Articles found on pages 1-2 are

courtesy of “Growing

Together” - newsletter for

parents of preschool children .

Most people like and

respond to music—it is one of

the most natural things in the

world.

All cultures—primitive and

advanced—sing, dance and

play instruments.

Still, no one knows exactly

why music makes us smile, or

why it calms children. It just

does.

To relax both you and your

children, soft, gentle music

usually works best.

One little suggestion that

sometimes works at naptime is

to tell children they don’t have

to sleep, but they do need to

be quiet and listen to the

music.

At other times, music can

be a source of great fun with

simple games you make up

yourself. Kids will love it if you

participate too.

Here are a few not-so-common

ideas to get started:

* Roll around the clock.

Put on a song with a good, strong

beat and get down on the floor

and roll.

It sounds silly and it’s even

sillier to see a bunch of kids and

adults rolling around on the floor.

Some people have even been

know to laugh out loud!

Singing along and rolling at the

same time is perfectly acceptable

for any age!

* March to the beat. Give

everybody a hat and noisemaker

(make your own from simple, safe

kitchen items) and march in time

to the music.

This is an excellent experience

for learning about rhythm and

matching movement with sound.

* Line dancing. Hold hands and

teach little ones a few simple steps

you can all do together.

If you know the words to the

song, sing along. Kids LOVE to sing

and dance with mom or dad!

Remember the Bunny Hop? If

you do, teach it to the kids. (If you

don’t remember, Google™ Bunny

Hop.)

This is great fun and a good way

to channel all that extra energy.

In this issue:

• Soothing Away a Jangled Day

• Nature For the Very Young

p. 1

• Listening Helps Settle Arguments

• Preschoolers Love Stories

• ‘Tell Me More’

• Learning to Classify is an Everyday Job

p. 2

• Reach Out and Read Reading

List p. 3

• Calendars p. 4-5

• Smart Start Happenings p. 6-7

• Early Education Activities p. 8-9

• Board of Directors p. 10

CARTERET SMART START

A young child learns best from

direct, personal experience.

A toddler may be able to point to

a picture-book duck and say,

“Quack! Quack!” But until she

encounters a real, waddling,

swimming duck, her understanding

of a duck will be limited.

If nature learning makes you

think only of forests and seashores,

remember that many valuable, first-

hand experiences can easily be

provided close to home.

With a plastic squirt bottle, a

child can gently mist a spider’s

web, instantly creating the beauty

of early morning dew—and an

opportunity to marvel at the

spider’s unique

talent for creating an

engineering marvel.

A child can rub baby oil onto

favorite stones, deepening their

colors and making them shine.

Sit down carefully and watch the

busy work of ants as they scurry to

and fro. You can wonder out loud

about what they’re carrying, where

they’re going, and what they’re

going to do when they get there.

Why not set up a bird feeder

near a window? Even small babies

enjoy the sight of colorful, fluttering

wings.

An older child can help prepare

a peanut butter and birdseed ball

for the feathered visitors.

Even the idea of a bath can

be made fun and interesting by

considering how other

creatures take a bath—the

robin who jumps into the

outside birdbath or a handy

puddle and the cat who

patiently and carefully washes

her face each morning with

her paw and tongue.

Most parents know more

about nature than they think—

and the child in your home is

just waiting to hear the

fascinating stories you have

to tell.

November/December

2019

Science & Nature

Nature For the Very Young

Music

Soothing Away a Jangled Day

Bookshelf

Preschoolers Love Stories Most picture books with real

stories that have a beginning, a

middle and an end are not really

designed for preschoolers but

rather for five and six-year-olds.

However, given a little help, a

two or three-year-old may use

certain books longer and get

more out of them than the older

child.

A well-chosen story book

becomes first a workbook, then

an idea book, and eventually a

familiar story through which the

child has adventures and

discovers possibilities for himself.

While an older child may

wander off on his own

explorations, the child who is

willing to be a lap-sitter benefits

greatly from the discoveries he

makes in books.

The first trip through the book

should consist almost entirely of

conversations about the pictures.

Watch to see what interests your

child, and what he does and does

not understand

as you go

through the

pages.

M o v e

through the book at your child’s

pace, as rapidly or as slowly as he

wants.

With your finger, point out

what’s happening. Speak and

read with expression in your

voice. This make the reading

more interesting and provides

clues to the meaning of the

pictures and words.

Ask questions that invite the

child to participate actively:

Where is that bear?

There he is!

What is the bear doing?

What is he riding?

He’s riding a bike!

Oops! He fell off!

Once the child is familiar with

the basic words and

concepts in a book,

he is ready to

become aware of

the story.

If the text is really simple, read

it. If not, just tell the story in

words and events that he can

understand.

As you talk about what

happens in the story, the child

gradually discovers that one thing

leads to another. Important

phrases are….and now….and

then….and suddenly…..and after

that….and then what do you think

happened?

