4 Ways to Make Reading Fun for Special Needs Kids

Posted on | by KD Novelties

Activities like reading can do a lot to engage a child’s brain by stimulating their imagination, boosting their cognitive thinking, and critical problem-solving skills, as well as teaching them how to be empathetic or how to understand abstract ideas. Reading can be a challenge for parents of children with learning disabilities and other special needs, and the benefits of reading can be challenging as well. Like any kid with reading, or other activities, it helps to find out what works best for your child and what methods may help engage them to read, encourage them to improve their skills, and to get the most out of the experience overall.

Make it Interactive

Many kids with special needs, especially those on the spectrum, use their brains to understand the world around them in different ways. By stimulating more of your child’s senses in a more visual and tactile manner can help reading come alive for them and engage them in ways that just reading alone may not be able to. Alternatively, some kids respond more to certain types of stimulation than others, too. For instance, some kids may be audible learners and others may be visual learners. Try to appeal to what makes the most sense for them.

Certain activities can be more than just fun interactive things to do in addition to or in conjunction with reading, but they can help play to the particular strengths of kids with special needs. Provide a child with ADHD who learns best by moving by making a game out of it. For a child with Down Syndrome who loves imitating the world around them, recreate stories and scenes with stuffed animals or puppets for an audience of family members.

Find Common Ground

Many kids tend to fixate on certain topics, characters, or things whether they be a character from a cartoon or movie, a hobby like trains, or they may be hyper-focused on a particular subject like outer space. These interests can influence what kinds of toys and activities your child likes to seek out and enjoy, but it can also help you find books that might interest them too.  Identify what appeals to your child on other levels – what kind of toys or activities do they generally enjoy? What are their favorite shows and movies? Looking for books about these things or books that feature certain topics, events, or other features can be what draws your child into reading. If there is a book about something they like and already engage with, reading about it can be another thing they can enjoy as well.

Relevant Struggles

Kids with special needs may struggle with reaching milestones at certain ages, and reading may be one of them. Finding a book that helps kids with these struggles, whether it is a book that helps teach them to read or about a particular subject like potty training or riding a bike, will engage them in new and creative ways. Stories of another child going through the same struggle as them can make children feel empowered and less alone but also more inclined to reading. Reading is an essential life skill, but it can also open kids up to learning new things about the world around them, but most importantly themselves. Books about other topics, subjects and ideas can be helpful, but a book that resonates with your child on a more personal level may be the thing that really gets them hooked on reading or helps them feel more comfortable with themselves.

Finding Role Models

Kids with special needs may struggle with issues revolving around self-image and their own self-confidence, so in addition to finding books about similar struggles, you can also find books about famous people with learning disabilities and other handicaps. This can help kids realize that they can accomplish anything, too, and that their special need or disability does not limit them as much as other people may say they do. You can look for books about people like author, political activist, and lecturer Helen Keller (deaf and blind), Noble Prize-winning geneticist Carol Greider (learning disabilities), film director Steven Spielberg (ADHD), and animal scientist Temple Grandin (autistic spectrum disorder).

Everyday Learning Activities for Toddlers

Posted on | by KD Novelties

Toddlers are of an age where practically any activity is a learning activity, but it can be helpful to parents to know exactly what types of skills kids of this age can gain the most from. While kids have fun and enjoy themselves, they can also be observing and learning from the world around them in a completely unique and wondrous way. The world is a classroom for toddlers and some of their everyday activities now can help to lay the foundation for future skills like reading and counting.

Letter Learning

Kids generally start recognizing letters around the age of 2 or so, right in the prime of their toddler years. The easiest thing to start with are the letters of their name. As kids learn names and words, observing and mimicking what things are called, what better thing to start with than their own name? There are plenty of letter games and toys that can activate this part of your child’s brain, whether it be block letters, magnets on the fridge or construction paper cut-outs for a future piece of room deco – get hands on with the letters that spell your child’s name and even things around the house. Once they have a grasp on things they know and are familiar with, the easier it will be to introduce new words and concepts. Our I See Do You See Alphabets? personalized book introduces the letters of the alphabets and things that start with each letter too and it’s personalized with their name which would appeal to them and motivate them to learn faster.

