By Sarah Vander Schaaff Watch out, there are some new bloggers hitting the scene. They blog about soccer, gymnastics and toys. And they are really good at integrating photos into their posts. And they are six years old. When I was in first grade, I think my primary tools were pencils, some paste, and maybe…
By Sarah Vander Schaaff I had a good hand. A couple of giraffes, some elephants. My six-year-old opponent was going down in this game of animal rummy. I played my hand, went out, and then she showed me her cards. “Oh,” I said, looking at the cards she’d squirreled away and not wanted to part…
By Sarah Vander Schaaff For the past month, I have been thinking about my interview with literacy expert, Peggy Kaye (LEARN WITH HOMER) who reminded me that children sometimes feel vulnerable when learning a new skill. I had forgotten that sense of fear; a worry that one will never understand. I’ve been reminded of it…
By Sarah Vander Schaaff A few months ago, I decided that instead of buying workbooks for my kids to look at over the summer, I’d start collecting the homework they brought home and use it as a basis for a personalized binder. I’d add new material, too, of course, and try to find things that…
By Sarah Vander Schaaff Editor’s Note: This was originally written in 2015 and edited by Mindprint staff in 2019. Structured phonics is proven to be the most effective instruction for all students, particularly struggling readers. If your student needs help to learn to read, our learning specialists recommend these reading strategies. Erika Bird was standing in front of a table ready…
By Sarah Vander Schaaff This past Wednesday, Nancy and I broke from our regular routine of packing lunches, hunting for missing mittens, and heading to our office in Tiger Labs, and made our way to Manhattan where we explored the 412,000 square feet of the American International Toy Fair. We walked the aisles, showcasing more…
By Sarah Vander Schaaff A teacher. But like many things that go viral on the Internet, that important fact has gotten less attention. It didn’t take too much detective work to trace the photo back to its source, however, and last week I was able to speak on the phone with the photo’s creator, Alycia Zimmerman,…
By Sarah Vander Schaaff The Educated Mom blog launched a year ago this month. And because we have some new readers and because I love year-end lists, I thought it would be interesting to take a look back on some of the themes we’ve covered. Perhaps the blog topics reveal a bit about what’s it…
You might not know that Mindprint founder Nancy Weinstein is really into games, but I’m here to tell you that she is. Quite. I’m talking about board games, the kind you played as a kid, and the kind many parents forego as they search the app store for electronic equivalents. And while Nancy and the…
By Sarah Vander Schaaff Lego is synonymous with STEM. That’s what the representative from Lego Education told me and a room full of parents who were eager to hear about our school’s new partnership with his company. I was, I admit, a little concerned. How was the science teacher going to keep track of thousands…