Robotics Rule!

During the holiday break, LVCC at Truman School discovered the fun of making and commanding robots. Mr. Hans from Computer Explorers led the instruction. Using LEGO® kits and lap-top computers, the children worked hands-on in small teams to build simple machines. The technology-focused project introduced engineering and programming to children, ages 5-12.

Holiday Lunch with Allen Teens

To celebrate the holidays, LVCC at William Allen High School invited parents in the teen parent program to join their children for lunch today. Having the child care program inside the high school made it convenient for parents to visit during school breaks.

After a healthy meal, some of the infants and toddlers layed down for a long winter's nap. Others kept busy learning through play with all the colorful, interactive toys.

Happy holidays from everyone at Lehigh Valley Children's Centers!

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Experimenting with Elephant Toothpaste

Science can be foamy fun! Just ask LVCC at Nazareth Area Intermediate School. While experimenting (under adult supervision) with concentrated hydrogen peroxide, dish detergent and dry yeast, the kids discovered "Elephant Toothpaste." 

Food coloring was added to give the "toothpaste" a cool color. The yeast caused the chemical reaction, acting as a catalyst, to release the extra oxygen gas. And finally, the soap created all the foam.

Fourth and fifth graders, Olivia and Abbi, demonstrate the process.

 

Kiwanians Bring Holiday Cheer with Annual Party

The preschool and Pre-K Counts classes from LVCC at Walnut Street had a jolly good time at our annual holiday party. Our gracious hosts, the Kiwanis Club of Allentown, held the festivities in the banquet hall of the Allentown BrewWorks. "Melody" Mike Maiatico, an accomplished pianist, led the group in a holiday sing-along with his electronic keyboard. The children sang and danced while playing tamborines.  As soon as we started singing Santa Claus is Coming to Town, guess who appeared? Santa Claus! Each child had the opportunity to sit next to Santa, told him what was wanted for Christmas, and had photos taken. The Allentown Central Catholic Key Club officers played Santa's helpers by singing and handing out gifts. Following the fun, we had a delicious lunch to fill our tummies.

Thank you Kiwanians for making our spirits bright!

View Photos of the Holiday Party

 

 

A Lesson in Feeding Those Less Fortunate

The Nazareth Area Food Bank will receive a substantial amount of food to distribute for the holidays thanks to the children enrolled at LVCC at Shafer School and LVCC at Nazareth Area Intermediate School.

The students began collecting canned and boxed items on October 22nd. The goal was to collect 100 items between both locations by December 21st. The children exceeded their goal a whole month earlier than anticipated with a total of 130 food items.

One young boy brought in 16 boxes of cereal. When asked what prompted him to bring in so much food, he answered, "I told my dad we needed 16 more boxes of food to reach our goal. He said he would should get 30." What a great dad and what a thoughtful child!

The teachers and students kept track of the food collected with a progress chart. As the children brought in items, they filled in lines adding up the numbers on the chart.

"We didn't want to make this a contest," commented Ms. Candy, LVCC teacher. "We wanted the kids to give from the heart."

As a thank you for reaching the goal without any reward expectations, the LVCC teachers will throw a surprise pizza party for the Nazareth children in December.

Hurricane Sandy Relief Drive

While many of us were hit hard by Hurricane Sandy, there were many families throughout New York and New Jersey that lost their homes through water and structural damage. In November, LVCC at South Mountain held a drive for families in need. Over 50 LVCC families and staff contributed clothing, hygiene items, non-perishable food, toys, and pet items. On Friday, the older toddlers and kindergartners from LVCC at South Mountain helped staff fill the van for delivery to the Iron Pigs Coca-Cola stadium. From there, the Iron Pigs staff distributed the donated items to families in Lakewood, NJ.

To all the families and staff involved in this relief effort, thank you for all your help!



Fall Fest Fun at Campus Center

Although the weather outside was frightful, the annual Fall Fest at LVCC's Campus Center drew a large crowd.  Children of all ages enjoyed having their faces painted and creating at the arts 'n crafts table. Families attempted to "guess the teacher" by matching baby pictures with LVCC's teachers. Practicing motor development skills, children played bean bags, participated in the ring toss, and fished from the "duck pond."

Many families went home with an armful of giveaways and prizes. Cops 'n Kids provided books for children and adults in every family. Lehigh University Police Department handed out whistles, pens, toy badges, and information about the police academy. Lucky winners of the basket raffle took home prizes for a movie night, a spa basket, early childhood books, games, and infant toiletries.

