FAMILY BUZZ
Exploring Kindergartens
Minneapolis Public Schools - Free
Here's the link to the Minneapolis Public Schools Website to learn more.
There are options to choose from: your neighborhood community school and magnet schools which focus on various interests or learning styles (ex. language, arts, STEM science technology engineering math, Montessori, World school).
Minneapolis Timeline:
Beginning mid-November: Explore options
Visit the website to learn more
Go tour schools
January 31, 2025: Due date to be included in the first school request lottery.
April 1, 2025: Due date to be included in the second school request lottery.
May 2024: Register at your school
Charter Schools - Free
Charter schools receive government funding but operate independently of the established local public school system.
Here's a link to a directory of charter schools.
Private Christian School Options - Tuition, scholarships available
Hope Academy – 2300 Chicago Ave. S. Minneapolis www.hopeacademympls.org
Minnehaha Academy - 4200 West River Parkway Minneapolis www.minnehahaacademy.net
If you don’t live in Minneapolis, please check your local school district’s website for options and timelines for enrolling.
We are happy to walk alongside you in this transition. Please see Ms. Ann if you need any advice or help making a school request.
Early Childhood Screening - If your child is 3 years or older please make an appointment for a screening with the school district. For Minneapolis: 612-668-3715 screen@mpls.k12.mn.us They will be coming to WWP to do a screening in March - watch for a sign up!
“Social/Emotional Development: Raising Compassionate Kids”
Thoughts from Parent Connect 12/5/2024
From Psychology Today, “Raise Compassionate Children”: The Value of Compassion - Developing compassion starts with the recognition that we are not isolated creatures, but rather individuals who are a part of many groups-communities, races, religions, nationalities, and citizens of planet Earth-that must coexist to survive. Compassion enables us to feel empathy for others and to put others' needs ahead of our own when necessary.
Some thoughts from our discussion:
Social/ Emotional Developmental Milestones:
2-3 year olds are beginning to recognize others’ emotions, show concern for others by trying to comfort or help them.
3-4 year olds can label others’ emotions and show compassion through words or actions.
Children learn by example. Be a compassionate role model and invite your child to be involved: take a meal to someone, donate unused items, help a neighbor clear their sidewalk.
Narrate what you are doing, “My friend is having a hard time, so I’m going to keep her company.” “Your sibling looks upset, let’s see how we can help.”
Help your child learn how to regulate their strong emotions: deep breathing, taking a break, etc.
Make caring for the world, others and justice a focus. Help your child to notice what’s fair and what’s unfair. How can we help to make things more fair?
Surround yourself with a caring, compassionate community - friends, neighbors, faith community.
Resources:
From Harvard “7 Tips For Raising Caring Kids”
13 Ways to Raise Caring and Compassionate Children
Co-Regulating Emotions
Some thoughts and resources from Rachel Chrastil, licensed family educator and WWP parent, who led our Parent Connect group today.
Simple (but not easy!) steps for co-regulating/supporting self-regulation:
Stay Calm and Present: Model calm behavior by staying composed, using a soothing voice, and maintaining a gentle presence to help your toddler feel secure.
Validate Feelings with Simple Language: Acknowledge their emotions (e.g., "I see you're upset") to help them feel understood, and guide them in expressing their feelings.
Observe and Decide How to Respond: Are they calming down, or do they need more support? Based on that, decide how to move forward—whether it’s a calming reminder, offering comfort with a gentle touch, or redirecting their attention.
Co-regulation is not just about helping the child, but also about the parent being mindful of their own emotional state.
Resources:
https://www.zerotothree.org/resource/developing-self-control-from-24-36-months/
https://heartmindonline.org/resources/12-self-regulation-strategies-for-young-children
https://childmind.org/article/what-is-co-regulation/
Scroll down to our article from April 2024 for more ideas.
Parenting Styles
Parent Connect Takeaways
Wanda Felder, licensed parent educator with the Minneapolis Public Schools joined us for a discussion about parenting styles. Experts have found that there are four basic parenting styles: authoritative, authoritarian, permissive and uninvolved.
Here are some excellent articles that explain the various parenting styles and how they affect children’s development.
"Parenting Styles Explained" from the Cleveland Clinic
"What Parenting Style is Right For You?" from the Mayo Clinic
We talked about various things that affect how we parent our children, such as:
how we were raised - doing some things the same, leaving other ways behind
time constraints
things we’ve learned from books, friends, social media, etc
our beliefs, values
stress level
energy level
child’s temperament
our personality
state of our mental health
co-parenting
Parenting is a journey. We are learning as we go. It’s helpful to take the time to reflect on one’s parenting, pat oneself on the back, have grace with oneself and see how one may want to do things next. We’re in this parenting journey together.
Schedules & Routines: Predictability Brings Peace
Highlights from Parent Connect
Children thrive on structure and predictability. Consistent routines for getting ready for the day, meals, winding down and going to bed provide comfort and a sense of safety for young children. When children know what to expect and what is expected of them, it often leads to better behavior and cooperation. Here are some snippets from our conversation at Parent Connect.
Visuals are a great way to communicate schedules and routines to little ones.
One parent shared about using a visual calendar to help their child know what was happening that week and feel less anxious. For example, Monday has a picture of school, Tuesday picture of home, Wednesday school, Thursday swim lessons, Friday school. Saturday park, Sunday Grandma’s house. You can also use the classroom calendar with your child to show them what to expect at school that day.
At WWP we also use visual schedules so the children know what the routine is for that part of the day. At home you could have one that shows what needs to be done to start the day (wake up, make bed, eat, brush teeth, wash face/hands, get dressed, etc).
Visual schedule of snack routine
Another parent shared that they just got a visual timer to show their child how much time they have until a transition, like until clean up time or time to leave the house. One family uses a clock/night light in their child’s room that turns green when it’s morning and they are able to get out of bed, rather than wanting to get up at 4:00 AM.
Visual timers can be found at Lakeshore Learning Store or Amazon
A parent asked for ideas about when and how other families use allowance with their children and if it’s connected with chores. Some thoughts:
Everyone in the family, even young children, pitch in with chores because it’s part of our responsibility as a family and we want our children to learn that everyone can help.
Young children can help with chores like, picking up toys, carrying their dishes to the counter, and matching socks. For more ideas see “Big Helpers - Big Jobs” WWP Family Buzz 10/23/23.
Allowance is a set amount of money and is split into three categories: save, share and spend.
For older kids - if they want to do a big chore, above and beyond their regular chores, they’ll get paid for that.
For more ideas about family routines check out:
https://www.pbs.org/parents/routines Several great articles on this link, including “10 Ideas for Calm Morning Routine”
https://www.zerotothree.org/resource/creating-routines-for-love-and-learning/