Fall Resources

"Fall" into some great ideas from the Better Kid Care Program!

What does fall mean to early educators and families? This time of year often means getting ready for school, child care and celebrating the season. It also is an important time for planning and preparing quality child care programs. Use the following links to find great information to support your work. Resources include a section for School readiness, Choosing Child Care, seasonal ideas, and topics supportive to quality early care and education. Included are Activities pages, Lunch and Snack pages, Family Time / Work Time articles, Parents Counts articles, Tip pages, Distance Education lessons, and more!

School Readiness / Kindergarten Transition
		What Children Need to Know to Start School
		Stepping Stones to School Readiness
		Homework Before Kindergarten
		When Do You Start Getting Your Child Ready for School?
		Helping Your Child Do Well in School
		Make Sure Your Child Is Ready for School

Choosing Child Care
		Choosing Child Care Brochure
		Choosing Child Care Guide
		Successful Child Care
		Mommy Don’t’ Go!
		Child Care Tips for Parents

AUTUMN ACTIVITIES
		Acorn Hunt
		Autumn Activities
		Autumn Activities - 2
		Autumn
		Fun in Leaves
		Leaf Activities
		What's with Fall?

LUNCH AND SNACK IDEAS
		Pumpkin Lunch Ideas
		Quick Lunches
		Lunchtime Wraps
		Shake up Some Yummy Snacks and Lunches
		Soup Season
		Baking with Bread Dough

FAMILY TIME / WORK TIME
		Partnering with Your Caregiver
		As They Grow: Some Things for Parents to Check
		Calm Times After Work
		Parents are Teachers
		School Days

PARENTS COUNT
		Success in School and Life
		Smoothing Your Day, Gentle Goodbyes
		What Does Your Child Provider Really Want to Know?
		Things Child Care Providers Want to Hear from Parents
		Building a Sense of Community
		Getting Ready for School
		Get Involved: It Matters

TIPS
Good Plans
		Planning Strategies: What’s the Rhythm of Your Day?
		Creating a Peaceful Environment for Young Children
		Infant Environments: Let’s Take a Closer Look
		The End of the Day

Transitions
		Tips on Communicating
		Understanding Transitions
		Transition Clues
		Toilet Learning

Working with Families
		Helping Parents to be Better Parents
		Contracts with Parents
Understanding Behavior
		Biting
		Teaching Children to Cooperate
		The Problem with Time Out
		Hold My Hand: Gentle Guiding for the Misguided
		Let's Work It Out: Helping Children Solve Problems
		Stop Behavior Problems Before They Happen
Supporting Play
		Learning Through Play
		Connecting Play and Learning
		Playing with Babies
		Pretend Play
Child Centered Ideas
		Talking with Babies
		Terrific Two-Year-Olds
		Working with Three-Year-Olds
		Fun with Four-Year-Olds
		Fabulous Five -Year-Olds

E-NEWSLETTERS (autumn ideas)
		August 2004 -- Promoting School Readiness
		March 2008 -- What Research Tells Us: Why Early Educators are Important
		September 2008 -- Creating a Sense of Place: Considering Ritual and Routine
		August 2007: Intentional Early Educators: Tell Me More

DISTANCE EDUCATION: Program Planning
(2-hour lessons)
		New Ways to Plan Activities
		The Art and Science of Playing with Children
		The Ins and Outs of Good Circle Time
		Changing Spaces
(1-hour lessons)
		What's the Plan for Your Day?
		Space for Playing and Learning in Family Child Care Home
		Making a Great Day for Babies
		Making a Great Day for Toddlers
		Making a Great Day for Preschoolers
DISTANCE EDUCATION: Play
(2-hour lessons)
		Taking a New Look at Dramatic Play
		How to Turn Good Play into GREAT Play
		A Good Four-Letter Word: PLAY
		Let's Play
(1-hour lessons)
		Dramatic Play
		Learning through Play with Table Toys
		Block Play Builds Learning Skills
DISTANCE EDUCATION: Child Centered
(2-hour lessons)
		Communicating with Children
		Easy Ways to Boost Kids' Brain Power
		Biting and Sharing
		Learning to Read Before Six???
(1-hour lessons)
		Through the Eyes of an Infant
		Through the Eyes of a Toddler
		Through the Eyes of a Three-Year-Old
		Through the Eyes of a Four-Year-Old
		Through the Eyes of a Five-Year-Old
DISTANCE EDUCATION: Working with Families
(2-hour lessons)
		Parents: Friends or Foes
		How to Get Parents on Your Team
(1-hour lessons)
		Powerful Communication with Parents
		Supporting Children’s Families
		How to Get Through to Parents
		Getting to Know Families with Preschoolers
		Getting to Know Families with Toddlers
		Getting to Know Families with Infants

OTHER COOL STUFF :
		New Staff Orientation
		New Staff Refresher

Explore many more wonderful materials and resources for early educators on the Better Kid Care web site. Use the search option located at the top of the page to assist in finding specific topics.

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