Ms. Amy's Blog @Child Central Station

A couple of weeks ago, we had a spring thaw. Most of the snow in the yard melted and the children we excited to find the sand and the mud again!  Although, there was a bit of grieving happening for the snow as well. Change is always hard, and with the change of the seasons comes a change in play. When the snow is gone, we can no longer sled down the hill... We can no longer jump off the snowbanks........ We can no longer make snowmen, or push the snow around..... We can no longer paint the snow..... And, when we can no longer make snow angels, well.... sand or mud angels will just have to do! Along with the disappearance of the snow, comes the marvelous spring mud! So, our grief does not last long as we gear up for running, dashing, sliding, and jumping through the puddles! And... around here in Upper Michigan... the first "spring thaw" is usually just a tease anyway as we usually find ourselves with a few more winter storms before the snow is r

The calendar may state that it is spring, but here in northern Upper Michigan, it is still snowing! We had a a few nice days with a "spring-like" feel, and a thaw, but then it started snowing again :). Our winters tend to be long, but we do what we can to get out and enjoy them! If you have been a long time follower of the blog, I'm sure you remember many of the previous posts sharing some of our outdoor fun! Here are a couple you might want to check out: Our Luge: 2014 Edition 2013 Luge GO OUTside and PLAY! Colorful Snow Volcanoes! Our Mud Pie/Snow Cake Kitchen Let Me Count the Ways.... You Can Paint the Snow! (a quick search of the blog will yield you even more results if you are interested) We love to play with and in the snow, and bringing it inside is just another way to play and investigate this wonderful white stuff! Sometimes we sculpt with the snow when we bring it inside, and we almost always find ways to paint it or add color whether we are

I worry a lot about children today. I worry that they have become subjects in experiments they have never consented to. I worry that we are stealing their childhoods. As a society we are continually pushing down curriculum and expectations upon children that are not appropriate and when children do not perform at higher levels we punish them for being children. I have witnessed far too many young children be punished and publicly shamed for doing exactly what young children are supposed to do. The levels and amount of medication prescribed to young children is appalling, and how much do we really know about the side effects of these drugs on children? Why are we so quick to medicate?  And, why are we finding alarming rates of anxiety and depression in our young people? If you have not yet had a chance to listen to any of the podcasts I am co-hosting with Dan Hodgins, the first episode we recorded was on "hyperactivity" and ADHD in young children. I am weeks behind with

"It happens only once a year, twice if we are lucky.... With a quick thaw, the water runs nearly as fast as the adrenaline.....  When the conditions are just right, a winter waterslide runs right through the yard...... The sun shines down just enough to keep you from freezing as the water gently pushes you down. Child Central Station, March thaws, hilly yards, Pure Upper Michigan, Pure Play! " If you live in or around the State of Michigan, I am sure that you are familiar with the ad campaign "PURE MICHIGAN." If not, I'm sure a quick internet search, or search of YouTube will bring you to many of the featured ads. Here at Child Central Station.... We have our own version... after a wonderful sunny winter/spring day..... Our house is built into a hill, which provides us with many wonderful opportunities for play. With it comes a number of challenges as well. However, we do our best to turn things positively as much as possible. One of the things tha

One of the busiest posts on this blog is from 2010. It is still by far my most popular post, where I first talked about re-using dried out markers . At that point, I really had no idea that this idea was not so well known! We have been up cycling our markers for.... well... over a decade now! The process for making your own liquid Watercolors has not changed. Basically, you collect the markers that have dried out (I like to have a container available for each color) and put them in water. In the beginning... I would just put the whole marker in the water, but after awhile I decide to take them apart. (It was easier for storage... and quite simple to do with needle nosed pliers).  Initially, I would also use jars... like this: Now, instead of glass jars, I use plastic condiment bottles.  Additionally, I don't tend to wait for a pile of markers to pull them apart. Whenever a marker no longer works, it is disassembled and the inserts are added to the appropriate bottle and st

There is always a lot to talk about and write in our journals on a Monday morning....[/caption] All of the children in our program are given a journal when they are about 18 months of age.  We store them on a shelf in bins where the children have access to them at anytime. (If you are a long time follower of the blog, you might remember that I have written about our journals previously when we first started using journals in the classroom .)  We have made a minor change since our first attempt. The difference in our journals now is that we do not attach a pencil directly to them. We found it is much easier to keep a pencil holder on the shelf next to the journals than it was to store the journals with the pencils attached)  Children always choose when they would like to journal. This means that sometimes there are many children, but often it is an individual exercise. Our journals are simple composition books that I tend to stock up on when there are back to school sales. T

I'm always on the look out for inspiration. Working from home is a blessing, but also a curse. Although I absolutely love working with my husband and spending time at home, I don't have a handful of colleagues to bounce ideas off of or to problem solve issues with.... or to have a lot of new ideas coming from......  So what is a girl to do? I'm pretty fortunate to have a group of other local providers who I stay quite connected with, and I am also truly grateful for the many friends and colleagues I have found via the web and social networking. (Some of which I have had the pleasure to meet in person... others that I am sure I will meet 'someday'). They help keep me sane, and by sharing what they are learning and doing, I have a constant source of inspiration! Okay....  So, you're probably thinking.....  what does this have to do with BIG GREEN BOOGERS? The other day I was browsing through my feed of wonderful early childhood pages and posts... when I

Name calling happens. Sometimes it is playful and fun.... and sometimes it is an attempt of verbal power/control.    As an observer, sometimes it is difficult to tell. The only person who can really decide if they are okay with the nickname is the person who is being called by that name. "You're a crazy chicken nugget!" When children opt to call others by different names, like other things, we try to allow them to work it out. The best way to do that is to carefully observe. When a child seems uncomfortable with a name they have been called it is appropriate to ask, "Do you want to be called.....?"  Sometimes they will say yes and I encourage them to let the other children know that "you can call me .... if you want to." "Hey Butt cheek !" (Giggles) "You can call me butt cheek if you want to!" (More Giggles) When a child is truly uncomfortable with a name they are being called, I help them to talk to the person who is usin

If you haven't yet heard.... I am a couple of weeks into co-hosting a podcast with Dan Hodgins!  I am super excited about this new adventure! If you are not familiar with Dan, he is a former child, author, consultant, international speaker,.... You can find his website here , and his Facebook page here . (click on the word here).