Wooden Nursing Necklaces Co-Op **CHEAP!** Open for 72 Hours

I stumbled across a great Co-Op for nursing necklaces at a price that you'll want to stock up on for gifts for others! The organizer agreed to keep it open for another 72 hours so my readers can get in on the action, so here it is! :)

Cost Details:

• Price: $2.17 per necklace.
• Co-op Fee: $1.00.
• Payment: Please send PayPal payment to momof3littles@aol.com minus $1.00 off of the Co-Op fee that's listed on the spreadsheet (the organizer changed the fee but didn't do so on the spreadsheet, so it will tell you to pay $1 more in the total than you need to!). When paying, do NOT put anything in subject or notes.
• Shipping: This will be calculated after the order is placed. You will be responsible to send payment for shipping to momof3littles@aol.com when your amount due is anounced on the spreadsheet.The organizer will use polys and ship FC to save everyone low costs on shipping.

Product Details:

• Ring size: about 60mm
• Length: 70cm
• Material: wood + wax cotton
• Lead Testing: I asked the manufacturer about this, and we are told that these necklaces are "safe", but I don't know anything further than that.

Ordering Information:

• Co-Op will close Thursday at 12pm, EST. Payment should be sent immediately after you sign up. Any orders for which payments are not received by Thursday at 11:59pm have the right to be canceled by the Co-Op organizer.
• Shipping can take up to 25 days to the organizer, and then on to us if our total order doesn't equal $200 or more. If our order does go over $200, then we will qualify for express shipping to the organizer.
• To place your order with the Co-Op, add your information and "save" it to this spreadsheet by clicking HERE.

"Pea In Pod" Style

"Flower" Style

"Circle" Style

"Wooden Bead Circle" Style

Bringing Literature To Life For Your Preschooler

How to teach a story to your preschooler in five days:

Day 1: Read the story, show pictures, ask questions to assess and aid in comprehension.

 

Day 2: Assign child to create three specific age appropriate illustrations for the story. For example, in the story of The Three Bears, ask her to draw a picture of the three bears, a picture of Goldilocks eating porridge, and a picture of a bed. You can use various mediums for creating the illustrations, including stickers or coloring sheets for young children.

Retell the story to the child, using his or her illustrations as you go.



Day 3: Have the child narrate the story to you, and write it down. Bind the pictures from yesterday with the narrative to create a book (staples or a folder work just fine). Feel free to assist the child in remembering the plot, but allow the words to be direct from him or her.



Day 4: Create a song that tells the story. If you are having trouble, use a familiar tune, like “The Farmer In The Dell” or “Twinkle, Twinkle.” You can have multiple verses, and can write down the lyrics to help you remember.



Day 5: Provide the child with props, and allow him to act out the story in a play. If needed, you can read the child’s narrative or the story (or sing the song from yesterday) while he acts.



Montessori Phonetic Small Object Activities

Small objects are used in Montessori schooling to help teach a child phonetic sounds of letter names in a hands-on way. The teacher would have a box for each letter of the alphabet that contains small objects that represent that letter sound. I was going to make my own boxes, but after a few months realized what a tedious and costly adventure it was personally going to take me. Instead, I eventually purchased the Alphabet Sound Teaching Tubs from Lakeshore Learning. While they are a $150 investment, they are fabulous, save a lot of time, and I think cannot be equally done any cheaper!

Here are a list of activity ideas to use with your Phonetic Small Objects:

Seek & Find: Randomly place all of the objects from 2 or 3 boxes onto the mat and ask her to find an object that begins with one of the letter sounds. After she identifies an object correctly, she can line it up under the appropriate letter and continue the game until all objects are with their respective letter.

Please, Bring Me! Place objects from two boxes across the room on a shelf or table. Ask the student to bring you something that begins with one of the letter sounds you’re practicing. When she brings back the correct object, ask her to name it. Confirm the name and make note of the sound. Example: “Yes, that’s a ball. Can you hear the ‘b’ sound in the word ‘ball’?”

I Spy: Put several objects from various containers on the tray and say “I spy with my little eye, something that begins with the ‘t’ (or whatever) sound.” The student may then find that object and name it.

Letter Match: Place the appropriate sandpaper letters out, spaced apart. Have your child trace the letter and make the sound. Mix the objects from 2-3 boxes, and allow the child to sort them by sound, placing the objects on the correct sandpaper letter.

Large Sandpaper Letter Match: Like the above “Letter Match,” but include more letters (10-12 at a time, when the child knows that many). Have the child first trace and say the sound of the letter, then find the objects for that sound.

Story Teller: Use the small objects from one box to create a story. This will reinforce that particular letter sound. As your child grows, you can incorporate more boxes at a time, and cue your child to which object she will need to include in her story next by holding up the sandpaper letter of which the next object should have the sound of.

Memory Game: Place all objects from one box on the tray. Have your child close her eyes and remove one object. Have her open her eyes and identify which object you removed. If she gets it right, give her a token. Take turns doing this until all of the objects are gone. Whomever has the most tokens, wins.

Thanks to http://CountingCoconuts.com for inspiring me with the first handful of ideas!