Happy 2019!  
As another year has come to an end, we always seem to find ourselves reflecting on the last 12 months.  It has been quite a year for us, celebrating our 5 year anniversary in November! Whoo Whoo for us!  I hope 2018 has been just as memorable for you and your loved ones as it has been for Bright From The Start Childcare, INC.  I want to  express to you my heartfelt gratitude for all the support and love that I have received my first 5 years in business and  my prayer is that I can continue to be a blessing to you as your childcare provider for many more years to come.  May your New Year be filled with joy, prosperity and love.  

As the end of 2018 has come and gone, it is time to take a step back and look at the bigger picture!  The ability to focus is a part of everyday life.  Focusing on the road when you are driving, having your eye on the ball when playing a sport, and focusing on your children when they speak.  I often ask myself, if I am so great at focusing on everyday tasks, why is it that I fail in some area or another?  Funny, how as the year comes cl to the end, this feeling amplifies and I begin to reflect on the goals of the past year.  

As 2019 began, I asked myself what was missing that resulted in those goals not being achieved.  Could it be a lack of focus on achieving the goals?  Did I take the required action in order to achieve my goals?  One of the biggest goals that I did not accomplish last year was keeping up with this blog!  So I will make it a "priority" goal to keep my blogging up-to-date.  I will do it, I know I can!  Check back and make       sure I'm doing it! Help me hold myself accountable.  

So this year, I decided "No" more New Year resolutions......I'm going to take a look at my past resolutions and ask myself what prevented me from achieving them?  Then I'm going to focus on that.....focus on what prevented me from my goals.  And prayerfully 2019 will be the best ever!  Either way I'll keep you posted!   

​The High/Scope Program – Plan-Do-Review Process
High/Scope provides a wide, realistic educational experience geared to a child's current stage of development, to promote the correct way of learning necessary to get best out of the early intellectual and social skills. In a High/Scope classroom, students are engaged in learning ‘centers’, including building, dramatic play, math, reading, music, writing, science, and motor development. A typical day would demonstrate a three-part process: “Plan-Do-Review.” Beginning with planning, the class and teacher discuss and create plans for a certain play period. Children go about their various activities, (Do) while teachers observe and offer support. The “review” process takes place after the play period, where students and teachers gather to discuss what they have found. This helps children understand their own actions, and enables connections between action and language. Children’s work is proudly displayed on the walls of the classroom.


Waldorf Schools – Hands-On Exploration
​Created by Rudolf Steiner in 1919, Waldorf's main objective is to educate the whole child — “head, heart, and hands.” Children in Waldorf schools are allowed to remain ‘childlike’, because of the belief that there is a time for every phase of development, and that children should not receive formal education until after the age of 7. Learning is hands-on, and received through cooking, art projects, storytelling, singing, puppet shows, dress-up, and play. The teacher stays with the same group of children from preschool through eighth grade. The focus in the Waldorf classroom is on sensory exploration and self-discovery rather than formal instruction and merit, helping children develop a sense of compassion and responsibility. The use of electronic media, especially TV, by young children is highly discouraged in Waldorf schools.

Reggio Emilia Schools – Classroom as the “Third Teacher”
Loris Malaguzzi, founded the Reggio Emilia approach at the Italian city of the same name. The Reggio approach fosters intellectual development through a focus on symbolic representation. The primary curriculum is in-depth project work based on the interests of the children. Children are encouraged to express themselves through ‘natural languages’, including drawing, painting, working in clay, sculpting, constructing, conversing, and dramatic play. In a Reggio Emilia school, educators pay close attention to the look and feel of the classroom, which is often referred to as the “third teacher.” The goal is to create a room that is beautiful, joyful, inviting, and stimulating. Teachers document the children’s discussions, remarks, and activities through notes, videos, and photographs. This makes learning visible and helps parents to understand what their children are learning; teachers get to know the children better; and children see that their work is valued.

Bank Street Approach – Learning by DoingJohn Dewey,  his theory of ‘learning by doing’ influenced this developmental approach. The focus of Bank Street preschools is on a child’s mental, social, emotional, and physical growth. In these programs, the child is an active learner and gains knowledge about the world through experience. Students set the learning pace, and the teacher serves as a guide. Bank Street approach teaches lessons through hands-on activities, such as building blocks, puzzles, clay, and dramatic play.

Which Educational Philosophy Is Best?  Here we use a combination of The High/Scope Program and The Bank Street Approach.  We like to watch each child individually and decide which learning method works best for that child.  Since we are a small group of children, it is much easier to tailor the educational philosophy for each specific child.  That's what makes us a little different from the rest!

Parents should consider the following to help choose what's best for your child.

• Carefully consider your child’s personality and learning style before investigating the options. After all, you know your child best.
• Research the various types of programs available, and make the selection of those that best fit your child’s needs.
• Visit each type of school and then try to determine the program that feels right for your child and family.

Good Luck with which ever decision you decide to make.

BENEFITS OF FINGER PAINTING INCLUDE:

• It is an excellent tactile experience.
• It stimulates your child’s senses. (Touch/feel, sight, smell, edible finger paint= taste)
• It helps a child’s intellectual development. The mixing of colors teaches your child about their colors and how to create new colors
• It allows them to use their imagination and create
• It is emotionally soothing (in most cases).
• It encourages cognitive development.
• It strengthens the hand and fingers which helps with fine motor skills.
• Most importantly, it is FUN!

