Developmental Highlights for Kindergartners
The kindergarten year marks the beginning of formal education. As kindergartners are off to school, they use new skills as they learn to read and write. Even though kindergartners may go to school with other school-age children, they still think more like a preschooler. Each area of development is interrelated for kindergartners in their growth.
Use Our Gifts to Serve Preschoolers with Joy
What a precious gift we have been given! The gift of eternity has been delivered so we might choose to accept it and have a personal relationship with our Savior. The gift of Jesus Christ and the gifts and talents bestowed on each of us who choose to believe have been given for His glory and honor. How can we better honor the Lord than to share Him with others and use every gift we have to serve others? We do this with great joy and delight!
Children’s Missions Here We Come!
Your Mission Friends who just completed kindergarten are about to take a big step as they move up to children’s missions. This transition from Mission Friends to Girls in Action (GA), Royal Ambassadors (RA), or Children in Action (CA) is an exciting time for these rising first graders.
Where to Find Helping Others Activities for Preschoolers
Preschoolers want to be helpers. Let’s give them opportunities to do Helping Others activities so they have experiences in sharing God’s love with others in need. Make Helping Others activities a big part of your Mission Friends by planning these activities on a regular basis.
Celebrate Summer with a Mission Friends Show and Tell Event
Invite families of preschoolers to a summer Mission Friends show and tell enrollment event. Families can experience the same fun that preschoolers have at Mission Friends, learn what preschoolers do at Mission Friends, and enroll their preschoolers to be a Mission Friend!
Developmental Highlights for Babies, Ones, and Twos
So much growth takes place between the sweet newborn stage through age two! It seems that babies, ones, and twos are able to do something new each day as they develop at such a rapid pace. Preschoolers in this age group are a delight to watch as they grow in each area of development. Though each child is individual, we give some highlights of development at this stage.
June Preschool Devotion
I taught in a private Christian school for five years as an elementary teacher. I fondly look back at those years as some of the toughest and best in my teaching career.
Ways to Help Preschoolers When Their Families Move
Preschoolers need stability. That is why routine and consistency are important for them. When changes shift their foundation, they may “lose their footing” and feel at risk. A family move can have this effect on preschoolers. It can manifest in all types of behaviors like tantrums, crying, and lashing out, as well as heightened shows of emotion such as sadness, fear, and anger.
Choosing Books for Preschoolers
Choosing books for preschoolers is a fun task. I like to think of choosing books as an adventure and a scavenger hunt all rolled up together.
Double the Rejoicing
I was one busy beaver during the early years of our marriage. I served as pastor’s wife to my pastor husband, worked hard to raise our two children, cared for my family, worked full-time as a preschool teacher, and taught and wrote curriculum for Mission Friends. That’s not the complete list of my responsibilities, but you can see how full my life was.
Ways to Support Preschoolers Dealing with a Death in the Family
Death is never an easy subject to broach, even with adults, let alone preschoolers. Grief and loss are multifaceted processes that each person approaches differently. There are several key things to remember when discussing these topics with preschoolers.
Nana, Do You Want a Piece?
“Nana, you wanna piece?” is what my grandson actually said. I eyed the piece of candy, shaken from a wrinkled and dubious wrapping. Dare I celebrate his generosity and risk ingesting whatever lingered on his hands after hours of outdoor play? Of course I did! I enjoyed his offering and comradery as I swallowed and prayed for good health.