Child Development

192 Chapter Five Story time Children at pre-school can already differentiate reality and fantasy stories. They are able to enjoy humorous and fantasy stories. When telling your child a story, be comfortable and tell a story for that age group. Children enjoy to be read to. Books for pre-schoolers should not be too long as they can get bored. Always complete the story so the child knows what type of ending it has. A parent should not be tired of reading the same story to their child for more than once if he/she wants to. In this way a child can become familiar with the words in the book. Story telling promotes the ability of your child to concentrate and they can experience emotional security. With mathematical concepts being introduced into the story, children can learn mathematical concepts informally. Their language becomes developed. By using and pronouncing words in the correct ways, your child gets new ideas, new words, new ways of thinking, of creating and the vocabulary is improved at the same time. 192

193 There should be a board next to you. You can write a few key words on it and draw some pictures of the story on the board. A child should not be rushed to read and understand words of a story or any other form of learning. They see different pictures and learn the moral of a story and get to like reading even more. Kind of stories for young children Story telling is an ancient art for men and women. They become aware of the outer world. Every day contacts with children's librarians are essential, as they give talks to children of books with short or long stories. Through story telling children listen to the language spoken and it gives them new ideas and concepts in reading. Before and after reading, a child's imagination is enriched and stimulated, as stories of a long time ago make children think of the olden days and of how people used to live in the early times. 193

194 Story tellers should ask children if they are familiar with the story or not. The story should be told in the simplest way, so as not to confuse the young children. Stories which have numbers and rhymes, that have a twist in the tale, suspense or fairy tales, could be interesting for young children. Organising our story time Telling stories to young children requires time, patience and enthusiasm. Stories of fantasy, fairy tales or even realistic ones, can be told. Stories with delightful pictures are good for pre-schoolers and those that have too much action should not be told to too often. Poetry can be read to children during their story time. Story time should be limited. Once you have completed a story, do not let the children get bored by being monotonous about the story telling. Ask them questions about the story, make it interesting and they will find it more exciting because there is fun in having debates or competitions amongst children in their classrooms, especially at a pre-school age. The same types of stories can be boring for pre-schoolers so tell a different tale each time. Pre- schoolers are usually skilful users of oral language. 194

195 When a child wants to read he/she should be able to associate printed language with spoken language as this requires a child’s knowledge in sounds and letters. Children can sing to it and it's something different as the words end with the same sound. Learning poetry will teach children that we all share some common experiences too; poetry can stimulate the development of memorization skills. Acting out poetry can be fun and beneficial in drama and speech activity for children. When children are allowed to act out plays or scenes of a story or from poetry, it encourages them to develop creativity and positive self-concept, and to improve their language spoken. They think more creatively and they explore their imagination. Discussions can be held after acting out scenes of stories, poetry, or rhymes. This keeps your child focused on the subject. Learning through stories Children can make puppets of each scene of a story and this can be a way of learning through stories. Taped stories can be listened to by children and teachers at preschools or day-care centres. 195

196 Children can learn through stories, from friends, relatives, by reading each other's books without the interference of anyone, and they can learn to read different kinds of stories and learn new ways of reading. There should be programmes for each child or each group and children in these groups can perform scenes from stories with their puppets. They can practice with puppets to make their story seem real. Expressions of sentences can be practiced often to get one to enjoy the story more. A librarian can adapt stories for creative dramatics and choral speech and children can play games or folk dances which create enjoyment in the activity. Plays can be recorded and dramatized at a later time. Writing of poetry and short stories, displays of hobbies or artwork can be tried; the same can be done with rhymes. Use of films can improve your child's learning through stories. Story videos are good entertainment too. Children enjoy stories as well as adults if it concerns them, but here the aim is to learn something through telling stories. Children can listen to stories at bedtime, or even in the day, or at pre-school. Labelling of objects around the house could get your child to read the words he/she is familiar with. Realistic stories are what children like when they are about 4-5 years old. Some humour can cheer them too. 196

197 Learning about culture and different languages can come from reading different kinds of books. Children could read stories of different languages with the help of a teacher, or parent depending on how capable your child is of reading it. They could learn about how one can use different vocabulary and when and how pronouns, verbs, descriptive words, commas, semi-colons, full stops, question marks, inverted commas at the beginning and the ending of a sentence, when one should use the brackets, the apostrophe, the hyphen, the colons and other symbols to. One could learn about the four seasons. Why are the seasons different from one to the other, months of the year, and days of the week, the public holidays, numbers, and rhymes and about the happenings around us? There is so much that can be learnt from books. Children should be encouraged to feel free to question teachers or their parents about the stories or the books that's been read to them. 197

