April News from Especially for Children

APRIL 2023

Greetings!

WEEK OF THE YOUNG CHILD!

April 1-7 is week of the young child. This week NAEYC celebrates early learning, children, teachers, families, and their communities. This year we want to focus on teaching children some self-care skills so during the week of the young child we are going focus each day on an activity that helps them to focus on themselves and release some energy and find their calm.

Movement Monday: Each classroom will choose a different movement activity to get the blood flowing and the kids moving.

Tasty Tuesday: The children will explore their sense of taste. They will create a fruit salad.

Walking Wednesday: Nature scavenger around the playground to observe what is happening around us and take in all the fresh air.

Thirsty Thursday: The children will get to experience the taste of lemons by helping squeeze fresh lemons to make homemade lemonade.

Family Friday: Grab N Go Breakfast for Parents and Guardians!

CENTER HAPPENINGS

PARENT APPRECIATION!

We would like to honor our parents and guardians this April with a special Grab N Go Breakfast. Thank you all for being such great role models and caregivers to all these children. Breakfast will be served Friday, April 7.

HELP OUR GARDEN GROW!

We would love you to help us grow our garden on the wall again this year! Please bring home a flower or insect to decorate and bring back to display on the wall. Get creative with stickers, stamps, paint, tissue paper etc. We will have supplies out by April 1.

EARTH DAY

April 22 is Earth Day! This week we will be talking about recycling, composting, and how these things affect our planet.

SPRING CONFERENCES

It’s that time of year again, we will be conducting conferences for all classrooms. Conferences can be in-person or over the phone. Each Classroom will have a sign-up sheet with a few dates and times starting in May.

STAR WELLNESS RECIPE

CRISP GNOCCHI WITH BRUSSELS SPROUTS AND BROWN BUTTER

Yield: 4 servings

1 pound brussels sprouts (or cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower or even cabbage)
1 lemon
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) and black pepper
½ teaspoon red-pepper flakes
1 (18-ounce) package shelf-stable or refrigerated potato gnocchi
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, sliced into 6 pieces
½ teaspoon honey
Freshly grated Parmesan, for serving

Step 1 Trim and halve the brussels sprouts. Using a vegetable peeler, peel thick strips of lemon zest, then coarsely chop. (You should have about 2 teaspoons chopped zest.)

Step 2 In a large (preferably 12-inch) skillet, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high. Add the brussels sprouts, season with ½ teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper, then arrange the brussels sprouts in an even layer, cut side down. Scatter the lemon zest over the top and cook, undisturbed, until the brussels sprouts are well browned underneath, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the red-pepper flakes, stir and cook until the brussels sprouts are crisp-tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl.

Step 3 In the same skillet, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high. Break up any gnocchi that are stuck together, add them to the pan and cook, covered and undisturbed, until golden brown on one side, 2 to 4 minutes. Add the butter and honey, season with salt and a generous amount of black pepper, and cook, stirring, until the butter is golden, nutty smelling and foaming, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the brussels sprouts until warmed through. Serve with grated Parmesan.

Source: NY Times Cooking

For more child-friendly recipes, check out this resource: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/03/14/dining/kid-friendly-recipes.html

ESPECIALLY FOR PARENTS

EARTH DAY

by Alli Zomer

One of the most wonderful things about children is that the simple, important things in life (the things that we often struggle with as we get wrapped up in the busyness of adulthood) come naturally to them. Things like the ability to live in the moment, to express emotions freely, and to show genuine care and appreciation for the natural world. It is that last quality that we hope to celebrate this month in honor of Earth Day.

My own two kids (ages 5 and 8) are in awe of nature. They can’t wait to get outside to dig a trench in the snow or in the mud (during that glorious time called spring, which is hopefully on its way!). Their enthusiasm for nature is contagious – many days I feel too tired or busy to get outside, but their energy pulls me along and I am always grateful for it.

Children seem to intuitively understand that we are inexorably linked with the natural world. They see animals as wonderous companions and feel at home among the trees or splashing in the waves.

I am not sure when it happens that we lose that wonder and begin to migrate indoors – focusing more on screens and to-do lists than on sunsets and tadpoles. But I hope that this month you take the opportunity to celebrate Mother Nature by following the lead of the pint-sized botanists, zoologists and geologists living right underneath your roof.

Take a walk!

Minnesota is filled with great trails (and even more sidewalks). Take a walk with your kids and investigate the nature all around you. Bring along things that will help you explore – such as a magnifying glass, a bag to collect found objects, or paper and pencils to sketch or rub.

Plant a seed!

April is a perfect time to start seeds indoors. Plant herbs or veggies that can either live indoors or can be taken outside once the weather warms up. There are endless things to talk about while planting – where does something grow, who might eat it, how do we care for plants?

Get dirty!

This is one that usually stops us in our tracks. While many adults like the “idea” of letting kids dig, when we think about the reality of cleaning it all up, we often put on the brakes. Embrace the chance to get your hands into the literal Earth! Pick a day when you say yes to the mess and dig in as a family. I promise you, it will be worth it.

(As an Earth Month reminder, we are hosting a Used Toy Drive March 27-April 7!)