The Best Child Care Nolensville Has to Offer

As one of the best child care centers in Nolensville, TN we know that the safety and well-being of your child is your number one concern. And we take that very seriously. Your child’s safety is not an afterthought at The Academy. Our facilities are built, from the ground up, with children’s safety in mind. Unlike a house, our learning centers are built and furnished for children.

Keeping Your Children Safe at Home

Children are basically curious, and they are quite the little explorers. As they explore, they are also taking risks because they are not old enough to recognize danger.

Because homes are designed for adults, there are many potential dangers for children built into the home. Fortunately, there are many ways to make a home safer for a child.

9 Safety Gadgets to Protect Your Child

Here are a few ways you can minimize dangerous risks in your home:

1. Use outlet covers.
2. Install cabinet and drawer locks.
3. Anchor chests, dressers, and bookcases to the walls.
4. Use foam or rubber corner protectors and edge cushion.
5. Install door pinch guards.
6. Use door knob covers.
7. Install toilet locks.
8. Use stove knob covers.

That should take care of most physical dangers in the house.

4 Steps You Can Take to Protect Your Child

A few simple steps can keep your child safe, such as:

1. Locking windows and exterior doors.
2. Tying up cords on blinds or drapes so a child cannot reach them.
3. Keeping dangerous items, such as medicine, guns, and medicines, in a secure or locked cabinet.
4. Supervising your child.

The Academy at Burkitt Commons – One of the Best Child Care Centers in Nolensville

The Academy at Burkitt Commons in Nolensville, TN is widely considered to be one of the best preschools in Nolensville. Our child care center offers the highest quality child care services with the  most caring teaching staff you can find.

The Top Preschools in Hendersonville Endorse Family Dinners

The Academy, one of the top preschools in Hendersonville, encourages families to have family dinners. The benefits are physical, academic, social, and emotional. And the recipe that makes the “magic” happen is fun, food, and conversation.

Take Advantage of the Entire Process

Make meal planning and even grocery shopping a family affair. Let your children help with food prep, setting the table, and cleaning up.

For sure, the menu should be a healthy one, but don’t focus as much on the menu as you do on just being together and having fun. That’s the important part. However, studies show that everyone tends to eat healthier at family meals.

Ban the Cell Phones and Talk with Each Other

Talking at meals increases a child’s vocabulary about eight times more than reading to a child. But you really can’t have conversations if everyone is looking at a cell phone. So, parents, put them away – not only at home, but in restaurants. Make it a point to talk to your children.

Don’t Stress Out Over Family Dinners

The benefits of eating together as a family are diminished somewhat if the atmosphere is tense. It’s not generally possible to have the whole family at every family meal. So be flexible. Don’t worry if you can’t get everyone together every night. What really matters is how relaced the atmosphere is and how good the conversation is.

Realize the Long Term Benefits

Children who grow up with family meal time have a more positive outlook and lower rates of depression as teenagers. They are also less likely to smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol, or use drugs.

The Academy Is One of the Top Preschools in Hendersonville

At The Academy, we seek the same family-dining benefits by having the children eat lunch and snacks together. The kids learn from each other, and our teachers learn more about each child too. See if one of our locations is right for you.

The Top Daycares in Spring Hill Know All about Separation Anxiety

As one of the top daycares in Spring Hill, The Academy prepares its staff to make your child’s first day of daycare a happy one.  Even though your child may feel anxious about leaving you, we have many ways to deal with apprehension. Our well-trained staff is known for their caring and loving approach to child care.

First Day Strategies

In order to ensure your child’s first day will be a good one, we have several strategies that we know will work:

• If a child exhibits anxiety or fear, we allow the child to calm down at his own pace. We know not to rush him.
• We sit beside the child as he works on an activity.
• We choose group activities that will include him and make him feel more comfortable.

Ways To Ensure Positive Outcomes

We know that we can help your child feel safe and secure. We do this by providing a predictable environment and a routine that children are comfortable with. For children that we know have separation issues, we provide activities as soon as they enter. This helps them get settled as they participate.

Another way we help an anxious child is to allow the child to sit where she feels most comfortable.  Often this will be near one of the workers.

