By Deanna Mascle

Providing positive, enjoyable literacy experiences give young children opportunities to gain the knowledge, awareness, skills, and love of learning that they need to later learn to read independently. Here are 8 ways you can provide those experiences:

Choose the Right Books
Choose books that have large colorful pictures or photos; a few words on a page; rich language; and relate to concepts, people, or things in children’s lives. With this exposure, young children learn that books and reading explain the world they live in and ultimately help them better understand themselves. Sound like a tall order for a toddler?

Not really when you consider perennial favorites such as The Hungry Caterpillar. This book does not contain many words but teaches counting and science concepts.

Read Out Loud
Read to children regularly and often. Pick a regular reading time, but also watch for opportunities to read books, signs, letters, or other print spontaneously. The experience of reading as a typical, everyday occurrence helps children gain confidence that they can learn to read themselves.

Stories influence children’s learning for life. Some research suggests that the more stories children hear before entering school, the more likely they will be successful academically. Listening to books benefits their vocabulary and comprehension.

Spending just 15 minutes a day on this worthwhile activity can reap tremendous benefits!

Make Reading Fun
Use a variety of expressions, tones, and voices to make a book even more fun.

Allow a child to listen at her own pace. If a baby fusses or a toddler wanders away, don’t worry. Set the book aside and try again later. A baby may only listen for a minute or two at a time. Toddlers may want to wander around while you read, or listen to a few pages, move on to something else, and then return for a few more pages.

Encourage a child to join in on repeating phrases or rhymes, and honor requests to read the same book over and over.

Make Books Available
Make books available to babies and toddlers every day. Babies don’t distinguish books from other toys and may pull, toss, or chew books. This tactile, physical exploration of books and how they work is important to literacy development.

Show how books work. Point out the cover, show which is the top and bottom, front and back of the book, and talk about how words are read from left to right on the page. Use your finger to point to a word and the corresponding picture on the page.

Talk To Your Child
Remember literacy is about more than reading the printed word, it is about communication and understanding.

According to the National Research Council in Starting Out Right: A Guide to Promoting Reading Success, “Talk is essential – the more meaningful and substantive the better.” Babies and toddlers learn about the sounds, meanings, and ideas in language when adults talk with them. Preschoolers expand their vocabulary and learn sentence structure.

Conversations with your children about what they are reading are critical to children’s learning. Discussing books helps them understand how stories work, and how language works. When reading, stop and talk about the pictures and words on the page.

Listen To Your Child
As much as babies, toddlers, and preschoolers need to hear language, they also need to practice and imitate sounds and words with interested listeners. Respond to your child’s conversation and repeat their words back to them. Ask questions to show you are listening and that encourage a child to talk. Listen carefully and acknowledge answers. Listen to children’s questions and take time to answer.

Sing With Your Child
Children love to sing and can learn a great deal about stories and language from many popular children’s songs. Songs also often teach through their content (alphabet, counting, etc.) Many nursery rhymes can also be learned through song and knowledge of nursery rhymes is an important part of overall literacy.

Pull out old favorites like “This Old Man” or “Where is Thumbkin?” and make up your own songs, too.

Let Your Child Write
When children write, they naturally begin to pay attention to the sounds words make and the letters that form words. And it doesn’t matter how they spell! Recent research shows that young children who are allowed to write often with invented spelling, develop the ability to become good readers.

About the author
Deanna Mascle is the publisher of Preschoolers Learn More. She has three post secondary degrees and 15 years professional experience teaching (plus more years than she’d like to admit as a camp counselor, Sunday School teacher, and Bible Camp staff member) and she needs every scrap of her education and experience to keep up with Noah Mascle, age 4. Visit for more tips and resources for teaching your preschooler including Teach Your Child the Alphabet and Learning to Read through Rhyme.

by Van Day

Giving that special someone a special gift can be very difficult. Depending on the situation and occasion, it can be a very tricky thing. You want to do the right thing, but if you’re not careful, it can backfire. As many have found out, you need to give this some considerable thought.