View More Photos of Fall Fest

Inclement Weather Update November 2nd

As of Friday, November 2nd at 5:00 p.m., the following LVCC centers have power and will be open on Monday, November 5th:  ELC, South Mountain, Stones Crossing, Truman School, Union Boulevard, Walnut Street, and Western Salisbury. Please check for updates on the remaining locations on WFMZ Channel 69.

IMPORTANT WEATHER UPDATE

Due to inclement weather on Tuesday, October 30th, the administrative office and all LVCC locations WILL BE CLOSED, excluding LVCC at St. Luke's. Please continue to watch for updates on LVCC at St. Luke's on WFMZ Channel 69.

Seiple Farms Pumpkin Picking

The preschool and Pre-K Counts classes from LVCC at South Mountain discovered life on the farm at Seiple Farms. Mrs. C., the farm educator, explained the different types of pumpkins and gourds, along with the machinery and crops found on their farm. She then led the children on a journey into the corn fields, through the hay maze, on a hay ride, and finally ending at the pumpkin patch.  During the visit, the children explored the barn full of cows, pigs, and llamas. They also picked out their very own baby bear pumpkins. By the end of the exciting afternoon, the children boarded the bus tuckered out with their pumpkins.

 

View More Photos of LVCC at Seiple Farms

Cedar Crest College Leads Nutrition Demonstration

Students enrolled in the nutrition program at Cedar Crest College will hold a series of healthy food discussions and cooking demonstrations for families and staff at various LVCC locations throughout the year. The latest presentation was held at LVCC's Fowler Center on Main Street.

The presenters offered tips on how to get your picky child to try new foods, such as involving your child in the kitchen to interest them in what they are eating. Don't praise your child for finishing their meal; instead praise him for trying different foods. Introduce foods twice to children because our tastebuds change as we age.

During the cooking demonstration, families tasted yummy peach oatmeal, southwestern-style kidney beans, and banana-carrot-oat muffins. The attending families also received parting gifts, including free vouchers for a fruit and a vegetable, nutritious recipes to enjoy at home, and a bag of ingredients to make the recipes.

TechStars Brings Robot Legos Alive at LVCC

LVCC partnered with TechStars, a division of Computer Explorers, to provide hands-on robotics classes for the school-age students attending LVCC at Wilson School, LVCC at Lower Nazareth School, LVCC at Alburtis School, and LVCC at Lincoln School. Throughout the five-week after-school sessions, the children had the opportunity to learn computer programming using colorful Lego blocks, small motors, motion sensors, and laptops.

The students, working in teams, followed step-by-step directions to build a number of moving objects like chomping alligators, sliding soccer goalies, propelled airplanes, and tilting boats. If a step was missed, the children would use problem solving and counting skills to work out the problem. Lego programming helped spark interest in technology and engineering.

The sessions were led by Wendy Buchanan and Hans Wagner, Computer Explorers Teachers.

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Bricks 4 Kidz Makes Engineering Fun

Bricks 4 Kidz after school labs have joined LVCC at Lincoln School for LEGO Engineering classes every Wednesday in October. From 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m., the children will use science, technology, engineering, problem-solving skills, and teamwork to build mechanical LEGO creations based on different themes.

This week, the children were introduced to an energy theme while constructing an oil pump jack. They learned the difference between a renewable energy source (i.e. sunlight) and a nonrenewable energy source (i.e. fossil fuels). Other models in the energy theme include solar panels and windmills. Another theme the children may explore is space. Using LEGO components and creativity, they will build satellites, centrifuges, or the Discovery space ship.

 "These programs are educational and fun," explains Erik Wright, Bricks 4 Kidz Educator, "working with gears, motors, and simple machines may spark an interest in science."

United Way Volunteers Complete Projects for Day of Caring

Volunteers from KGB painted a child's block for the parade float. 

Four LVCC locations received special visitors on Thursday for the United Way's annual Day of Caring. Day of Caring is a day for volunteers from area businesses to connect with local non-profits and witness first-hand how their contributions provide service to those in need. While at LVCC, the volunteers toured the centers, then completed various maintenance projects for six hours.

LVCC on Union Boulevard's gymnasium (gross motor area) looks brand new thanks to our new friends at Aetna. They spent the day painting the gym. Representatives from Thermo Fisher Scientific painted and organized a room at LVCC on Walnut Street for LVCC staff to have their own lounge. At LVCC's Fowler Center on Main Street, Lehigh University volunteers planted bulbs and cleaned up the center's playground.

