Blank Slate

We have made our move back to the 'burbs and now it's time to start a new daycare, inside my home.

One very important lesson I have learned is that I will never, EVER, accumulate as many toys as I had, EVER again.  The fallout from the daycare house cleanout: Even after a major weeding out of toys months ago, and most recently numerous trips to the donation center with my station wagon loaded, a very successful garage sale, a major 'curb alert' involving the placement of at least 300 toys for free outside, selling all my large equipment on craigslist, we STILL had to rent a 14' Uhaul truck which we filled to capacity.

Thankfully my husband is wonderful and keeps his judgemental thoughts to himself.  :o)  I easily could have qualified for an episode of 'hoarders'.

So here I am with a blank slate.  I am posting pics of the 'before' as it looks this morning. 

At my entrance I am using the formal dining room.  It's actually a decent size, the one chair in this room (which will be removed) is oversize thus dwarfing the room.  The dimensions are 11x12.

Then there is the downstairs.  The main space is 20x10.  We are having a 3'x4' window installed in the living room so we are up to licensing code.    The room looks tiny in this pic, but to give it scale, each of the five shelves lined up along the wall is almost 3 feet wide.

Here is a view from the other direction. The door to the left is an 11 x 13 bedroom, which has an egress window so it is nice and bright.  The door to the right of that is the bathroom.

I have a lot of work to do but everything is on hold until the construction is complete on the window. 

Can't wait to post photos as I go along!

Erin

Pocket and Flip Chart Stand

I bought a couple of flip charts last year and have not hung them up yet because I didn't have a proper display.  I have seen the pocket chart stands in the early childhood catalogs but they are expensive and just too bulky. 

Last week I received a store fixture catalog from Robert Ham ( www.robertham.com) and found an insipring idea that has worked out super well for only $15.

It is a hook attached to a stem that telescopes from 36"-48" on a chrome base.  The product is intended for hanging clothing items.  However, I have found it works spectacularly well for hanging pocket and flip charts.

I attached the chart to a hanger using s hooks.  Because i have quite a few charts, storage is a breeze, I simply hang them from the rod in my closet and change out as needed.

I hope this idea is helpful!!

Erin

The Birthday Box

A child's birthday is the highlight of the year, so I strive to make it special.

First we have the Birthday Bag.  It consists of a Birthday Bear, two Birthday Books, a Birthday Puzzle, and a Birthday Coloring Page.

The Birthday child gets to bring the bag home for the night. 

I purchased the bag from Vista Print when they were having a special. I think I only paid for the shipping which was about $5.  Then I attached a tag saying what to bring back and what to keep.

Then there is the Birthday Box.  This is where I keep:

Decorations (Dollar Tree, twelve in a bag, four of three designs)

Birthday Crowns (Dollar Tree, birthday border that I measure/staple to fit child's head)

Birthday Cards (Dollar Tree)

Birthday Banner (made using my Cricut)

Birthday Sprays (Dollar Tree balloon weights, set on either side of Birthday Sign)

Birthday Sign (not pictured, it's an 8x11 clear plastic, free-standing picture frame that sets on top of the cubbies in entryway with a Happy Birthday (name) sign for all to see)

Birthday Bow (Dollar Tree, I am cheap so I reuse it for the gifts)

At afternoon snack we gather to sing Happy Birthday, open presents (I try to stay under $15), and have a special snack.

I think this has worked well so far. Plus-because I am hyper anal-simple storage and everything is where I need it when it's time.

Erin

Grocery Store Dramatic Play

Here is our Dramatic Play Center for the next three weeks:

Grocery Store

Pretend food and household items
Cash register
Pretend money
Credit Cards (donated plastic that come in the junk mail)
Reusable grocery bags
Plastic shopping basket
Purses and wallets (these are not pictured, they are on the shelf to the left with our dress up clothes, shoes, and hats)
Child sized aprons

The groceries have been stuffed with newspaper (so they don't collapse) and taped shut. I really like the frozen bag of Broccoli. My daughter saw that I was going to throw out the bag after lunch and suggested we keep it for the grocery store.

Erin

Science Center Magazines

I had this idea published in the Mailbox Magazine a couple years ago so technically it isn't mine anymore but still it's worth sharing....

In our Science Center I like to have at least three science mags to go with whatever activity I have in the area.  I had a subscription to Your Big Back Yard for several years and have kept every copy.  I tear apart the pages and place in three ring binder page protectors, from there they are filed individually.