198 Helping children learn through stories Assemblies A number of children in class can dress-up and perform acts from rhymes, stories, poetry and realistic stories. Children can be put into groups to act these scenes together. Use the children that are able to animate stories. They can join in stories with actions and sound effects. Each character can say or do different things like, for instance, one can imitate Dad snoring, coughing or sneezing, screeching of tyres, hooters of cars, animal sounds like a dog barking, cats meowing, birds chirping, an owl hooting, a crow making its loud noises like caw-caw, and many more. It could be sounds of insects, bees buzzing, crickets or a fly. These sounds can be made by everyone. Part of family history can be shared with the class. Celebrations of different cultures can be recreated by children. Doing things like this can be limitless. Children can learn about different breeds of dogs, from books. They can learn about hunting dogs, police dogs, or guide dogs for the blind. 198

199 How dogs became man’s best friend? Questions can be asked about books. What kind of a book should one read? Is this book a colourful one? Am I going to learn anything from this book? Are books well-informed? Should I read a book of my level of education only? What kind of books to look for in a library? Reading stories to your child, while he has his eyes shut and imagining it happening can encourage your child to read often. 199

200 Child and parent should be affectionate to another, in this way they learn to be affectionate to their family, friends and their pets too. They learn to love one another and know how to feel for someone when one is sad. Learn to be good to each other. Other information like learning how to prevent diseases can be read about once fully understood. By just being with other children, a preschooler can learn much more. When looking for books in the library it should be done with the supervision of an adult, so children don't get books that are not of their age group. Children can talk of their own stories or experiences. It can be debateable and very much of a unique process. Have open discussions often. This expands the child's knowledge, learning of new words and phrases. It gets children interested in the different kinds of books of their knowledge and understanding. 200

201 Chapter Six Music for young children Music has been introduced to babies from the time they were born, and for centuries mothers have sung lullabies to them to help them sleep. Babies are lulled by soft music. Children learning music at pre-school can increase an awareness of the value of music in society. Knowledge of music is important for children's experiences of it. They can learn music of all cultures, or a specific culture that they are growing into. Music should be an integral part of a daily programme. It should be a feature in the children's daily activities. Any time of day can be of singing and dancing for children. Children are always active and involved in music in their totality by means of observation. They can sing songs of nursery rhymes, number rhymes, lullabies, songs of nature, and songs at Sunday school, they can clap their hands, stamp their feet, turn around and enjoy music in their own way. Singing can be full of excitement if children are in the mood for it. 201

202 Music comes naturally to children and adults should encourage them lightly. It must not be forced but, nevertheless, they must be introduced to it. It is not necessary for you to know how to read music to children or how to play music, because children's lives are filled with music, they even have musical toys when babies. Lullabies are just a part of helping babies go to sleep. Children going to pre-school or till an older age of about 8 years experience changes in their growth rate. It slows down markedly. Young children experience music when playing games like hide and seek or singing games, this makes their bodies move with rhythm. Children can get used to music by playing musical activities. Getting up and moving about, like dancing, marching and jumping or by listening to music. Making and playing sounds and by using instruments that can be made by oneself means that one can make lots of music if tried on their own. Children should not play with musical instruments for a long period as this can lead to tiredness and boredom. 202

203 The main aim is to enjoy the music. Through participation it should be a joy, a success and a pleasure for children. They should be acquainted with different varieties of music. Children responding to clapping of hands and making rhymes from musical instruments can learn a lot about music. This is done to express the moods music can get you into and for a child to see how music can have an effect on body movements. Musical activities Get children to play musical instruments such as bells, drums, triangle, the piano a guitar and others will be able to identify the sounds of each. They can make high or low notes on the keyboard of the piano. One can put some shells or small stones inside a can and by shaking the can one can make different kinds of music. Empty cans can be banged together to make music. One can be empty and the other can be filled with sand to make a different sound. Using the different methods music can be heard in unique ways. You can take two cool drink bottles and, with adult supervision, by knocking them together you can make a tune. 203

