Social Learning During Social Distancing

It has been a while- over a year- since I posted to this blog! I have no excuse except that I have been fairly busy and stressed (just like everyone else right now). I am writing just about a week after the last day of my school year- a year that of course had a surprising and challenging shift to distance learning.

As an educator, if I have learned anything this year, it's that creative problem solving can help you wade through unforeseen circumstances. However, it takes a full on effort- a constant attention to everyone involved. You have to care- a lot- and make adjustments based on feedback.

As a parent, life has not been dissimilar. I know the stress and social isolation we've been experiencing isn't particularly healthy for us, but it could be a learning opportunity. This has been a tough problem to "creative" our way around- but not impossible. Plus, getting creative about social learning opportunities for our children right now is a good way to model flexibility and resilience!

Here are some options you may have considered to offer social learning opportunities for your little ones during social distancing:

• You and other immediate family members- your child's first teachers
• Interactive virtual (FaceTime, Zoom, etc)- can give your child a sense of cause and effect, develop social language, and can model participation in a community
• Non-interactive (children's media- TV, movies, books, music, etc)- allow your child to see/hear and learn about different social scenarios and develop empathy 
• In person (socially distancing with people outside on walks, or with extended family if you make that decision)- still available- just please stay safe (wear a mask, socially distance)

With safety first and foremost, opportunities for social learning will look different now, but they are still as abundantly available! Let's take a closer look at how you can offer safe social learning opportunities for your little ones during social distancing. Here are my recommendations:

Take an Online Class There are a variety of offerings for families with young children out there- the beauty of which is you don't have to live close to the teacher, and there is flexibility around the timing. For example, check out these online offerings from children's musicians.

Stay Connected With Playgroups Online This is a way especially for parents of babies/toddlers to stay connected (and sane)! Highly recommended. If you weren't in a playgroup already, try forming one online.

Listen to the Radio This time honored media source connects us to our community because it's  interactive. Try contacting the DJ to make a request! Here are some recommendations (in alphabetical order):

• Hilltown Family Variety Show (The DJs aren't live but may prompt listeners with questions or activity suggestions. Here's my empathy and imagination episode - you'll need art supplies)!
• Radio Active Kids
• Saturday Morning Cereal Bowl
• Sirius XM Kid's Place Live
• WEE Nation Radio (The DJ is Uncle Devin- a local (to me) children's musician colleague and drummer for my songs Sense to Me and Make Believe Zoo)!
• WXPN Kid's Corner

Learn More About Social Justice I recommend the Zinn Education Project. It has resources appropriate for Pre-K to adult. My son (11 years old) and I are using it right now to understand the history and continued effects of systematic racism in our country. Alphabet Rockers, Teaching Tolerance, and The Mosaic Project are all also resources I have used as an educator and as a parent.

Learn About Spirituality and Meditation With many places of worship offering virtual services, now is a good time to learn about different religions without the stigma of perhaps being an outsider to that community- or being that family with the kids who are maybe not that quiet. The more positive messages about universal love and helping those in need, and even the more controversial topics, are great talking points that may tie in to what you learn about social justice. Virtual services also usually offer positivity and peaceful meditation opportunities you can model for your little one- worth a try! (Or you could try the "Calm" app- I'm on the fence about this app. Will probably write a separate article about it).

Donate to Community Helpers As strange as it may sound to recommend watching a late night television host for ideas to donate to community helpers right now, I recommend watching Jimmy Fallon. As a parent of two little girls, he knows what's up, and his YouTubes usually have links to donate. So you feel a little bit more sane by laughing a bit, and then you get to feel like you are helping your community- a win win. How does this help your little ones, you ask? They get to see you in a better mood, and you can explain how you helped the community- you will be a model of resilience and empathy- go you!

Take Walks This is a way to stay connected to one's community that doesn't require a computer, doesn't cost a thing, and is a health boost in so many ways! I recommend saying hello to strangers, sharing or going off the path to maintain social distance, and going at around twilight- it's cooler, and where we live, we can walk with the fireflies!

Bond with a Pet Now is a great time to add a pet to your family, or pay extra attention to your pet(s). Pets can give that much needed unconditional love, develop empathy in your little ones, and can be genuine friends/companions! Have your little one help you feed, walk, or play with your pet- they will love it!

Mail a Letter/Gift! This is a great way to remind those family and friends you are close with that you are there for them. My son has really enjoyed getting letters and gifts in the mail- and it's an opportunity to show gratitude/reciprocate.

Be Real/ Feel Your Feelings As someone who experienced a crisis situation during their child's early childhood years, I was coached to be real and not to hide my feelings from my little one. Our instinct may be to shelter our little ones from any feelings that aren't happy. It's actually a better idea to process the whole range of emotions whether or not you have space apart from your child. It's not easy, and it isn't always pretty, but weathering those storms is a good opportunity to model how to process those feelings and still be okay- to be resilient and forgive ourselves and others. The operative word here is that these emotional storms are temporary- never lasting/harmful to our little ones- but learning opportunities. For example it may be okay to cry in front of your little one, self-calm, and make amends, but never okay to to direct inappropriate physical anger their way. For more information on how to prevent/report domestic violence, check out the National Domestic Violence Hotline.

FaceTime or Socially Distance In Person With Close Family and Friends In addition to connecting through FaceTime, my family has chosen to meet in person for special occasions. We wear masks inside and are considerate of each other's space and health needs. (Please keep in mind the health needs of your family when making this decision).

To anyone who comes across this blog- I hope this was helpful! Feedback is welcome: margotbevington@gmail.com. Or comment below.

Learning to Read

Well, it’s back to school for me and my son tomorrow. Last week, I said I would write about creative ways to help your little one learn to read. I will keep that promise, although make an shorter post so I can get back to making sure all my ducks are in a row for tomorrow. Here are some tips on how to have a language rich environment to encourage early literacy.

Letters everywhere- Letter magnets, letters for the bathtub, letters on blocks, letters on puzzles- there are lots of ways to include letters in your child’s play area. I remember my son had a gizmo that sang a song and said the sound the the letter made. You can also use the letters when you play with your child and sing the song yourself. (The sound will be more clear that way).

Read every day- Find a time- bedtime, after school- to read with your child. Interact with your child, and talk about the book your are reading as well. Get a little silly- find books in which your child is interested. The more fun you have, the more your child will want to read.

Expose your child to media that celebrates reading- For my generation, it was Reading Rainbow. Nowadays it might be Super Why or Word World. There are plentiful choices here- do a little digging and you’ll be sure to find something you both enjoy.

Beginner readers- I highly recommend Bob Books for those little ones who are making some headway in recognizing letter sounds. There are different sets, and if you use them in order, careful to only move to the next book once your child has mastered the book they are on, your child will learn how to read.

I haven’t done this much up until now, but I’m going to go ahead and plug my own work. (This makes two weeks in a row of doing this). Here’s my new video about learning to read and the joy of reading- aptly based on my experience teaching my son to read. Hope you like it! Tune in next week for more tips on teaching early childhood skills- how about numbers?