The K Junction: educational

Showing posts with label educational. Show all posts

Sep 21, 2018

Wooden Knobbed Puzzles - Geography For Kids - Review

Does your child like puzzles? Here is something interesting for those little hands. Montessori inspired puzzles that cover some geography🌎! These wooden toys (knobbed puzzles) are made by artisans in India.

I came across these wooden knobbed puzzles of India, Continents 🌎🌏& Countries of the world by Stuti Gupta (Wooden Toy Lovers) . Sharing them here for your benefit and if you would like to order these for your child, here is a benefit for all you awesome members of this community. This is a token of love for being here!

PRODUCT DETAILS

Continents puzzle - 399 Rs + shipping, A4 size

Countries of the world puzzle - 700 Rs + shipping, 46*30 cm

️India puzzle - 450 Rs +shipping, 30*30cm

HOW TO ORDER

You can order these puzzles directly by contacting Stuti Gupta on whatsapp 📲 9811987124.

DISCOUNT

Mention the discount code KJUNCTION & get an instant 👉 5% OFF on the prices mentioned above. Shipping is extra for all the puzzles.

PERSONAL REVIEW

These are nice to introduce the concept, names & shapes of the continents, countries & states of India. I do not own them because I already have another version of such puzzles since a year now. But these wooden ones are a better eco-friendly alternative. It has knobs so it also helps in pincer grip. It is sturdier as compared to foam based puzzles of the same type available in the market.

I would have preferred if the country & states shapes & sizes were more to scale but since this is just for representation purposes, it is not that big an issue. The child surely gets an idea about the stuff this puzzle intends to give. Some states in the India map will not have knobs because of their small size. So those pieces wont be detachable from the map board. This is a known limitation because of small size of the state, but needs a gentle mention in this review.

Overall, nice, engaging & educational puzzles. When not used with the puzzle board, for elder kids, the individual pieces of the puzzle can be used for tracing the countries or states shape & kids can color them.

Do not forget to follow "The K Junction" on Facebook page & closed Facebook group, Twitter and Instagram for day to day updates that might not always find a place on this blog. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to know more about our early learning journey, DIY & Montessori & Waldorf inspired activities for kids, kids books & toys reviews and much more!

Hope to see you around. Happy Parenting!

CForCat Kids Educational Products - Flash Cards, Organic Crayons, Good Habit Busy Book - Review & Discount Code (VLOG)

cforcat educational products kids review flash cards busy book organic crayons the k junction

I love exploring kids products that are fun, engaging & facilitate learning seamlessly. Recently I came across this brand CForCat and I happened to browse their products. In this post I am reviewing three products by this brand - Flash Cards, Organic Crayons & Busy Book. You can watch the unboxing & product closely in the videos too. These products can be used for babies, toddlers, preschoolers & kindergartners. The brand boasts of organic, eco-friendly & educational toys for developmental milestones. Find an attractive discount offer on all CForCat products at the end of each review.

About The Brand - CForCat

Ensuring an exhaustive approach to the early childhood development stage, CforCat works to familiarize parents with the developmental process of young children and its distinctions of developmental milestones and delays. They exist to provide a helping hand to parents who wish for active involvement in their child’s growth. Their dynamic facilities include activities in all nine core skill fields: social-emotional intelligence, linguistic ability, pre-mathematical ability, science, gross motor skills, fine motor skills, cognitive ability, dexterity, and creativity. Though developmental milestones and delays are a common concern, CforCat stresses the notion that each child is unique and advances at their own pace and in their own time.They seek to conceive a world of play and learning for children where they are positively engaged off-screen. CforCat also strives to leave a minimal carbon footprint while standing for sustainability in all its ventures.

Product Review - Flash Cards (Alphabets & Farm Animals)

To watch the unboxing, product details & how to use these flash cards in various different ways, check out this video below. Do not forget to subscribe my YouTube channel so that you do not miss any future videos!

How To Use Flash Cards - Covered exhaustively in the video above.

