GETTING TO KNOW OUR TEAM:
MEET AMANDA!
How
many children do you have and how old are they?
I
have two beautiful children, a boy and a girl. My daughter, Elli, is 19 months and full of joyful curiosity; my son, Flynn, is 3 months old and just beginning to be fascinated by the world around him.
What
is your professional background?
I
am a certified teacher that has taught a PUF-funded preschool program
in Edmonton-area for many years and I am passionate about play! Play is
how children learn, it is their 'work' and their joy. Being an early
childhood and special needs expert I have seen the power of
intentional play in my classroom for years. By using developmentally
appropriate toys and materials play can help children reach their
goals, be they social/emotional, academic, speech/language, fine or
gross motor. I have spent several years working with OTs, PTs, SLPs
and psychologists developing behaviour plans and IPPs for young
children; then designing play based curriculum to help them meet
their goals.
What
is your personal PLAY philosophy?
Play
is necessary, for all of us, no matter our age, we need to play.
Play engages our brain like nothing else. It engages our spirit,
imagination and heart.
Why
did you choose Discovery Toys?
When
I was teaching we used quite a few Discovery Toys and games in our
program. Not only were they fun and engaging, they were durable!
Those toys and games were used by about 100 kids each school year,
for several years and they were still like new. The only things we
eventually had to replace were the cardboard boxes they came in and
any pieces that were inevitably lost after going through that many
hands.
What
is your favourite toy and why?
Busy
Bugs and Busy Farm are my favourite. You can do SO much with them!
I have used them in imaginative play, sorting, patterning, matching,
in sensory bins and more. They are so versatile.
What
is the one piece of advice you have for parents who are working on
developing new skills in their children?
First
make sure the skill you want to work on is developmentally
appropriate. This doesn't just mean age appropriate as every child
develops skills at their individual pace. If your three year old is
passionate about reading books, working with letters and fascinated
by print all around them, then by all means nurture that desire and
use play based literacy activities because developmentally they are
showing you they are ready for it. Conversely is your five year old
has a fine motor deficit be sure you are choosing games and
activities that are appropriate for where they are at.
