Fay School Blog

Maybe it’ll be the canceled birthday party, the baseball games wiped off the calendar, or just the third successive rainy day stuck at home, but there will be a point - or two - in the coronavirus self-quarantine when your child feels really sorry for themselves. As parents, it’s important to acknowledge those disappointments. After all, we feel them too! However, it is equally important to help your child put those frustrations into perspective and remind them that there are plenty of things that kids can do from home right now to make a difference in their community.

Is there anything better than a snow day? You sleep in, wear your pajamas until noon, let the kids play a little too much Xbox and graze on junk food. It’s fine because it’s just for one day, right? Well, what happens when you are suddenly looking at days, weeks, or months of unstructured time at home?

With schools closed and most sports and evening activities canceled, families are experiencing a rare phenomenon, time to have a real conversation! During our normally hectic schedule, it’s easy for communication between parent and child to turn into a series of commands and responses. “Finish your homework! Get off screens!” However, it’s important to remember that we lay the foundation for our children’s communication and social skills early on. Let’s use this time to practice and teach good communication skills.

Why choose private school? The answer to this question is a complex one, and parents opt for a private option for their children for a host of reasons. For some families, the local public school option may not offer the small class sizes or individualized attention that their child needs to thrive. In other cases, parents may feel that a specific private school offers unique academic programs or arts and athletic opportunities that simply aren’t available anywhere else.

If you’re new to the private school world, don’t feel daunted! Whether you’re considering private school at the beginning of your child’s school journey or thinking about a shift mid-stream, here are some factors to keep in mind.

Reading aloud with young children is critical for brain development, language acquisition, and early literacy skills like storytelling and comprehension. However, we've all had days when the best intentions to curl up and read with your child are derailed. So what do you do on those days when it feels like there's no time to read? Fay's Speech and Language Therapist Jill Cordon and Reading Specialist Leslie Overbye share three simple tips for incorporating literacy-building activities into your family's busy schedule.