Young Scholars Academy

Where Children Develop a Love of Learning

 5815 Tutt Center Point - Colorado Springs, CO 80922
 (719) 522-9099
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Things To Do For Father’s Day 2019

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We all love dad. Wrestling, playing video games, cooking at the grill, and hanging out are some of the fun things he does with us. This Father’s Day. show dad you care by giving him the gift of time. Take him to one of these fun places.

Peak into Pikes Brewery Tour

On June 15, from 12:00-5:00 pm, the Pikes Peak Brewing Company is hosting “Peak into Pikes Brewery Tour.” This is an hour-long tour that gives some history and facts about brewing beer. They take guests through the back part of the brewery, give a 10% off coupon for their merchandise, and give each guest a tour exclusive pint glass. The price is $20 per person. They are located at 1756 Lake Woodmoor Drive, Monument, CO, 80132 719-208-4098 https://pikespeakbrewing.com/event/brewery-tour-3/

Pikes Peak Celtic Festival

The Pikes Peak Celtic Festival is being held June 14-16. Come out and enjoy Celtic music and dancing, living history, authentic Celtic cuisine, bag pipe competitions, Highland Athletics, Whisky tasting, Braveheart 5K, and more! A weekend pass is $25 for adults and $10 for kids age 6-17. For a single day pass it is $15 for an adult and $5 for kids. Whisky Tasting is $48.75 and the Braveheart 5K is $46.80. Both events include an adult weekend pass. Western Museum of Mining & Industry 225 North Gate Blvd, Colorado Springs, CO 80921. For more information or to buy tickets, please visit https://pikespeakcelticfestival.com/

Mesa Drive-in Theater

The Mesa Drive-in Theater is open seven nights a week. They provide that old time feel of driving in to watch a movie. Admission is $10 for ages 12 and older. Children under 12 are free. This price includes a double feature. Concessions range from $1.50-$8.75 per item. This month their family friendly double feature is Aladdin and Avengers Endgame. Located at 2625 Santa Fe Drive, Pueblo, CO 81006.

Annual Starlight Spectacular

June 15, Garden of the Gods is hosting the 25th annual Starlight Spectacular. Enjoy a 4, 16, 21, or 23-mile bike ride through and around Garden of the Gods Park beginning at 9:00 PM. Adults are $48 and children 6-15 are $28 children under 6 are free. There are rules and regulations you must adhere to for safety, so be sure to check that out before registering. 1805 N 30th Street, Colorado Springs, CO 80904. To register, go to; https://www.trailsandopenspaces.org/…/starlight-spectacular/

Time is the greatest gift to give to your father. Find something to achieve this goal and have a Happy Father’s Day!

-Ms. Blair
Lead Early Preschool Teacher
Wellness Coordinator

4 Reasons To Not Compare Your Children

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The definition of “compare” according to the Webster dictionary is estimate, measure, or note the similarity or dissimilarity between two or more things. In today’s world we can’t help but be competitive and compare our accomplishments to others. This also includes our sweet children’s accomplishments as well. The problem with comparing our children to other children or even their siblings is that every child is very different and hits milestones at various stages. Such as one child could have walked at nine months and the other child not till fourteen months. But on the flip side the first child didn’t talk till thirteen months and the other at ten months. You cause stress when you compare your children.
We all internally know this right? Yet even as adults we’re constantly comparing areas in our lives to others. Just as a reminder, here’s 4 Reasons To Not Compare Your Children

Don’t compare your life to others. There is no comparison between the Sun and the Moon. Both each shine when it’s their time.

1. It breaks down a child’s confidence and causes self-doubt.

When a child hears you say look what she is doing already. Why can’t you do that? It breaks them down and makes them question their abilities. It is very hard work to rebuild a child’s self-esteem. Especially when it is broken down by someone they trust and love. This can be just as damaging if it is between siblings. Instead of doing a direct comparison find strengths that each child has and highlight those special abilities.

