Soft Number Puzzles

Number Puzzles

These Lauri Crepe toys are a great toy for young children. They use their hands as well as their minds to learn numbers. These soft

number puzzles

are so durable and washable. My child had one when she was two years old. She could count the pieces and she loved fitting the pieces in to the numbered spots. It was such a great exercise for her to find the shapes that matched and put them where they belonged. She also loved the Number Express Train because she could take apart and put back together the train over and over again. She could also place the pegs in the right spots to show visually what 4 and 5 look like. The process of putting the pegs in the small holes of these

number puzzles

and then even building on top of the pegs with other pegs is a great exercise for young ones to do. The fine motor skill of pinching the pegs and being able to steady their hand and build on top of it to fit it in the whole is hard and will need some practice. These toys enable that to happen in a non-threatening way and with a lot of success.

You can take these great soft

number puzzles

a bit further and mix them up or even provide a certain number of pegs and ask them which number trains or number boards they can fill with that amount. Then ask if they can fill more than one with that same number of pegs. You are enabling them to think mathematically without even noticing. Do not correct them either, these soft number puzzles are self-checking and they will get the hang of it.

You can then take the

Tall Stacker Building

set and use the same pegs as with the number puzzles and give them the opportunity to think ahead and plan and manipulate the pieces to build. These toys are so durable and washable and can even withstand a bite or two, from your child of course not really a dog. :) A great investment!

Kids Puppets

Kids Puppets

When used correctly

kids puppets

can accomplish amazing things. As a teacher or parent you can use puppets to communicate things to children and for some reason they listen!

Here are some tips when using

kids puppets

: Have puppets that are only used by adults and then have separate puppets that are only used for the kids to play with. The adult puppet can be used to communicate things and should always be in character. If it strays from character it looses its effectiveness. When children get a hold of a puppet the character will change, that is why some puppets need to be for adults only. Give the adult

kids puppets

a personality with the tone of your voice. Small puppets usually need higher voices and bigger puppets usually need deeper voices. Some puppets can be high energy, some can be really slow talkers. Do not worry about moving your mouth because kids will only watch the puppet and not you. You do not need to be a ventriloquist to use puppets!

Puppets can communicate rules, ask kids questions, show the "wrong" way to do things. If you do these "wrong" things over and over the children will start to correct the puppet. Have fun with it and you will see your child's eyes light up and really form a relationship with these

kids puppets

. If you find a child will not communicate well or seems shy, give them a puppet of their own and you may be surprised what starts to come out when they can pretend to be someone else.

There is no doubt that

kids puppets

are a great preschool educational toy. Not only do they help communication and help engage children in to a classroom situation but they can be used at home to promote story telling. Help your children put on a puppet show and give them the chance to use their puppets for story telling. Vocabulary, descriptive tools, parts of a story and many more language skills will develop as your child plays with puppets!

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Beginning Pattern Blocks

Beginning Pattern Blocks

I am not real fond of pattern blocks. They seem like a waste of time and the pieces always get everywhere. Can you tell me what is the educational value for a preschooler?

Beginner pattern blocks

develop many skills for young ones. They help kids to recognize shapes and match those shapes to one another as well. Preschool children will sometimes have difficulty identifying shapes and patterns.

Beginner pattern blocks

will enable them to not only touch and feel the shapes but use them to make a bigger picture. Then as the child puts together a bigger picture with pattern blocks, they are organizing the shapes without even realizing it. Taking the time to organize the shapes may seem petty or a time filler, but it is actually very good for their minds to take parts and put them together as a whole. Then you can take it a step further and watch your child be able to distinguish shapes within shapes and actually find a part within a whole. These are all beginning stages of mathematical skills that will be developed in a more finite way as they get older but are started here.

You will also find great satisfaction on your child's face when he/she finishes a picture that he/she made. Take a piece out of the picture they made and ask them what is missing. Ask them the colors and have them form patterns with those shapes and discuss what patterns are.

I know that

beginning pattern blocks

seem like a nuisance but if you have them contained and use them appropriately they can be a great tool in developing your child's mathematical thinking and prepare them to distinguish parts from a whole when they are just having fun making a picture.

Our

Magnetic Pattern Wooden Block Kit

can have three levels of play. (1) Slide a pattern card into the wooden frame and match the magnetic pieces to the shapes in the picture. (2) Place a picture sheet next to the magnetic board and use it as a guide to duplicate the image. (3) Use the pieces to create your own unique picture, pattern or design. Includes: sturdy, hand-painted magnetic board, 120 magnetic wooden shapes, 6 durable, double-sided pattern cards, and sturdy carrying case with easy-zip back pocket.

www.InspireBrightMinds.com

Children and Language

Children and Language

I have a friend that whenever he was taking a long drive, would take plastic eggs with rice or something inside of them and use them to shake them to the beat of a song on the radio. It would keep him attentive and awake. Children can take these same great tools and learn rthymn and beat. It can keep them attentive and awake when learning language.

Children and language

start to connect with rhythm, rhyme and beat.

Our egg shakers do a great job of allowing children to listen for rhythm and beat and try to match it while shaking eggs. They will love this activity and the great thing is that will not fall apart and they will not be tempted to open them. These are a great tool for developing a relationship between

children and language

.