I have three different binders that I keep out, I simply rotate the magazine contents.  It is a GREAT way to save your magazines from getting destroyed.  Even my little one year olds love to sit and read them but cannot tear the pages apart.

(for my older kids I have subscribed to High Five and also Hidden Pictures)

Hopefully this is useful!
Erin

Bye-bye paper towels!

In MN we have to have single use towels for every handwash. I have always used paper towels, which I cut into four pieces to save money.  We go through paper towels like crazy here.

My mentor and good friend Molly the Daycare Guru, has always used washcloths and suggested I do the same.  I had considered it but I will be honest, I don't like to work any more than I have to and an extra load of laundry each day sounds like work.  Plus, I figure with ten children here and handwashing before/after each meal/snack I would need sixty cloths each day which would be expensive to buy, so I set the idea aside.

Then it came to me: Fleece.  I purchased a little over a yard of fleece and with my rotary cutter and mat (if you sew you most likely have one of these) was able to cut out 127  5"x 5" squares. I put them in a shoe bin by the sink.  It only lasted two days so now I am making more to store in shoe bins on the shelf in the cupboard near the sink.

Pros: Inexpensive, they are small so a week's worth barely takes up half a load in the washing machine, and they dry in less than ten minutes.

Cons: None.  This has saved me a ton of money.  I wish I had tried this much sooner!

I hope this idea helps you save money too!

Erin

Toy Rotation/Organization

After six years of hoarding awesome toys, I came to the realization that my 13'x10' storage room (a spare bedroom) was what shows like "Hoarders: Buried Alive" are made of.  I had toys up to my chin and a tiny 1 foot wide path that went about four feet into the room before it came to a dead end.

The worst part?  Most of these fabulous toys never saw the light of day because I couldn't get AT them.  True story: When cleaning this room I actually found a slipper I had lost (it was suctioned off my foot as I tried to wade through the room) THREE years ago. 

How to organize it?   I have centers at the daycare and every two weeks I like to rotate out the toys.  So I purchased three white shelving units from Walmart for $15 each.  I also purchased nine plastic bins from Menards for $4 each.  I then set about putting one full rotation of toys in each bin. 

I have a folder that has a page for each bin (each bin is numbered) and on each page is a list of the toys in categories.  Here is what one rotation looks like before it is in the bin (if you click the photos they enlarge):

And here it is all packed up:

I should mention that my centers have 'staples', the toys that stay all the time.  Sometimes I rotate those items but mainly they stay the same. These bins just hold the 'bumper crop' of toys that get thrown in the mix every two weeks.

So what is in each bin?  Here are the categories, along with a list of what is in this bin:

Toddler Toy Shelf:
Cow and Chicken Stacker
Small Rain Stick
Cookie Jar
Jumbo Monkeys in a Barrel

Music and Movement:
Metal Bells

Block Area:
Sesame Street Camping Set
Funky Space Men
Wedgits
8 Zoo Animals and 4 Fisher Price People
Zoo Playscene
3 Large Airplanes
Large Farm Truck (not pictured)

Manipulatives:
Green/Red/Yellow 'build-an-animal' set
Nuts and Bolts
Colorful Stacking Head Figurines
Magnetic Dress Up Doll and Accessories
Lacing Cards (not pictured)

Games:
Don't Spill the Beans
Cootie

Puzzles:
7 piece zoo peg board
8 piece summer bugs peg board
8 piece fozzy bear
8 piece eyore
12 piece wheelchair
24 piece clifford
60 piece story book
Where the Wild Things are floor puzzle (not pictured)

Felt Board:
Construction Set

Library:
Mosquito Puppet
Unicorn Puppet
20 soft cover books
10 board books

Science:
4 sound sensory bottles
Big Backyard Magazine: Zebras


So, I have six bins so far like this.  I have nine more bins of my 'best' toys at home that I need to sort through and make three more. This way I have a new bin every two weeks for a total of 18 weeks.

And here is what they look like in storage.  Three bins on the bottom and their coordinating 'big toys' that do not fit in the bins stored up above and to the side.  As you can see I have another shelf to the left just waiting for bins!

I hope this post is helpful. I know it has turned my daycare life around.  Now instead of hoarding toys, when something new comes in, something old goes out. 

Erin

Valentine's Day Art

What are we up to this week?  Here are two of our activities so far...

Valentine striped hearts:
I loved this because I work with a multi-age group so we need something everyone can do, and this was it!

The finished product, after they were trimmed, by me :o)

And our second project this week, using scraps from the above project I cut up confetti and used contact paper cut into heart shapes. These will hang from ribbons in our window.