Once you’ve set the pattern,

you can read and tell the story

again and again.

A good book that’s loaded with

language and rhythm and ideas

will enrich every aspect of your

child’s life, and will especially

enrich your times together with

books.

PAGE 2 SMAR T ST AR T STUFF

Language

‘Tell Me More’ Language is more than the

words we use to communicate

with one another—it is a shared

experience where one person

speaks and the other person

listens.

Through active listening, you

can give your child the message

that she is important and that

what she has to say is important

to you.

First, you must listen to what

she tells you—about her day, what

she had to eat, what didn’t work

out, what was funny.

Then you can ask

her questions that

encourage her to tell you more.

Finally, you must be patient by

waiting for her response to your

questions—she may have difficul-

ty finding the words she needs.

We’ve all had the experience

of talking to a poor listener. Just

because they’re smaller doesn’t

mean children can be fooled—

they know when they’re

not being heard.

When times are busy,

schedules must be met, and

there’s no time to listen, say so.

“I’m sorry, Sally, but we’re in a

rush right now. Let’s remember

to talk about this again before

bedtime.”

And remember to do it.

Shared conversations keep the

lines of communication open and

active.

“A well-chosen story book

becomes first a work-

book, then an idea book,

and eventually a familiar

story through which the

child has adventures and

discovers possibilities for

himself.”

Academics

Learning To Classify is an Everyday Job

“What’s this?” “What’s that?”

When children ask “what?”

questions, they are learning how

to classify things, to see how

things are alike and how they are

different.

Why is classification im-

portant? Because without it, we

wouldn’t be able to tell aspirin

from arsenic! It’s classification

that tells a child how to think

about the world, where to look for

a crayon, what part of a catalog

will have a picture of a bicycle. It

tells a child that she can expect

to find bears in the animal crack-

ers and jelly next to the peanut

butter on the shelf.

How does a child learn classifica-

tion? Almost every minute she’s

with you, she hears and sees you

using the idea of same and differ-

ent. Let her help you sort socks

and silverware. Talk about the

different shapes of street signs or

the different feels of fabrics.

Let everyday experiences be your

classroom!

PAGE 3 SMAR T ST AR T STUFF

SMAR T ST AR T STUFF PAGE 4

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alk

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ste

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15

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16

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17

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19

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ch

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21

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em

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23

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me

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tha

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go

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24

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25

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llow

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tog

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26

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tio

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Ma

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om

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an

yo

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am

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ing

?

27

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ke

so

me

de

co

ra-

tio

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an

d p

lace

ma

ts t

o u

se

on

Th

an

ksg

ivin

g.

28

Ha

pp

y T

ha

nksg

ivin

g!

Wh

at

are

yo

u t

ha

nkfu

l fo

r?

29

Ca

n y

ou

win

k o

ne

eye

?

Try

it.

30

Dra

w a

pic

ture

of

a r

ea

lly

fan

tast

ic b

ug

!

PAGE 5 SMAR T ST AR T STUFF

1Sit

ne

ar

a w

ind

ow

an

d e

njo

y t

he

su

nsh

ine

.

2

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a b

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wit

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of

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. M

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eth

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an

d u

se

yo

ur

fin

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wri

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3 H

ave

a r

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-th

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ed

me

al to

da

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4D

raw

la

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lore

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sco

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spin

to

pic

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up

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all

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wit

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11

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ke

so

me

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13

Giv

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14

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ma

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17

To

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18

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20

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21

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itio

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22

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st D

ay o

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in-

ter.

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nu

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23

Ma

ke

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kin

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24

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to h

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“O

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Jan

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28

Vis

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29

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ke

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30

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18

.

31

Th

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Wh

ere

is

tha

t o

n

the

clo

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20

19

PAGE 6 SMAR T ST AR T STUFF

SMAR T ST AR T STUFF PAGE 7

We are participants in the State Employees Combined Campaign

Board of Directors

Cynthia Chamblee Shannon Henry* Jodi Justice Sarah Mitchell

Alice Chavez Cindy Holman Lisa Kittrell Katharine Moorehead

Donald Crooms Kathryn Hunsucker Elizabeth Lewis* Gwen Roberts*

Zac Everhart* Jennifer Johnson Rebecca Marson* Paula Stanley*

*Denotes members of the Executive Committee

Smart Start Staff

Linda Van Pelt Cynthia Jackson Lisa Culpepper Interim Executive Director/ Child Care Resource & Referral Director Early Education Outreach Coordinator Program Manager Dolly Parton Imagination Library Affiliate Coordinator

Constance Sowers Rene Fox Tara Willeford Office Manager Technical Assistance Specialist Family Support Specialist Ratio Reduction Coordinator Reach Out and Read Coordinator Baby Steps Coordinator

3328-A Bridges Street

Morehead City, NC 28557

Phone: (252) 727-0440

CCR&R: (252 727-0445

Fax: (252) 727-0460

www.carteretkids.org