One Day At a Time

The first day of school is a significant marker on our calendars -- right up there with birthdays, Halloween, and New Year's Day. We count down the days until summer is over and a brand new school year commences. So much anticipation, so much excitement.

The beginning of school is also the time when families transition to new school-time schedules. Racing to bus stops or carpools in the mornings, school pick-ups or after-school activities in the afternoons. After what was hopefully a more relaxed summer schedule, all of a sudden time is critically important. And your children will more than likely pick up on the renewed focus on schedules and pepper you with questions: Is today a school day? What time does school start? What time will you pick me up? In addition to providing your children with the basic answers to their questions, you should consider the beginning of the school year as a wonderful and quite natural opportunity to introduce some important time-related concepts to your children. Post a calendar so that you can mark the days that she is in school. Use a clock to show the time when she leaves for school and when she comes home. You probably have all of the tools you need already, but if you are loathe to share your handheld date planner with your little one, or if you are just looking for some child-friendly books and toys that are great at explaining the concept of time, check out some of our favorites:

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Shape Sorting Clock

One thing we Savvy parents look for in any toy is how long it is apt to hold a child's interest. Melissa and Doug's well-made wooden teaching clock earns particularly high marks in this regard. It captures the interest of young toddlers, and is a valuable tool for teaching number recognition and time-keeping to older preschoolers. The designers have thought of everything! Ingenious visual cues help children figure out shape sorting far beyond the standard triangles, circles and squares, and get a handle on their hours and minutes (i.e. colored wedges demarcate minutes in increments of five). In no time at all, it will be your little one pointing to the clock, White Rabbit style, and saying, "Mommy, we're late, we're late" (for a very important date)! And you will feel, like Alice, a bit disoriented by this new wonderland where your baby suddenly knows what time it is.

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