Number Crunching

Toddlers may be too young for math, and while counting may be feasible, it is always best to start off with simple number recognition. Like with letters, there are plenty of games and toys that revolve around the activity of spotting, identifying, and naming numbers. Once kids are familiar with their basic numbers 0-9 they can begin to tackle larger numbers as they get older, continually building on the information they already know. Memorizing numbers can be helpful, too. Play memory games involving your home phone number or even your address. This can be a fun way for your child to learn and become familiar with numbers while also learning helpful information in the event they ever get lost or need help. Our I See Do You See Numbers? personalized book introduces numbers 1 through 10 and is perfect for toddlers.  Not only do they spot the number they also have to count the items on the page providing hours of reading fun and education.

Colors Everywhere

Our world is full of color, and it comes in all different shades and hues – but before kids can begin naming intricate variations of any one color, they need to learn the basics first. For toddlers, it helps to ground them in places where they are familiar and places where they can easily practice, like at home. In addition to color games and puzzles, simply naming colors around the house or on clothing and out the window can help encourage your child to be curious and to pay attention to the world around them. By grounding kids in their surroundings, introducing them to new places, including places like daycare or preschool when they’re ready.

There are plenty of games, toys and other things that drive kids to better their familiarity with letters, numbers and colors, but there is so much that parents can do in every other aspect of their lives, too. Ask children to spot letters they recognize while driving around town or see what they can spot on their box of breakfast cereal. Count the number of items you have whether you’re collecting their stuffed animals or asking them to count their chicken nuggets at lunch. Learning can happen anywhere and everywhere, and when it is made a part of your child’s every day, they are more likely to keep looking and learning as they get older, too.

Volunteer- Getting Your Family Involved

Posted on | by KD Novelties

In the wake of the devastation in Houston and now the Caribbean, parts of Florida, and southern US, there is a demand and a need for volunteers that want to help. It is in times of disaster and loss that a helping hand can truly make a difference, though it is important to be charitable whether there is a current disaster making headlines or not. Regardless, it can be extremely beneficial for families to reach out and do what they can to help those in need after Hurricane Harvey and Irma, and it can be a great way to introduce a lifelong charitable quality in children, too.

Volunteer work can be a great family activity, exposing kids to the good in the world while reminding them to always be mindful of others and to look after them. There are many ways in which parents and guardians can get their kids involved with volunteer and charity work, and it can also help bring your own family together as well.

Hurricane Relief

Since there are a lot of drives going on right now, a simple way to introduce your kids to giving back and helping out is gathering needed supplies and bringing them along for the drop-off. This may sound simple, and it may feel a lot like going shopping on any other day, but with the idea of helping others in mind, children may have a new outlook on life and learn to realize how lucky they are. Look for things around the house that you can donate such as canned goods and extra home items like blankets, clothing, toiletries and more. For kids, you can turn this bit into a scavenger hunt and have them check items off a list as they find them.

Local Events and Drives

Many community establishments host food and clothing drives on a regular basis, especially before the new school year starts or when it begins to get cold in the winter. Instead of just donating, going out to these events can allow kids and other members of your family see the good in others who are helping as well as provide them with an opportunity to meet those they are helping out. Look for drives and other events at local libraries, churches, and schools.

Marathons and Fundraisers

Make sure to look out for any locally hosted walks and benefits where proceeds go towards finding cures and funding medical research. Chances are, many families know someone with cancer, Alzheimer’s, or other special needs that rely on the donations and the support of others in order to continue looking for a cure and to care for individuals with these conditions. Taking part in things like Relay for Life or other events can also help kids stay active while also getting involved and getting to know their community.

Animal Shelters

Many kids love animals or have pets of their own, so a good way to help encourage an interest in volunteer work is to have the family help out at your local animal shelter or foster program. Many places struggle to find homes for abandoned or stray animals, and sometimes simply coming in several times a week to play with the dogs and cats at the shelter can do wonders for their health and wellbeing. This is also a great way to introduce kids to the idea of caring for a pet if you are looking to adopt – plus, you may just help an animal find their forever home!

There are so many things that kids and parents can do to help others. Parents Magazine has a helpful resource guide for families looking to volunteer with their kids here and many community centers have programs or at least post flyers for upcoming events, drives, and other opportunities to volunteer.