204 When blowing into a flute one can play lovely tunes. If you have a mouth organ you can try making your own kind of music. One can listen to songs of nature, listen to the birds singing, or whistling, vehicles hooting, the starting of an engine, a helicopter and an owl hooting at night. Fill three or four glasses of the same size with varying amounts of water. Tip a drop of food colouring into each, to show your child how colours dilute according to the amount of water added. Line the glasses so that the glass holding the least water is on the right. Each glass will make a different sound when tapped with a teaspoon and you can encourage your child to compose a tune. You will need to supervise your child closely, however, to ensure that he taps the glasses carefully. Music can be made with any form of instrument. Music encourages dreams and fantasies for children or adults and it echoes your mood and makes you want to dance. Children should be introduced to music at an early age. As they grow they will enjoy it. There is lots of music that one can listen to like reggae, folk, jazz, classical, opera, rock or solo. 204

205 'Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are. Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky', or 'Rock-a-bye baby, in the tree top, when the wind blows, the cradle will rock, when the bough breaks, the cradle will fall, and down will come baby, cradle and all'. Children listening to sounds and learning to distinguish between them is an excellent excuse. Children can be taught by parents or teachers on how to use a xylophone or a recorder. They can practice with a music teacher to get it right. Music can be introduced in different rhymes, music of other cultures and past centuries. Organising music for young children To allow your child to experience new features of music you can provide new ideas and play on someone's birthday. Children can help with baking a cake and sing \"Happy birthday\" songs. 205

206 Singing and playing of instruments, songs on the occasion of Christmas, books that have nursery rhymes are children's favourite books and they can sing these rhymes in a form of song. \"Old MacDonald's Farm\" is a children's song and they can use certain instruments for this kind of music. Books with short stories and lullabies can have an effect on songs too. Make musical instruments with sandpaper blocks, drums, ankle bells, earrings that have bells and beads that can be put inside a container for the making of some music. With the use of a guitar, one can make excellent music. Music is common amongst young children's lives, making of sounds, chants, rhymes and rhythms. Adults should enjoy themselves with children so they can see the enjoyment in music. When you are happy and enjoying music you show a lot of interest in the music activity. Children should be presented with a combination of songs. Instruments can be used while listening to music. Marbles can be put into a container to hear loud sounds of music and these sounds are like the banging of drums. Songs on tapes, radios, compact discs, on television and in one’s own mind. Songs on tapes can be listened to when one has free time. With all new technology at the moment, music is now listened on many new devices. 206

207 Allow children to get into groups and the teacher can play games that have songs and you can sing aloud and play the game, depending on where the activity is taking place, it could be at school or at home. In church on Sundays children can sing bible songs, which can be very interesting. With children learning of the different instruments and the sounds they make, you as a parent can encourage and give them the freedom that they need to learn music. Mime and music is when you mix mime with upbeat music. These children can do with an adult, they can do whatever music or movements they want to do. Music allows children to become active and energetic. In this way pre-schoolers are able to express themselves in a very natural way. Creative movement activities are good for children, but you have to consider certain objectives. Children are to be relaxed during music; they should experience new ideas and express new feelings as it improves their co-ordination. Movement activities such as running, jumping, hopping on one foot, climbing onto stairs and up trees is mostly what a pre-schooler does when he has reached that stage of his life, a time to explore. Teachers should plan movement activities for children. Children going to pre-school are fully developed mentally and physically, so by having activities for children quite often, it can improve them mentally and be well-developed as they grow. 207

208 Children should be taught how to listen to music. Observing is directly related to the child's ability. Music invites the child to explore intellectually. Children learn new concepts too. During a music lesson at pre-school, teachers should provide children with different musical instruments. Worksheets could be made of music tunes and children should be taught how to read these notes. Many children relate to music in a different way. Teachers should provide a variety of music because children's tastes can be changeable. Music can be played in the classroom, at home, on the street or in the park. Children can sing in groups or by themselves. They should not be shy to sing and acting in singing competitions or when in groups, when asked to do so, this makes them less withdrawn. Learning through music The ideas that children can learn through music are the unique tunes that children can make and how the tunes on the instruments differ, for instance, the banjo, guitar, xylophone, trumpet, or the violin. Instruments are of all sizes too. 208

209 Body movements to music. They build up their muscles in the process and can learn music of different languages too. Children learn how to handle instruments and it can enrich their lives and give them positive feelings about themselves, as well as about others around them. Learning about different sounds, soft, loud, near or far can be music of a kind. Some sounds last for a certain period of time while others go on for a long time. Listening to music for children is good for them as it can give them a broad spectrum to experience or learn through music. Helping children learn through music Help children to listen to different varieties of music. Allow children to give you the actual music they like to listen to. Preschoolers should be granted opportunities to experiment with music. Have a music corner at home, the library or the classroom. Show pictures of musical instruments to children to get them familiar with the different kinds of instruments that we have. 209