Employees from Aetna and KGB painted colorful flowers and butterflies, along with other creative art projects. Their efforts helped to build a parade float at LVCC's South Mountain. LVCC is presenting the float in Allentown's 250th anniversary "Points of Pride" parade tomorrow, September 29th.

LVCC would like to thank the United Way volunteers and their employers for making a positive contribution to our organization. All the volunteers did a fantastic job!

This event was coordinated through the Volunteer Center of the Lehigh Valley.

Computer Explorers Returns to LVCC

School-age students attending LVCC at Wilson School began their five session after-school Computer Explorers program. Wendy Buchanan of Computer Explorers is leading the hands-on robotics classes.

This past week, the children listened attentively as Wendy instructed the course. They really got a kick out of creating an alligator and making its mouth open and close. To make the Lego pieces actively move, the students used computer programming, collaboration, creative thinking and problem solving.

The Charles A. and Leona K. Gruber Foundation provided funding for Computer Explorers at both LVCC at Wilson School and LVCC at Lower Nazareth School.

Kiwanians Know How to Throw a Party!

Our friends at the Kiwanis Club of Downtown Allentown hosted a fun outing for the preschool children from LVCC's South Mountain and the Pre-K Counts children from LVCC on Walnut Street. Kiwanis members decorated a pavilion at the Allentown Rose Garden with balloons. They offered lots of active games and yummy food at the picnic.

As soon as the children hopped off the schoolbus, their eyes lit up with excitement when they saw the moon bounce blow-up castle. They took turns throwing mini-basketballs into a hoop. In an obstacle course created by our Kiwanis friends, the boys and girls jumped hopscotch, tossed balls into a bucket, twirled a hula hoop, bounced on a hippity-hop, and then raced back to the finish line. The children also found their inner artist while painting pumpkins with designs and many colors.

A beautiful sun-shining day, the picnic was a blast for everyone. Thank you to all of our Kiwanian friends for working hard to give the children such a special memory!

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School Bus Spotting

Now that schools are back in class for the fall, what better time to introduce preschoolers to items that they will encounter in kindergarten next year? School buses were the theme this week in LVCC on Union Boulevard's preschool room.

Expressing themselves through movement and music, these little crooners sang "Wheels on the Bus" while performing the accompanying hand motions. Storytime included inquisitive questions and answers about riding on a school bus. The teachers took the class on an exciting quest for school buses during a vigorous walk outside.

Little hands also practiced motor skills by cutting with scissors. This montage of paper (along with school bus-colored yellow) then became imaginative works of art.

What a busy week of learning!

Babies are a-Moving!

Infants are very curious little individuals. They explore their environment from the time they wake until the moment they can no longer resist sleep. Between 7-10 months of age, infants become mobile.  The world becomes irresistible for baby. Whether they shuffle along on their bottoms, roll around the room, or progress to crawling on their knees, infants will master any technique to get where they want to go.

The infants shown above demonstrate the development of their arm, leg, and back muscles. The determined girl on the left pulls herself up using the people and items around her. The inquisitive boy on the right uses his hands and feet to reach the toys next to him as he sits upright.

LVCC’s infant rooms are full of colorful toys and soft blocks to stimulate motor skills (movement). Baby is free to discover his/her surroundings in a safe environment.

AmeriHealth Mercy Delivers More than Just Backpacks

Michael Grinnage from AmeriHealth Mercy's Community Affairs delivered an important message to students attending LVCC on Union Boulevard, "We want you to stay healthy and have fun." Through an AmeriHealth Mercy grant supporting physical education activities, our summer school-age students received weekly dance lessons from Repertory Dance Theatre and a weekly physical education instructor that taught sports and games.

During his visit, Mr. Grinnage brought along backpacks filled with headbands, pedometers, and pens for all the school-age students that participated in the summer program. The children loved their new bling and sported it throughout the rest of the week.

View More Photos of AmeriHealth Mercy's Visit

Saying Goodbye to an Olympic Summer

Practicing gross motor skills by kicking the ball.

This week marked the final days of LVCC's summer physical fitness program. Our on-staff physical fitness teacher kept the school-age students hopping with a game of kickball to complete their last class.

The children played as a team both offensively and defensively. The offensive team cheered on their kicker at plate while the defense worked cooperatively to catch and throw the ball to their fellow basemen. The kickball lessons were a great way to increase gross motor skills and communication.

