Tag Archives: preschool

A great new stop-motion series, Timmy Time, is joining Disney Channel’s Playhouse Disney on Monday, September 13!  Timmy Time, is already a favorite in my household after we got a chance to enjoy two preview episodes!
Are you a Shaun the Sheep fan? Most of us are! Timmy Time is made by Aardman the same creators of Shaun the Sheep, and you’ll notice some similarities!  Timmy Time episodes are filled with important life lessons, such as taking turns or cleaning up your area.  The stories are told without human dialogue.  Instead sounds of oinks, gruffs and more “tell” the story.


I brought a teachable moment into Timmy Time, too! Since the show lacked dialogue, I periodically paused the program and invited my daughter to explain what was happening. I was curious if she could infer from the character actions and sounds the story …

Interested in…

Saving money at local attractions like zoos and museums or activities like karate lessons?
Supporting a local preschool of your choice?
Supporting a scholarship opportunity for parents in need of ways to pay for preschool?

I’m going to assume you said, or I should say screamed, YES!?!?!
Next month The Savvy Source, an online guide helping parents learn about preschools, activities and more will launch Savvy Savings and Scholarships!
What is Savvy Savings and Scholarships?
Each week Savvy Savings and Scholarships will share new opportunities for over 20 major cities. The savings could mean huge discounts at area attractions, activities and more!  If you determine the savings opportunity to be appropriate for you and your family, you will follow the directions to purchase the item.  In no time at all, you’ll be enjoying the activity, and a local preschool will receive 5% of …

A Notebook and a Pencil
Dedicate time (it can even be just 5 minutes) to review academic skills with your child every day.  This “school time” will encourage you to be on top of your child’s learning successes and areas of need.  With just a notebook, a pencil and a few other items, a Smart Mama and her offspring can review handwriting, counting, reading and more!
How Does It Look Like in Smart Mama’s House
Each day we spend 15 minutes doing “School Time.” This is a special part of the day when we settle down to practice a few different academic skills.  We typically begin with the calendar.  We talk about the current month, days of the week and count the number of days in the month. We often look back in the year, reviewing names of previous months and look ahead at what’s to come. She gets to draw an …

Finding a Teachable Moment
I recently purchased a childhood favorite, Hi! Ho! Cherry-O! for my daughter.  Originally intended for a fun before nap activity, it easily turned into a math lesson. After each spin she had to SUBTRACT one or more pieces of fruit from her tree.  I wasn’t afraid to use this word.   At first she looked at me when I used this “fancy” word, but I continued on letting her figure out what I meant when I said, “Oh, you need to SUBTRACT 3 green apples from your tree!” She figured out what I meant; she had played the game before.  But my 3 ½ year old certainly hadn’t heard the word SUBTRACT.  Now she has. How about the word COMPARE? I certainly could use this math word on our next game to notice the differences and similarities between my fruit tree and hers.
Taking an …

Once upon a time there were three little pigs.  The first little pig built his house of …
I am certain each of you, and your munchkins, can finish the story.  It’s a story that has been retold orally and in books from as far back as the 1840s!
I challenge you to use the storyline that we all know so well of The Three Little Pigs to introduce a new story and new vocabulary to your preschooler/elementary aged little one.  The Three Little Javelinas by Susan Lowell is a great start.  With the great familiarity of the “pigs” storyline, your child will be quick to understand the story (what happens first, second…) as new words are introduced with this rather hilarious Southwestern variation.  A conversation about straw and bricks will easily be replaced with adobe bricks and tumbleweeds.  You can …