Posts tagged with "Reggio Emilia schools"

Let Your Child Create with Real-Life Tools

Children baking with their motherReal-world materials are a great way to help your child learn, build, and create. Instead of providing them with fake, plastic versions of everyday tools and materials, let your child play with the real thing. The ability to create, pretend, and invent with authentic materials will provide much more satisfaction to your child’s imagination. The different weights, textures, colors, and working parts will benefit their mentality.

Child-sized versions of real-life tools are an excellent way for children to experience the real thing. For example, child-sized gardening tools allow them to effectively dig and play without carrying heavy equipment or useless plastic versions. Providing them with magnifying glasses, functional film or digital cameras, or modeling tools will allow your child to get right into what interests them without being limited to the poor quality of many plastic replicas.

You will often have plenty of real-world materials and tools around your home already. Go about your home and search for anything that may be of interest to your child and place them in a bin or on a shelf for their next play session.

Real-life tools can include:

  • Dress-up costumes
  • Old telephones or phone books
  • Old computer keyboards
  • Kitchen Tongs
  • Rolling pins
  • Measuring cups
  • Watering cans
  • Clay sculpting tools
  • Rulers
  • Fabric scraps
  • Sandpaper
  • Binoculars

At Bartram Academy, we are dedicated to providing self-driven enrichment and education to all of our students. If you are looking for the best Reggio Emilia schools in the St. John’s area, contact us today to inquire about our enrollment process for the upcoming preschool year.

How to Make a Mini Greenhouse out of Recyclable Materials

Tomato seedlingsGardening can be a great summer activity to enjoy with your child. When you’re growing plants from the seed or purchasing seedlings to start out with, it may be too much of a shock to plant them directly into the garden. If you don’t have the space or an option for a greenhouse at home, you and your child can quickly create a mini one out of a few recyclable materials.

How to Build Your Own Mini Greenhouse

All you need to make your greenhouse is some toilet paper rolls, a large plastic container with a lid and air holes, such as a fruit punnet, and seed raising mix.

Cut the toilet rolls in half or thirds depending on the size of your container. You want to make sure that when you close the lid, there is still plenty of room for the plants to grow inside. Then place the paper rolls inside your container and fill it with the seed raising mix. Carefully add your seeds or seedlings to the filled toilet paper rolls, gently water them, and close the lid of the container.

The toilet paper rolls are great because they allow you to plant the sprouts directly into the garden when they’re ready without disturbing their roots. They are also comfortable for your child’s small hands to hold so they can help transport them into the garden.

The summer months are an excellent opportunity to spend time with your children and to continue their learning outside of a school environment. As one of the best Reggio Emilia schools in the St. Johns, FL, area, Bartram Academy is available all year long to provide resources and activity ideas for you and your children.

Why Enroll Your Child in a Reggio Emilia School?

little girl blowing bubble outdoorsReggio Emilia schools can be a fantastic way to educate your child in their early years. The approach that Reggio schools take focuses more on the child’s own interests instead of a standard state-enforced curriculum. This allows for children to develop interests, creativity, and skills that can build the foundation to who they will be throughout their entire life.

Every child is unique and the staff at Bartram Academy will work with every student on an individual level. The Reggio Emilia approach fosters social and emotional growth for children and allows them to develop a love for learning. Through pre-school classes and seasonal day camps, Bartram Academy will help your child discover the world at a pace and style that benefits them.

The Reggio Emilia approach originated in Italy after World War II and the philosophy quickly took on throughout the rest of the world. The model was developed to teach children respect, community involvement, and responsibility at a young age so they can utilize these skills throughout their life.

If you’re interested in enrolling your child in a Reggio Emilia schools, contact Bartram Academy today at (904) 419-7563. We’ll provide even more information on our programs and you can schedule a tour of our building to see the wonderful environment your child could be learning in.