We have plenty of ideas that we are going to try while finger painting.  Some of our ideas are:

• Painting on a slippery surface
• Squirt Bottle painting
• Using thickened paint with a baster

Stay tuned for some more finger painting fun!

Little hands will develop fine motor skills by learning the proper way to cut paper!

Teaching your child to read early has multiple benefits and is the key to your child's academic future. 
The main reason is that reading is at the heart of all formal education. As the child becomes a toddler, he/she will enter a new world of speech, movement, and imagination. In most cases he/she will start speaking first words and learn several new words every week. The more language the baby hears, the more words it will have available to name objects or express feelings.  By 18 months, it may start joining these simple words into sentences.  At this age, reading to your child should be a regular part of your daily routine. Story-time encourages language development and communication, in a loving, playful context. Toddlers often want to assert their independence so you should let your child choose the book to read, as well as the reading location. In order to interact more effectively with your toddler, make reading a two-sided activity in which both of you participate. You may read the worlds and the child may speak, point, coo, laugh, or thump the page. This is perfectly normal and the child is beginning his relationship with books.  We read to the kids everyday and we encourage all of our children to pick their own books. 

We had such a blast on pajama day, 1/13/17.  We also celebrated Matthew's 3rd birthday.  

Bright From The Start Childcare, INC. is licensed by the New York State Office of Children and Family Services (NYSOCFS) as a group family day care center. A group family day care like ours takes place in someone’s home (as opposed to a separate business in a commercial space) with the childcare given by the provider and one or more assistants. Based on the available space, your child becomes part of a small group of up to 12 mixed age children, with a child/student ratios ranging up to 6 to 1 for older children.  Each supervising adult must be screened by and registered with NYSOCFS, as must each adult family member. 

A family day care also takes place in someone’s home with the provider as the sole caregiver, without an assistant. Depending on the age of the children, up to 6 children of mixed ages (of which 2 may be under 2) can be accommodated by the care giver. The provider must be screened by and registered with NYSOCFS, as must each adult family member.

A child day care center takes place in a commercially rented space and generally provides day care for a much larger number of older children (sometimes starting at 2 but usually 3 yrs. old and ranging up to 5 yrs of age). The children are segregated usually into same-age groups with the number of children limited only by space and by a child to teacher ratio ranging up to 9-1 (depending on age). Child day care centers are more like regular schools.  


           WHY CHOOSE GROUP FAMILY DAY CARE?
Most parents who choose group family day care want a warm, small group, homelike environment for their children’s first school-like experience (often the first non-parent social group experience) instead of a larger, institutional day care center where commercial rents and other overhead can generally dictate the maximum child to adult ratios (up to 6 to 1) allowed by the NYSOCFS. Since a group family day care center can have one or more state-registered assistants, each child is less dependent on one person being “on” for the entire morning, afternoon, or an entire day as in a provider-operated family day care residence. Also, as assistants/substitutes are allowed, a group family day care center can respond more flexibly than a family day care center when teachers are ill or otherwise unavailable.  A group family day care center also generally provides more flexibility in terms of scheduling than a larger child day care center for parents who want a part-time schedule to fit their work and personal needs.  The foundation of family child care is relationships.  Relationships between parents and providers, providers and the children and the children with each other.  Family child care fosters emotionally secure interpersonal relationships with all families involved in care.
Though daycare centers, no matter how child-friendly and welcoming, can sometimes seem institutional, home daycare can be the next best thing to your own house. If you're lucky enough to find a good provider in your neighborhood, so much the better – your child will feel even more at home.
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Just keep in mind, whatever childcare you choose, remember to do as much reseach as possible.  

We have so many fun things ready to do for 2017.  I can't wait...

Click on the picture  below to read "Meet Margo"

Yes, I am finally able to post some pic of our first annual Family Day BBQ.    All our of families were able to sit down, socialize with one another and enjoy some great food.  Oh let's not forget about the music, shout out to DJSM for keeping the music going.  (If you are looking for a DJ for your next event, check him out.  Don't forget to mention my name to get special pricing).   The kids had such a ball in the Mickey Mouse bounce house, water slide and the slip and slide.  The day was absolutely beautiful.  Unfortunately, I didn't get to take as many pictures as I would have liked, boy was I busy.  Next year I MUST hire a professional.  Can't wait until next year, it will be bigger and better!  

I want to thank all my mom's and dad's for their continuious support and allowing me to help care for and encourage the growth and development of their precious little ones.  From the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

We are closed Monday, September 7th in observation of Labor Day!
See you Tuesday!

Well, summer is finally here and we have so many great things planned with the kids and such great things come with this season.   Stay posted to see some of the wonderful activities we will do with our kids!

Wishing all the dad's a Happy Father's Day! Enjoy.

Today we introduced the letter "O" to the kids - "O" is for Octopus.   We learned all about the Octopus, it was so much fun to see them pretend to be an Octopus, with 8 arms and legs.  We also learned all about Oyster Pearls and we made our own... The kids loved it!

Haha, this is so funny and so true!

Stay tuned for the finished products!