Course Content
In this first session, we’ll look at a range of educational pedagogies - including RIE®, Montessori, and Reggio Emilia - and view childhood and parenting through a diverse cultural lens. Drawing on various child development theories, we'll explore how caregiving routines can be learning opportunities for your child. Together, we’ll set goals and begin to build skills that can help you be present and in tune with your child.
Whoever said, "Sleep like a baby" has probably never met a baby. Sure, they can (sometimes) sleep through loud noises, bumpy rides, and even birthday parties, but as any parent knows, those are fleeting moments. In this session, we'll look at sleeping options as you decide what's best for your family as a whole. I'll guide you through the process of helping your child learn skills to help them sleep, whether that be in your bed with you, in a crib, or in a "big-kid" bed. We'll take a close look at sleep stages from infancy through toddlerhood to help you understand your child's sleeping patterns, and share strategies to sustain a well-rested family.
Diaper changes can be tricky, especially for those testing toddlers. In this session, we'll look at ways to engage your child in their diapering routines, and set the foundation for successful transitions to toilet learning. We'll also look at the toilet learning transition itself, and share strategies to support your child's potty sit routines as they move out of diapers and into underwear.
Food. Some kids love it, some kids would rather just eat sand. From bottle feeding to introducing solids to setting up healthy eating habits, we'll explore it all. We'll look at strategies to help your child learn to love food, fruits and veggies alike.
A baby's first steps can be one of the most exciting moments, and one of the scariest. The days of having a stationary baby come to an end, and baby-proofing becomes paramount. In this session, we'll look at what happens before a baby takes those first steps, and what happens from that moment on. We'll get inside their heads as they begin learning to control their fingers, arms, legs, torso, and so on. Whether they're learning to roll, crawl, sit, stand, grasp, walk, run, jump, climb, draw, build, throw, catch, you name it, we'll find ways to support those curious movers.
One of the greatest challenges in a young child's life is to figure out what everyone around them is saying, and to figure out how they can say things too. As children learn to talk, there are many complexities and nuances of language they must master, and as adults, we can guide them through it all. In this session, we'll look at how children learn language, and even multiple languages. We'll explore how to optimize language learning opportunities, and how to support children's interest in both language and literacy.
A child’s brain begins to form and develop in the first trimester in the womb, and when the child is born, their brain weighs around one pound. By the time the child reaches one year of age, their brain doubles in weight! Children’s brains continue this rapid growth and by age five, 90% of the brain is developed. So, as adults, how do we optimize learning in the context of all this brain development? Here, we'll look at modalities of learning, and how we can support children as their brains soak up the world.
So many toys! With modern technology advancing at an incredible rate, there is no shortage of flashy toys and techy tools that captivate curious children. And while technology has its place, it can be difficult to discern which toys promote children's learning, and which ones simply pacify them. In this session, we'll take a close look at what kind of materials can best support children's attention maintenance, critical thinking and problem-solving skills, curiosity and initiative, and more.
Emotions. They can be wonderfully exciting and exhilarating, but also painfully exhausting and exacerbating. A child's laugh can lift your soul, but their cry can drain you dry. It can be a real challenge when our own emotions influence our reactions and interactions with our children. Here in this session, we'll dive into the emotional life of a young child, from babyhood on, and learn strategies to help children (and ourselves) understand and regulate emotions, the wonderful and the painful.
When your sweet baby turns into a testing toddler, it can be hard to figure out what to do. Setting limits and boundaries, and following through on them, while also respecting a child's will can be tricky to navigate. Negotiations run on as children find ways to get what they want. As adults, how we respond to a testing toddler is often influenced by our own experiences and upbringing. Sometimes, we find ourselves trying to do the opposite of what our parents did, and other times we find ourselves imitating them, whether intentionally or not. The strategies we will learn about in this session are drawn from years of experience and research, and can help inform your decision for how you want to handle your child's behavior.
Sharing may be caring, but how we teach it to children can determine how genuine and compassionate they become. When children, whether siblings or friends, begin to fight, knowing how to intervene appropriately can be difficult. In this session, we'll learn about the stages of social play, and look at how we as adults can foster children's empathy and skills as they learn to resolve conflicts.
In our concluding session, we'll review the topics we've covered and apply them to the family as a whole. We'll look at factors that surround and influence family dynamics, and find ways to foster empathy and compassion within the family. We'll share experiences, we'll laugh, we'll cry, we'll celebrate the joy and wonderment of parenthood.