Here we are at the beginning of the year when we’re “looking ahead,” wondering what this new year will bring. It seems kind of ironic, but "looking back" can help us with our journey ahead. There’s even a name for that in early childhood -- reflective teaching. As early childhood professionals, we’re encouraged to be reflective – to look back on what worked...
Read MoreWith all the holidays this month, we talk about this season as a time of peace, joy, light, and hope. But it’s also a time when it’s easy to feel stressed, over-burdened and under-appreciated, so I am offering you a treasured video from one of our early professional development workshops, where Fred gave his heartfelt thanks for the work that...
Read MoreThe new Mister Rogers sculpture that was recently unveiled at Rollins College is a remarkably fit tribute to Fred. I was delighted to see that the sculptor Paul Day decided to depict Fred with his Daniel puppet talking with children. He really understood that the essence of Fred’s work was about communicating with children and how much Fred learned about...
Read MoreHowever you’re dealing (or not dealing) with Halloween in your work with children, this holiday reminds us of how much children love to dress up in costumes and how much they get from it. One of Fred’s favorite stories was about a boy who insisted on wearing his superhero cape when he went to the doctor for a checkup. I always...
Read MoreIn the midst of all we’ve been going through in this pandemic time, I’ve thought about something that Helen Ross, a noted children and family mental health specialist, told Fred. As he was working on Neighborhood scripts which often dealt with serious childhood concerns like feeling jealous, angry or afraid, she reminded him, "Don't forget the fun." What great advice...
Read MoreIt’s the beginning of a new school year, and I remember a teacher telling me that while she’s excited to work with a new group of children, this has always been a challenging time for her. Now and then she sometimes starts to feel sad or a little impatient. It took her a while to realize where those difficult feelings are...
Read MoreI remember being amazed to hear that creativity is a much better predictor of achievement in life than IQ. That came out of the research of thousands of children followed for decades after taking the Torrance Creativity Test. We’ve certainly seen how important creativity is this past year. Covid restrictions have forced us all to find new and innovative ways to...
Read MoreI wonder if you, too, heard the sad news a few weeks ago about the death of Eric Carle, one of America’s most beloved children’s author-illustrators. Most early childhood professionals know him through his classic children’s books, like The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? We were fortunate to get to know Eric Carle as a “neighbor” - and to...
Read MoreWhenever people have asked me what Fred Rogers would say about how to help children through the pandemic, I’ve turned the question around and asked what they might take from his messages. In a sense, I think that’s what Fred hoped, that each of us would take from his work what’s most meaningful for our own lives. That’s why, whenever I’ve...
Read MoreDuring these not-so-normal pandemic times, many of us have found that routines help us feel more comfortable. They give us some predictable structure in our lives. Daily routines are even more important for children. Fred understood that, and he intentionally structured each program with predictable routines -- opening with his song and changing into his sweater and sneakers, using the Trolley...
Read More