But everyone wants to give the “right” gift. What makes up a great gift?

In my experience, a great gift:

• Is truly unique, personal and creative;
• Demonstrates to the recipient the thoughtfulness and caring that went into securing the gift;
• Evokes emotions from the recipient whenever it is used, seen or thought about; and
• Makes the recipient truly feel special.

A great gift doesn’t necessarily have to cost hundreds or thousands of dollars to be great. But also understand that getting a gift that is cheap can show how much “you don’t care.” Before you start to shop and buy, also consider the following:

1. Who is the recipient? Is it your spouse, significant other, sibling, parents, relative, close friends, neighbor or business associate?
2. Next, what is the occasion? Holiday, birthday, anniversary, graduation, wedding, engagement, promotion, a “just because” occasion, or “I-need-to-get-out-of- the-doghouse-occasion?”
3. Be yourself. The gift is from you, so make sure it shows it. But be appropriate, and be sure the gift is something that the recipient will relate to and enjoy.
4. Try to avoid excessiveness. Simple gifts tend to also be very well received.
5. Don’t wait until the last minute. It only gives you too little time to get a great gift, and also shows how much you don’t care.

Being creative is a fantastic way to ensure getting the right gift. People love it when it’s obvious their gift required some imagination and creativity. So as you’re going through the “what do I get them” process, remember that a little bit of creativity, uniqueness and personalization will go a long, long way!

The true measure of a great gift will be seen in the eyes of the recipient when they get it. You’ll know it, you’ll feel it, and you’ll feel great yourself when you’ve given the “Great Gift”!

About The Author
Van Day is a renowned pianist and musician, and creator of “Piano Music 4 You.com .” “Piano Music 4 You” specializes in creating personalized, custom and unique CDs of piano music, created especially for each customer and all occasions. He can be reached at vanday@pianomusic4you.com.  www.pianomusic4you.com.

When it comes to eating the right foods before you get pregnant in order to help you conceive and have a healthy pregnancy, it basically comes down to common sense. There are some things you should keep in mind however.

Healthier Eating
You should try to stay away from foods that are high in fat and sugar content. Look for more healthy choices and eating more vegetables and items that will not only help you be healthy but will give your baby a better shot at being healthy. Try to buy foods that are organic and pesticide free, as well as hormone free dairy products.

You should try to stay away from uncooked fish, meat and poultry, as well as cooked fish such as swordfish, shark, and king mackerel which may contain large mercury counts which would not be good for your baby if you were to get pregnant. A woman should also stay away from raw eggs, including batters and dough made with them, as well as unpasteurized milk and certain soft cheeses. You should always make sure you clean and cook raw fruits and vegetables thoroughly before eating them.

Folic Acid
Folic acid is a big ingredient to getting pregnant, staying pregnant and having a healthy baby. Before trying to conceive a woman should make sure that she is getting enough folic acid a day either from prenatal vitamins or from foods including leafy green vegetables, fortified cereals, breads and orange juice.

Beverages
You should cut back on all beverages including coffee and soda, while trying to drink more water daily. It is recommended that a person drink a minimum of 8 glasses of water a day, while some say that a person should drink half of their body weight in ounces of water a day is a good rule of thumb.

Caffeinated beverages will only help to dehydrate you. Studies have shown that a large intake of caffeine can lead to it taking longer to conceive (International Food Information Council Foundation). However when these studies looked at smoking and alcohol use while drinking caffeinated beverages the results were inconclusive. It is best for a woman to just steer clear from caffeinated beverages before and during pregnancy.

The most vital time of a baby’s development often occurs before a woman even knows she is pregnant, between 3 and 8 weeks. Because of this and the damage that alcohol can do to a fetus, it is suggested that a woman should stay away from all alcohol leading up to and during the time she is trying to get pregnant, as well as while she is pregnant.

