Parenting Blogs We Love

South Bend Woodworks has been a place built off strong beliefs and a continued desire to improve. We understand the parenting can be difficult and everyone can use a helpful hand or an insightful pointer every once and awhile. We believe that when we find useful information or resources that can help others, it’s always best to share. We tried to cover a vast range of topics from things you should be doing to help your child grow and develop, to strategies to help manage during this pandemic. South Bend Woodworks has always worked to be a company that provides value from our family to yours. Whether it be with our with our handcrafted wooden heirlooms or in this case just some simple tips and tricks so get through life, we always are looking to help our community to the best of our ability. So with that being said here are some articles we found insightful and wanted our community to have a chance to read as well.

Supporting Independent Play: Tips from Vivvi

Vivvi is a well renounced company that focuses in reinventing child care and early learning for today’s families. They have established themselves as top of their class in their approach to parenting help and child development. In this article (linked in the title) they dive in to the different strategies and tactics to get children to understand and enjoy playing on their own. With a lot of us living and working from home, sometimes we all need a little personal space. Even if space is limited in your home, little people only need little spaces. The end goal of after time and encouragement, your child will gravitate toward their personal space to support their self-sufficient development, as well as providing you with a few minutes for your own independent time!

10 Important Activities To Stimulate Your Child’s Brain Development

This time the title is self explanatory. This article by Horlicks discuss their top 10 strategies for fostering healthy brain development in children. The first 5 years of a child’s life are when their brain develops the fastest so the folks over at Horlicks have put together a list of strategies you can take to help your child hit his or her full potential during those years. The article begins with a story of the authors child running to her telling her mother to come look at what she had done. The author is worried at first, knowing how unpredictable young children can be. But when she finds that her daughter has put together a 36 piece puzzle all by herself, she is overwhelmed with excitement. She states that she had only worked on 6-10 piece puzzles with her daughter, so her going off on her own and completing this was quite the surprise. She then goes in to describe what she does to stimulate brain activity for her child. We liked this article so much because several of their points are things we do here at the woodworks!

26 Ways to Celebrate Birthdays with Kids During Covid 19

We all know this pandemic and the effect of COVID-19 have been hard for everyone, but especially for the children who can not fully grasp the reality of the situation. This blog comes up with 26 way to still celebrate in big ways while also social distancing. It feels wrong to not acknowledge the milestones in a young ones life because of the effects of this pandemic. You have to get creative, but always remember that your kids will remember the fun, no matter what you end up doing. Someday soon things will go back to normal but for now here are some good ideas to take advantage of. We thought this blog was important because it gives ideas on how you the parents can make that birthday (or any celebration) special for your child even with these uncertain circumstances.

A Therapist on Parenting during
the COVID-19 Pandemic

Again, the title in this one says it all. We are all stressed out and many of us confused on what to do during the COVID-19 pandemic. This blog features a therapist giving her advice in Q and A format on the best ways to handle stress, continue a normal life style, and take on the challenges of parenting during the COVID-19 pandemic. The article is written by family therapist Ashley Graber reminds parents that it is okay to relax. She continues to take the approach of reminding people how confusing these times are and that we do not need to have all of the answers right now. We are all learning and adjusting to the new “normal” that has come about in the mid-pandemic United States of America. We believe it’s helpful to offer help to others, and when people see others asking the same questions as them it makes us realize how we are really all in this together.

Parent Tips and Tricks for Distance Learning

As we move farther in to this pandemic, distanced learning isn’t a new concept to teachers and students. As this school year has gone on we are getting more information on what is working and what isn’t for your children while learning remotely. The truth of the matter is that parents are taking on more of their kids’ learning than ever before and in order for children to have a successful education, parents and care givers need support and guidance. The important thing to first note with this situation is that even trained teachers are having struggles with this new way of learning, and most parents are not trained teachers. So, people must remember to go easy on themselves and know that everyone is struggling during this uncertain time. It is important to lead with love, and remember that strong relationships with kids make for positive educational experiences. The article then goes in to their best tips to this remote learning challenge, broken up in to different sections for each idea.