Putting Words to Common Emotions
With G’s most recent leap in development it has made him increasingly aware of being an individual and expressing his feelings.💡
From day one we have always acknowledged and put words to his emotions. We did this to help him identify and learn what he was feeling. The emotions were simple then... happy, sad, tired, maybe even angry at times and a few others. But a quick acknowledgement and genuine expression of understanding would usually do the trick. 🥰
However with this new level of emotional and social awareness, his feelings are more complex and nuanced. He’s beginning to experience feelings like fear, guilt, frustration, and wistfulness, just to name a few. 😕
To help him navigate the tide of strong emotions he is experiencing I’ve been focusing on materials and activities specific to learning emotions.👩🏻🏫
One activity, Facial Expression Mirror Work, has been fun for us. Thanks to Mama’s Happy Hive for sharing this. 🥰
The idea is to have the child examine a card, while the guide discusses the emotion on the card, and then ask him or her to practice making that expression while using the mirror. 🪞👦🏻
It’s a super cute idea and effective in helping the child understand what a specific feeling looks like. 😍
🔸Materials🔸
🔘Mirror
🔘Emotions Learning Cards from Amazon
✨Benefits✨
🔘Builds emotional intelligence
🔘Strengthen visual distinguishing skills.
🔘Supports self-regulation and problem solving
🔘Builds hand-eye coordination
🔘Strengthens fine and gross motor control
🔘Language development
We’re Back!
Hi everyone!
It’s been a while since I’ve made a post or engaged with others here on IG and FB.
I had absolutely no idea I was going to go completely MIA on you guys.
The past month has brought new changes I was totally not ready for.
Not to mention a scare from G.
Let me explain…
It started off with G deciding he no longer needed or wanted his ONLY nap of the day. Any SAHM or caregiver knows how precious the ONE nap is, not just for the child but for your sanity.
It’s the only time you get to re-group, to have down time, to shower ALONE, to start or finish any projects/chores you’re working on, to just have time to breathe and center yourself.
No nap means it’s a really LONG day, and in the dead of winter, it’s even longer.
So, G decided “no more naps’. As if that wasn’t enough a week later he began waking up in the middle of the night screaming in fear. Yup, bad dreams are starting to happen too.
During this time he also went through a language explosion. In just 2 weeks he went from 3 word sentences to 6 word sentences and having full blown conversations. I mean the kid was now reciting his experiences and telling stories to people. WHAT?
And with this also came big emotions.
In addition to these new developments his two bottom canines were finally breaking through and he began transitioning to a floor bed.
Like that wasn’t enough to keep you tired then came the first real scare we had with G.
One morning G woke up stuttering. Really bad, which had never happened before…
At first we thought “Okay, not a big deal. This is extremely common, especially while going through a language explosion”. But then, 3 days later he started excessively blinking his eyes.
This was alarming.
Watching G trying to finish a simple sentence coupled with a strange, uncontrollable, eye blinking was not just hard to watch, but also scary.
As a parent you want the best for your child and when your child begins to physically act differently you can’t help but think of the worst things. You think about the obstacles he may face in life, the way people may treat him differently, the way he may view himself, the sadness he may feel etc etc.
So we spoke to his pediatrician, pediatric ophthalmologist, speech pathologist, and various doctors in our family. And after a week and a half of worrying and crying the excessive eye blinking stopped and the stuttering lessened.
What happened?
It was all developmental.
People always tell you of the things to look out for like teething, sleep regressions, the “No” phase, but no one really talks about how developmental changes affect your child.
Luckily, these changes are all normal phases of a child's development and most likely temporary.
This recent stage definitely took me by surprise and has also left me very tired lol.
And I know it won’t be the last time.
With that being said, I’m back.
Thank you to all who sent me messages, checked in on us, and helped throughout this process.
Welcome to Our Montessori Classroom
Welcome to our Montessori classroom.
At the beginning of 2020 we had plans to enroll G into Montessori school for this fall.
Although the school opened, we decided to wait because of the pandemic. We thought since both parents are home we could wait until next year.
So, we turned an empty room into our own little Montessori classroom.
We practice a Montessori lifestyle, so this seemed natural.
I’m starting a page where we’ll be documenting our progress, showcasing activities, and giving tips.
Follow us @montessoriaswegrow