Valentine’s Day is almost here already!!  So, what better way to celebrate it than dressing your little cutie in their own personalized Valentine’s Day shirt, onesie, or dress!  You can customize your child’s shirt, onesie, or dress to your prefered color fabric, thread color, and even add on accessories such as Leg Warmers and Matching Hairb Bows for your Princess!

 First of all I want to thank all of my amazing customers and Facebook fans!  2011 truly was an amazing year for ABC Creative Learning.  We have gone through lots of exciting changes in the last four months and hope to bring all of our customers new and exciting things!  Hope 2012 is an amaning year for all of you!  Thank you for your support!!

I have used random.org to choose 12 winners who have left feedback on our Customer Comments page from our website  to win a $5 Gift Card to ABC Creative Learning!  Goodluck!!

1. De Blackford
2. Sandy Fletcher Earnest
3. Renee Wilkerson Andrews
4.  Erin Hilleshiem
5. Lisa Fox
6. Shannon Barnes Arndt
7. Brandy
8. Adrienne F
9. Elizabeth Smedley Ormes
10. Nikki Mahorsky Howell
11. Carly McCall
12. Jenette Buentiempo

Congratulations to all 12 winners!!  Please send me an email at contact-us@abccreativelearning.com so that I can give you your Gift Card Code to use on the Website, Etsy, or Facebook during checkout!

** Numbers were counted from older dates to newer dates, starting with the first comment left. **

Help us Celebrate reaching over 3,500 Fans on Facebook and enter for a chance to win a $20 Gift Card to ABC Creative Learning!  Contest will open on November 16th and will go on until Sunday, November 20th!  So make sure to enter by becoming a Fan of our Facebook page and fill out the Google Document for a chance to WIN!

Thank you to all the amazing fans and customers!!  We couldn’t do this without you!

ENTER HERE!

Again, thank you for all your support and encouragement!!

Victoria Armijo

As parents it is our job to help our children prepare for standardized testing, whether we believe on its outcome or not.  Here are a few tips on how to prepare your child for these types of tests.

Before the Test:                                                                                                                                        

• Encourage your child to attend school and do not let them miss if it’s not necessary.  Teachers cover a lot of materials throughout a school day, especially during testing time.
• Keep things positive!  Do not speak poorly or negatively about standardized testing.  Remember your child has to take the test no matter what, so it makes no sense to share your negative feelings and add an extra burden on them.  Keep your thoughts to yourself!
• Help your child understand the information that they are learning in the classroom.  There is a reason why teachers emphasize on certain topics, especially when preparing the students for an upcoming standardized test.
• Sit down with your child when completing homework.  Answer any questions they may have on an assignment.  Check out my guest post on 10 Tips on Making Homework Fun for more tips on homework.
• Read outloud with your child no matter their age.  Not only does reading outloud teach your child that reading is important, but it will also help develop vocabulary skills.
• Complete practice test run with your child at home.  You can purchase or ask the teacher for review sheets that you can complete at home with your child.  This will also help them on what to expect on the day of the test.
• Learn your child’s weakness and create a plan to help them improve.  This could include completing some extra practice sheets or reading extra materials on a specific subject.
• Talk to your child on what to expect the day of the test.  Let them know to stay calm and to do their best.  Encourage them to be positive and assure  them that they know the information because it’s what they have been preparing for all year long.
• The night before the test make sure that your child gets a good night sleep.  Your child should get at least 8 hours of sleep to make sure that their body and brain has rested

The Day of the Test:                                                                                                                                

• Make sure that your child eats a well balanced breakfast.  Try to eliminate sugary foods, but instead go with fruits, grains, and proteins.  Eating breakfast will fuel your child’s brain and get them ready for their big day.
• Encourage your child to do their best and express how proud you are of them.  Do not pressure your child before the exam, this will only cause stress and anxiety.
• Make sure your child arrives to school a little earlier than usual.  This will help your child stay calm and focused.  When children arrive late to standardized testing they begin to feel anxious and stressful because they have not gotten the opportunity to mentally get ready.  Arriving early will also give them a chance to ask the teachers any questions they might have and to relax with their peers.
• When they arrive home ask them how their day went and about the test.  Again, let them know how proud your are of them for doing their best!

At the end of the day Standardized Testing is something that our children will do more than several times while attending school.  Making sure that they are prepared mentally, physically,  and emotionally is important, but letting them know how proud we are as parents could be the single most important discussion you and your child could have.

There are two lasting bequests we can give our children.  One is roots.  The other is wings.  ~Hodding Carter, Jr.

Strawberry Farm

 Spring is upon us and the weather is beginning to warm up!  Here in Florida it’s the perfect time to head outdoors and enjoy some fun in the sun with the family!  This weekend my husband and I decided to take our 19 month old daughter strawberry picking at a local farm.  Now that our daughter is getting a little older we have decided that it’s time to incorporate teaching into these fun family outings.  You always want to make sure that you are helping your child learn at their appropriate age level. 

What can we learn at a strawberry farm?

• Working on fine motor development (picking strawberries requires your child to use intricate muscles)
• Color Recognition
• Counting
• Sizes 
• The Lifecyle of a Plant
• Strawberry Farming/Workers
• Learning about our five senses
• Team Work
• Importance of Family Time

What to bring?

• Bring a towel, those strawberries can be a bit messy : )
• A container if the location does not provide one for you
• A camera

Now bring those yummy and beautiful strawberries home and continue with some more fun activities!  With all of these strawberries you can make Strawberry Jam!  Again, you can use some of the skills used at the farm for the kitchen as well.  Remember to have your child help you.  Even the youngest of them can help in some way.

Remember, the learning does not begin or end in the classroom!  It starts at home!

Tootle Turtle and Blossomem Bright Gardening Tote Set

Check out our website to see all of our Spring Toys!