The most important thing for a woman to remember is that everything she eats or consumes while trying to conceive is in her body when she is trying to conceive and can affect her baby. While many of us will eat and do things that we know are not good for us, would we willing give our child something that we know is not good for them? The best time to start developing healthy habits for your child is before you conceive that child.

by Elizabeth Pantley, Author of Gentle Baby Care

In many parts of the world, the sight of a nursing mother is an ordinary aspect of daily life. In our society, however, some people are still uncomfortable seeing a mother breastfeed in public. Slowly but surely, though, people are coming to see breastfeeding as the natural, normal way of feeding a baby that it is. And thanks to public education campaigns, people are becoming more knowledgeable about the many benefits of breastfeeding.

Your legal right to breastfeed
Society has conditioned many people to view breasts only from a sexual standpoint and not as a body part with a crucial biological function – to feed a baby. Breastfeeding is the natural default for baby feeding ? not bottlefeeding ? yet no one harangues a woman who is feeding her baby from a bottle in a public place. If anyone even suggests that you shouldn’t be feeding your baby in public, be aware that you are well within your rights. Keep in mind that it’s the onlooker’s problem, not yours.

From a legal perspective, you have a right to breastfeed your baby in public anywhere in the United States. Some states have gone so far as to implement specific legislation to that effect to protect the rights of both babies and their mothers; these states have set out legal consequences for violations, too. As of this writing, 17 states have passed laws that say you can breastfeed your baby in any public or private location; thirteen more exempt breastfeeding from public indecency laws. This may lead you to believe that the act is legal only in those states with legislation. The fact is, you have a legal right to breastfeed your baby in public even without a specific law. Don’t be shy about letting an impolite person know this. For more information about the legal aspects of breastfeeding in public, check out the website of Elizabeth N. Baldwin, an attorney who specializes in this issue [www. compromisesolutions.com].

In Canada, the Human Rights Code protects women from discrimination on the basis of sex. Breastfeeding in public is not specifically labeled as a protected activity; however, many people are lobbying to explicitly include breastfeeding under this human rights code.

What about breastfeeding when in foreign countries?
It’s best to respect the customs native to the country you are visiting. Even if you think you should breastfeed wherever you please, it’s important to understand and adhere to local customs. If you don’t see other women breastfeeding their babies, then ask around. Talk to a woman with young children, ask a health professional, or do a little research. Once you know what is typically acceptable, then you can proceed confidently without risk of offending anyone, breaking a law, or embarrassing yourself.

Getting comfortable breastfeeding in public
Although you have the right to feed your baby in public, there is still the issue of your feelings about doing so. Each woman has her own comfort level. Most women want to find the right balance of pride and modesty ? not overly exposing themselves, while feeling comfortable knowing that people are aware that they are breastfeeding. You’ll probably need some practice with the particulars, simply because breastfeeding is a function that involves a private part of your anatomy that is normally not exposed in public. Wanting to be discreet doesn’t mean that you are embarrassed or ashamed to feed your baby; it simply means that you don’t want to cause yourself or others social discomfort.

The biggest issue for most new mothers is learning how to get settled with your baby modestly. Even a new mother who is breastfeeding with ease at home may fumble and struggle when she perceives that she has an audience; her tension then causes her impatient baby to cry. That only deepens the feeling that all eyes are on her. The reality is that most people are paying attention to their own activities and their own private conversations, by and large ignorant of what’s happening with other people. Once you become adept breastfeeding discreetly, you’ll be able to comfortably nurse your baby anywhere. All it takes is a little practice.

Parent Tip
“Always remember that what you are doing is necessary, beautiful, and miraculous. Breastfeed your baby with pride.” — Deborah, mother to Peter (five), Jeremy (three), and Claire (one)

Tips for breastfeeding in public

• Give yourself permission to feel comfortable about nursing your baby in public. Feeding your baby is a natural, normal part of mothering, whether you are at home or out in public.

   

• Dress for breastfeeding. Wear a shirt or sweater that can be lifted up or unbuttoned from the bottom. When you lift from the bottom, the top portion of your shirt helps cover you from the top, and your baby covers you from the bottom. Whatever portion of your breast is shown while feeding your baby is certainly much less than is shown in the typical television show, magazine or at your local beach or public swimming pool.

