Links

Here are some links that you may find to be helpful. A link posted here does not mean an endorsement by this blog.

Currently in Links

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Clipart/Images

—–Contains Islamic Images

Clker

Islamic Software.Blogspot.com

Islamic Art

Islamic Vector

Free Islamic Clip Art

Islamic Pattern Clip Art

Islamic Star Patterns

—–Regular Clipart

Antique Clipart
Free Public Domain archives of Victorian, and Edwardian era clipart

Grandma’s Graphics
Unique graphics, illustrations and images collected from various vintage antique books

The Graphics Fairy
Cute free vintage images and printables

Public Domain
Collection of expired copyright and public domain images

Victorian Art For Mother
Antique images from the Victorian Era collection for personal use

Bulletin Boards

ABC Teach/Bulletin Board Trims

Bulletin Board Templates

Islamic Bulletin Boards

Preschool Printables /Bulletin Board

How to Make a Bulletin Board Out of Paper

Muslim Bloggers

Bizzi Home Educators
Islamic Unit Studies
Lap Book (Ramadhan) by Umm AbdulBasir
Lap Books by Islamic Lapbooking
Lap Books by Raising Muslims
LIL MUALLIMS
Muslimaat Info
Raising Muslims
Sketched Soul
TJRamadan
TJRamadan Eid Learning Pack
Umamah Learning Academy (home school blog)

Fay’s Original Sewing
Madina Arabic Online

Educational Help

MiniBooks, FlapBooks
Shape Book Patterns

Organization Tools

Pocket Mod
A small book made with a folded up piece of paper to keep yourself organized. The site lets you customize and print the book pages. Very handy!

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Keep all tasks and assignments appropriate to a child's age.

“A normal attention span is 3 to 5 minutes per year of a child’s age.

Therefore, a 2-year-old should be able to concentrate on a particular task for at least 6 minutes, and a child entering kindergarten should be able to concentrate for at least 15 minutes.

(Note: A child’s attention span while watching TV is not an accurate measure of his or her attention span.)” --- Children’s Physician Network

Have children do things such as take a short break, stretch, or move or walk around, etc. It resets the focus. Then they are more likely and able to get back to work especially for projects that require long amounts of time to complete (ProTeacher.com).

I have found digital kitchen timers from dollar tree very helpful stretch break reminders.

See more tips for young children below.

Reading aloud to your child can help them in many ways. There is no right or wrong way to read aloud, but here are a few tips to encourage early literacy.

The most important thing to remember is to have fun!

Dialogic Reading
This means have a conversation with your child while you read.
* Ask a question.
* Wait for and listen to the answer.
* Affirm the answer, repeat it, expand on it.

Interactive Reading
This is where you get your child actively involved in the story/text.
* Make sound effects for things that make noise in the story/text.
* Get up and act like things in the story.
* Have your child "read" to you.

Re-Reading
Always say yes when your child asks you to read the same story over and over again. Repetition strengthens connections in the brain your child needs for brain development and learning. Make rereading fun through dialogic and interactive reading.

Source: Cedarmill.org/library

When sharing stories with children, it is best to ask questions. Here are a few examples.

Babies
* Point out specific things in pictures and name them.
* Ask "Where is the _________?"
* Point and answer "There is the ________!"

Toddlers
* "What is this?"
* "What is she/he doing?"
* "What does that do?"

Preschoolers
* "What do you think this book/story/poem is about?"
* Point to a picture and ask "What is happening here?"
"Why do you think she/he did that?"

Make It Personal
* Ask two or three questions per story. Ask more questions when they are engaged in the story and resume reading when they start to get restless.
* Point to and talk about pictures of things.
* Ask your child to tell you about when he/she did something that happened in the story.
* "What would you do if you were in the story?"

Source: Cedarmill.org/library

Narrative Skills: Includes the ability to describe things and events and to tell stories; to predict, sequence, and summarize while developing sentence building skills.

These skills help children understand what they are reading when they start to read.

Babies
Talking to baby is the best way to development language. Leave time for your baby to "answer." As you go through your day, look at your baby and tell her what you are doing.
Read favorite books again and again.

Toddlers
Toddlers often ask questions like "What's that?" over and over again. Add information to what they ask. If they point to a cow, tell them, "That is a cow." Say "cow," and let them try to say the word. Give them lots of time to answer. As your toddler asks you simple questions, make sure to add information to what he says.

2- and 3- Year Olds
When you read a book with your child, ask him, "What is happening here?" or "What do you see on this page?" Ask questions that canot be answered with a yes or no or by just pointing to the picture. Let him use the words he knows. Give him extra time to think and to answer. Talking back and forth uses three different parts of the brain, so it might take your child some time to form his responses. Be patient.

4- and 5- Year Olds
Help your child relate what is happening in a story/text to her own experience. Have your child draw a picture. Then let him tell you what is happening in the picture. Write down his words on his picture. Act out stories or parts of them; having young children use their whole bodies helps them internalize and understand what is happening in the story.

Source: Cedarmill.org/library