Happy Holidays

Happy Holidays from Child Care Options
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Playscapes Redefined

  The very word "playscape" conjures images of wide green spaces with tree stumps and nooks and crannies for children to explore. We know the value of trading in the shiny plastic playgrounds of yesterday in favour of a more natural playspace, but what about our inside spaces? Check out Bending Birches to see these fantastic homemade playscapes. What a great way to inspire imagination and think of all the ways you can involve the children in creating your playscapes.

20th Anniversary Celebration Update!!

November is here and time is flying by as we prepare for our 20th anniversary celebration on December 6, 2010.  We have a community open house planned for all to attend as well as a special child care provider reception for providers living or working in the communities of Delta, Surrey and White Rock. We are excited to announce that we will be hosting the "Images of Learning Project" during the event. You can check out their blog for more information on this fantastic interactive display.

Party Time!

We love any reason to celebrate (particularly if there is cake involved) and what better theme to start with than your favourite children's book. Parties are a great way for families to get to know each other and a fantastic project for the children.  Check out the feature From the Bookshelf on the Hip Hip Hooray blog for more inspiration.

Save The Date

How time flies, we can hardly believe it's been twenty years! Mark December 6th on your calendar and tune in for more details to follow.



Crazy Creative Paint Brushes

Get out your early childhood professional superhero cape!  A fun activity for the children and you will be keeping the earth green by recycling! We love this idea for hand made paint brushes.  Check out Deborah J. Stewarts article "Hand Made Paint Brushes for Preschool" for complete details and start rummaging through your junk drawers.

Training Calenders are Here!!

The days of summer are soon coming to an end and so begins the preparation for fall and back to school. Our fall training calendar is in the mail and on it's way to the child care providers on our database as we speak!  You can also find a list of our training opportunities at childcareoptions.ca 

This will be last time the training calender will be mailed!  Child Care Options is going green and will be distributing future issues by email. Please make sure we have your current email address!

The Hungry Caterpillar

We love this idea for extending Eric Carle's classic" The Hungry Caterpillar. Pop over to gourmet mom on the go and check out the Hungry Caterpillar feast!

Inspired by Nature

Stop by Playing by the book and read "Trees, Leaves and Sandwich Boards".  Aside from the fab book review on "Mama Miti",  there is the most amazing idea for collecting items from a nature walk.  There are also great resources on music and activities around nature and trees.  Just looking at the beautiful photos is inspiring enough to race to the nearest park!  Looking for more inspiring nature ideas?   Try our Early Childhood Resource Library

Introducing The Arts

 

Harmony in Red - Henri Matisse

It's no secret that we are big supporters of child development here at Child Care Options, and the arts are an important part of that process.   Research  shows exposure to arts in children has a positive influence in their overall achievement (in areas such as math skills and problem solving.)  Take a look at Catherine Read's (from Simon Fraser University) paper "Fine Art, Imagination and Literacy" for more details. 

 Looking for ways to incorporate the arts in your everyday environment?  A great place to start is a series of board books by authors Julie Merberg and Suzanne Bober.  This colourful collection includes the beautiful art work of different artists accompanied by simple rhyming text.  You can read these at circle time, one on one and have them out for children to explore on their own.  Check out an excerpt from "A Magical Day With Matisse"below. 

 

Want to check out these books in person? Make your way to our our Early Years Learning Store!

Imagination Playground

Check out this fantastic playground concept (via Arch Daily) designed by architect David Rockwell. The Imagination Playground took five years to come to fruition and by all accounts was worth the wait.  It is refreshing to see a large scale playground  that focuses on “encouraging child-directed, unstructured free play. With a focus on loose parts, Imagination Playground offers a changing array of elements that allows children to constantly reconfigure their environment and to design their own course of play” (http://www.imaginationplayground.org/)

September Training Opportunities

We apologize for interrupting your blissful enjoyment of summer for this fall bulletin. Our workshops for September are listed on our website and filling up fast.  Register soon to avoid disappointment and keep an eye out for our training calender due out September. We now return you to your regular scheduled summer activities....

Save 25% at The Early Years Learning Store

Check out our great new selection of touchable bubbles, no-spill bubble jars and giant bubble sabers for huge bubbles!

Come visit us for *25% off* all plastic animals, dinosaurs and insects!

Stay tuned for more information about our August Sidewalk Sale!

How Rhymes Help Children Learn

Another reason to embrace your inner Dr.Seuss! How Rhymes Help Children Learn highlights the many benefits of singing and rhyming with children. A great resource for early learning and child care professionals as well as parents. Remember, rhyming doesn't always have to take place during circle time. Try making up funny rhymes and silly songs when doing everyday tasks.

