special needs

Education Supports Parents of Children with Special Needs

  Raising children brings with it joy and hope, concern and trepidation.  As they say, there is no handbook for being a parent.  Raising a child with special needs can compound the worries and leave a parent feeling unsure of their footing.  And while I believe strongly that every family benefits from education, I know how Read More

Delays In Your Young Child’s Development

Check out my article on Mommybites about “Delays In Your Young Child’s Development.”  If you have concerns, reach out for help and support.  Early identification and intervention are critical and can have a considerable effect on your child’s development. http://mommybites.com/col2/nanny/help-your-young-childs-development/

What Do You Mean Sensory Issues?

Over the years I have met many children who were either overly sensitive, or not sensitive enough, to the world around them.  Today, sensory integration disorder, sensory processing disorder and sensory issues are phrases that get thrown around by educators and therapists frequently.  But for parents these words can be scary and unclear.  When we describe Read More

Plan to Play: Tell A Story

Recently,  I wrote an article for a website about preparing young children with special needs for mainstream kindergarten.  Needless to say, this had me thinking about the skills I would hope all children entering kindergarten would have.  Before entering kindergarten, most 4-5 year olds should have the ability to speak in sentences, understand the sequence of story, Read More

Social Skills for Mainstream Kindergarten

I recently came across an incredibly supportive group for parents of children with sensory processing disorder.   On the website, The SPD Blogger Network explains its purpose: “This group blog is designed for those writting – or those who want to write – about raising a child with Sensory Processing Disorder or sensory issues (that Read More

Why Does He Have That?

Recently, more and more early childhood programs have opened their doors to children with a variety of needs.  These integrated and inclusive communities are wonderful places for all children to learn and are fantastic in a multitude of other ways.  The law says that children with special needs must be educated in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE).  Read More

Plan to Play: Feed The Baby

As far as I am concerned, all young children (yes, even boys) should have a baby doll.  Feeding a baby doll is a great way to introduce young children to pretend play. What You’ll Need: -Baby Doll -Real or pretend spoon, bowl, saucepan, bottle, napkin, and any other items you might use to prepare a meal Read More

A Plan To Play

After sitting down with another parent who felt self-conscious and unsure of how to play with her child, I had a thought:  Playing doesn’t come naturally to every grown up and that’s okay.  Why not use the Dana’s Kids blog to give parents a “Plan to Play?”  I want to be clear that feeling “unable” to play is a Read More

5 Ways to Enrich Your Young Child’s Fine Motor Development (3-5 years old)

I thought about naming this post “big work for little hands” but decided to go with the title you see above.  That being said, my discarded title brings up an important point.  I believe strongly that typically developing children accomplish tasks when they are ready.  Developmentally, not all little hands are ready for big work.  The activities Read More