210 Dress in fancy clothing, they can have a lot of fun doing this. Sing songs in the classroom; learn to dress like other nationalities when dancing to that kind of music. Start to sing in a school choir and you will enjoy it. If you like, you can listen to the music of a certain singer or even go to a concert. Make puppet dancers with puppets. Children can have turns in dancing for dances; puppets can even be dressed up for that specific dance. Listeners can comment on the players' music. To develop patience children can clap their hands and sing together. It is best to be relaxed when allowing children to sing so they can be aware of their voices and movements. Children learn readily when their music lessons are made lively, interesting and enjoyable. Singing notes like doh-ray-me-fah-soh-lah-te-doh. They should sing with an open mouth and a relaxed jaw and should sing complete and simple songs. You can even make your own music. Don't ignore music, it can be fun to know and learn through it. A child can dance in front of a mirror to see his facial expressions and movements clearly. 210

211 Questions can be asked about music too. What interesting or different dance steps can you do with your partner? Do you enjoy dancing? What kind of music do you dance to? What effect does music have on a child? Children have no pattern of movements for practising or perfecting their steps. They discover new ways of movement to dancing and use their muscles all the time, especially when being active. Rhythm instruments give toddlers an opportunity for self-expression and the young ones get satisfaction from these sounds. Ballads, old traditional songs, nursery rhymes are just a few of the thousands that your child can learn from. When music is taught to a pre-schooler it should be done by speaking clearly and distinctly. Make sure that children have an understanding of the song played to them, even when they are singing it. Songs with repetition of melodies and words are what they usually find easy and enjoyable to learn from. Children can participate in a song that makes them feel happy. Choruses can be sung beautifully. They can hum to songs and experience different feelings too. 211

212 Allow children to fill in words at the ending of a song while they complete it on their own. They should be able to have their own choices of music to listen or sing to. There is no competition in teaching children to sing, it depends on the child's voice. Songs should be taught to children only if they are familiar with them. Some children are too shy to sing in groups and prefer to sing alone. A child that wants to sing can do it all the time. Eye contact in singing is most effective like eye teaching or talking. This allows your child to learn to have eye contact with people. Children can experience music by dramatising a song and listening to the words carefully and then acting it out. Music videos, pictures and instruments, as well as the help of adult music, can be experienced. Children can listen to clocks for music. Exercise needs music and games can be played too. Play a game, ask children to walk around a table while the music is playing, and stop the music suddenly, whereby they must stop still and stand like statues. A game often played with children. This kind of game can be played over and over. Children become more advanced in music and their knowledge of other languages improves. They can learn the music of other languages too. 212

213 These can differ from the language they are learning at the moment. It could differ from English, Chinese, Indian, Afrikaans, Zulu, Spanish, Croatian, or African songs. Songs for Christmas can be sung, and children will feel the joy of singing. Pre-schoolers can dress up as Santa Claus or during a circus entertainment one can dress up as a clown and act and make tunes that are played while the clown does his tricks. Music is most enjoyable to us and many people enjoy listening to it, as one feels relaxed when listening to their choice of music. It is good for pre- schoolers to listen to music at their age as it gives them pleasure and excitement. 213

214 Chapter Seven A Time to know your child Babies First Books The first books for young children, are books with simple narrative lines, that allows a child to point to one picture after another. Acknowledging the picture, and, sharing books at this age is very important. To recognise objects in a book as the growth of good books for babies and toddlers are simple. Early exposure, to books, and plenty of time for talk and enjoyment of the story appear to be key factors in a child’s mind of learning Though, children shouldn’t be introduced to books too early, there is the need to do it by your child wanting to. The human body is attached to various sound patterns, almost from the movement of birth. In time the body begins to develop and comprehend skills as your child attaches meaning to the sounds audible around. 214

215 Talking to your child at this point is important and the special language of words are essential. During this time in learning, parents label objects in picture books, even before the baby can speak. Child Care When you are unable to afford child care, you have to do it by yourself. Child care, is very expensive, and, when both parents are working, it can be a hard task. Being a parent, is a tough decision, but we are faced with many responsibilities. When you have children as working parents, the work at home should be shared between the both of you. To avoid frustration, or disagreements, make easy planning. Work alternate shifts, so that one of you, get to stay with the children at all times, so your child will have someone, to talk to if necessary. 215

216 When dad works the morning shift, mom can take care of the children, and vice verse. Simple things like, helping around the house, and taking care of your children in that time, can save you the cost of having to pay for child care. Though it is very important for parents to spend time with their children, parents still have got to work to provide for their families. Parents, must show love and concern for their children, and, one another to make sure their children are happy, and, that their relationship, as a husband and a wife, does not fall apart. Development of Reading Physical development At an early age, children, begin to experience communication and understanding of reading. 216