When connecting with the beat of a song or of words, children will start to find syllables. They will start to hear the rhythm of language and then in turn begin to develop their vocabulary. They will fill comfortable with syllables and therefore feel a bit more comfortable with spelling and sounding out words.

Children and language

are an important connection and we see them striving to work for communication with the world when they are very small through crying. As a child gets older they will continue to find ways to connect or communicate with the world and will start to use the language that others are using around them.

Do not be afraid to speak big words or words that have a lot of syllables around children. They will pick it up and you will find that not only are they not afraid of language but find it fun and challenging. Enable them to be comfortable with syllables and rhythm and you will find they will be comfortable with language too.

Children and language

is not something you should be afraid of either, enjoy watching how it all develops! A little deliberate selection of toys and opportunities to learn will do wonders. Who knows you may learn something too!

Kids and Music

Kids and Music

Kids and music

are a great combination. Not only do children really love music but they can learn a ton from it. I have a preschool class and in that preschool class I pick certain music for the children to listen to that will not only be enjoyable but enable them to learn too. You remember about 95% of what you can sing. How many of us as adults remember capitals and other things by singing them?

The Frog Street Colors, ABC, Shapes and Numbers CD's are an amazing addition to any preschool classroom or any home. When you put

kids and music

together with these CD's, they will learn how to spell and recognize the above things with ease. The tunes are simple, the words are easy and you will find yourself wishing you could have one for things you would like to learn or remember.

Place these amazing CD's in the car, play them while children are doing centers in your classroom. Either way you will find that when

kids and music

are placed together and even when you are not focusing on them, the content is absorbed. And when you ask your 4 year old to spell "purple", they will do an amazing job of singing it to you. My daughter and I will take it in the car and when we are driving while listening to these songs we will ask each other where do you see a "s-q-u-a-r-e" and spell it out. It is fun and funny and your child will love the satisfaction of learning these site words a bit early.

Kids and music

are must and these CD's put a little direction in to the great desire all children have to learn and have fun. Enjoy!

Preschool Teachers Resources

Preschool Teachers Resources

The school year is about to start. I am currently getting ready for my preschool year to begin with my 12 students. I am seeing all these great lesson plans and ideas that I can do with my children but I am unable to get some

preschool teachers resources

because my budget does not allow for it. Do you have some suggestions?

You can do many things in the classroom that are low on budget and still great teaching tools. I have a laminated piece of long construction paper that I cut in half long ways (like a hot dog bun:) ). I then put big paper clips on the tops of the two long pieces and taped the paper clips to the back. Now the children can slip die cuts in there to form patterns, sequencing and it can be done over and over again. The kids love it and it cost nothing!

Another option for

preschool teachers resources

is to take a shower curtain from the dollar store. Then get some electrical tape and make a graph grid, leaving room at the bottom for labeling your graphs. Then die cut some smiley faces that are laminated and place the child's name on it. Throughout the year you can then have the children "graph" favorites using their smiley faces on the class graph. I then hang it outside the door for parents to see - they love it.

If you have some more ideas, send them our way. Also check out our toys if you want to make a bigger investment and we can help you obtain

preschool teachers resources

at a discounted price. Just

contact us

!

Have a great year!

Classic Toys: Clock Toys

Classic Toys: Clock Toys

So many older children these days can only read a digital clock. Don’t let your child become one of them!!

Clock toys

are great for children of all ages. They can start recognizing numbers on a clock as early as a toddler and continue through the years to learn basics of fractions when they are exposed to regular clocks and clock toys.

Clock toys

can enable toddlers to engage in their love of matching slots for shapes. With the numbers located on top of the blocks, they are also learning to match numbers as they find the correct slot for each block. The numbers are also located on the clock, which allows for your child to match number to number.

As a toddler,

clock toys

can help your child learn to match shapes and numbers and how to put them in numerical order. As an elementary child, they can begin to learn to tell time. The key words, such as “quarter past,” can begin to introduce fractions along with the colors dividing the middle of the clock into 12 parts. The minutes are also labeled in 5 minute increments to help teach your child sequencing.

“My two year old got this toy as a birthday present and loves it! She is already matching up the shapes and learning to match her numbers from the shapes to the ones on the clock. What a great educational toy.”

Fun Kids Toys

Fun Kids Toys

Kids love to play and have fun. We, as adults, want to provide opportunities for them to have a great time.

Fun kids toys

can be a great investment when they are educational as well.

The amazing thing about young children, is that they learn no matter what. They learn to have fun, they learn to obey, they learn colors, numbers, and letters. Sometimes they learn things of value, sometimes they do not. You can not deny that It is so satisfying to see a young child see something new and find answers to their many questions. They are created to learn. It is usually fun. Unfortunately, for some reason, it soon becomes a burden.

We, at Inspire Bright Minds, think it is possible to provide children with toys that are not only fun but educational.

Fun kids toys

can even be about letters and numbers. When chosen appropriately these toys can be played with in many different ways to promote learning without taking away their joy. Decide to make learning fun for your children. Choose toys that are

fun kids toys

and educational. When this extra effort is taken you might even find that when your children enter school, learning remains a pleasure and not a burden.