Kids are born with a certain disposition. No matter what you teach them, they end up finding their own way. You see it very early when your toddler decides what kinds of toys he likes best. Boys seem to be into either cars or balls, but generally will play with both. Girls don’t seem to have a simple “either / or” scenario, but they tend to like stuffed animals or dolls. With Christmas right around the corner, it’s time to figure out what your toddler is going to want most. Chances are that their attention span will be short-lived no matter what you get them, but hopefully your diligent search will land a gift that they tote around for the next year or more.

The best Christmas gifts this year for toddler boys include a few classics as well as a few new items. Here’s my list for toddler boys who are especially fascinated by the ball:

1. Playskool Explore and Grow Busy Ball Popper – A fan blows five colorful balls out of tube while music plays. Toddlers quickly pick up how to play with this toy (press the mushroom!) and love it. His first word will be, “Ball!”
2. Fisher-Price Brilliant Basics Baby’s First Blocks – Oversized shapes are easily matched up with the corresponding holes. One sign of development is a child’s ability to match. Toddlers develop patience and persistence as they experiment with the blocks.
3. Early Years Busy Ball Drop – Again with the balls. I know. But toddlers will play this alone. The ball goes in the top, goes around , and around, then hits the bottom. It is repetitive and easy for them to understand. A great toy for a toddler.
4. Baby Einstein bendy Ball – Kick it, squash it, bend it, whatever. The texture is fun to touch, it’s easy to pick up, and virtually unbreakable so they can use it until they are well into the terrible twos!
5. Basketball Hoop – There are a lot of great brands that sell these and this is another toy that your toddler will play on his own for more than five minutes.

One quick tip. A lot of these toys can be found at second hand stores for a great price, making it easier to get all five instead of one or two. Have a great time shopping for your little one and remember that they mostly just want to play with you so get toddler toys that you can both live with!

Kids who can do amazing things that they are not expected to do at an early age have been emerging for a couple of years now. And so, a lot of parents are being drawn to train their children while they are young so they will not be left behind. But isn’t it harsh to expect much from your child and get engulfed in this early childhood education stuff? When is early childhood education too early and is it really beneficial to a child’s development?

Defining Early Childhood Education

What is early childhood education? It is basically about teaching and looking after children who are in their early childhood. When we say early childhood, it refers to children who are eight years old or younger. For children with disabilities, it is called early childhood special education. Early childhood education, whether for normal or special children, are generally the same although early childhood special education is the more critical one since it is specifically intended for children with disabilities.

The Importance of Early Childhood Education

Early childhood education is important mainly because children who are at their early childhood are vulnerable to different elements. Children at this stage are still unaware of what’s right and wrong and so it is easy to influence them. What they see, they will most likely do and absorb. Through proper early childhood education, these fragile children will be guided accordingly. We have been told that good habits start early. When kids are on the right track from the very beginning, you can expect them to have a strong moral foundation until they reach adulthood.

Early Childhood Education Risks

While early childhood education is important, it is not without consequences. A kid enrolled at such an early age may feel pressured. To play is what children usually have in mind, teaching them with academic lessons, which most probably not their interest at the moment, could be stressing for them.  The poor quality of the program a kid is in could also jeopardize the whole point of early childhood education.

When a newborn baby arrives, it’s so easy to get into the excitement of pampering it with love and devotion, and showering both it and the parents with numerous gifts, like affordable baby clothes or double baby strollers. Even the parents get into the craze. But a newborn is very delicate, and most especially at this early age, it is important to set the proper foundations for many things. And this includes baby sleep.

Many people think that because a newborn baby sleeps around 16 hours a day, that there shouldn’t be any problem setting proper sleeping habits, or that nothing else needs to be done about it. But this is wrong. There are a number of things that need to be followed about a baby’s sleeping habits, especially since acting that early will do wonders for the child’s sleeping habits in the future.

An important thing to know is that babies at that age will naturally fall asleep when it is tired. No amount of prodding or forcing will make the baby sleep when it doesn’t need, or want to. The baby sleeps around 4-5 hours max for every period, which means that the sleeping schedules will not be the same as an older child’s or an adults. So parents need to prepare for this.

A baby also often falls asleep while it is drinking milk from the breast or bottle, or using a pacifier. This will often result in some of the best sleep the baby can get. However, this can pose a problem for the future, when the child becomes older, as eventually, the child may not be able to sleep without these things. To solve this problem early, parents should try and take away the breast, bottle, or pacifier just before the baby finally falls asleep. Doing this enough times should train the baby to sleep without depending on these things.

Finally, it is very important to begin training the baby to distinguish night and day, which is easily done. When the baby sleeps during the day, it should be in an area with light, where the normal house sounds can be heard. When the baby sleeps at night, it should be in a room that’s dark and very quiet. Doing this can result in the baby sleeping for longer during nighttime, and ultimately regulating the sleeping hours as the baby grows older.