Making Learning Special

Welcome to the first episode of this mini-series! If you're on the go or only have a few minutes to spare but want to make it productive, these episodes are perfect for you! I'll be giving quick tips that you can implement right away with your little one. Whether you're a parent, future parent, educator, grandparent, caregiver, auntie, uncle, etc. these are simple, functional, tangible, and practical tool for you to use to maximize the development of little children. Check out our first strategy talking about general versus specific words, and how this is making learning special in minutes.

Everybody has their own parenting style. So in this episode we decided to discuss what we can do when others are involved in our little one's care, and how we can respectfully communicate to them certain boundaries that we have as we raise our child. Because ultimately, we are our child's primary caregivers. This goes for grandparents taking care of our little one, aunts and uncles we might not see often, a babysitter who's coming over so we can have a date night, and the list goes on. How can we all be aligned and consistent in raising our little human being?

Episode referenced in today's show. 

Episode 013: Let's Chat About Co-Parenting

Spotify

Apple Podcast

How does your little one respond to you when you ask him or her to do something? Does he/she follow through, ignore, does the opposite, or all or none of the above? Well, in this episode we talk about different responses our kids may give us and how it relates to development. Curious to find out more? Tune into the discussion now.

Given all the festivities with the holiday season we know how "off" routines are right now, especially for our little ones. Whether you're traveling, have visitors over, going to gatherings more than usual, or doing any out-of-the-ordinary outings, we're sure you'll be getting back to your routine sooner than later. But how do we help our little ones get back into that routine after vacation as we're also getting back into the groove of things? We talk about just that in this episode. 

It's the holiday season, Happy Holidays everyone! It wasn't easy to narrow down, but I've listed 5 of my tried and true choices when it comes to toys that I've used in my profession as an educator and pediatric speech-language pathologist and personally with my own child as a parent. I broke it down as to how they're helpful for development AND other alternatives that (1) hit the same developmental targets and (2) that you can find around your house. We're all about connection first here in Making Learning Special, so our goal in this show is to emphasize that toys are a great tool to help connect with your child, but ultimately, YOU make the interaction worthwhile and meaningful with whatever you and your child are playing with, whether it's a plastic water bottle or a fancy fifty dollar wooden toy.

Links:

1) Soft box

https://amzn.to/3WlRRGP

2) Nesting Boxes/Nesting Cups

https://amzn.to/3HDYPTv

https://amzn.to/3HDZ15b

3) Board Puzzles

https://amzn.to/3V2MIT4

https://amzn.to/3BD2dKo

4) Pretend Play Items (*there's a ton, but here are examples)

https://amzn.to/3j91KcB

https://amzn.to/3FW5R4K

https://amzn.to/3BFEcm1

https://amzn.to/3PzrkU3

5) Busy Board

https://amzn.to/3BGxtIu

For more ideas, check out my full Amazon List here.

Disclosure: I am a participant of the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com at no extra charge to you, and I receive commissions for purchases made through links here. If you do choose to purchase through these links, thank you so much for your support!

This is by far one of the most impactful and important episodes we have recorded thus far. Why? Because it dives into when our little ones are faced with challenges and in their eyes, adversities. Whether the occurrence is big or small in our eyes, different scenarios may impact our children in how they respond to  situations, people, and their environment. We talk about our point of view as parents and provide insights to help continue mindfully parenting our little ones. This discussion goes deep into this topic, and we've only really scratched the surface. Come join us as we chat about it.

Are you traveling with your little one this month? Traveling with kids can add complexity to the experience, so in this episode we give you five friendly tips  to help ease the possible stress that it can bring. Happy listening!

As mentioned in the episode, check out a list of my My Travel Favorites.

Here are great child-friendly videos that you and your little one can watch together to prepare for an airplane ride.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OT8XZUZFuWE

https://youtu.be/8-OzTvCzt2o

https://youtu.be/AFIJfX_5tvE

Here comes the nitty grittiness of parenthood. Let's face it, getting sick is inevitable and it sucks. When we're feeling sick and/or when our little one's feeling sick it can definitely add to the challenges of parenting and life in general. Tune into our discussion as we talk about this reality and strategies to help you through this not-so-fun time. 

How are you doing with taking care of yourself? And how is it impacting you, your child, your family, and your overall environment? I know as parents, we sometimes don't feel like we have enough time for ourselves. Well, in this episode we dive deeper into how we can make this happen and why we should make this happen as part of "making learning special." Joining us is Renata Trebing, an intuitive nutrition coach, global speaker, author, wife and a mom of 3 beautiful kids. We touch on multiple aspects of self-care not only for you as the parent but also for your little one with practical takeaways that you can implement right away.

Where you can connect with Renata Trebing:

Website - https://www.nourishwithrenata.com/about

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/nourish_with_renata/

Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/nourishwithrenata

Book -"Nourish with Renata" https://amzn.to/3hedV77

Book - "Heal Your Body, Mind and Spirit" *Release date Nov. 11, 2022 (link will be updated)

Episodes referenced in the show:

Episode 017: Gratitude, It Starts With Us With Marie Muratalla

Episode 030: Five Things I Wouldn't Do as a Fitness & Nutrition Dad

I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com at no extra charge to you, and I receive commissions for purchases made through links in this podcast episode.  If you do choose to purchase through these links, thank you for your support!

How do you respond to change? How do you demonstrate dealing with curve balls with your little one? And in turn, how are you helping your little one become flexible with things outside of the norm or out of his routine? In this episode we have an honest discussion about flexible thinking, adjusting, and pivoting, and how we can translate this to our children and maximize their overall development.