Jealousy comes from counting others’ blessing instead of our own

2 & 3. Jealousy and Negativity.

Jealousy will eventually rear its ugly head. It is human nature to want praise and acknowledgement. Even at a very young age a child wants to know they have done good or hear how amazing they are. When we compare that blacks out the child’s accomplishment and over seats their confidence. With a child constantly being compared to a sibling or another child they begin to envy and resent the other child. The child that is always thought of oh look what that kid can do why can’t you, starts to think negatively and why even try if it isn’t ever going to be good enough.

4. It damages the parent and child relationship.

What kid hasn’t tried to please their parents? We want to impress and get praise from the get-go with our parents. But if a child is always being compared and brought down, they let that negativity take over. They also don’t connect and seek shelter and acceptance elsewhere.
As a parent we all want our child to be exceptional. However, we need to embrace their talents at their own levels and time. Every child shines, just not at the same time.

While there’s no rule book to parenting, this an extremely important concept to consider in everyday activities. The hope that one day all children will be able to shine instead of compared. Thank you for reading!

-Ms. Michaela
Lead Pre-Kindergarten Teacher
Social Emotional Coordinator

Crushing the Playroom Chaos

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kid showing a thumbs up
An organized kid is a happy kid

As our kiddos get older it seems that more toys magically keep appearing. From birthdays, holidays, and random trips to the store-there seems to be an endless stream of toys and tiny pieces entering my home. As my youngest child reached a point where the baby toys I had been saving from the first no longer were in play, I started the process of decluttering. It can be such a struggle to make the time to do this, its truly the last thing you want to spend time on. But it MUST be done, or else… the Playroom/toy situation can become a horrendous hurricane of a mess with no end in sight!

The best thing that you can do to regain the order of the play room is to sort all the toys. Here are a few steps to help you get organized.

Step 1

Sort the toys into these categories: keep, store, donate, or trash. After my youngest turned about two, I started to go though all the toys and got rid of all the cute baby age play items. If you plan to have other children, store them away in Rubbermaid containers and LABEL them! Label, Label, Label! Don’t think you will do it later, because you won’t! As soon as the lid goes on, label them-Keep/Toys/Age: Birth-2(or whatever title is appropriate). After the first sorting process you then move onto step 2.

Step 2

Sort the sorted toys! Deal with the donate and trash first, I put all of these in trash bags and use a sharpie to label them. The donate bags immediately go into my car that day. Trust me, I have let donate bags sit by the door for a week or more… so just put them in the car right away. Because, when you know you must go to the grocery store later that day or in the week it forces you to make the drop off, ha! With the toys you are going to store-sort, label, and then put away. Now you have plenty of working room in your playroom/toy area for all the toys you are keeping.

When sorting the toys your kiddos will be currently playing with you have to do it how it will best work for your family. I suggest looking online for inspiration for different ideas depending on the space and number of toys you have. For us, we have a small room that is for the kids and all their toys. Investing in some storage shelving has really made organizing the toys a lot easier. Looking online on used furniture sale sites and going to thrift stores is a great place to look to save some money. We then sorted our toys by toy type: all the dinosaurs, Legos, action figures, costumes, Disney characters, and cars each have their own clear box. We use clear plastic boxes, storage containers and baskets to hold the toys. You could even print labels and attach to the bins to take the organization a step further. Check out your kiddos classroom to see how YSA organizes their toys, labels and pictures in every room. This is so doable at home as well!

Step 3

kid putting toys away
Teach them to organize shelves

The most important! Train your kiddos to put stuff away! Once you have your playroom/toy storage system in place, teach your children how to clean up after themselves. My kids usually only take one or two buckets out and then will clean up and move on. Any more than that, it takes them eons to actually clean up. It should not be your job to clean up their mess every time. It can be a frustrating task a first, but it really pays off once they get the hang of it. My 3-year-old can put everything away on his own now and it is amazing! I don’t have to get on my hands and knees crawling all over the place. It is teaching them so much responsibility! But, be consistent. Every time, they are the ones that put the stuff away, even if a buddy comes over. Make sure you are upfront and explain to friends that they will be responsible for helping too.

