Celebrated each year on the third Monday in January, Martin Luther King Jr. Day honors King’s life and work as a civil rights leader. Even though he faced numerous challenges and struggles, Dr. King never hesitated to dream big and dedicated much of his life to turning his dreams into realities. Whether the children in your care dream of being a scientist or of world peace, encouraging them to dream big can help them achieve their goals and give them something to work towards

Teaching children about feelings—specifically how to identify and manage their emotions—is an important part of early childhood education. Social and emotional learning helps children learn how to make friends, manage stress, face difficult situations, and much more. Here are a few social and emotional tools you can use when teaching feelings in the classroom: EMOTION TILES For children 12 months and up, Emotion Tiles assist children with learning emotions. The tiles feature

During the preschool years, children use their bodies to play and learn while developing the various motor skills they’ll use throughout their lives to stay physically active and healthy. Your guidance will help them build a strong foundation of physical skills that will help them complete everyday activities and participate in various sports. In Encouraging Physical Activity for Preschoolers, Steve Sanders, EdD, discusses how you can help preschoolers understand the best way

How important are the early literacy skills young children develop? According to a recent study, two-year-olds with a larger oral vocabulary enter kindergarten with greater academic and behavioral functioning than their peers. They have higher levels of math and literacy achievement, and they are also good at self-regulating. Helping infants and toddlers increase their vocabulary skills in their first few years of life is a crucial part of ensuring their success in kindergart

Even if you’re not a big fan of creepy crawlies, teaching children about insects is an important part of their science education. Many children love to learn about bugs and other parts of life science, which is why providing them with memorable learning experiences is even more essential. Here are 12 must-have science tools you can use in your classroom to teach children about insects: 1. Backyard Books (Set of 8) For children ages three and up, this set of eight paperback bo

Do some of your classroom discussions fall flat with students? From asking the right questions to finding ways to involve everyone, facilitating classroom discussions can be difficult. If you’re looking for ways to make your classroom discussions more engaging, check out these three ways you can supercharge your classroom discussions and get students talking about what they’re learning: 1. Give Everyone Equal Opportunities to Contribute When it comes to having effective discu

What phrases do you use to help build children’s self-esteem? It’s important that you be specific in your praise by focusing on a specific act. For example, “Great job!” is a popular phrase that many educators use, but it doesn’t necessarily tell students what they did a great job on. Focusing on a specific act helps children better understand why they’re being praised while also encouraging repeat behavior. A child is much more likely to push his or her chair in again if you

Nurturing the five senses—sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch—from a young age helps children make observations and learn about the world around them. However, these five senses aren’t the only senses teachers should be focusing on helping children develop. In (Almost) Everything You Need to Know About Early Childhood Education: Here are some great ones, but see if you can think of any too: Sense of humor – Everyone needs to be able to laugh, especially at themselves. Sense