Finding Peace in a Five Second Pause: Why You Need This Break

Finding Peace in a Five Second Pause: Why You Need This Break

How many times have you said to your child: stop, think about this. Or, stop and wait. We, as parents, are so mindful of when our children need that pause. That powerful five second pause. And I don’t just mean with the five second rule. So why don’t we, as adults, take a five second pause? When children are younger and their brains are still developing, this five seconds of processing time gives them the time that they need to think, process, form words, and verbalize. And when used in day-to-day situations, we set our children up for more positive interactions. It’s really high time that we, as parents, start incorporating this five second pause into our time management strategies. You may also like: Reclaiming…

Fine Motor and Sensory Nature Based Color Matching Game

Fine Motor and Sensory Nature Based Color Matching Game

We absolutely love any opportunity we can get to bring the learning outdoors. Especially when it comes time for fall. There is really nothing prettier than the leaves turning colors. And it provides for a great opportunity to have a nature based color matching game. Plus? Who doesn’t love the chance to go get paint chips! Supplies Needed for Fall Nature Color Matching assorted paint swatches (in Fall colors of course) wooden clothespins assorted fall leaves and other nature samples sandwich baggies How to do the fall nature color matching You first step for this? Get outside and get into nature. Go on a nature walk and look for signs of fall. Things like: Cooler temperatures Changing leaves Animals preparing to hibernate You may also…

How To Become More Eco-Friendly At Home

Our home is where we find peace. It is our special place and where we can be ourselves. It is one thing we are always striving to better and we put a lot of time, effort and money into our homes. As we move into the 21st century there are two things on the rise. The cost of living and the rate of damage that is being done to the planet. What if we could make small changes ourselves to help with a few costs and save the planet at the same time? Well, we are going to look at a few things we can do. Image Credit – Pexels 3 Simple Steps for How to Become More Eco-Friendly at Home All In The Cycles…

Sensory Friendly Halloween Slime

Sensory Friendly Halloween Slime

After giving the Fall leaves slime a try, we started looking for more easy slime ideas. I’m still warming up to it, to be honest. But, I caught myself the other day.  I was cleaning up after my five year old, and a tiny piece of the slime can be pretty stress relieving. I’m not so sure about getting my hands in like she does, but you’ll never know! How to Make Halloween Slime I know my way around some crafts, that’s for sure. But others? Not so much. My daughter loves hands-on activities though and while I’m happy to find them and print them out for her? Sometimes I view this more as an opportunity for her to engage in some independent play. However,…

How to Create a To Do List That Works For You (Not Against You)

How to Create a To Do List That Works For You (Not Against You)

I’ve struggled with time management practically all of my life. And it’s only recently that I’ve come to realize that this more than likely has to do with executive functioning issues as a neurodivergent adult. Who knew? I have tried system after system and while I have come up with a somewhat functional time management system as a stay at home mom? I know that there’s always room for improvement. The Power of a Well Created To Do List that Works for You  With the time management systems (and numerous planners) that I’ve tried before? I’ve come to learn a few things. I do not function well with an hourly schedule/hourly increments printed out. I need flexibility to move things around I need a focus…

Fall Themed Numbers and Counting Worksheets for Preschoolers

Fall Themed Numbers and Counting Worksheets for Preschoolers

While we are setting up our afterschool at home schedule, I’m also looking at my autistic daughter’s IEP goals. This is how I set up our themes and activities. I do admit, I look to preschool and PreK for inspiration for themes as I still have my books from when I co-taught. However, I also know that I need to modify the activities to my daughter’s level. I have yet to figure out her literacy level but she is really good at matching, sorting, and identifying colors. So we take her strengths and also build up the weaknesses.  I can cater the worksheets for her and for this next set of free printable autism worksheets, we have a numbers printable.  How to use these free…