Mami's Preschool Class of Two

We made the very, very difficult decision in the fall to not send my precocious 3-year-old to preschool this year, because we were worried about her starting school for the first time during the Corona Virus pandemic. So instead of being socialized and educated outside of our home, all of those experiences I needed to recreate for her and her 18-month-old brother at home, while also juggling working from home myself and following proper social distancing protocols.

Although Pinterest has a plethora of preschool and toddler activities, prepping for my own classes as a teacher and for my homeschool preschool for my children was overwhelming. So I am so grateful for Jane Cohen and the programs she offers through the Early Childhood Alliance of Framingham. Before quarantine, we often frequented her groups in-person, including Play, Learn, & Grow, and Let’s Go to Kindergarten and Baby Talk. Once the programming transitioned online, it became even easier for us to connect with other parents, participate in activities, and help my little ones build their brains!

I would like to extend my wholehearted thanks to Jane and all of her sponsors and donors, who have made our preschool homeschooling during a pandemic even possible. Maya’s learning the alphabet (right now knows letters A-K) and is working on how to write her name and the numbers 1-10 with the jumbo pencil. Mateo is strengthening his little fingers by coloring with the jumbo crayons. Both love to build their dexterity and hand-eye coordination through cutting, glueing and sticking stickers. And snuggling next to each other and reading the bilingual books is one of our favorite times of day. I know when we read the books from Jane that my children will expand their vocabulary, be exposed to linguistic complexity and become more inquisitive through dialogic reading.

Here’s some photos that showcase all the brain building fun in action!

Thank you for being my support network in this unprecedented time. By the looks on my children’s faces, you can tell they have no idea a pandemic is taking place in the outside world, and that is what matters most to me. For our family, this is not a year lost… It is a year found.

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