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Kindergarten Bound!
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items "I spent 34 years falling in love with the magic of kindergarten. Now that I've retired, I’m sharing my 'secret sauce'—the exact tools, books, and resources I used to create a joyful learning environment. My goal is to help you make this year the bes...
Sections
5
Fine Motor/The Ready Hands
Strategies to Regulate those Big Feelings
"Magic of Reading"
"The Independence Station"
Play-Based Learning
Fine Motor/The Ready Hands
Before kids can write, they need to build hand strength. This is an area many parents overlook but veteran teachers prioritize.
Small movements make a big difference in our quality of life. This video breaks down why maintaining fine motor skills is the key to long-term independence, from the ability to button a shirt to writing a letter or using a smartphone. It offers a ser...
What Are Fine Motor Skills?
Key features of the video: The Movements: He leads children through actions like "squeezing a ball" for grip, "creeping spiders" for finger isolation, and "crab pinches" to practice the pincer grasp used for writing. The Format: Jack demonstrates eac...
Finger Fun! | Hand and Finger Dexterity Exercises for Kids! | Jack Hartmann
Action Benefit Squeezing Overall hand and grip strength. Pinching Precision and "pincer" grip for writing. Rolling (Balls) Dexterity and hand-eye coordination. Snipping Master the "open-close" motion of scissors. Poking Finger isolation and independe...
Play Doh Modeling Compound 10-Pack Assorted Colors, Non-Toxic, 2 oz Cans
I added playdough toys to encourage creating with playdough. These tools help encourage rolling, cutting and stamping.
Melissa & Doug Clay Play Set with Tools & 8 Dough Tubs
Stage Action Benefit Stage 1 Snipping (Playdough or Straws) Builds basic "open-close" muscle memory. Stage 2 Fringed Edges (Random snips) Develops initial hand-eye coordination. Stage 3 Straight Lines Practices "cutting forward" and staying on a path...
Crayola Pointed 3pk Bundle of Tip Metal Scissors
This toy is great to improve fine motor skills because it works on pinching, balancing and guiding using hand eye coordination!
Toddler Wooden Montessori Peg Board Toy
Feature Benefit Two-Sided Task Forces the child to use both hands at the same time. In-and-Out Motion Introduces the concept of "hidden" space (the back of the card). Repetition Builds "muscle memory" for complex loops (like shoe-tying). Patience Tea...
Melissa & Doug Lace and Trace Pets Set
Most crafts require high levels of finger isolation and control. Beading & Threading: Picking up tiny beads and stringing them onto a wire or thread refines the pincer grasp and improves hand-eye coordination. Peeling & Placing: Using sticker...
Dan&Darci Kids Arts & Crafts Kit w/ Storage
Strategies to Regulate those Big Feelings
Research consistently shows that these two skills are better predictors of school success than early reading or math. That of Self Regulation and Self Control. Learning about those big feelings
hy This Video Matters for Kindergarten Transition Success: It teaches kids that it's okay to feel "yellow" when a parent leaves at drop-off, but provides the tools to get back to "green" for learning. Social Harmony: It explains that regulating your ...
How Children Learn Emotion Regulation #parenting #dadlife #momlife #parentingtips #kids #parents
A child’s brain cannot absorb academic information if it is constantly in a state of "high alert" or emotional dysregulation. The "Filter": Self-regulation acts as a filter that helps children ignore distractions (like a bird outside the window or a ...
Teaching Young Children Social-Emotional Skills: Self-Regulation
When we have children parents are their first teachers, They model and mimic what we do. This video shows the importance why we as parents need to be wary what we say, watch etc. Our children are like little sponges.
Managing Emotions As A Parent: Why It Matters
This is a video for children that shows how they control their emotions. Breathing, singing are a few of the examples.
Coping Skills For Kids - Managing Feelings & Emotions For Elementary-Middle School | Self-Regulation
This is a song for children teaching them about belly breathing in order to calm those “big feelings”
Self Control Song
This is a bunch of videos the whole family can participate in. Cosmic yoga teaches children different moves in a fun way that they can understand
Cosmic Kids Yoga | The Home of Positive Screen Time
In this video Elmo speaks to dad about his big feelings!
Elmo Manages New Emotions with "I Notice, I Feel, I Can" | Emotional Well-Being
This is a great book providing illustrations and visuals by story telling, different ways to breathe to calm oneself.
