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Welcome.

educatingalpacas.com supports the book “Aa is for Alpacas”.  See Why This Book?

Welcome to my blog – Educating Alpacas.  Does this mean that we are educating the alpacas – teaching them to count and so on – or are the alpacas helping to educate people?  Although we do a little bit of educating the alpacas (see blog post “Halter-Training April), it is mainly that the alpacas are involved in helping to educate both adults and children. The starting point for this blog is my book “Aa is for Alpacas”, written out of desperation at being unable to find an accurate alphabet book which measured up to my standards and which I could recommend to parents to help teach sound-letter links i.e. the sound made by each letter of the alphabet.  You cannot rely on this happening at school and, even if it does, children need to practise at home.

It is not only the lack of knowledge of sound-letter links which is tripping up children in the early stages of learning to read, but there are many other issues which I have observed during more than 35 years of working as a speech pathologist in education – issues which have arisen during this time and which are contributing to a decline in literacy in Australian children.  These concerns are shared by experienced teachers.  Via the medium of the blog and its accompanying Facebook page I set out to bring up issues which are affecting children’s learning, many of which may not have occurred to parents; some strategies for parents to implement with their children at home; pictures and anecdotes about the alpacas and their animal friends and neighbours; and any other vaguely-related issues which I feel moved to bring to people’s attention.

Since “Aa is for Alpacas” was the starting point for the blog, there are references made to both the animals in the book and to the information presented in the User Guide.  This is the only alphabet book that I am aware of which has a comprehensive guide for adults reading with the children, and it also has a book-reading (click on the Video button at the top of this page) so that adults can check whether they are saying sounds correctly and not confusing the children with letter names.  The book is aimed at 3-7 year olds, but can easily be used as a remedial tool for older children.

The Book Launch. This was in an educational supplies shop, Chalk and Chat, in Albury (New South Wales). Our shearer and his wife very kindly brought along two young, very well-behaved, alpacas for the children to meet.

 

 

Motor Skills and Screen Time in Preschoolers, Part 2.

Jj is for Jottings 166. Motor Skills and Screen Time in Preschoolers, Part 2.

As promised in the previous article on motor skills and screen time, in this article we will cover suggestions for both gross and fine motor activities, providing both fun and skill development for your preschoolers. And these suggestions are easy to set up, and many are portable. Continue reading →

Motor Skills and Screen Time in Preschoolers.

Jj is for Jottings 165.  Motor Skills and Screen Time in Preschoolers.

We will now look at the topic of motor skills and screen time in preschoolers in some detail.  In Creativity in Children, Part 1 I noted a deterioration in young children’s fine motor skills over the last few years.  I suggested that creative activities involving fine motor skills may have been partly or completely replaced by screen time. It is not just fine motor skills which suffer from replacement by screen time, but gross motor skills as well. Continue reading →

Language Development and Singing to Babies.

Jj is for Jottings 163.  Language Development and Singing to Babies.

We’ll now have a look at the relationship between language development and singing to babies.  This ties in closely with the previous article on the connection between literacy and music.  If you haven’t read it, I advise you to, since it creates a more rounded picture than this article on its own.

Before you take fright at the idea of singing, you will find that there is much value in rhythmic speech, as you will see when you read on.  Continue reading →

The Connection Between Literacy and Music.

Jj is for Jottings 162.  The Connection Between Literacy and Music.

There is a strong connection between literacy and music. Here, music includes learning a musical instrument and/or singing.  It actually goes further: children who learn and practise music also have improved performance in executive function, arts and mathematics. (The core areas of executive function are working memory, inhibitory control, and selective attention.)  Let’s go into why this is the case. Continue reading →

Creativity in Children, Part 2.

Jj is for Jottings 160.  Creativity in Children, Part 2.

Following on from Part 1, we will now go into more activities in greater detail in Creativity in Children, Part 2.  In order for creativity to flourish, it is important for us to slow down and create the time and headspace to allow room for creativity.  Don’t fall into the trap of having your child’s time completely filled with planned activities.  There needs to be unplanned time when you can seize the moment, rather than bustling along to the next activity.  Simply getting out and about can lead to all sorts of observations and spark creative thoughts and ideas.  And leave those screens at home. Continue reading →

Creativity in Children, Part 1.

Jj is for Jottings 159.  Creativity in Children, Part 1.

Walk into any preschool/kindergarten and you see that they provide many opportunities for creativity in children.  Why is that?  Because arts and crafts are one of the most important ways to help children develop and grow between ages 3-8.  Here is a chart of communication milestones as a point of reference.  Creativity isn’t just about art and crafts, but they are major avenues for growth and development at these ages. Continue reading →

Smartphones in Schools.

Jj is for Jottings 158.  Smartphones in Schools.

A few days ago (July 2023) in Australia, smartphones in schools were banned.  Some states had already banned or restricted their use, but the ban is now nationwide.  The ban also includes smartwatches.  There are quite a few reasons to ban smartphones in schools given below, but there is also the overriding factor of how smartphones affect the brain.

Photo of a baby alpaca with the caption: Smartphones in Schools. "I'm not going to have a smartphone - and I'm not going to school, either."

Smartphones in Schools. “I’m not going to have a smartphone – and I’m not going to school, either.”

Continue reading →