Little T dressed up as Sleeping Beauty the whole day after watching the play. Her gown is a hand-me-down two times over.   Playing pretend is one of the greatest joys of childhood. Nothing can be as magical as imagining yourself to be a princess, a bride, or a mermaid -- yes, my daughter is such a girl. Seemingly simple, pretend play actually works on several levels … [Read more...]

From top left: Five in a Row, some of our books, costume box, CDs, musical instruments, toys and games, The Learning Basket Each week, I organize in our Learning Basket the materials that we would need: our main book from Before Five in a Row's book list, go-along books, board games, stuffed toys, CDs, sidewalk chalk, costume, musical instrument, etc. Sometimes, … [Read more...]

Little T's teacher from the very beginning :) When Little T was a baby, I religiously checked developmental milestones every month.  I bought or made toys for different areas of development, and coached (okay, harassed) our Yaya on what to do with her whenever I was out. Our daily routine, then as now, was planned to have music, books, and a lot of play time. As … [Read more...]