   

• Try a nursing cover-up or a breastfeeding garment with a built-in flap. Many are so beautifully made that even under the most careful scrutiny, they don’t look like nursing clothes. Most stores that sell maternity clothing also sell nursing apparel. Even if you don’t use these at home, they may help you feel more comfortable when in public.

   

• Bring along a small baby blanket. Some babies are fine with having a blanket thrown over your shoulder and over their heads, but many are very good at pulling such a blanket off. A good alternative is to bring the blanket up from below, and tent it around your baby, to cover you as you settle your little one to the breast. The blanket can be loosely placed to create privacy, or even removed once you’re settled.

   

• Use your sling as a nursing cover-up. Baby slings are wonderful for nursing your baby on the go because they hold your baby perfectly in the nursing position while providing extra fabric for a screen. Some brands have a “tail” at the end that doubles as an extra blanket to keep the baby from trying to peek out while nursing.

   

• Feed your baby at the first sign of hunger, because hungry babies aren’t quietly patient! If you wait until your baby is crying to be fed, then you may become nervous; your baby may move about and make the latch-on difficult. Instead, if you nurse him promptly, you can be more relaxed about getting him settled.

   

• Remember that the alternative to public breastfeeding is usually public crying. Whether you’re in a restaurant, at church, or on an airplane, people typically would prefer that you feed your baby than let him cry, fuss or otherwise disrupt the peace. I remember once attending a live play with a very antsy two-year-old: my son, David. When I finally settled him on my lap to breastfeed, the gentleman sitting beside me actually said, “Thank you!”

Websites
For more information:

La Leche League International
www.lalecheleague.org

INFACT Canada
www.infactcanada.ca

The World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action
www.waba.org.br

Copyright Elizabeth Pantley. (McGraw-Hill, 2003)

About the author:
Elizabeth Pantley is the author of several books, including Gentle Baby Care : No-cry, No-fuss, No-worry — Essential Tips for Raising Your Baby, The No-Cry Sleep Solution: Gentle Ways to Help Your Baby Sleep Through the Night, Kid Cooperation (with an introduction by William Sears, MD), Perfect Parenting, as well as her latest The No-Cry Sleep Solution for Toddlers and Preschoolers and is also president of Better Beginnings, Inc. She is a popular speaker on family issues, and her newsletter, Parent Tips, is seen in schools nationwide. She appears as a regular radio show guest, and has been quoted in Parents, Parenting, Redbook, Good Housekeeping, American Baby, Working Mother, and Woman’s Day magazines. Visit Elizabeth’s web site http://www.pantley.com/elizabeth.

By Glenda Erceg

With a new baby on the way, you’ll want the perfect crib to coordinate with your nursery and provide a safe sleep environment for your little one.

Not only are there different styles of baby cribs, but there is now a wide selection of convertible cribs. Many baby cribs are designed to convert to toddler beds, children’s benches, and even adult daybeds for later use elsewhere in the home.

There are so many different types and sizes of kids bedding and baby bedding for children that it can sometimes be baffling to try and determine which bed size is best, and there is really no correct answer to this. It is all based on the individual child and other considerations.

The crib must meet all recommended safety standards. Most new cribs on the market today comply with both mandatory and voluntary safety standards.

For example, the bars or slats of the crib railing should be no more than 2 3/8 inches apart so a baby can’t wedge his head between them. A mattress should fit snugly into the baby crib. There should not be any room that allows your baby to get his or her hands (or any other body parts) caught between the mattress and the baby crib.

Carefully choose the location for your baby’s crib, in particular don’t place the crib against a window, near drapery fixtures, or near furniture which could help your baby climb out.

This article may be used without permission as long as it is shown in its entirety with links intact.

Because a baby crib is the only children’s product manufactured with the intention that a child will be left unattended, parents should be extremely careful in the selection process. You might find this link very handy with your selection process http://www.epinions.com/

About the Author:
For more pregnancy and baby resources visit http://www.babycribsinfo.com/.