What I Liked

Perfect size for the small hands to hold & explore
Sturdy material
Little glossy to touch which makes it easy to flash through quickly
Alphabet cards have both uppercase & lowercase variants

Farm animals cards have shadow on the back & that makes it more engaging & versatile

Good for practicing starting & ending sounds & spellings later on

Good to use as storytelling prompts
Pretty much versatile & can be used in many different ways as the child goes through his learning journey from a baby to a kindergartner

Nicely packaged

What Could Be Improved

I would have preferred having pictures of real animals in the farm animals cards rather than the cartoonish versions that it currently has
For alphabet cards, I would have preferred the words corresponding to the letters according to phonics rules. For example, there is icecream on the I letter card & it is phonetically incorrect. Something like an igloo would have been better on the I letter card. Having said that, I would like to mention that most of the cards does have words that adhere to phonics rules

You might also want to read about early childhood brain development & my review on Quantum Cards (Flash Cards) by Brainsmith HERE.

Buy Links

Official website of CForCat - Use this discount code "Kjunc" to avail 10% discount on all cforcat products when you buy from their website directly - www.cforcat.com.

Amazon

Product Review - Organic Crayons

To watch the unboxing, product details & look & feel of the crayons, check out this video below. Do not forget to subscribe my YouTube channel so that you do not miss any future videos!

What I Liked

The fact that they are organic. There are so many brands of crayons in the market these days but when we give our little child that piece of crayon, we often are concerned if he puts them into his mouth. These are 100% organic & non-toxic

They are made of wax from soya & palm oil & food grade colors are mixed

Nice texture while coloring. They of course do not feel the same way as normal crayons when used but I really liked this different experience

Super cute cloth bag in which they are packaged

What Could Be Improved

More range of colors. The current pack of organic crayons contains five of them
I would prefer all the primary colors to be present in the pack
Thicker crayons would be better for toddlers & preschoolers as their grip is still not fully developed

Perhaps it is a good idea to have two variants of these crayons - a pack of 6 & a pack of 12, just like any other brand in the market

You might like THIS article on open-ended art for kids & how to encourage creativity in kids at home.

Buy Links

Official website of CForCat - Use this discount code "Kjunc" to avail 10% discount on all cforcat products when you buy from their website directly - www.cforcat.com.

Amazon

Product Review - Good Habits Busy Book

To watch the unboxing & product details of this busy book, check out this video below. Do not forget to subscribe my YouTube channel so that you do not miss any future videos!

What I Liked

It has a theme that a child can relate to & hence it engages the child a lot
Children can be taught this healthy routine of bedtime using this busy book. My son repeatedly played with the teddy and put him to sleep following this routine. So he is now more willing to follow the bedtime routine for himself

The pages include various activities to develop fine motor skills

The material is all cloth so pretty much safe & sustainable
It has a wonderful look & feel to it

What Could Be Improved

Few pages have no activities as such to build a skill but it does have the thematic relevance to it. For example, pages of reading a story and saying a prayer. I would have loved if these pages also had some activities for fine motor skills

Buy Links

Official website of CForCat - Use this discount code "Kjunc" to avail 10% discount on all cforcat products when you buy from their website directly - www.cforcat.com.

Amazon

DISCOUNT COUPON CODE

Use this discount code "Kjunc" to avail 10% discount on all CForCat products when you buy from their official website directly - www.cforcat.com.

You should also check out the blog by cforcat, it has some wonderful articles about early learning & parenting.

Follow cforcat on their social media - Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

Do not forget to follow "The K Junction" on Facebook page & closed Facebook group, Twitter and Instagram for day to day updates that might not always find a place on this blog. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to know more about our early learning journey, DIY & Montessori-inspired activities for kids, kids books & toys reviews and much more!

Hope to see you around. Happy Parenting!

6 Things To Consider When Choosing Toys - #PlayItRight - What Is Wrong With Today's Toys!

how to choose right toy kids problem with toys play skola tips hacks

For children, in the early stages of child development, play is life, and toys form an essential part of early learning. Toy shops are filled with countless options to choose from. Let us see what is wrong with today's trend in toys. I will also share some tips on what qualities or characteristics to look for while buying the next toy for your child. Here is your ultimate guide for choosing right kind of age & developmentally appropriate toys for children that will help your child blossom with creativity & intelligence.

Children are constantly exploring their world. And play is something that is their right & necessity. We parents often tend to buy lots of toys from the market assuming they will keep our kids engaged for long but does this happen actually? Major percentage of the toys are used just couple of times & then the child never ever looks at them unless some other child is trying to play with that toy. What could be the reason? Aren't the toys engaging enough? Aren't they attractive enough? What is the root cause of this behavior?

