Having trouble getting your child out of diapers? Try this trick from a Mom who wrote to Parenting Magazine.

"To toilet-teach my 2-year old son, I placed several drops of food coloring in his potty before he went to the bathroom. When he used the toilet, he got such a kick out of the color changes that in two month he was out of diapers- and he knew his colors."

Source: Parenting Magazine

 We would like to congratulate Sarah Szuminski and Kay Knight as Little Green Tree House's Employees of the Year! Sarah is the lead teacher in the Bonsai Infant Room and Kay is an assistant teacher in the Holly Infant Room. Much like our students, teachers at LGTH thrive off of the environment that they work in. The teachers were selected by other teachers at the school and were selected because of their positive, friendly attitudes as well as their dedication to their students. When asked what about the LGTH environment makes her a successful teacher Kay said, "The school has a strong resource in the education of its staff and directors. There is a very open discussion between teachers and classrooms about what works, what doesn't, topics to emphasize at certain phases, etc... So all of the teachers are constantly learning from each other, and gaining insight into age groups or teaching styles that we might not have come across in a different daycare/preschool environment. I have definitely benefited from my coworkers' insights: my background is in the cognitive development of children and family psychology, which are only two pieces of the very complex puzzle that is raising children." Sarah also commented that the environment of LGTH aids in the success of the teachers and students because it encourages teachers to collaborate among each other throughout the entire school.

Along with being an A+ teacher comes an A+ educational philosophy. Kay's educational philosophy is the following: "I believe that in order for children to learn, you really have to teach them body, mind, and soul -- especially the infants. You cannot say "no" without any explanation. There has to be a full education and understanding in order for the child to grasp a concept. I respect my babies; they are new people that are still learning the languages, customs, and traditions of human life, all while going through an immense amount of growing pains!" She even says that her favorite activity that goes along with her educational philosophy is tickling! "It's fun, physical, and creates a real positive bond with you and the child." Sarah expressed that her educational philosophy is, "that all children have the potential to succeed and it is my job as a teacher to guide them as they develop and enhance their journey along the way. I believe in using a variety of mediums to help children develop - from sensory experiences and music, to real life experiences - and that forming strong relationships with both children and their families will help children grow securely." Sarah's favorite way to engage the students? Music!"I use music to help soothe the babies, to help them learn important language skills, to motivate movement and expression, and to get everyone's attention when things are going a little bit crazy."

One last thought from Kay as the interview concludes, "To the parents: You are Rockstars too. Don't feel guilty for parenting. Don't feel guilty for goofing off."

We would like to introduce our new LGTH music teacher! Brian is a New Jersey native and also earned a degree with honors from Rowan University in Musical Education and Subject Matter Education  in December 2010. Along with teaching our LGTH students five days a week, Brian also teaches singing to sixth grade students in Park Ridge.

In reference to what Brian is teaching our LGTH students, he said, "I am teaching all LGTH students basic musical competence. We learn about upper body and lower body rhythm and how to move expressively to music. Students experience and participate in music in different meters and tonalities and also get to explore their voices and get accustomed to using their singing voices." Brian is in each classroom two days a week and encourages "creative participation" from all age groups. Although the program varies slightly with age, he says that the programs for each age group have many similarities.

Rather than teaching the students primarily with musical instruments, Brian says that, "The majority of our music making is with our voices and our bodies. This is the best way to form independent musicians and build musical potential. I do however let them explore rhythm and expression with drums, claves, shakers, and scarves and expose them to different sounds of instruments."

Some important insight that Brian shared during his interview is, get the adults at home involved! "Attaining music competence is similar to attaining language. Right now, a lot of students are in the receptive stage of language and music and I am doing my best to enrich them with a variety of sounds and songs. The best way for music to be reinforced is for parents and caregivers to show their participation in music. No one has to be a professional musician to show their child how to move and sing while listening to music, what matters is they see someone they care about engaged in music and they will follow right along." Little Green Tree House is happy to have Brian in the LGTH family and looks forward to the continued success of the music program!

Germs seem to be on countless people's minds lately, so why not protect yourself from sickness if you can, especially with winter rapidly approaching? Seems simple right? Next to the common cold, the flu is the most popular illness of the year. But for many years now the flu shot has been highly criticized. There are varying reasons that people have said they don't want to get the flu shot. Some people complain of actually getting the flu from it, some complain about the live bacteria within the shot, etc. What people don't realize is that the flu shot no longer has active bacteria in it anymore and therefore cannot actually give you the flu. However, we know that some people are still skeptical, so we have sought out some natural flu protection for children. Sonya McLeod, a Green Mama's contributor says her hands-down remedy is homeopathy. While children's immune systems are still developing, a child is always susceptible to catching the flu, but with Sonya's treatments of homeopathy remedy influenzium, she is confident that her children are much safer than if they would have received a routine influenza vaccination. Homeopathic remedies have been used to treat strong strains of the flu for many years, including during the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918. Regardless of what you choose, make positive steps towards keeping yourself and your children protected during this upcoming flu season. Remember, hand washing is key to reducing the spread of colds and flu and, as always, if you have any questions regarding remedies and/or medications for your family's health, consult your healthcare provider.

Source: http://www.thegreenmama.com/blog/natural-flu-protection