Lego Olympians from LVCC at Truman

View Photo Album of Kickball at LVCC at Stones Crossing

Other LVCC summer students exhibited their creative talents in construction. The school-age children from LVCC at Truman were given a challenge by their teachers. Could they build the American flag and the Olympic rings symbol with Legos? The children once again proved they could do it!

Following sequential steps in the correct order, the children practiced fine-motor development. Our Lego Olympians used their problem-solving skills and math abilities (counting and sorting Legos) to make flat Olympic rings and 3-dimensional rings. The brightly colored pieces also provided patterning practice.

View Photo Album of Lego Olympics

Tag, Your It!

Preschoolers playing Duck, Duck, Goose. 

Running at full speed, the preschool, pre-k, and school-age children enrolled at LVCC's Campus Center exercised their bodies and minds in the summer enrichment classes. Gym teacher, Ms. Aislynn, kept the tots on their toes with every weekly lesson.

Following the Olympic theme, the children participated in a variety of physical activities that replicated the Olympic sports. This past week in honor of track and field events, the game of choice was "tag".

Preschool learned the basics of running fast and stopping quickly on command with Freeze Tag and Red Light, Green Light. Their favorite racing and chasing game was Duck, Duck, Goose. Having a smaller group, pre-k demonstrated proper stretching techniques before tagging each other around the playground. They also took turns catching and throwing a ball in a circle. The school-age children practiced quick thinking and lunges while trying to steal objects being held prisoner from their opponents base without being tagged during a more challenging version called Prison Tag.

And the outdoor fun continues...


View More Photos of Gym Class at LVCC's Campus Center

Discovery at the Lehigh Valley Zoo

Preschool and pre-k classes at LVCC's Fowler Center on Main Street went on a fantastically fun field trip to the Lehigh Valley Zoo! The children had the opportunity to learn more about their favorite animals and see them up close.

A multi-sensory experience, the children pet goats, fed ducks, listened to the birds chirping, and watched the peculiar behaviors of several animals including turkeys, cows, and horses. The ostrich and zebra were the most popular among the whole zoo. The kids got a kick out of the ostrich, who seemed to enjoy hanging out along the fenceline. 

Playing on the zoo's playground, the children rode the merry-go-round and spring riders shaped like colorful animals. They also posed for silly pictures as baby kangaroos!

After their morning of zoological exploration, the children returned to LVCC for a healthy lunch. Exercising minds and little legs sure can work up an appetite!

View Photos of Preschool/Pre-K @ Lehigh Valley Zoo

Beating the Heat with Water Week

This was a hot summer week, but LVCC at Stones Crossing kept the thermometer low by chillin' with the children! As part of the learning experience (and also to beat the heat), the classes had water play and learned about different water environments.

The teachers created a day at the beach in LVCC’s backyard where the toddlers were engrossed in water activity. By floating toys in buckets of water, the tots discovered the buoyancy of various weights. Exploring with their senses, the toddlers dipped their tiny fingers and toes into the water and were asked how it felt. Teachers also encouraged the children to share materials and expand their social skills. The children worked together to fill cups with water. They then spilled the cups of water into the bucket, which practiced development of fine motor skills.

Preschool and Pre-K learned about ecosystems, focusing on ponds and the living creatures in them. A few toads made a special guest appearance. The preschoolers went on a “bug hunt” outside to find crickets and gnats to feed the toads. Concentrating on the life-cycle of the frog, the class learned about hibernation, the difference between frogs and toads, how frogs make different sounding croaks to talk to each other, and how they use their tongues to get food. The children then participated in gross motor play by acting out frogs, toads, and other kinds of water animals. As an art project, the class painted blue (for water) and green (for plant life) to make a paper pond. They then fine-tuned motor skills by cutting and pasting the green paintings to create a finished pond.

View More Photos of Water Week...

The Colorful Spectrum of Da Vinci Science Center

The Da Vinci Science Center On the Move program has returned to Lehigh Valley Children's Centers for another successful summer season. School-age children at LVCC (Campus Center, Fowler Center, South Mountain, Truman School, and Western Salisbury School) will experience four science sessions with Da Vinci in their own classroom.

Students enrolled in LVCC at Truman School completed their program this week with a final lesson on color artology. While exploring the science of art, the children discovered their own color by mixing the three primary colors using colored liquid, pipettes, and lab trays. They then made their own kaleidoscopes using colored polymers.

