ALL ABOUT SAPLINGS…
At Saplings in-home daycare, the children are at the beginning of every decision. We move at a child’s pace, where each child is treated with respect and dignity. Through caring relationships and careful observations, your child will learn about life, literacy, science, exploration, and magic in the way children are designed to learn- through the hard and dirty work of play! Because children learn most efficiently when they are at their best, Saplings provides nutritious, whole food meals every day to give children the brain power they need! Children of all abilities are welcomed here, and each child will be met where THEY are at with support and guidance.
In addition to the care of your child(ren), Saplings understands how important YOU are to them, and thus works to have consistent communication with you about what you want to see more of, how your child is doing, and encourages family to drop by and hang out any time while your child is here!
At Saplings in-home daycare, the children are at the beginning of every decision. We move at a child’s pace, where each child is treated with respect and dignity. Through caring relationships and careful observations, your child will learn about life, literacy, science, exploration, and magic in the way children are designed to learn- through the hard and dirty work of play! Because children learn most efficiently when they are at their best, Saplings provides nutritious, whole food meals every day to give children the brain power they need! Children of all abilities are welcomed here, and each child will be met where THEY are at with support and guidance.
In addition to the care of your child(ren), Saplings understands how important YOU are to them, and thus works to have consistent communication with you about what you want to see more of, how your child is doing, and encourages family to drop by and hang out any time while your child is here!
WHAT IS A CHILD’S PACE?
- Having ample time for play so children can become fully and deeply involved in their play, giving them a chance to explore math, science, literacy, and more!
- Getting to the root of conflict or frustration; no isolated time outs or distracted reprimands.
- Stopping to smell the flowers! So much is new for children and still has that spark of magic, slowing down to really investigate nature, books, and anything else that a child delights in!
- Making time for children to be independent. Eating, toileting, dressing… these are things that take much longer for a child. It may take longer and require more attention, but allowing a child to “do it myself” fosters confidence, builds self-esteem, and promotes autonomy!
LEARNING THROUGH PLAY
“How will my child learn anything if all day is play?”
Research shows that children learn most effectively through their play. My favorite example of this is to consider yourself and how you learn. Perhaps you’re interested in playing guitar. You start looking up the chords for your favorite songs, you work hard, and soon enough you’ve learned a few songs and you’re trying them out at the next campfire! But what if you have no interest in learning guitar? Someone tells you you will learn guitar, you will start by learning a song they chose, and you will sit still and work on it for 30 minutes a day. Chances are, you will get fidgety, find ways to procrastinate, and might even start to hate guitar all together! When we allow children to play, they learn because it is joyful. When playing kitchen children learn foods, they learn colors because they want to know what their toys are colored, they learn math because they want to know how many they have, they learn literacy because they want to write out a recipe. When a child plays outside they are inspired to learn science. How do plants grow? Where did this rock come from? What will happen if I pour water here? Children are deeply involved in learning when they are playing.
Some great resources to learn more about learning through play are www.zerotothree.org and www.naeyc.org
“How will my child learn anything if all day is play?”
Research shows that children learn most effectively through their play. My favorite example of this is to consider yourself and how you learn. Perhaps you’re interested in playing guitar. You start looking up the chords for your favorite songs, you work hard, and soon enough you’ve learned a few songs and you’re trying them out at the next campfire! But what if you have no interest in learning guitar? Someone tells you you will learn guitar, you will start by learning a song they chose, and you will sit still and work on it for 30 minutes a day. Chances are, you will get fidgety, find ways to procrastinate, and might even start to hate guitar all together! When we allow children to play, they learn because it is joyful. When playing kitchen children learn foods, they learn colors because they want to know what their toys are colored, they learn math because they want to know how many they have, they learn literacy because they want to write out a recipe. When a child plays outside they are inspired to learn science. How do plants grow? Where did this rock come from? What will happen if I pour water here? Children are deeply involved in learning when they are playing.
Some great resources to learn more about learning through play are www.zerotothree.org and www.naeyc.org