What Could Be Wrong In A Toy?

Passive - Something like a "press and make noise" or "press & lights flashing" kind of toy are passive. There is not much a child can do with such toy. Surely he will be excited when he gets hold of it initially but after few days, he will not be interested in listening to that same noise again & again.

Flashy Lights Or Colors - This is over stimulating & overwhelming for the child. In long run, it is not advisable to play in an over stimulating environment. It can lead to fussy, hyperactive or clingy kids in future.

Gender-Biased Toys - Kitchen sets & dolls can be enjoyed by boys & cars can be enjoyed by girls equally. Adults try to enforce gender on toys, not kids. Give your child freedom & opportunity to play with all kinds of toys.

Non-Imaginative - A toy may not be giving enough opportunity to be imaginative to a child. It might be too straightforward perhaps that it does not interest the child. Pretend play sets are great for imaginative plays.

Too Much Detailing - You have a building blocks set in the market of various kinds like train building blocks, house building blocks, amusement park building blocks. Too much detailing in a toy restricts the child to use his own imagination. Let the blocks be plain simple generic blocks & let the child come up with his interpretations on his own.

Not Open-Ended - Open ended toys captivate the young audience for longer for the simple reason that kids can put in & give shape & form to their never ending imagination using such toys.

Not Helping In Development - Toys should be helping a child in some sense, be it motor skills or emotional intelligence or anything else.

Non-Immersive - Is your child immersed during his play with a specific toy or is he too distracted while he plays? That can give you an idea if this toy is going to last for long or not.

Non-Natural Materials - Toys made of natural materials like wood, wool, cloth etc are better for kids as well as environment. They provide a rich sensory experience to children and of course they are long-lasting.

Exposure To Screens/Gadgets - We can certainly avoid the various so-called educational apps that claim to teach colors, shapes and the likes to toddlers. Exposing kids below 2 years to screen is dangerous and can get highly addictive. There is enough research about the ill-effects of screens & gadgets.

Battery Operated - In most cases, battery operated toys are passive, they entertain the child and the child just sits and watches or listens. The focus should be what a child can do with a toy, not what the toy can do for the child.

Too Many Toys - Steiner Waldorf educationalists have long recognized the positive effects of taking away excess toys from children and replacing them with simpler, more natural playthings to stimulate creative play.

How To Choose Right Toys For Your Child

So next time you buy a toy for your child, do a quick check with this checklist. Whether the toy -

stimulates the child's senses correctly
is made of natural material
is open-ended / imaginative / interactive
meets any kind of learning objective in an age appropriate manner
enhances motor skills and/or emotional intelligence
is non-toxic & safe as per the age of the child

If you look at Skola Toys, they have a great collection of such toys. They believe that play leads to exploration, exploration leads to discovery and discovery leads to learning. Skola toys stimulate the child’s senses by opening up a fascinating world of colours, shapes, numbers, alphabets, science, geography and more. Watch out for more details on Skola toys in my subsequent posts.

Skola toys can be bought from major online stores like Flipkart, Amazon, Firstcry & their website itself.

At the end, I would like to say that "less is more" for a child. Even if you have tons of toys at home, keep out just a few of them outside so that there is less to choose from for your child.

Do not forget to follow us on Facebook page & closed Facebook group, Twitter and Instagram for day to day updates that might not always find a place on this blog. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to know more about our early learning journey, DIY & Montessori-inspired activities for kids, kids books & toys reviews and much more!

Hope to see you around. Happy Parenting!

Top 7 Benefits Of Travelling With Kids

benefits travelling kids children vacation importance family learning importance

Father & Son Exploring The Sea In Goa

I travelled a lot during my entire childhood, thanks to my parents who loved travelling & knew how important & beneficial it is for children to travel. Be it an infant, a toddler, a teen or an adult, a family vacation or an outing is always an opportunity to learn & evolve. We also travel a lot with our toddler and love the experiences, learnings & the questions that our toddler comes up with! Read about some real kick-ass benefits of travelling with kids in this article.