In past lessons, the class was introduced to the chemistry of matter and phase change while conducting dry ice experiments. Through collecting and analyzing fingerprints, capturing DNA (with a saliva swab), and analyzing data, students explored forensic chemistry. Using ingenuity and a few building blocks, students constructed towers and gained knowledge of architecture.

Dance the Summer Away

Too hot for you this summer? Then dance, dance the day away with the cool cats enrolled in LVCC's summer school-age program. We have moves hotter than Jagger!

The summer school-age students attending LVCC (Western Salisbury, Truman, and Union Boulevard) are taking dance lessons from The Repertory Dance Theater. This week, we popped into LVCC at Western Salisbury to watch. Performing a few moves to Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker, our little stars practiced the scene from Act I where the gingerbread soldiers chased away the mice.  The dance instructor then took the rhythm of Kenny Loggins and matched it up with another scene from The Nutcracker to create a few "Footloose" and fancy free moves.

  

View Photos & Video of the Dance Lesson

Education Outreach with the Lehigh Valley Zoo

In the upcoming weeks, many LVCC school-age and preschool children will entertain special guests from the Lehigh Valley Zoo. The Zoo brings a collection of animals from their Education Outreach program.

Tulani the African Penguin

A favorite guest is Tulani the African Penguin. As it's name implies, African Penguins come from the coast of Africa. Penguins are monogomous and mate for life. Their diet consists of  fish, crustaceans, and squid. Tulani's distinctive black and white coloring is a vital form of camouflage - white for underwater predators looking upwards and black for predators looking down into the water. The children participate in an experiment that simulates an oil spill. They dip a swan feather in cooking oil dyed black and then wash the feathers with Dawn dish detergent. Taking two minutes to fully clean a feather, the children are able to calculate that it would take over 200 minutes to clean one penguin caught in an oil spill.

Otis the Argentine Tegu, a large stocky lizard living in the meadows and open forests of South America, is another visitor from the Zoo. Males are larger than females and can grow to a length of 4-½ feet, while females rarely grow larger than 3 feet. They are very intelligent reptiles and fairly calm to handle. The children enjoy feeling it's bumpy reptile skin. Tegus are omnivores that feeding mostly on vegetables, but also insects, mollusks, small mammals, birds, and amphibians. At the Zoo, they eat mice, chicks and vegetables. Although tegus are not currently endangered, they may become so from overhunting for their meat and leather.

Practicing gentle touches with
Bean the Toe Toed Sloth.

The Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula may make an appearance. Living in parts of Bolivia, Argentina Northern Chile, these tarantulas are found burrowing in the ground in the desert and scrubland. An adult, 3-4 years old, can reach approximately 6 inches in its total leg span. Although these tarantulas are venomous and deadly to smaller animals, humans will only get a rash if bitten or from the tiny hairs. For this reason, children are not allowed to touch the tarantula. This type of arachnid will eat any creature smaller than itself (other arachnids, reptiles, insects, or small mammals). In the Zoo, their diet consists of crickets.

The youngest addition to the traveling program is Bean the Two Toed Sloth. He is named because his rainforest habitat in Central and South America is disappearing. The rainforests are being torn down, while coffee bean and chocolate fields are planted in it's place. Bean has only two toes on his forefeet, although, like other types of sloths, he has three toes on the hindfeet. Once 18-month-old baby Bean is full grown around 3 years, he will be 23-28 inches long, weigh 9-18 pounds, and grow very long hair.  Sloths are so slow that algae grows on their hair, giving them a greenish tint. In the rainforest, this helps camouflage them from predators. Spending most of their life hanging from trees, sloths are nocturnal animals that only descend to the ground to go to the bathroom. Sloths eat leaves, shoots, fruits, nuts, berries, bark, and even some small rodents. Food can take up to a month to digest due to their slow metabolism. The children especially enjoy petting Bean with gentle touches to feel the softness of his fur.

By the end of the summer, LVCC at Stones Crossing, LVCC on Union Boulevard, LVCC's Campus Center, and LVCC's Judith Chase Early Learning Center will all have participated in the Lehigh Valley Zoo's Education Outreach program.

View Photos of the Lehigh Valley Zoo Program

The Allentown Art Museum's Traveling Road Show

The Allentown Art Museum is presenting a special program throughout the 2012 summer for our school-age students at six LVCC locations. Along with visiting the museum to see the paintings, photographs, and artifacts, the students will also receive art lessons based on different topics taught by museum educators inside their own LVCC classroom.

