5 Kids every day

[crafty]

I have 4 daycare kids plus my own 2 so that's 6. What playfelt suggest is good. I do group activities as well. Every month I have a theme or two but it does not mean we do crafts related to the theme everyday. I have movie day, special activities during the month here and there related to them theme and I rotate the toys and the kids never seem really bored about them and they have learned that I can not be there with them ALL the time. They play really well together. They often make races, play restaurant or babies, hide and seek and invent their own games. They can also choose to color, do puzzles or play d'ho.

As for group activities we do dancing, songs, books, we make our weekly menu together, little scientific experiments, craft 2-3 times a week and this winter I tried folding laundry. ( I was just so tired of being stuck inside I wanted to find new ways to entertain them ) So I prepared laundry during naptime and we would ''fold' our cloths and bibs we used for the week. It did not get folded but they LOVED it haha.

You do not need to be with them teaching them ALL the time. During free play sit down with one of them and learn colors with Legos, do a puzzle with another child, play dress up with another the next day. Put down the youngest 30 minutes before the older ones at nap time and play bored games for 15-20 minutes. They really don't need to be stimulated by an adult all the time.

[cfred]

I always strive to have a full house and, until just now, have. I should be full again in the summer. As mentioned earlier, you don't have to teach them all the time. There's nothing wrong with getting your one on one in during free play. That actually presents awesome learning opportunities! We have bi weekly themes and do daily crafts surrounding those. In addition, we do story and song circles which use up enough time to read 3 books and do a few songs. I tend to do the same stories over and over for a while and add in actions for as much of the stories as I can - the kids love to participate! That's why I do the same stories for a period of time. The kids have time to learn the actions and begin to anticipate what's coming next. Rotating toys is excellent and I rotate mine every couple of months or so.

One thing we do a few times every week, which the kids LOVE is just dance. I'll turn on some of my music (not children's music) and we all have at it. The Magnetic Fields is the most popular band at the moment and my littlest baby girl just goes crazy for "Ugliest Guy on the Lower East Side". It's really hysterical and I love doing this with them, especially in the nasty weather we've been having. It lets them get some of their sillies out. Often, we'll get into a big 'cuddle puddle' or 'tickle pile' which is always fun too. I just find the days fill up and go fast, so I'm always happy to have a full house