December 1, 2020 by Christopher Hooker

Holidays in the Time of Crisis

Photo by Prateek Gautam of Unsplash

As December is the calendar end of the year for most of the northern hemisphere, this month holds many rituals and traditions associated with the ending of the cycle and the beginning of a new one. The winter solstice (December 21st) arrives when our hemisphere is tilted away from the sun and reaches its most extreme angle.

Experts agree that ‘rituals foster a sense of belonging and identity and are especially important for children with insecure attachments. Children from families with meaningful rituals do better academically and socially.‘ The people of Colorado Springs have several traditional observations to mark the end of the year. Of course, there are the commercial/secular and spiritual aspects of Christmas, as we celebrate the hope of salvation in new life. Still, there’s also spirituality and steadfast faith in Hanukkah’s Festival of Lights that our candles will hold out, and in Kwanzaa, which celebrates family unity in the creation of new traditions to replace those deep cultural rituals lost to the evils of slavery.

All three of these holidays center around survival against oppression and terrible odds. They are moved from their natural place on the calendar to mark a time when we most need to remind ourselves that the long nights of December will soon pass as Mother Earth tilts back into position slowly, and Spring returns in a few more months.

With the advent of COVID19, we’ve had to let go of many traditional rituals that sustain us and guide and comfort our children, like trick-or-treating in October, or large extended-family meals for Thanksgiving, to protect our kids and each other. These traditions are essential for children and families, and as we lose them, we must take care to replace them, using the spiritual core of Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa to guide us in how to do this. Even if your family is not particularly religious, there are many elements of these holidays which can help your family bond during these strange times.

Rituals are an essential part of child development. The American Academy of Pediatrics calls our rituals’ powerful organizers of family life that offer stability during times of stress and transition’. 2020 would certainly be categorized as a time of stress and change. Human beings need the rhythms in our life to remember how to dance through the dark hours. As parents, our children need to see us dancing, and cherishing the rituals and traditions of the season. The children need to know that even though things are hard now, we believe everything will be fine.

As we reach the end of the darkest days of the year and reach a new beginning with the promise of spring, let’s work to create stronger rituals and develop deeper connections with our children. The simplicity of being at home more with our families and being more present when celebrating holidays is good for children. Consider adding some of these rituals from across the world as things you can do to see out a hard year on a positive note, with a teaching moment for good measure:

Martinmas: a celebration of a patron saint of France, St. Martin du Tours, that teaches kids the value of sharing and sheltering with each other so that we all survive and thrive. If your family is not religious just take the message of sharing and sheltering each other and run with it.
Santa Lucia Day: a special ceremony of making bread that reminds us that there’s enough for everyone and that we all can take part in the ritual of looking after each other. The religious aspect can be honored or removed to suit your family’s needs.
The Spiral of Light: a tradition to mark the Winter Solstice in seeing out the darkest day of the year. This is a great way to sneak in an astronomy lesson and to celebrate the coming of more light each day.

We hope that whatever rituals you and your family see out 2020 with, you enjoy them together and in safety this year. If you’d like to discuss a place at Creekside Kids for them, we’d like to invite you to click this embedded link to schedule an appointment. Let’s get to know each other! We’re located at 1201 W. Cheyenne Road, Colorado Springs, CO 80906, and we can be reached at (719) 635-9111. Our normal hours of operation are 6:30 AM until 5:45 PM, Monday through Friday; however, we have a shortened schedule during COVID of 7:00 AM to 5:30 PM.

September 2, 2020 by Christopher Hooker

3 Ways to Stimulate Your Children’s Learning Process While Having Fun

Photo by Ashton Bingham on Unsplash

Now that school is back in session and your family is adjusting to the “new normal” of the 2020/2021 school year, we want to encourage you and your children to have fun.

It’s no secret that we learn best when we’re having fun doing it. That is why, at Creekside Kids in Colorado Springs, we follow the Reggio Emilia learning philosophy of hands-on, group-play style learning in our own classroom programs.

But when we are outside of the classroom and back at home, we can continue developing the minds and hearts of children with play-filled learning. Here are three of our favorite ways to stimulate your children’s learning process while having fun — inside and outside of the classroom.

Arts & Crafts
Music
Exploring nature & science

Arts & crafts allow us to flex our creative muscles. It is so much fun to create with simple things like paper, crayons, scissors, glue, and other fun elements like macaroni shells or buttons. The mind learns about creating textures, straight lines, squiggly lines, shapes, colors when doing arts and crafts. Plus, when the mind is allowed to wander a bit while creating, the creator experiences moments of inspiration, clarity, and fun that allows them to happily dive deeper into the creative process. Who knows? Your home-style arts & crafts session could nurture the next Picasso or Banksy.