LVCC's Campus Center and LVCC's Fowler Center started their program with a field trip to the Allentown Art Museum. A museum guide toured the children around the various galleries while engaging his audience with tales of historic and entertaining value. Intrigued with the museum artifacts, the students asked many interesting questions. At the conclusion of the tour, the children had the opportunity to create their own masterpieces using cardboard boxes, markers, crayons, tissue paper, pipe cleaners, and other mixed media.

Taking it's art on the road, the museum also came to LVCC's Judith Chase Early Learning Center. Museum educators brought along photos of ancient sculptures and painted works. Each piece of art had a distinctive legend attached to it which told of love, power, and bit of fantasy. The students tried on culturally-specific items of clothing from the same countries as the artwork. They also handled art tools from around the world. Making stamp art was another highlight of the class.

Other LVCC locations that will participate in the Allentown Art Museum's summer program include LVCC's South Mountain, LVCC at Stones Crossing, and LVCC on Union Boulevard.

VIEW MORE PHOTOS HERE

Students Say Goodbye School, Hello Summer

Children across the Lehigh Valley are celebrating the beginning of summer. LVCC at Muhlenberg School made the last day of elementary school a memorable event by having a makeup artist and a caricature artist visit.

The makeup artist transformed our students into a carnival of animals (dogs, tigers, leopards, cheetahs, oh my!), superheroes, and villains with face paint. Some students became fairies and butterflies, while others chose to be werewolves, vampires and zombies. Once the students all had their faces painted, they acted out their characters in the gym and danced to music.

Many of the students also participated in having their cartoon representation drawn by a caricature artist. It was fun watching the artists create their artwork, using the children as their canvas.

View More Photos of Our Menagerie

Pre-K Counts Class of 2012

Many proud family members watched as their four- and five-year-olds "graduated" from the Pre-K Counts program this week at Lehigh Valley Children's Centers. The stepping up ceremonies varied between centers, but one theme remained the same; these students now have a good foundation for learning, better preparing them for kindergarten.

Dressed in their best, these precocious preschoolers bravely sang in front of the large audiences made up of moms, dads, siblings, grandparents, aunts, and uncles. As each child stepped up to receive their awards and recognition, families and staff cheered them on.

Throughout the year, the Pre-K boys and girls learned reading, math, and science. They also practiced everyday skills like paying attention, following directions, and getting along with others. Introduced to new and exciting adventures, the students experienced pumpkin patches, the Crayola Experience, the Lehigh Valley Zoo, and many other fun, educational field trips.

During the ceremony, the LVCC teachers tried their best to hold back the tears. Watching their students blossom since this past fall, the teachers keep a special place in their hearts for each child. They know that their students will be well-prepared as they head for a bigger adventure.... kindergarten.

Congratulations Class of 2012!

View More Photos Here

Families Eager to Participate in Open House

This school-age child created a rainmaker with her mother.

Families that attended last night's open house discovered the joy of learning with LVCC at Lincoln School! Many new faces joined our arts, crafts, and science activity stations.

At one station, we decorated rainmakers, inspired by Native American tradition. This craft can easily be made at home.

Glue colorful decorations or artwork around a paper towel roll

Rubber band (or glue) sturdy paper to one end.

Fill with a cup of dried beans or rice.

Seal the other end by rubber banding (or gluing) another sturdy paper to it.

Once complete, shake the rainmaker from end-to-end. It sounds like rain!

The "cast" of LVCC at Lincoln School's Open House, from
left to right: Craig Tucker, Jabeen Chisty, LouEllen Banzhoff,
& Kristina Adams.

The students, their siblings, and parents engaged in many other projects as well. Some made silly putty, while others colored take-home puzzles and insect trivia coloring pages. Families also decorated photo frames together.

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Playing Games Teaches Skills

Playing games is an entertaining way to hone basic life skills, and form a solid foundation for learning. Our school-age students enrolled in LVCC at Truman School have discovered different resources, including playing card games and building with blocks, can be a fun way to explore these skills.

Cards help our students learn math skills like counting, number order, and probability. Children can practice basic strategy and concentration. By waiting to taking turns, the students learn patience. Social interaction takes place throughout the game. Once they have learned the rules of the game, our little card sharks enjoy giving simple instruction to others that do not know how to play. They also develop good sportsmanship by winning and losing gracefully.


Using wooden blocks and the power of ingenuity, our students can create masterpiece structures. Constructing a towering block building takes imagination, problem-solving, and when working with others, communication.  Our junior architects learn the basics of geometry through using different shapes. They also discover the science of gravity if the blocks are not balanced properly.