The warm summer weather is perfect for spending hours in the great outdoors, whether that be at the park, in your front yard, or even on a hike. That being said, one of the best ways to fully appreciate nature is to take your family on a summer camping trip! In addition to getting some fresh air and quality time with nature, there are many benefits to taking your kids camping, and in today’s post, we will cover a few good reasons to plan a camping trip this summer.

If your little one like to explore, learn, and try new things, then why not give them the opportunity to do it all? At Today’s Life Schools & Childcare, we promote early childhood development by offering enrichment programs that are designed to give children the chance to try new things and expand their interests. We also strive to create curriculums that are geared toward your child’s learning abilities. Children are always learning, and whether you’re interested in our different educational programs or you want to enroll your child in our summer daycare, you can rest assured that your child is learning in a safe and nurturing environment. Browse our website to learn more about what Today’s Life Schools & Childcare has to offer, and give us a call to schedule a visit at our Brooklyn Park location.

Your Child Will Learn New Skills

When you go camping, you can’t just turn on the stove and heat up dinner or go for an easy walk around the block. Camping is an entirely different type of living, and in order to fully enjoy the experience, your child will need to learn new skills such as starting a fire or pitching a tent. Learning these new skills will help your child to better understand themselves and it will also help to encourage early childhood development. In fact, some of the skills that your child may learn on your family camping trip could help them later in life.

Camping is Affordable

Many families prefer going on camping trips because camping is more affordable. Think about other family trips that you have gone on in the past. Gas, hotel, food, and souvenirs are just a few of the expenses that you may encounter on a typical family vacation. Granted, those expenses will go up depending on the type of vacation. If you already have all the camping gear you need, it’s easy to keep costs low. Not to mention, when you go on vacation, your child probably wants to buy every little souvenir or trinket that they see, but with camping, there are no gift shops.

Your Kiddo gets the Chance to Disconnect

In today’s society, children rely on technology for many things, including entertainment and learning. If you’re looking for a way to help your little one disconnect from a world filled with technology, then camping is the perfect solution! Electronic games and mobile devices feel out of place in the great outdoors, not to mention you will be hard-pressed to find an outlet to charge your devices.

Camping Encourages Creativity

Because your child won’t be able to use their electronics, they will be forced to find new things to entertain themselves, which may require the use of their imagination. Hiking and exploring is a great way to fill the time. You can even encourage them to set up a hammock and enjoy a nice book, or share stories around the campfire. Without screens or their endless mountains of toys, your kiddo will be forced to come up with new games and find new ways to spend their time.

You Get to Spend Quality Time as a Family

Another great benefit of a summer camping trip is that you get to bond as a family. We mentioned above that your child won’t have any electronics to entertain themselves, and the same thing goes for the parents! Without the noise of the television or the constant email reminders, your entire family will get to talk and interact without interruptions. As a result, you may find that the time together brings you closer.

It’s Fun!

If for no other reason, you should take your kids camping because it is fun! There’s nothing better than falling asleep in a tent to the smell of the campfire and waking up to birds chirping outside. Your child will get to try things that they may have never tried before, and your entire family will get a break from your normal lives.

Camping is a great way to encourage early childhood development, and once you return from your trip, the learning doesn’t have to stop! At Today’s Life Schools & Childcare, we work hard to provide your child with many opportunities to learn. Visit our website or give us a call today!

If you have a picky eater on your hands, then mealtime can be a struggle, especially if your child only eats one or two things or refuses to eat at all. Proper nutrition is important to help your kiddo grow big and strong, and in today’s post, we will discuss a few easy ways that you can make mealtimes more fun!

Today’s Life Schools and Childcare is dedicated to helping promote early childhood development through learning, fun, and proper nutrition. Our teachers create curriculums that are designed to engage and challenge your child, while also preparing them for their future education. In addition to education and our enrichment program, we also work hard to promote good nutrition and eating habits throughout the day. If you’re looking for a daycare center that you can trust, then contact Today’s Life Schools and Childcare Center today, and continue reading below for tips on how to make mealtimes more fun for your picky eater.

Ask Him or Her What They Want to Eat

You may be thinking that it’s pointless to ask your child what he or she wants to eat because the answer is always the same. While that may be the case, the trick is to offer your child other options. Give your child the choice between three different meals that you have in the house. Depending on how picky your child is, giving him or her options may still present a challenge, however, having the power to choose what’s for dinner may be too tempting to resist.

