Love and Light: Arts, Crafts, and Magical Milestones Behind
One of our September highlights are our children’s lantern-making activity during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The children recently took on the delightful challenge of creating their very own glowing bunny-themed lanterns, and the results were nothing short of magical. A Glow with Creativity and Skills This fun activity wasn't just about art; it also nurtured important developmental skills along the way: Fine Motor Skills: As the children worked on assembling their lanterns—cutting, sticking, and colouring—they were strengthening their fine motor skills, essential for tasks like holding a pencil and manipulating small objects. Sensory Exploration: The tactile experience of working with
Brain-Boosting Fun: 5 Creative Play Ideas to Build Problem-Solving Skills in Kids
Play is an essential part of childhood development, and some activities go beyond fun by teaching critical thinking and problem-solving skills. These types of games challenge children to think creatively, explore different solutions, and work through obstacles. Here are five engaging play ideas that keep kids at Bridging the Gap have loads of fun and at the same time, enhance problem-solving abilities. Rescue the Frozen Animals This sensory play activity requires children to "rescue" small toy animals trapped in ice, encouraging both hands-on experimentation and strategic thinking. The idea is simple: freeze plastic animals (or other small toys) in
Unlock the Magic of Play – An Interactive and Empowering Workshop for Parents at Bridging the Gap
Play might seem to be an ordinary and day-to-day activity for every child, but many a times, this tool has been underutilised. Bridging the Gap launched an exclusive workshop with an enlightening exploration into the role of play in child development and its impact on effective parenting. One Saturday morning, 27th of July 2024, wonderful parents signed up for the workshop “Unlock the Magic of Play” and had an engaging session at Bridging the Gap – Buona Vista. The workshop was led by Bridging the Gap’s Principal Speech Therapist, Wong Suet Leng. A New Perspective on Play The workshop aimed
The Art of Floortime
Play has been acknowledged as an essential part of children’s growth and development. Throughout the years, experts on child development have been researching on different approaches to make meaningful and effective play strategies. So, have you heard of Floortime? You may or may have not heard about this, but it surely is widely used approach for children to progress in their emotional and intellectual growth. This is a relationship-based therapy for children with autism and other developmental delays, created by child psychiatrists Stanley Greenspan, M.D. and Serena Wieder, PhD. They based it on the Developmental Individual-difference Relationship-based model (DIR)
Helping Children with ASD Play
Play is said to be child’s universal language. It is true though, to certain extent. While most of the children learn to play in a natural way, some children may find it difficult that playing still needed to be taught. This difficulty on playing is quite common for children with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder). Most of them have limited play and plays with only a few toys, or play in a repetitive way. For example, your child might like spinning the wheels on a car and watching the wheels rotate, or might line up toys in the same order every
How Pretend Play Develops
We often hear the words “pretend play” from teachers and therapists. It is highly encouraged because most children learn better by doing. Moreover, pretend play has a big role in a child’s development. Through pretend play, children know more about themselves and the world. Children develop important complex social and higher order thinking skills. Pretend play is much more than simple play activities; it requires advanced thinking strategies, communication, and social skills. Moreover, children foster social and emotional intelligence. How we interact with others is key to our lifelong success and happiness. Knowing how to read social cues, recognize and
What are the types of play?
Albert Einstein once said, “Play is the highest form of research.” Children learn while they play and most importantly, in playing, children learn how to learn. It also gives the children a chance to practice what they are learning. Play is so powerful that even pediatricians are recommending play as an essential factor of a healthy brain development. As teachers and as parents, we want nothing but the best for our children. We want them to grow and develop as fun, loving, smart and independent children. The only best way to start is by playing. Playing can be done in
Benefits of Playing Blocks
Children nowadays are often seen playing high-tech toys and gadgets. Most of the children even have their own iPads which makes them forget about the simple toys such as blocks, marbles, shakers, etc. Children prefer toys with sounds, lights and all types of battery-operated items making the basic toys seem boring. Have you ever wondered about the benefits of basic toys like blocks? Do you think playing these toys is necessary? The answer is definitely YES. These kinds of toys may seem very simple, but it gives wonders to certain areas of our children’s development. Below are the benefits of
The Power of Play
After a whole day in school, we often ask our kids “what did you do in school?” And they would often say, “I played in school.” Most of the parents might think, “Why only play? What lesson did you discuss today?” Let’s not misunderstand our children. This is because our children learn through playing. Let them enjoy, let them be successful in playing. They are kids, and it’s their job to play and have fun. What is play? Play is a childhood occupation. All children play! Either indoor, outdoor, marbles or even sand these are all kinds of play. It
Rainbow Rice Play!
Have you ever struggled finding a perfect way to make your children busy at home? You bought them all the expensive toys that they wanted but they seem to be looking for something else. The solution is easy! And the best part is that you won’t have to spend because it can actually be found at home. All you need is rice, vinegar, artificial food colouring and zip lock bags. Rainbow rice! Yes, rainbow rice is the answer. Bright, colourful a bit messy but really fun! It will only take you less than an hour to make several bags of