Letter from Ms. Jenn - "You're not my best friend anymore!"

In the preschool room this is a phrase we hear every now and again so I thought I would talk this month about why children say this and what we can do to help them form friendships.

Preschoolers are beginning a new stage in friendships.  They are moving out of parallel play, where children aren’t really playing together but playing side by side, to forming actual friendships where they will start to participate in cooperative play. 

Something we work with the children on daily is how to make friends and how to be a friend.  Some skills your child needs to form friendships are:

·    • An ability to express ideas and accept the ideas of others.

·    • An ability to ask others to join activities or make them feel a part of the group.

·    • An ability to solve conflicts.

·    • An ability to pay attention to other children.

·    • An ability to offer praise and affection to other children.

·    • An ability to understand how their own words and actions will make other children feel.

·    • An ability to approach and greet other children.

·    • An ability to tell other children things about themselves.

·    • An ability to ask other children things about them.

·    • An ability to extend invitations to play.

These are things that we work on at school but also things that you can do at home with your children by role playing and helping your child in real life situations to gain these skills.

By preschool age, children will have a preference for particular children and start calling children their “best friend”.  This is also the age where children start to tell children “you’re not my best friend!”  When children say this what they may be meaning is “I can’t cope with this” or “I can’t control this!”   Preschool children want things their way and when they don’t get their way they may just prefer to walk away and stop playing.  They don’t always have the words to express this so they may say “you aren’t my best friend anymore.”  We try to intervene before these words come out and help children find words to use to express themselves without hurting their friend’s feelings.  Even when these words are said, the children are usually back to playing together and back to being “best friends” before lunch time!

- Ms. Jenn

POTM: Infant Care

The following is taken directly from our Handbook. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

The infant room runs a little differently than the rest of the center. We go by each individual infant’s schedule. If your baby is hungry, we feed them. If your baby is sleepy, we help them to sleep. If your baby needs a diaper change, we change it. There really is no set schedule in this room except to follow the infant’s schedule. 

As long as the weather permits, infants will go outside everyday, so be sure they have the proper clothing. 

To reduce the risk of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome), Jellybean Daycare & Preschool follows safer sleep for infants. This means that your infant will sleep on their back in a crib with no other objects. In order for an infant to use an incline in a crib, there must be written consent from a physician. After being placed down to sleep on their backs, infants may assume any sleep position they can maneuver. They will be monitored while they sleep. If it is cold outside then we will provide a sleep sack for your baby to sleep in. Infants will be rocked to sleep if needed. Each infant will have their own individual crib that will be for their use only on any day they attend. 

Jellybean Daycare & Preschool will feed infants on demand. Parents with children under 1 must supply all their own food. Food and bottles must be prepared and ready to heat and serve with your child’s full name, date, and contents on each item (inchbug.com is helpful). If it’s breast milk, it must also have the date it was collected. Any food or milk that is not consumed during the day will be sent home with the child at the end of the day. Infants unable to sit up or hold a bottle themselves will be held for bottle feeding. Bottles are never propped up or placed in cribs with children. Bottles may not contain cereal or medication mixed in with the liquid. Once your child starts on table food, you may check our menu and let us know of any foods that your child may not yet eat. We will provide bibs during the day for your child to wear. 

We change diapers at least every 2 hours when children are awake, when children wake up, and when diapers are wet or soiled. During diaper changes, Jellybean Daycare & Preschool will use cornstarch powder or A & D on your baby. If you prefer something different, you can provide it to keep in their diaper cubby. Parents must supply their own diapers and Jellybean will provide the rest. If your child runs out of diapers, we do have extra on hand, but you will be required to replenish the amount of diapers that your child used. We allow the use of cloth diapers. If your child will be using cloth diapers, you must also bring a sealable container/bag, labeled with the child’s full name, to place soiled diapers in. This must be taken home at the end of each day. By law, we are not permitted to rinse or wash any contents from the soiled diapers/clothes.