Nature Inspired Activites

Looking for something to do with all the souvenirs from your latest summer adventure?  Pop by "let the children play" and check out some fab nature inspired activities. We love the sea shell sorting idea (pictured above).

No, David!

A fabulous fun read for children ages 0-5 years old. Children never get tired of David's antics and listening to his mother repeat "No, David!" The simple and predictable text makes this a great book for children to explore on their own as well.  One word of caution, once you introduce this book, be prepared to read it over and over again! 

Are your children crazy about David?  Let them make their own picture books....

Materials

• letter sized paper folded and stapled in to a booklet format
• colouring materials (we like pastels for this project!)
• several squares of paper with "No ______________" (with child's name or let the child print their name)
• glue sticks

What to do
Set out materials and let children create their own "No" books.  They can illustrate the pages and add the "No" text where they see fit.  Remember to write out the children's endings to their stories on the last pages .

HST

Wondering how the HST affects you as child care provider and small business owner? Take a look at page 9 of this handy dandy HST guide.  It clearly states that their is no HST for childcare services. Have more questions?  Contact the Canada Revenue Agency Tax Information Phone Service line -1-800-267-6999

"Early-childhood expert is serious about child’s play"

Read this article about Berkley PHD Jane Perry's research and observations on the benefits of play in early childhood. We love her story play ideas and her definition of the "teacher/researcher".  This is another reminder of the value of play and how it is essential for all children.

Drop in at the Park Reminder

Friday July 16th

CLOVERDALE ATHLETIC PARK

6330 168 st SURREY

9:30 am to 11:00 am

We will meet at the water park!

BUBBLES . . .

 

Summer has finally arrived, (Mother Nature has been known to be fashionably late on occasion) and we can look forward to many fun filled days of outside play. As early learning and child care professionals we spend countless hours trying to find new and exciting activities to fill those long summer days.  Bubbles are a great way to have some fun in the sun and are easy to grab when you need to add some excitement to a lazy summer afternoon.  The recipe below makes for some "tough" bubbles that won't pop when they hit the ground.  You can also check out our Early Childhood Resource Library for some great resources on bubbles.

Mix Your Own Bubbles

Follow this recipe to make super strong bubbles. Add food coloring for extra fun.

You will need

• 1 package unflavored gelatin
• 1 cup just-boiled water
• 1 1/2 to 2 ounces glycerin (available in the skin care aisle or at a health food store)
• 8 1/2 ounces Johnson’s Baby Shampoo

Stir the gelatin into the hot water until it’s dissolved. Mix in the glycerin and shampoo, stirring gently. The solution will gel as it cools.Stir the gelatin into the hot water until it’s dissolved. Mix in the glycerin and shampoo, stirring gently. The solution will gel as it cools.

You may have noticed a new logo on our site.  Options Community Services (formally known as Options Surrey Community Services)  launched their new name and logo at the annual general meeting held this past Friday. We are still the same great people offering the same great services - just with a shiny new name and logo.

Summer Drop-in Program for Family Child Care Providers

 

We are ever the optimists here at Child Care Options and anticipating a wonderful warm summer.  So, what better way to welcome the sun than to move our family child care provider drop-ins outside. We will be at the Cloverdale Athletic Park on July 16th and at the Memorial Park in Ladner on August 17th between 9:30  and 11:00 am.  This is a free event but registration is required, contact Child Care Options for more info.
 * We are optimists, but in the event of rain the drop-ins will be cancelled. Call the office to confirm.

Science and Early Childhood

You know the benefits of going outside, but what to do when you get there?  Summer is coming and it's time stock up on fantastic outside activities.  Check out this article by Charlina Stewart on education.com, it's a great way to incorporate science into your daily outdoor times.

Exciting Training Opportunity!

Thursday June 17, 7:00 - 9:00 pm 

Deas Island RegionalPark, Delta

Cost -$20.00

Call Child Care Options to register - 604-572-8032

Enrich your children’s outdoor experiences with simple, powerful nature activities,

games and songs used by Metro Vancouver Park Staff. Direct contact with nature

helps children develop respect and care for the environment and can positively affect

their development. This workshop will introduce you to a variety of hands-on activities

that can be applied to your backyard or natural areas in your community. Our sensory based

approach has been connecting children with nature since 1977. Handouts provided.

Wear suitable clothing as we will go outdoors for some of the program.