By Elizabeth Pantley, Author of No Cry Sleep Solution

Does it takes forever for your baby to fall asleep? Does he or she only fall asleep if you breastfeed, give a bottle or pacifier, rock, carry, swing, take a ride in the car, or perform other elaborate rituals? Does your baby wake up frequently throughout the night? Are your sleep issues further complicated because your baby won’t nap easily, or takes very short naps?

Do you ever feel like Leesa, mother of 9-month-old Kyra who said, “I am truly distressed, as the lack of sleep is starting to affect all aspects of my life. I feel as though I can’t carry on an intelligent conversation. I am extremely unorganized and don’t have the energy to even attempt reorganization. I love this child more than anything in the world, and I don’t want to make her cry, but I’m near tears myself thinking about going to bed every night. Sometimes I think, ‘What’s the point? I’ll just be up in an hour anyway.’”

As your sleep issues cast lengthening shadows over your life, you may begin to live purely for the moment. Your sleep-deprived, foggy brain may focus so intently on sleep that you can’t think beyond the next few hours of rest. You may have one – or many – people telling you that you should just let your baby cry to sleep. You are probably frustrated and confused. What you lack is perspective. To gain that perspective, ask yourself these questions:

1. Where will I be five years from now? How will I look back on this time?
2. Will I be proud of how I handled my baby’s sleep routines, or will I regret my actions?
3. How will the things I do with my baby today affect the person he will become in the future?

Once you have some perspective about your baby’s current sleep issues, it is important to be realistic in determining your goals and to be honest in assessing the situation’s effect on your life. Some people can handle two night wakings easily, while others find that the effect of even one night waking is just too much to handle. The key is to evaluate whether your baby’s sleep schedule is a problem in your eyes, or just in those of the people around you.

Begin today by contemplating these questions:

1. Am I content with the way things are, or am I becoming resentful, angry, or frustrated?
2. Is my baby’s nighttime routine negatively affecting my marriage, my job, or my relationships with my other children?
3. Is my baby happy, healthy, and seemingly well rested?
4. Am I happy, healthy, and well rested?
5. What is a reasonable expectation for my baby at his/her age?
6. What naptime and bedtime situation would I consider “acceptable”?
7. What naptime and bedtime situation would I consider “pure bliss”?
8. Why do I want to change my baby’s sleep patterns? Is it truly what’s best for me and my baby, or am I doing this to meet someone else’s expectations?
9. Am I willing to be patient and make a gradual, gentle change for my baby if that means no crying?

Once you answer these questions, you will have a better understanding of not only what is happening with regard to your baby’s sleep, but what approach you will feel most comfortable using to help your baby sleep better.

In addition to my two-year-old son Coleton, I have three older children, and they have afforded me the perspective I lacked the first time around. My children have taught me how very quickly babyhood passes. I struggle now to remember the difficulties of those first couple years, so fleeting are they. And I am proud that I didn’t cave in to the pressures of others around us to do what they felt was right; instead I followed my heart as I gently nurtured all of my babies. That time is long gone for us, but those memories remain. And now, all four of them sleep through the night. And so do I.

About the Author: Elizabeth Pantley is the author of several books, including Gentle Baby Care : No-cry, No-fuss, No-worry — Essential Tips for Raising Your Baby, The No-Cry Sleep Solution: Gentle Ways to Help Your Baby Sleep Through the Night, Kid Cooperation (with an introduction by William Sears, MD), Perfect Parenting, as well as her latest The No-Cry Sleep Solution for Toddlers and Preschoolers and is also president of Better Beginnings, Inc. She is a popular speaker on family issues, and her newsletter, Parent Tips, is seen in schools nationwide. She appears as a regular radio show guest, and has been quoted in Parents, Parenting, Redbook, Good Housekeeping, American Baby, Working Mother, and Woman’s Day magazines. Visit Elizabeth’s web site http://www.pantley.com/elizabeth.