The finished product, hard to see but they are covered with another sheet of contact paper and cut into heart shapes.

Valentine's Day : Educational

The big V-day is coming up and my daycare kids are counting down! Oh how we love a party around here!  The house is decorated in pink and red galore, and we are ready to go!
Typically, on The Big Day, we have a little shindig in the morning. This consists of: valentine art, valentine snack, valentine gift bags, handing out valentines, playing a valentine game or two, watching  Winnie the Pooh Valetine movie while munching on popcorn.  Now to figure out ow to make pink popcorn...hmmm..
Anyway, even though it is all fun and games, I have managed to squeak in an educational activity or two.
Here is what I have dug up:
The Broken Heart Game

This can be played numerous ways.  * this is a small set, you can make many more sets of numbers and vary it by putting a number on one side and the same number of hearts on the other half.
Gross Motor:
Divide your group in half, on either sides of the room or playground.  Give one set of broken hearts to one group and the other matching set to the other group. Yell "GO" and have them race toward each other and find their match.  Once found they must run to the designated spot and sit. First group in wins, last group in loses, or if you have to make it fair for 'everyone' the game is just plain old over when everyone sits down.
Gross Motor II:
Pass out one side of the hearts to the group and hide the other half in the yard, room.  Send them off to find their match.  when they have their match, return to the designated finish spot and sit.  Have only one child? Give them one half at a time, race out to find the matching half, return to make a match on the floor, pick up a new half and head out again.
Memory:
Turn all cards over and flip two at a time until all matches are found. This is a good one to have the numeral written on one half and the same number of hearts on the other half.
Memory for little ones:
Simply put all cards face up and see if they can match them, saying the numbers as they go.

Colorful Hearts

Sorting by color  easy enough
A Tisket A Tasket:
Put a basket in the center of the group (or in front of your child).
Make sure each child has one of each color in their 'pile'.
Sing:
"A tisket a tasket put the (color) heart in the basket."
Continue until they are all gone.

5 Yummy Candy Hearts
(pick five colors before you begin, these can change as many times as you like)
Five yummy candy hearts waiting at the store.

(Name) ate the blue one and then there were four.  (have child pick up that colored heart)
Four yummy candy hearts staring straight at me,
{Name} ate the red one and then there were three.
Three yummy candy hearts read "I love you."
(Name) ate the yellow one and then there were two.
Two yummy candy hearts, this was so much fun
(Name) ate the green one and then there was one.
One yummy candy heart sitting on the shelf.
I felt so sorry for it, I ate the orange one myself!

Gross Motor:
Put a basket in the middle of the room, have the child toss the hearts.  Want to add math to it? Graph how many each child successfully lands in the basket. Who had the most? Least? Same?

That's all for today!
Erin

Entryway Organization

After many years (six to be exact) of struggling with boots in the winter, this year I decided it was time to have a plan.  Gone are the days of kids tossing their dirty/wet boots in a heap at the door. Now we have organization and cleanliness, and a pleasant looking place for our boots.
I found the storage rack at walmart.com (search for Shoe Storage), I think it was $26.  And the bins were a dollar at the Dollar Tree.
Pros: I love that the rack is solid and I can buy more because they are made to stack securely together.  It is much more visually appealing than a heap of shoes/boots.  And, it's great name recognition as well. :o)  Ok, and I'm a bit OCD when it comes to the daycare, a place for everything and everything in it's place. :o)
Cons:  There is a tight squeeze for some of the bigger boots so I am thinking of buying dish pans (available at the dollar store) because they are bigger and provide more space. 
I hope this is useful info!

About Me

About Me

I have worked in childcare for almost ten years. The first three were in a before and after school program as the Lead Teacher of the First Grade Room (twenty four first graders, one lead teacher, three assistants).  For the past six years I have worked in home childcare.

My situation is a little bit different since I work out of a separate home we purchased for the sole purpose of opening a childcare.  It is licensed as a home-not a center.  It's super cute, if I do say so myself, and is an awfully fun place to work!

I job share with Amy who is insanely sweet and oh so wonderful.  I am SO lucky to have found her! Because of her I get to spend more time at home with my own children and can breathe easy because I know my business is in good hands.

I have three classes to go in order to complete my Bachelors Degree in Early Childhood Studies.  I have put those on hold until my youngest starts school.

I am married and have three children: Jordyn (20), Garrett (7) and Sarah (5).

The goal of this blog is to share some of my ideas and tips. I hope by doing so others will come here to do the same!

Happy reading!

Erin