News
Read Across America
Hello, Lovely Readers! Oh, the Places You’ll Go…or in our own personal twist: “Shoot for the Moon – you might land on the Space Station!” “Read Across America” – a national reading campaign that began as a tribute to Dr. Seuss’ birthday – happens every year on March 2nd. It’s one of my favorite holidays, of course – and always makes me reflect upon the importance of literacy in my life. I’ve loved to read since I was a tot – and the books my parents read to me played a big part. I remember delightful trips to the local...
The Power of Parent-Child Reading: A Father’s Day Tribute
by Peyton Johnson, Inner Flower Child Intern Growing up, I was always late—late to crawl, late to walk, and late to read. After watching my older brother take his first steps and read his first words with ease, my parents were not expecting my developmental delays and understandably grew frustrated. While my doctor explained that I was just more stubborn than my brother (still true) and was following my own schedule (still true), my mother’s patience grew thin when attempting to teach me how to read. All of this had come so easily to my brother, why was I taking...
Social-Emotional Learning in the Classroom and Teaching During COVID
Cindy has been a family friend for as long as I can remember. Her daughter Lauren and I attended the same elementary school together, watched her little brother grow up from babyhood to current adolescence, and have celebrated nearly every birthday with her parents and mine over burgers and ice cream sundaes. In all that time, Cindy has taught kindergarten and entertained us with stories - hilarious, sweet, and thought-provoking all at the same time - about her latest class of kids. Lauren and I even volunteered as teaching aids for several summers in her classroom and left with stories...
Using ‘Sun Kisses, Moon Hugs’ to Soothe a Worried Child
Before reading “Besos de sol, abrazos de luna” together with Jacob, I introduced the discussion questions from the “‘Love is Forever’ guided discussion” put together by Inner Flower Child as a companion piece and social emotional learning activity complimentary to the book. Designed to simplify complex ideas about emotions into child-friendly language, they were effective in allowing Jacob to express what he was experiencing and feeling in quarantine, and offering find ways to cope with being away from the person he missed the most.
Join us for a Livestream - Saturday July 18th
Join Voices & ChildCareGroup for a Social-Emotional training with Courtenay Fletcher & Susan Bernardo of Sun Kisses, Moon Hugs! Saturday, July 18th, from 10am - 1pm www.voicessa.org | www.childcaregroup.org Underwriting support for this event provided by H-E-B, PNC Bank and the Judge Andy Mireles Charitable Foundation. Voices for Children and ChildCareGroup are excited to present a virtual workshop featuring Courtenay Fletcher and Susan Bernardo, Authors of “Sun Kisses, Moon Hugs.” Their interactive training, “Bibliotherapy and Social-Emotional Arts: Using Books and Creativity to Help Children Deal with Stormy Emotions" is the perfect opportunity for Early Childhood Professionals and others to learn...