Fingerplay Bootcamp

Looking for a refresher after a long hot (hopefully) summer?  Join our fingerplay bootcamp and get motivated for fantastic circle times come the fall.  Now if only we could have paperwork bootcamp we would be set....  Call Child Care Options to register today!!

let the children play: series: how to create an irresistible outdoor playspace for children

We all know the importance of creating a welcoming, safe environment for children to grow and explore. Much time is spent arranging and rearranging furniture and toys to keep things exciting, but often we forget the importance of a well planned outdoor space. In this day and age of technology it is easy to get wrapped up in expensive gadgets and materials. Luckily we happened across http://www.blogcatalog.com/blog/let-the-children-play, a blog from Australia full of wonderful back to basics outdoor ideas. One of our faves is definitely this piece -http://www.blogcatalog.com/blog/let-the-children-play/c2fe96a81e38472123d6a0186d1751fc. Check out the  "tree cookies"-who knew we could get so excited over cookies we can't even eat.

Funding Cuts to Mobile Child Care Services

It is with heavy hearts that we tell you news of the Mobile Child Care Services closing. As our agency (along with others) prepared ourselves for the impact of budget cuts to the Ministry of Children and Family Development, we were informed that the entire portion of Surrey MCFD funding for the Mobile Child Care Services program has been discontinued.  Please see Child Care Options for more information.

Healthy Snack Ideas

Okay, we may be on a roll with the whole "health" theme but trust us when we say this is a must have for child care providers! Those in the child care profession wear many different hats - educator, nurturer and of course master chef. The National Network for Child Care has a database of child care friendly snack recipes along with other great articles and resources. Bon Appetit!

Healthy Kids

We all know the importance of less time in front of the TV and more time spent being active. The latest report card from active healthy kids canada focuses on the impact of activity levels in children 0-5 years old. Check out their article "Getting a Good Start: The Early Years Must be Active Years" and go outside and play!!

Join us at the Early Years Festival

Join Child Care Options this Saturday from 11:00am -3:00pm at the Surrey Early Years Festival (located at the North Surrey Rec Centre). The theme this year is "things that go" and is aimed at families with children ages 0-6 years. Stop by our table and say hello!  Check out City of Surrey's website for more info

Happy Earth Day!

The sun is shining on us here at our Surrey location and what better way to pay homage to Mother Earth! Hopefully you are all outside enjoying the fabulous weather and counting all the ways you will be "green" today. While we are contemplating ways to move our desks outside and enjoy the sun you can check out this page from Earth Day Canada and discover all the great Earth Day activities happening this weekend around Metro Vancouver.

Child Care Options Newsletter

Child Care Options Spring/Summer Newsletter

There are many signs that Spring is upon us - the sun is shining, the flowers are in bloom and our Spring/Summer newsletter arrives at your door! Please read & pass on to your friends and co-workers.
You haven't received a copy of our fantastic newsletter? Go to http://www.childcareoptions.ca/ and send us a message or phone the office and we will add you to our list.

Training Opportunity

Whew! Our training and professional development team are hard at work! Last Saturday we hosted MaryAnn Kohl and this Saturday we are offering the best deal in town. A certificate for 6 hours of training, hot lunch and a free book - all for $20.00.  The workshop is Respecting and Responding to Family Diversity - A Delta ECD event.and you can register by contacting Child Care Options.  Fantastic speakers, yummy food and free stuff - we can't think of a better way to spend your Saturday.

MaryAnn Kohl Part Two

We are so crazy about MaryAnn Kohl's workshop, we couldn't resist a second post. As promised, here are a few more pictures from the event. It was great to see so many child care providers networking and having such a great time. Make sure you check out the free art ideas on MaryAnn's website, the "Dark Sugar Chalk" idea looks fabulous!

MaryAnn Kohl...

A few of the child care providers...

Some more masterpieces...

Science Sunday

Here is a little something to get you inspired for Monday. The website Science for Preschoolers has a collection of fun science ideas and lesson plans that are easy to incorporate into any program. Try their "Eat like a snake - sort of" snack idea!

We heart Maryann Kohl

The office was a buzz with energy this morning while we prepared for our two workshops taking place today. What could cause this excitement at such an early hour and on a Saturday no less? The wonderful MaryAnn Kohl of course! For those who are not familiar, MaryAnn is the author of an impressive 24 children's art books and a fantastic presenter. I think we all left today feeling like we had rediscovered our inner Picasso.

 Here is a little taste of the day's activities:

We have posted a link to the page on MaryAnn's website that has the hand outs from her workshops.

Please remember to remeber to obtain her permission to use them for anything other than personal use.

http://brightring.com/presentations.html

Greetings Neighbour...

Child Care Options is excited to announce our move into the online community!  We are after all, an organization devoted to supporting  child care providers and families, which makes us some what of a social bunch.  It seemed only logical for us to take the leap into social networking. Come by and visit us often.  We will provide updates on what's happening in the child care community, training opportunites, resources and much more. You can still find us of course on our web page http://www.childcareoptions.ca/