Have Your Child Help With Meal Prep

There’s nothing better than standing in the kitchen helping mom or dad cook dinner, and if your child plays a part in cooking dinner, he or she may be more likely to eat it once it’s done. Ask your kiddo if he or she wants to help with preparing dinner, and then give them a task like stirring or mashing potatoes. If you notice that your child has a lot of fun helping you cook, you can make it a daily activity and make sure that every meal has a task that your kiddo can easily complete.

Cut Food into Fun Shapes!

Would you rather eat a small slab or pork or a piece of meat shaped like a star? As an adult, you don’t really care about how your food looks, but as a child, presentation is everything! If your child is a picky eater, one thing you can try is cutting his or her food into fun shapes. Buy a few different cookie cutters, and try cutting meat or sandwiches into animals, stars, trees, or hearts! In some cases, you can buy your kiddo’s favorite foods already cut into different shapes, like dinosaur nuggets. It may be more difficult to get your child to eat things like veggies because you can’t cut them into shapes. In that case, try naming them different things. Say that broccoli is a tree and that your kiddo is a dinosaur, or say that green beans are just green french fries. Anything you can do to make meals more fun will give you a better chance of getting your picky eater to branch out and try new foods.

Eating healthy and trying new things can be difficult for a child, but with these tricks, mealtime can be fun and enjoyable for all. At Today’s Life Schools and Childcare, we understand that an important part of healthy development is nutrition, which is why we provide healthy meal options during the day. To see what our childcare center has to offer, contact Today’s Life Schools and Childcare to schedule a visit to our Brooklyn Park location today!

We look forward to seeing you and your child soon!

Children have a way of naturally making friends with whoever they meet. It’s always fun to watch children interacting with each other, however, with the increase of technology use, there are some children who would rather interact with a screen than with their own peers. At Today’s Life Schools & Childcare, we strive to promote early childhood development for those in Eden Prairie by giving children the chance to interact with other kids and learn together. Our curriculums are specifically designed to get children up and moving and encourage them to learn. We offer a variety of programs for infants and children who are getting ready to start kindergarten, in addition to enrichment programs. If you would like to learn more about what our Eden Prairie child care services can offer your child, contact Today’s Life Schools & Childcare today!

In order to promote healthy development, it’s important for children to interact with each other. In case you are not fully aware of the benefits of child interaction, we will go over those benefits in today’s post. Once you finish reading, if you think Today’s Life is right for your child, contact us to schedule a visit.

Learning Social Skills

You may understand that it’s important for your child to play with other children, but you may not understand why. As your child interacts, not just with other children, but with other humans in general, he or she is learning proper social skills. Interacting with peers is a great way for your child to learn how to be a friend and empathize with other children. Playing and interacting will show your kiddo what makes his or her peers sad or mad or happy, and these responses will dictate how your child behaves in the future.

Interaction Begins At An Early Age

Believe it or not, your child is learning how to interact with other humans from the day he or she is born. Babies look to their parents, or primary caregivers, to teach them how to behave. Because babies are new to the world, they are constantly observing and learning. For example, do you notice that your baby will relax when he or she is held in your arms, or smile when they see you? All of these reactions are based on observation and the relationship you have developed with your baby. Through this relationship, your child is learning what it means to feel for someone.

Taking Turns

If you spend time in a preschool class, you will often hear a teacher telling students to take turns with toys. The idea of taking turns is an important part of your child’s social development, and starts when he or she is a baby. You may not realize it, but the way you interact with your child can actually promote the idea of taking turns. For example, if you’re holding your baby and he or she makes a noise, and you make that noise back, you are taking turns. As your child gets older, you may play games that involve taking turns like rolling a ball back and forth or playing peek-a-boo.

Imaginary Friends

As your child gets older and starts to understand what it means to have friends, he or she may develop an imaginary friend. Not only do imaginary friends help to encourage your child’s imagination, but they also help to develop their social skills. Your kid uses an imaginary friend as a way of relating to others. You may see your child talking to their imaginary friend, playing games, or even scolding their friend for doing something wrong. While it may look odd to see your child talking to “nothing,” having an imaginary friend is actually beneficial in many ways.

The Different Developmental Stages

As we mentioned above, your child is learning how to interact with other humans from day one. That being said, through each stage in his or her life, your kid is learning different aspects of friendship and relationships. It’s important to understand what your child learns at each stage so that you can help to promote these lessons.

Luckily, at Today’s Life Schools & Childcare, our childcare providers have the experience and knowledge to guide your child through each stage of development. In fact, each of our programs are designed with a specific curriculum that will encourage healthy development and learning. To learn more about our programs, contact Today’s Life Schools & Childcare today!