At Growing Kids Learning Centers, we know that play, in general, is important and beneficial for kids. But imaginative play can provide benefits as well! Your child’s imagination helps them with creativity, problem-solving, and many other things. We allow the children in our program to use their imagination and curiosity to learn and grow.

We also encourage parents to support their child’s imagination and any play that involves their creative thinking. In this blog, we are going to talk about the benefits of imaginative play and why you should encourage it in your child. Read on to learn more!

More Creative

When a child uses their imagination to create different scenarios in their head or to turn a box into a spaceship, they are becoming more and more creative. Many adults find themselves lacking those creative thoughts they once had, and perhaps it is because we stopped using our imaginations as we got older. But when your child uses their imagination, they can build and develop their creativity. This can help with problem-solving, creating, and so much more.

Social Skills

Imaginative play will also help your child develop better social skills. Whenyour child plays with other kids, they will develop better social skills, but that is not the only way that imaginative play can help them with their social skills. Your child will also put themselves in someone else’s shoes. If your child pretends to be a parent taking care of multiple kids, which are most likely stuffed animals or dolls, they will develop the skill of empathy.

Plus, when your child plays with dolls or action figures, they will learn different skills that involve social interaction and develop social cues. They will practice using different tones and emotions, gain a better understanding of social relationships, and develop better communication skills. Plus, playing with action figures can also help build self-esteem.

Language Skills

Your child will also develop better language and communication skills when they practice imaginative play. Whether they are playing with action figures or dolls or playing pretend with a sibling or friend, they will be able to develop better communication skills by practicing conversations and how to respond properly to other people.

Your child will also expand their vocabulary and be able to experiment with words on their own time. This is beneficial because around family or a teacher, they may be embarrassed if they get something wrong or say a word wrong, but when playing alone or with other kids, they can practice and use language freely.

Pretend play can help your kiddo learn and understand the power of language and how words can create a story and help them communicate with many different things. When your child uses and develops language skills during their playtime, they will slowly see the connection between the spoken and written word, which can also help improve their reading skills.

Emotional Development

Imaginative play can also help your child emotionally. Pretend play allows your kiddo to practice both positive and negative emotions and feelings. They can better understand how people respond and how they respond to different scenarios. Play can help them work through different emotions and better understand them.

Additional Benefits

There are many different benefits to imaginative play. While the ones listed above are some of the major benefits, there are many other ways that pretend play can benefit your child and help them develop. Some of these include:

• Better problem-solving skills
• Improved self-regulation skills
• Boosts gross and fine motor skills
• Encourages physical development

Imaginative play is a great way for your child to learn, grow, develop, and improve a variety of different skills and behaviors. While your child will have plenty of time to practice being creative and play pretend while at our learning center, you should encourage your child to participate in imaginative play as often as possible!

Learn more about Growing Kids Learning Centers and find a location that works best for you! Feel free to contact us with any questions you may have.

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That curiosity for life and to learn more is not something that we develop as we grow older, in fact, the older we get, the less curious we seem to become. Curiosity stems from childhood, when you are learning so much about the world and how things work. And while children are naturally curious, there are ways that parents can nurture their child’s curious spirit.

At Growing Kids Learning Centers, we believe that curiosity is an important part of your child learning, growing, and developing. Curiosity is important for a variety of reasons, which is why we believe parents should work with their children to nurture and stimulate a curious mind. In this blog, we are going to talk about the importance of curiosity and how you can help stimulate curiosity in your children.

The Importance of Curiosity

Curiosity is what causes children to explore the world around them and to crave learning new things. Your child’s active imagination and curious spirit can be beneficial later on when they become adults. But at this time in your child’s life, curiosity is extremely important and allows your little ones to really learn and grow. There are several reasons why you should encourage your child to be curious. Curiosity is important for your child to grow, learn, and develop as they age. Some of the main reasons why curiosity is important in children include:

• Keeps the Mind Active: Curiosity keeps your child’s mind working and figuring out new ways to solve problems. This will improve their problem-solving skills and help them become more self-sufficient.
• Defeats Boredom: When children are curious about the world around them, they are more likely to spend time exploring, imagining, and learning. Curiosity helps defeat boredom and keeps your children engaged in the world around them.
• Encourages Persistence: When a child is curious, they have a desire to know why something works and how to make it work. This desire to know more can make them more persistent in solving problems because they will have new and unique ideas on how to make it work. They will not quit when they fail, they will simply try something new.
• Stops Self-Absorption: Kids who are curious are also less likely to be self-absorbed. Since they are interested in and aware of what is going on in the world around them, they will not think of themselves as the center of the universe.
• Sets Kids Up For Future Success: Curiosity is one skill that will truly benefit your child in the future. When they are curious about the why, how, and what, they will find new ways to solve different problems.

