do they often have trouble chewing and swallowing solid foods?

Excessive Drooling

Many children experience mild to severe oral motor delays, which can impact their speech development as they grow older.

If your child is finished cutting teeth, but is still drooling excessively or if they tend to choke on small pieces of food, their swallowing mechanisms, oral muscles, and other motor skills may be diminished.

Choking

While many different parts of the mouth can be to blame for these issues, these oral motor skills are essential to chewing, sucking, swallowing, keeping the jaw closed, as well as talking.

While some of these quirks may be annoying, such as constantly wiping your child's chin, changing their saliva-soaked bibs and clothes multiple times per day, as well as constantly worrying that your child will choke while eating, there are simple techniques you can use to strengthen those oral motor muscles.

Plastic bibs

Chewy Tubes (~$10 each) can be used as necklaces for your child to gnaw on throughout the day. (You can also buy aquarium tubing at Walmart or Lowes for approximately $3 and put a string through it as a homemade version.)

Chewy Tubes, Ps & Qs

Prior to feeding your child, provide oral stimulation to 'awaken' their muscles and prepare them for the act of eating. Z-vibes (~$30-40, on my wish list!!) are perfect for this stimulation; they vibrate and provide a great sensation that activates muscles and salivation. However, an electric toothbrush is a cheaper idea. There are also oral stimulator tools made by Nuk that are around $7, they do not vibrate, but have small bumps that provide extra stimulation. I personally use a Nuk for the children I see and it works just fine, plus the kids love it!

Z-vibe

Nuk

 

Some simple, fun, and cheap exercises involve, blowing bubbles (and saying "pop" when popping them), blowing on whistles, blowing paper/cotton balls across the table (blowing on cottons balls through a straw), sucking through a straw (especially thick liquids, such as a milkshake), making silly faces with your lips in a mirror, holding a popsicle stick between lips.

Take away/limit use of a pacifier. Take away the bottle and provide a sippy cup. Encourage your child to suck through cups with straws.

If drooling is the issue, consistently touch your child's lip and remind them to swallow. You can also put a terrycloth wristband on their wrist and teach them how to wipe their own chin, while encouraging your child not to be wet anymore.

If you are still concerned about your child's oral motor skills, contact your physician and consider an occupational or speech therapist.

Using my Nuk before lunchtime with this little guy! (He honestly eats twice as much when he chews on this!)

Katie Zink, ITFS/P


Resources:
http://www.todays-mommy-baby-toddler-guide.com/drooling.html
http://www.beyondplay.com/ITEMS/T928.HTM
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4408924&ab=BRU_Header::Family

m is for male preschool teachers

 

 

M- Male teacher

A-Amazing role model

L-Leadership

E-Example

 

T-Teachable moments  

E-Excellent

A-Absolutely wonderful  

C-Caring

H-Hard worker

E-Education 

R-Respectful and reliable  

 Mr. Josh talking to a child at the table!

Mr. Andy playing dress up with the boys!!

Boys can play dress up to!!!

 

Mr. Rob reading a book to the boys!

                  Mr. Matt building with the children!

Mr. Josh patting a child to sleep!!

 

All these male teachers do a GREAT job in the classrooms. They are all amazing role models to the children and teach in their own unique way. All children need male role models in their life's and here a PIL we have just that!!

 

 

Pre-k Teacher, Amanda Marshall

 

 

GIVING UP CONTROL



Do you find that it’s hard to give up control when it comes to certain aspects of your life?  I used to come behind my children and straighten their poorly made beds until I finally gave up control, and they eventually became fairly proficient bed makers.  I have found, though, that I still struggle with relinquishing control over certain aesthetic aspects of my personal environment.



Look at the ribbon.  It's horizonal! It's vertical!

Case in point: I had help from the grandchildren with decorating the Christmas tree this year.  I’m very particular about how my tree looks.   I don’t exactly use a ruler to ensure that each ornament is precisely the same distance apart, but let’s just say that I’m pretty good at eyeing it.  So when the grandchildren swarmed the tree and little arms started flailing ornaments and ribbon about without ANY organizational plan, I experienced a few neurotic moments.

........and the ornaments were all clumped together

But, you know, they had a good time and were so pleased with their accomplishment, (though I did go behind them after they left for home and made a few adjustments

 Giving up control is a lifelong learning experience for some of us.   

Katherine Generaux, Community Inclusion Specialist

Visions of the best gingerbread village EVER!

One of my favorite family traditions is to make gingerbread houses with my children and now my grandchildren.  For years, I would use graham crackers, homemade "glue icing" and lots of candy.  Thanks to the latest interventions, you can now buy a boxed package with everything you need in it.  It doesn't get much better than that, does it?  This year, I purchased a boxed Snoopy Gingerbread House Village.  I was so excited because it had everything in it we needed and the picture on the box was beautiful.  It was going to be the best village we have ever built and surly the best in town.  I cleaned off the table and removed all of the materials from the box.  I showed my grandchildren how beautiful our village was going to be.  So let the fun begin:

Carter trying to get his house to stick together.

Hunter trying to get his to stick together.

Nana and Papa building memories!

Not exactly like the photo on the box.

 Oh well!  It may not be the best gingerbread village in town, but the memories and time spent together are priceless.  Isn't that what traditions are all about anyway!

Building Memories, Norma Honeycutt, Executive Director