About every 2 months, I try to get in there and make sure everything is put away correctly and reorganize where it is needed. The kids are responsible for helping during this also. Taking the time to organize and teach your children how to clean up properly really helps take the stress off the playroom chaos. It teaches responsibility and care of their things. They do this at school, so they should totally be able to do it at home! Here’s to not stepping on tiny Legos in the dark ever again!

Ms. Whitney
Lead Prekindergarten Teacher
Curriculum Coordinator

Key Communication Skills a Child Needs

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As a parent, it is important to focus on your child’s communication skills as they grow up. How they respond to criticisms or compliments, how they interact with other kids and/or adults, and how they behave socially are some ways to know if your child is displaying good communication skills.

Most children follow by example, from peers, adults, or what they see online. With all the technological advancements nowadays, it is normal that your child will adopt communication skills from this platform. Social skills need to be developed with some parental help.

3 Major Communication Skills to Teach your Child

When your child is growing up, making friends is important. And what better way to develop friendship than being a good communicator.

Questioning

It is no surprise that people like to talk about themselves. Start at home by asking questions. Touch base with your child every now and then. Gather information about what they like to do during their free time, who their friends in school are, or what they want to be when they grow up. You may also consult with them if there will be changes at home.

Practicing questioning at home will make your child become more engaged. Not only does talking about themselves help them express themselves freely; it also makes them feel better. Once this habit is formed at home, it will be easier for your child to use this outside. They will be able to openly ask questions of their peers.

Sharing

Sharing knowledge is another way to enhance the communication skills of your child.

When your child learns to share and observe how others share their ideas, their communication skills will become better. Let them share with you what they did in school today, how was baseball practice, or what they think of the new sofa bed.

Observe how they respond and their tone of words. Listen to their word choices. Inform them how they communicate will attract friends or drive them away. How your child shares information will pave the way to make friends.

Reaching Out

Reaching out does not only refer to helping. It also means to extend an invitation to someone, and is not limited to birthday parties. When your child is able to invite and talk to someone without being pressured to, their communication skills are enhanced.

Your child will get invited to many events, thus it is also important to return the favor. Make sure that your child is also aware of how to respond when they get declined.

Importance of Good Communication Skills

There are many skills that a child needs in order for them to become more socially capable. A child’s capacity to communicate effectively in any given situation is an important skill. And as we all know, the better we are at communicating and interacting, our quality of life gets better too.

We begin to communicate the moment we were born – by letting out that cry. As a child grows up, their first contact is through their parents. Being a parent, your role in nourishing your child’s communication skills is essential. Expressing themselves freely and with confidence will help them in all aspects of life. The more you interact with your child, the more you can help them enhance their skills.

Tips for Parents to Help Improve their Child’s Communication Skills

Parents play a crucial role in every child’s development. Here are a couple of communication tips for parents:

Be there for your child

Have a casual conversation with your child. This can be done during dinner or on your way home from picking them up. Let them know you care about what is happening with them. Find time to be with them – have a one-on-one activity.

Let your child know you are listening

When your child shares something – be it a bad thing that happened in school or a concern they have – give them your full attention. Listen to what they have to say without asking too many questions. Acknowledge and respect their opinions. Let your child speak their mind. Make sure to let them know that you understand everything they said before giving out your opinion.

Parenting is tough. Talking and listening to your child creates a healthy connection between you and them. Remember to always ask your child what they need from you. Focus on your child’s needs. Encourage them to speak. Motivate and respond to what they have to say without appearing defensive or angry.

Communication skills can be developed with practice and everything always starts at home. By being there for your child and helping them develop these skills at an early stage, you are ensuring them a better future ahead.

Sending your child to the right preschool will also help develop the necessary skills to achieve success in the future. If you’re looking for the best school for them, please don’t hesitate to contact Young Scholars Academy.