A curiosity for the world around them is extremely important for children to develop. Not only will it help them learn and grow, but it will teach them valuable skills and allow them to become better problem solvers in the future. There are many ways that parents can encourage curiosity in children. Learn some fun ways to do this below!

Switch Up The Routine

While daily routines are important for children, and adults for that matter, it can be good to switch it up from time to time. Even just small changes in your child’s regular routine can get them thinking and stimulate curiosity. It can be something as small as getting a new cereal for breakfast, visiting a new grocery store, or reading a book at night instead of watching TV. These changes in their daily routine may be subtle but they can lead to an active brain.

Answer Their Questions

Kids are constantly asking questions, that is one thing every parent knows. While it may be tempting to simply say “I don’t know” to your child or give them quick, short answers so they will stop asking you questions, this will not help their curiosity. If you want to encourage curious thinking in your child, you need to be prepared to answer their questions. If you are unsure of the answer, look it up together. Showing them that you are interested in learning something new, even as an adult, can help them realize that there is always something new to learn.

Encourage Them To Ask More

While you may think your child already asks a ton of questions, encouraging them to ask more can help them become more and more curious about the world around them. If they show interest in a topic and you can answer some of their questions, encourage them to ask you more about it. Start a conversation and help them learn more about things that they are curious about.

Ask Them Questions

Another great way to encourage curiosity in your child is to be curious yourself. Show your child that you are interested in learning about them, what they think, and what they are interested in. Ask them questions about anything and everything. This is a great way to get their minds working and thinking in different ways. Whether you ask them about something going on in their life or you ask them about something you are curious about, this will help them learn more and show that everyone is curious about different things.

Visit New Places

Whether you take a day trip to a natural area or you go on vacation to somewhere completely different from your hometown, traveling and visiting new places is a great way to spark curiosity. While traveling to a different country where the culture is completely different is a great option, even just traveling to a different state can be enough of a change for your kiddo to become curious about their surroundings. Take them to the Grand Canyon or Old Faithful, explore new places that they may not know a lot about. And answer any questions they have about these places.

Allow For Boredom

When you create a full schedule for your child or always have an activity planned for them, you are not allowing them to try and entertain themselves. Giving your child some time to be bored can help them get lost in their own thoughts, come up with new ideas, and start asking questions about the world. If your child tells you that they are bored, instead of quickly finding them an activity to do, tell them to go find something to do to entertain themselves. This is a great way for them to explore and it encourages curiosity.

Let Kids Be Kids

Children often times get crazy ideas and want to try out new things, and we suggest you let them. As long as your child’s newest idea isn’t dangerous, allowing them to explore the world in their own way and learn from it can help stimulate their curious mind. Let them explore around your backyard, let them choose the path home while on a walk, and let them try things on their own. At a young age, toddlers will begin to want to try things on their own, allowing them to do this can help stimulate curiosity. Even something as simple as letting them dress by themselves can help! Try to avoid saying things like “That’s not how you should do it.” This will only put an end to their curiosity and creative thought process. Let them try doing something their way and let them fail. When your child fails, they will want to try and figure it out another way, which, again, helps with their problem-solving skills.

There are so many ways that you can encourage curiosity in your children, but these are a few great ones to start with! Curiosity is important for children and allows them to learn about the world around them and can teach them valuable skills that they can carry into adulthood. Help encourage your child’s curious mind with these simple tips!

If you are looking for a child care center where your child can learn, grow, and develop new skills, be sure to check out Growing Kids Learning Centers! We have nine locations in the Indiana area. Find the school closest to you and contact us today!

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It can help get kids ready for school.

Daycare is the perfect place to spark a love of learning. With plenty of activities and learning opportunities, even our youngest daycare attendees have a chance to start exploring the world around them and seeking out opportunities where learning is fun.

There are more socialization opportunities.

Kids who attend daycare have a chance to socialize with children both older and younger than them. This can help them learn more about sharing, working with others, and how to make friends. Those are skills they’ll use their whole lives!

It can be good for a child’s mental health.

Some studies suggest that attending daycare can be good for a child’s mental health. That’s because a daycare provides a stable, safe environment with routine and structure. That can help kids who might not find that environment at home develop much-needed stability for later in life.

They have fewer colds later in life.

Being exposed to germs can be a good thing! It helps your child build up immunity to illnesses later on. Children who attend daycare and pass around those germs at a young age are less likely to battle them later on.

Kids learn structure and routine.

Daycare can be a place where kids learn about routine and structure to their daily lives, something that will be important both in their school lives and their career later on.

Want your child to experience the benefits of daycare for themselves? Sign up with Growing Kids today!

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Activities including art fairs, picnics, drama, team games, kite flying, messy art days, swimming, field trips, bowling, soccer, “Main Street” play, exercise, ooey-gooey day, pizza making, reading, puzzles, baking cookies and hiking are many (but not all) of the activities that your child will get to experience when you enroll them in Growing Kids Spring Camp in South Bend. We will also provide your kiddo with a healthy and filling breakfast and lunch with snacks in between meals.