Today, I am so happy to have Devishobha share her thoughts on this topic. Read on what she has to tell you about the benefits of travelling with kids -

1. They become naturally more inclusive

“Wherever you go becomes a part of you somehow”- Anita Desai.

Children who travel soak up multiple cultures and practices. They become deeply empathetic individuals- one of the most important traits that directly correlated with success in adult life. Needless to say, children who are exposed to multiple cultures mould into confident individuals who are more socially more adept - because they hone their ability for acceptance and tolerance.

2. Travel fuels their insatiable curiosity

Travelling puts us in contact with myriad fields like archeology, art, culture, music, food, languages, tourist highlights - not to mention the hundreds of other travellers who criss-cross in and out of your life. There is literally no better way for an immersive learning experience.

Pro tip: If you think they need more- Use Google. Involve them in the planning to your vacation(with boundaries, of course). For example- give them a choice between 3-4 places that might have similar budgets. Help them look up the place on Google and learn what they can about it before they set foot on the land. Allow them to explore various routes. The richness of the experience is doubled when children “touch- and-feel” what they read about and imagined in their heads.

3. The family unit becomes tighter

When you travel as a family to a foreign land, it is natural to want to stick together as a family. Children are exposed to new cultures, but also learn to value their own identities as a society. Plus, it’s definitely more time spent hanging around with each other – making family units tighter in the process.

4. They learn in the context of the real world

Children learn exponentially more by being out in the real world than they can ever do in a classroom.

5. They become self-reliant and very resourceful

You might have made a thousand plans. Yet, the only thing we should really expect during travel is the unexpected. The limits that a backpack or a suitcase imposes on travellers is reason enough to be extremely alert, adaptable, self-reliant and resourceful! Plus, they will come up with a thousand ideas to beat ‘boredom’. And, yes- they will see first-hand the workings of group-decisions.

6. You soak in the world together and create memories

Travelling with your children not only changes the way they see the world, but it evolves the way an adult sees the world too. It’s a great way to see and understand the world through your child’s eyes.

Encourage the child to keep a travel journal. The way they write about their travels not only opens up the world to you but helps you understand what the child truly values. In all probability, you might find that the expensive dinner you took him to, did not even make an entry into his diary- but the sparkles you collected by the curb at the bus-station found a triple-star entry into this journal.

Seriously, is there a better way to know your child and see her evolve?

7. They become Global citizens

Travelling the world together means you are preparing your child to fit into the role of a Global citizen. They are less likely to be boxed into limited identities – setting the ground for limitless possibilities.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Devishobha is the founder of Kidskintha- an online parenting resource repository dedicated to jumpstarting conversations around millennial parenting, encouraging parents to bring their attention to words, thoughts and actions that will enable them to raise a well-rounded, empathic and motivated generation. You can also find her on the Huffington Post, Parent.co, Entrepreneur, Lifehack, TinyBuddha and many other publications.

You can read the entire article HERE on Kidskintha.

Fun Learning Activity Ideas For Toddlers & Preschoolers (2 - 3 Years) At Home (VLOG)

Ask a mother, she would agree how important it is to keep young kids (toddlers & preschoolers) engaged at home, especially 2 to 3 year olds ;) With the rainy season around, it is all the more necessary to have some activities for them indoor at home to reduce screen time. Being a Montessori mom & an early learning enthusiast, I set up my son's shelf activities at least once a month. Some of them are DIY too.

Here are some ideas that you can borrow from the current shelf that I have set up for my son. He is 28 months (2.4 years) old right now & I am homeschooling him currently. Early learning has become my passion after my son was born.

Here is the video of his current shelf and I have explained all the activities in detail. This kind of set up helps to keep my son screen-free. They are fun learning activities that we all can do at home.

I usually try to cover various areas (as suggested by Montessori) when I set up the activities like fine motor, logic, practical life, sensorial, language, math, open-ended play etc. But I do not necessarily have all of them and try to follow my child's interests always. In past, I have tried to include every area in principle and then my son would not touch some of the activities at all. There are so many ideas floating around on the net, specially pinterest, that it is so easy to get overwhelmed. So it is best to stick to what you think your child would like & what would suits his skill set. Every child is different & so are their interests & skill set at a given age.

Here are few glimpses of our setup in pics, if you do not prefer a video.