Kids & Company Blog

Posted on: Monday August 29th, 2011

Posted by: Victoria Sopik

Bringing home a new baby can be quite an anxious time for many. You’re leaving the hospital where all the nurses helped you bathe feed and care for your new one, and going home to start a whole new routine. For many people, this new routine also includes an older child, who’s waiting patiently at that front door to see who (or what!) you might be bringing in the front door.

A Few More Two-Year-Old Tips

Posted on: Wednesday August 10th, 2011

Posted by: Victoria Sopik

As promised, I have been reflecting back to my two year olds and thinking about some of my “personal tips” for managing this age group. I actually love this age and find them to be easier to manage, in some ways, than three year olds!

Tips for the Terrible Two’s

Posted on: Tuesday August 2nd, 2011

Posted by: Victoria Sopik

I’ve experienced the terrible two’s eight times over! As conversation has come up about how to deal with some of these difficult two year old situations, I’ve been trying to remember how I best dealt with my kids when they were young. It has been so long ago now as “my baby” Fraser is 14! I do have some of my own personal tips, but they are a bit more traditional and perhaps not the newest tips and tricks that are child care friendly!

Summer Safety

Posted on: Thursday July 14th, 2011

Posted by: Victoria Sopik

Summer is well underway and I hope that everyone enjoyed the first long weekend of the season. Along with the beautiful weather comes lots of water-related activities and as I was driving home from our cottage this last long weekend, I was astounded to hear about the high number of recent tragic lake drowning accidents. This reminded me of one of my own very sad childhood memories. When I was about five years old, my neighbour’s baby (he was about 1 year old) fell into a small puddle of water on their driveway and drowned. This tragic accident was not only terrible for the family but the entire neighbourhood.

The Benefits of Play Based Learning

Posted on: Tuesday July 5th, 2011

Posted by: Victoria Sopik

As learning styles and teaching techniques are vast, many parents ask about the learning opportunities within child care. Though there are numerous curriculum options, it is evident that children learn best by playing with each other, this is called Play Based Learning.

Behaviour Management Methods

Posted on: Tuesday June 21st, 2011

Posted by: Victoria Sopik

Behaviour management for young children is always an issue and parents frequently ask us why their children behave so well at child care or school, and not at home? Sometimes parents are under the impression that in our child care centres we ask the children to be on “time out”.

Power Struggles

Posted on: Monday June 13th, 2011

Posted by: Victoria Sopik

Power struggles are such a common occurrence with children of all ages for so many different reasons! You would think after the age of five or so they would taper off, but I’d have to say to this day I still experience power struggles… even with my oldest child!

Picky Eaters

Posted on: Monday June 6th, 2011

Posted by: Victoria Sopik

Eating and nutrition is definitely a hot topic among parents. Many always wonder, is my child eating enough, are they eating a wide enough variety of food, are they getting the nutrition they really need? What I’ve experienced is that all children (and people for that matter) are very different. In my household, we always had many different meals and food arrangements going on.

To Play or Not to Play?

Posted on:

Posted by: Victoria Sopik

One question I’m often asked is, “do you love playing with children?” Although this may come as a surprise to most, my answer to that question is “no.” I do have a special love for babies, nursing, cuddling and playing with them, but I have never had much of an interest in “getting down on the ground,” or playing house, cars, school, etc. I have always felt more of a pull in the direction of nurturing and loving them and I’ve left their playing and learning to be developed through each other and school.