6 months plus

Alive Catholic Early Learning Centres continue to work in partnership with families to provide education, care and support for our children

Alive Catholic Early Learning has created these resources to help families support their child’s learning continuity in an online environment when they are not at our Centres.

In these rapidly changing times – in one sense – nothing changes. We’re still here supporting your children in their learning.

You are not expected to be an educator or teacher – your role is to support your child’s learning and development in any capacity you can. This can be supported by the learning resources we have developed which can be successfully completed in the home. For more information about things you can do to support your child’s move to an online environment, please click here.

If you’re struggling to know how best to support your child – connect with your child’s educator.

Your child’s wellbeing is the most important thing. Your role is simply to make sure that they are healthy, happy and safe.

Go gently. Love your child. Support your educators. Be kind to yourself.

This can be a period of rapid development for your child. They may learn to talk, understand one-step commands and point to some body parts. They may sit, crawl, stand, walk and run during this time. Cognitively, they may learn the names of their favourite toys and characters in their favourite book. They might imitate everyday actions, such as cooking or talking on the phone.  You might start interacting with your child more as they observe the world around them.

Here are some activities you could do with your child at home:  

• Music Makers – promote fine and gross motor skills, develop your child’s language skills, build knowledge of taking turns and explore music together.
• Nature Play SA - the Nature Play SA blog provides insights into places to go for adventures, ideas and inspiration for outdoor play and information on local flora and fauna
• Mother Natured - this free resource from Mother Natured is full of ideas for outside play.
• Read stories with numbers or counting - stories such as Goldilocks and the 3 bears or The Hungry Caterpillar
• Playing counting games
• Singing number songs and rhymes
• Changing the tone of your voice - using a loud voice to describe something big and a quiet voice to describe something small
• Talking about everyday experiences and activities - lets have 2 pieces of banana or it is 7pm, time for bed
• Five-finger starfish meditation - a simple way to encourage children to prepare their bodies and breathing, ask your child to hold up one hand in a starfish position (fingers spread wide) and while they gently trace up and down each finger with the other hand, focus on regular breathing at the same time
• Sharing stories from the Bible - another way for you and your family to connect with God and the wonders of His creation
• ‘VeggieTale’  On Netflix there are ‘VeggieTale’ episodes which present life lessons through a biblical worldview
• Share Grace before mealtimes - ask your children to share Grace before mealtimes just like we do at Alive. Mealtimes with family members also provides a wonderful opportunity to talk about the positive things you are grateful for in your daily lives.
• Lost Sheep - great children’s biblical stories
• Mirror Play - foster a sense of identity and belonging. 
• Music - encourage peaceful moments of reflection and relaxation through music.
• Peek-a-boo - playing this simple game with your child is not only enjoyable, but also creates opportunities for social and emotional development. Valuable skills that are required for social participation, including turn taking and responding, are fostered in this interactive game.
• Video call - phone a relative or friend who has a baby. Observe how your baby interacts with them online. What do they reveal about themselves and their understanding of others?. This provides a valuable opportunity for children to develop their social awareness, as well as communication skills. It also can provide you with insight into your child’s language capabilities, and awareness of those around them.
• Mimicking Sounds - mimicking the sounds and non-verbal communication that children make is a simple strategy to foster communication development, and a sense of connectedness. Being responsive to children in these moments  nurtures secure attachments, and provides them with conversational skills.
• Record your baby at play and re-watch together - foster a deeper sense of identity. 
• Photos of Loved Ones - encourage movement and a sense of connection.
• Action Songs - what makes music?
• Bath time fun - learn about measurement and matter.
• Connecting with nature - engaging your child's senses.
• Making gloop - engage in edible sensory experiences.
• Make a posting box - learn about the shapes in our environment
• Making finger paint - engage in edible sensory experiences.
• Making psyllium slime - engage in edible sensory experiences.
• Messy and clean play - sensory play activities.
• Recycled materials - exploring sustainability.