Music is an incredible learning vehicle for math, rhythm, verbal expression, hand-eye coordination, stimulation of the senses, and creativity. A house filled with music is often a happy house, and anyone studying music contributes to those positive vibrations in the home. It’s no secret that music is an essential building block for developing the skills and discipline of engineers, artists, writers, and dancers. Everyone in the world benefits from the feel-good vibrations of music, and the brain uses music to learn, heal, relax, rev up, and remember. When your children study music, they develop a life-long skill that brings them and others much joy. Who knows? Your children’s musical endeavors can help them rise to fame on stage, develop music for video games, or give them a much-needed outlet to express themselves.

Exploring nature & science includes gardening, watching birds and animals in their habitat, and going for a hike. Exploring nature and science stimulates the minds and bodies of children in so many countless ways. See, smell, touch, taste, and hear the nature around Colorado Springs. We are so fortunate to be living in one of the most beautiful places on earth. We have mountains and plains. We have snow and sunshine. We have trees and flowers. We have birds and bears. Exploring nature develops the minds of scientists, poets, zoologists, winemakers, astronauts, musicians, biologists, inventors, and more. Who knows? Your hikes around Colorado Springs could nurture the imaginations of the next Nicola Tesla, Elon Musk, or Neil DeGrasse Tyson.

There are many proven studies showing that play stimulates learning. Plus, when you love what you do, it feels like play. Playful work awakens the desire to keep pursuing, keep learning, and keep growing our techniques. After at least 10,000 hours of playful pursuit of our chosen hobby or craft, we all eventually become masters of that craft and can make a comfortable living doing what we love.

August 1, 2020 by Christopher Hooker

Creekside Kids Team Excited to Begin the 2020-2021 School Year

We are delighted to report that teachers and students will be returning to school on August 10, 2020. The Creekside Kids team is very excited to begin the new school year and we feel it is time to celebrate!

Why are we celebrating? Because all of our staff — the ones that you and your kids know and love — are returning. There’s a lot of loyalty within our team and our community, and we feel that is worth noting. These teachers really love their kids and families, and they are all looking forward to returning to Creekside Kids. It’s a great and cohesive team, so we’re really excited to kick off the school year on August 10th!

Due to the school guidelines set by the State of Colorado, Creekside Kids will be following all directives and procedures. So we can all adhere to the safety rules for your children and our staff, we thank you for your assistance in helping us create a positive, safe, and healthy educational experience for everyone involved.

Just for fun, here is a humorous graphic we found that illustrates some of the realities we face in trying to keep the kids safe/healthy.

Speaking of food, we have another important update to share with you.

We no longer have a catering service. All parents will have to send nutritious shelf-stable lunches with their children each day. Lunches need to meet the FDA requirements, which we can provide to families. We’re happy to assist families in being sure that their children have a proper amount of each component required by the FDA. However, we lost our catering service due to COVID and the company changing their business model. We are searching for a cost-effective catering alternative. Yet, the health department prefers us to have children bring their own food from their own homes to reduce cross-contamination.

To add, here is what Creekside Kids is required to do under the new COVID-era guidelines, which are fluid and frequently changing:

All people entering the building, including children, parents, and staff, are required to undergo temperature checks. Anyone showing signs of fever will be prevented from entering.
Before the end of the day, all children and staff will have their temperatures checked again so we can report if anyone is at risk and should be sent home until they are well.
In the COVID era, the realities are evident that we have to take care of each other if we are to succeed together.
We strive to offer an exceptional and safe environment for all of the children we serve. Before COVID, many of us thought that an exceptional environment included organic food, a thriving and creative learning experience, and a safe environment included video cameras, passcodes, and locks. In the time of COVID, safety is more than just video cameras and locks.

Here is the support we need from the parents:

Our policies will be more strict than the State guidelines.
Please be patient and understanding as we follow all of the processes to ensure the safety and health of your children.
The costs of following COVID-era guidelines, lower student head-count, and higher staffing requirements are forcing an increase in prices.
If a child or staff member comes down with COVID-19, Creekside Kids will be required to shut down for two weeks. Please understand that a sick child can put everyone at risk.

Here are our intended outcomes under these new school year circumstances:

As a result of our rigid controls on health and safety, we expect to have a clean, healthy, and exceptional learning environment that will remain COVID-free.
Though prices will be rising to compensate for the lower head-count of students and the increased staffing, Creekside Kids will still be providing the same amount of care and attention your family has grown to love.

Thank you for having faith in us. Thank you for having patience as we assimilate all of the new state requirements and guidelines for reopening our child care center in August. And, finally, thank you for doing your part so we can all be successful together.

We adore you and your family. See you soon! — The Creekside Kids Team

June 3, 2020 by Christopher Hooker

Kicking Off Summer In The Time Of COVID

With the arrival of June, the summer season has begun, and our Creekside kids should be free to be out in the sun, adventuring, teaming up for games, and playing together unfettered. COVID19 changes what we can allow our kids to do; to protect them, we have to limit their contact with others and maintain a safe environment.