These activities are great for kids to make new friends and bond with friends they already have. They will be able to discover new things everyday and get out of their shell in a comforting and safe environment. No matter if this is your child’s first, second or third time registering, we highly recommend that you do so sooner than later.

We welcome any school-aged children both currently enrolled in our Growing Kids school program and new-comers. Children who are not enrolled in classes may sign-up for Growing Kids Spring Camp in South Bend starting February 8, 2016. Note: all after school students are required to sign up. To register your kid(s), please call 574-220-6400.

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We are excited to share useful ways of learning and tools to give your child the ability to grow to their fullest potential while at Growing Kids Learning Centers. With that in mind, know that we make it a priority to provide a clean and safe environment that is always open to parents’ suggestions. Our focus of keeping your child on track when starting daycare or preschool is our number one priority.

Do you want to learn more about us here at Growing Kids Learning Center? We invite you to visit us online today and even check out some of the Growing Kids Advantages, Programs, and learn where our other locations are in the South Bend area. Have questions? Feel free to contact us online now!

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For younger children, this game is fun, entertaining and is a very easy concept to learn. It doesn’t take much prep work, all you need is a ball! This game can be played with a pair of children or a child and an adult.

• Have your child sit across from you on the ground with their legs apart.

• Roll the ball between the legs back and forth to each other.

• Let your child known that the purpose of the game is to stop the ball before it hits their tummy.

Doing this activity can promote a learning opportunity for your child, and it will only help them grow their hand eye coordination early on. This can help them in the future when it comes time for sports, writing, reading and many other daily life skills.

If you are still looking for a daycare or preschool for your growing child, visit one of our locations in Elkhart, Goshen or South Bend! Contact us online now to learn more ways we will help grow your child’s hand eye coordination.

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When it comes to finding the perfect dacare for your child, there are a lot of things to consider. You need to consider how far away the daycare center is, how much it will cost you, what your child will learn during their hours here and what different programs we offer. Luckily for you, we have a surplus of information that can answer all of these questions, including that there is a location near you in either South Bend, Elkhart or Goshen.

Are you ready to let your children play, grow and learn while you’re off at work during the week? If so, go ahead and learn all about our programs here at Growing Kids Learning Center. Contact us online with any questions about enrollment and take a peek at the 10 Factors To Consider When Choosing A Childcare Center for your child. Feel free to check out the parent resources that can keep both you and your child one step ahead of the game.

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1. If your child is old enough, make sure you get them a flu vaccine. Even though the flu season may be over, it’s always good to get them the flu vaccine when the time rolls around again. It can help about 62% of the population from suffering through the flu.

2. Make sure you teach your children appropriate cough etiquette and social distance, especially when they’re sick. Make sure they cover their mouth when they sneeze and cough, and to wash their hands afterwards.

3. Children will always share their toys, but try and keep their toys clean! Viruses can live on surfaces for up to 8 hours, so if you do what you can to remove these viruses from their toys, the less likelihood they’ll get sick.

4. Keep your child healthy by practicing a healthy lifestyle at home! Show your child that exercise is fun and that eating great food can taste great!

We hope that the above tips can help you to keep your child healthier when they start daycare at Growing Kids Learning Center in Elkhart. Learn more when you visit us online today!

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1. Power Struggles- It is normal for your child to act out in order to feel like they need to get their way. It could be because your child feels as though they have a lack of power compared to you. It could be that the daycare or caregiver that takes care of your child throughout the week will give your child more power than you do, making it difficult to get things to go your way when you are home with your child.

2. Predictability Problems- It is very important for your child to be consistent in their predictability. This includes their daily routines and daily chores that they do. It not only makes them feel safe and secure but it can also make them become more well-behaved for their teachers at school, daycare leaders and even caregivers. These important people in their life usually always have a schedule that they follow, which children love to take part in.

Here at Growing Kids Learning Centers, we want to make your life easier! We hope that the above list can help you connect on a deeper level with your child if you’re having troubles with them after you leave daycare!

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Growing Kids Learning Center is the go-to preschool and daycare center for children of all ages in and around the South Bend area. When you take it upon yourself to give your child learning opportunities like what we have to offer here, not only will you be impressed, but your child will be happier than ever before! In our opinion, daycare and preschool is a must for every child. Being around other children will not only teach your child to play with other children and become social, but they will also learn how to share and learn manners in the process.

Does daycare or our preschool program in South Bend sound like an opportunity that you don’t want to pass up? We invite you to visit us online today to learn more in-depth information about our website and what we have to offer your children. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns that you may have! We have more than one location available. Along with South Bend, we have daycare and preschool centers in Elkhart and Goshen. Enroll your child today, and go back to work like you have always wanted to do.

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