Breathe Like a Bear: First Day Worries
This is a great story a child can relate too. Each colour monster in the story represents a feeling. It helps children describe their big feelings with colour.
The Color Monster: A Story About Emotions
Bubbles can help young children breathe to calm down by blowing bubbles.
Bubble Wand Set with Blower & Tray for Kids
"Magic of Reading"
Reading builds the "wiring" in a child's brain. It expands their vocabulary far beyond everyday conversation and teaches phonics—the ability to turn abstract shapes (letters) into meaningful sounds.
This video ways parents can get involved in promoting reading skills.
What Helps Parents Get Involved In Early Reading? - Childhood Education Zone
An article for parents giving great guide on readiness for kindergarten including skills in literacy and language.
A Guide to Engaging Parents in Kindergarten Readiness
As part of entering kindergarten children should be able to recognize their name. This puzzle does that. Next step would be naming the letters and printing their name independently.
Personalized Wooden Name Puzzle with Pegs
This is a video with story bots that teaches letter recognition, sounds and words to help emergent readers.
ABC Song: The Letter A, "Hooray For A" by StoryBots | Netflix Jr
Bob books are leveled readers that are very simple. Decoding looking at pictures, sounding out letters are ways to help those emergent readers.
Bob Books First Stories Box Set - Ages 4+
This toy helps with match words, pictures and creating word. Skills needed to read.
LITTLE BUD KIDS Spin-and-Read Phonics Blocks
"The Independence Station"
A huge part of kindergarten is learning to "do it myself." These items make the teacher's (and student's) life easier.
This video is about ways to encourage your child to be more independent.
How to Encourage Your Kids to Become More Independent
Teaching these skills early is vital for several developmental reasons: Independence & Autonomy: It shifts the child from being a passive recipient of care to an active participant in their own life. This fosters a "can-do" attitude that carries ...
Developing Self-Help Skills
This video talks about the 10 most important 10 self help skills that will aid in your child's success!
Get ready for Kindergarten with these 10 Self-Help Skills
This book is fantastic. It shows what children are capable of doing and at what age!
I Can Do That!: 1,000 Ways to Become Independent
Videos designed to teach these skills (often found on platforms like Study.com or educational YouTube channels) typically follow a "Watch, Try, Do" model: The Demonstration (Modeling): The video features a clear, step-by-step demonstration of a speci...
Self Care Skills - Kid Sense Child Development
Play-Based Learning
Play is work for a five-year-old.
Dr. Pascal was a big advocate of play based learning in Ontario Canada and its importance.
The role of early childhood in revolutionizing the future of education | Dr Charles Pascal
Dr. Gray in the video talks about the characteristics of play. The most important is that it is an activity that they choose.
Play-based Learning with Dr. Peter Gray
Type of Play Key Benefit Object Play (Blocks, Puzzles) Spatial reasoning and math concepts. Physical Play (Recess, Sports) Strength, coordination, and health. Pretend Play (Dress-up, Dolls) Social skills and emotional intelligence. Games with Rules (...
Importance of Play
Toys that promote building help children problem solve.
Mini Magnetic Tiles Travel Kit, 60pcs STEM Toy
Building toys are considered "loose parts," meaning they don't have just one way to be used. Imaginative Play: A simple rectangular block can be a phone one minute, a car the next, and a slice of cake five minutes later. Symbolic Thinking: This abili...
10 in 1 STEM Building Toys for Kids 4-8
Building something from scratch requires the brain to use its "control center." Problem Solving: When a structure isn't stable, a child must analyze why and iterate a new solution. Planning: A child has to decide on a goal (e.g., "I want to build a b...
Kids STEM Building Blocks 300PCS for Ages 3-8
Marble runs act as a child's first physics laboratory. Through trial and error, they learn the fundamentals of: Gravity & Momentum: Children observe how the marble speeds up on steep drops and slows down on flat stretches or spirals. Velocity: Th...
Learning Resources STEM Explorers Marble Runners - 18 Pieces
This toy teaches coding. The toy builds "brain power" through structured play: Planning & Foresight: A child must hold the entire path in their working memory before they start pushing buttons. Patience: It requires a child to slow down and think...
Learning Resources Code & Go Robot Mouse STEM Toy