217 Babies, now, hear better than decades ago. Newborns, share more response to patterned rhythmic sounds, then to continuous tunes. Child development, begins with recognising, and accepting the uniqueness of childhood. They have their own interests needs and capabilities, this all changes over-time. Cognitive Development Children are active participants in their own learning. A child’s mind is different as they develop, their thinking changes as they move toward adulthood. Infants and toddlers learn through co-ordination. By the end of their first year most children enjoy the action or genre of rhymes of fairy tales. At the time of preschool to kindergarten, children learn to present the world symbolically, through language drawing. Thinking is based on direct experience and perception of the present moment. 217

218 Language development This is a pattern of early language, learning moves from infant babbling and cooing, to the use of single words. Around age two children use two-word utterances, and the ability is developed, to change inflection intonation, or word order to expand their range of meaning. Verbal development A participation, with an adult is an important element in a young child’s experience with language development. This development, proceeds at a phenomenal pace during the preschool years. By this time children, should be able to express their thoughts in much longer sentences, combining ideas, or embed one idea within another. By the age of four, they would gain structure of grammar, or whatever language they are familiar with. 218

219 Words are explored and improved as children learn, chanting, and playing with language, and gaining confidence in the process. Personal development Every aspect of a child’s growth is intertwined with every other. Learning is affected by emotional responses. or social relationships. and value orientation. This is how personality develops, they need to feel they, are loved and understood, the feeling of being members of a group, of significance, growing and achieving toward independence. Self-actualization Might take a lifetime, or may never be achieved, but, the concept that the individual is more positive, and then personality shows. Parent and Child Many parents, feel they know all about their babies when they are born. This can be true, but, sometimes, not so. When your child is born, it is important for you as a parent, to be there at all times. There, are many issues about your child that you need to know. 219

220 Take care of your child know when and why, your your child needs comforting, but most of all show love and affection. Treat your your baby well, pay attention to all the little cries, and, when there is happiness in your child’s eyes, or if there is something wrong when crying continuously. During the first six years of your child’s life, it is crucial for you to learn more about your toddler. At times you feel, you are unable to cope with motherhood with patience, it can be attempted easily. One of the most important times for you, as a parent and for your toddler is to, learn more about your child, and, it works both ways. Let your child know, that the environment you live in is safe, and that there is warmth as well. Parent and child bonding, and, having fun together, are important issues, for your child. Try not to let your child feel neglected. Let your child know who are the parents more than a stranger, a neighbour or the carer. 220

221 Picture Books Any book with a picture-book format, can be included, as a child’s entertainment. It could be an alphabetic book, a counting, a first, or a concept book. In these books, the pictures should be accurate and synchronised with the text. A book that tells the picturesque story, the message is conveyed equally, through two media, this is by picture and word. In a well-designed book, in which the total format reflects the meaning of the story, both the illustrations and the text should bear the burden of narration. Pictures, help tell the story creatively, by showing action, and expressions of the characters. Creative meaning and picture books, are with illustrations, and, helps readers anticipate the story. This creates the basic mood of the story, and, the style of the artists work should be elusive. Lines, too, can convey meaning to a story, diagonal lines, suggest action and movement. Modern publication techniques, make it much easier and, less expensive to publish full colour books. Colourful books, encourage children to enjoy reading their stories. 221

222 A set of factual information for parents, preschool teachers, and daycare centres. An educational subject for parents and preschoolers, from an infant age to the start of preschool. Concepts that are taught by persons in childcare or any facility with children of this age group. I have great interest in children and know this kind of information is worth while to concerned persons. A way of learning together as child and parent, an important part of a parent's life, should be their children. Skills to learn from and ideas to make a child's learning experience fun and enjoy the activities performed at home or at preschool. A toddler should be free to learn and don't let precious years of your child speed by without getting involved in their playtime and showing your love and care for them, always. 222

223 About Author: A South African of Indian origin and currently living in the most southern part of Croatia, a beautiful and peaceful country. ''Writing opens your mind to all kinds of experiences when you believe you are hopeful in life.'' I enjoy sharing my ideas and thoughts on Hubpages. In the many years of writing I have certainly created an effective way of holding a reader's attention. My articles are to the point short or long and are just so interesting. Let's face it an on-line reader's attention span is short and getting to know of my work further is no exception. 223