Summer comes with all sorts of kid-friendly traditions. The long lockdown has been challenging for both parents and children but, the arrival of summer gives us an opportunity to change that. It’s important to adapt these rites of summer to safely let our kids know that the joys of life are still there for them. We want to teach our children that we are resilient and are able to thrive in times of adversity.

The joy of living. Life is bursting out of every crook and cranny in the summer. Insects emerge and the butterflies and birds are back. Take time to celebrate these things with your kids. Point out an anthill that has newly formed and explain how the colony works inside it. Pull up a YouTube video on ant colonies. Look for the returning birds and the Monarch butterflies. Take a moment to show your kids how to appreciate the pleasure of being alive together, even during a pandemic.

The great outdoors. In the summer, we look to do the things we can’t do the rest of the time and much of it is outdoors. It’s just warm enough to eat dinner outside and if you stay outside at dusk, you may be lucky enough to see bats flying around. On the hottest days, Cheyenne Creek is a good way to beat the heat and share some fun memories together. Nature hikes are a chance to get out together and explore our high desert environment. Bear Creek Nature Center has easily accessible trails for kids and grandparents too. Share a sunrise or a sunset, if you have the right vista.

The bounty of summer. Summer brings great foods to the table, and it can help children process this transition. Buy a watermelon (have you tried the yellow watermelons?), pick wild strawberries and raspberries in Cheyenne Canyon. Summer fruits and vegetables from a container garden or raised bed will help key your child into the changing season and provide new opportunities for the children to taste fresh fruits and vegetables they grow themselves.

Plant a berry garden. If you’ve got a yard to play with, why not play in the dirt with your kids? Plant strawberries, blueberries, and blackberries in a sunny place in your garden, and perhaps pumpkins too, in anticipation of Autumn. Have a look at James Prigioni’s Gardening Channel for ideas on berries you can grow.

Honor the break. If you have older kids you have been homeschooling, keep in mind that they need their summer break to play, be silly, and put the academics they have learned through the year to practical hands-on use. Their mood is transferable to their younger Creekside siblings, so if older siblings feel unfairly burdened by a school year that isn’t ending due to extra lessons and tutoring, it could create a negative impression for the younger ones. Make sure to have a cut-off date and honor it, so that all your kids know that summer has a sacred place, even during a pandemic.

Honoring the seasons as they change is important because they provide your preschooler with a deeper understanding of time, the calendar, seasons, celebrations, and even astronomy. Seasons and celebrations are how young children understand and mark time. Be sure to come back next month for some great kid-friendly activities you can explore with your Creekside kids this summer while social distancing!

June 3, 2020 by Christopher Hooker

Four Fun At-Home Adventures While Sheltering In Place

As you know, the schools continue to be closed and Creekside Kids is unable to open until further notice. Once we know more, you’ll be among the first to know!

In the meantime, we dreamt up four fun at-home adventures the family can enjoy while social distancing in the COVID-19 era.

Go camping in your backyard. Camping on your back deck or in your backyard is always fun! The kids get to sleep in the tent, burn off some energy outside, and they’re not too far away from the comforts of home. Bonus points if you cook a meal or two outside of your kitchen and enjoy some smores. Yum!

Bury treasure and create a pirate’s map. The idea of finding buried treasure is an age-old fantasy that has inspired a lot of us. What if you and the kids put together a treasure chest that contains a time capsule of goods and mementos that would be fun to rediscover later? Then, you can bury that treasure chest / time capsule and create a GPS map to aid you in finding it again many years later. You can even talk like pirates throughout the entire project. Argh, matey!

Start a fairy garden. At Creekside Kids, we tend to play in the garden as much as possible because it’s a great learning experience for the children. Lately, we saw a fairy garden that was inspired by a broken planting pot. In this fairy garden, you and the kids can find miniature objects and plants that would make fairies feel right at home. If you build multiple fairy gardens with multiple broken pots, you can create an entire fairy community in your yard!

Create a virtual block party. Since so many people are using Zoom and other video conferencing services, how easy would it be to host a virtual block party? Send a notice out to your neighbors — even those that may have moved away — and invite them to your virtual block party. Everyone can gather around their cameras and share stories, play Pictionary or trivia games, and share the recipes of what they’re eating and drinking. If you’re using Zoom, you can send the kids and adults to smaller breakout rooms.

If you decide to enjoy these at-home adventures, we would love to see you share your photos and videos on our Facebook page. Even though we cannot physically be with you and your children right now, we certainly love staying connected with our entire Creekside Kids community.

Holidays in the Time of Crisis

3 Ways to Stimulate Your Children’s Learning Process While Having Fun

Creekside Kids Team Excited to Begin the 2020-2021 School Year

Kicking Off Summer In The Time Of COVID

Four Fun At-Home Adventures While Sheltering In Place

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