If a child continues to feel stressed and anxious after several weeks, we will meet with parents to try to better understand the child’s continued anxiety. The problem might be as simple as sticking to a routine drop off and pick up time so the child knows what’s coming next.

The Academy of Heritage Commons Is One of the Top Daycares in Spring Hill and Thompson Station

At The Academy we know both you and your child may feel nervous on her first day of school.  Rest assured! We know how to make her first day a successful one.

The Best Nashville Daycares Know Naps Are a Must

The Academy, one of the best Nashville daycares, schedules daily nap periods that are age-appropriate. For babies, we let them dictate when they sleep. For older children we schedule regular nap times. And for our oldest children, who usually do not require naps any more, we schedule rest periods. The need for and the benefits of naps are numerous.

Why Are Naps Needed?

Almost every parent knows that skipping a little one’s nap usually results in irritability and possible meltdowns.

Babies and toddlers (ages 0 – 24 months) can’t tolerate being awake as long as older children due to the development their bodies are going through. Some experts believe that the rapid brain development happening during the early years tires little ones out!

What Are the Benefits of Naps?

Studies involving napping demonstrate that naps:

• enhance learning.
• facilitate better emotional regulation.
• support better nighttime sleep.

Learning: Several studies show that little ones who nap outperform their non-napping peers in cognitive tasks, such as learning language and memorizing.

Controlling Emotions: One study involving 2-year-olds found that toddlers who miss just one nap were less able to regulate their emotions. They became more anxious, withdrawn, and irritated by even small stressors. Additionally they were less happy about exciting things.

Sleeping Better at Night: Other studies show that naps can help a child sleep better at night. This is because when children are overtired, the stress hormone cortisol can flood their bodies, making them overactive. Note: Napping too much or taking naps too late in the day can be detrimental to a good night’s sleep.

Doesn’t Your Child Deserve to Attend One of the Best Nashville Daycares?

When you pick up your child from The Academy, your child will be rested, in control, and happy to see you. If you want more information about any of our many locations, please contact us.

Skills for Preschoolers Taught at The Academy

The Academy is known for having some of the top preschools in Franklin, TN, but preschool is not only a place to prepare children for elementary school. It is also a place where children might experience emotions and conflicts as they interact with other children. At The Academy, we teach skills for preschoolers that will help them learn to deal with their own emotions and conflicts as well as those of their classmates.

Skills for Developing Good Relationships

Preschoolers tend to be selfish and don’t understand how to build relationships with others.  Our staff at The Academy want them to learn to feel compassion for others. We help children learn compassion in these two ways:

• Read stories.
  We choose stories that deal with feelings. As we read, we ask questions about how the characters feel in different situations. Then we ask the children how they can help others deal with situations similar to those in the stories.
• Affirm their feelings.
  We want to let the children know it is okay to feel sad, angry, happy, or excited. We also want them to realize that their classmates are dealing with these same feelings.

Skills to Solve Conflict

Even a young child must learn to solve problems.  We use these questions to help children develop problem-solving skills:

• What is the problem?
• What are possible solutions?
• Would your solution be safe and fair?

Skills to Deal with Emotions

Preschoolers have not yet developed the skills to deal with their emotions.  We use these steps to help them develop these skills:

• We model the skill for the child.
• The staff gives positive feedback when the child deals with his emotions in an appropriate way.
• Teachers use puppets to model the emotional skills we want to encourage.

The Academy Teaches Important Skills for Preschoolers Every Day

It is never too early for children to learn to develop social, emotional, and conflict-solving skills.  At The Academy we know how to help your child develop in all these areas. It is our priority every day. We invite you to come for a tour and see for yourself or click to learn more about The Academy.

The Best Daycares in Nashville Promote Good Health

As one of the best daycares in Nashville, The Academy focuses on three areas to promote good health. These are food, activity, and sleep. These three factors, if not managed properly, can contribute to excess weight gain in children.

3 Areas of Concern for the Best Daycares in Nashville

Excess weight, to the point of obesity, can lead to type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers. So, it’s important for a daycare (that frequently has child for 10 – 11 hours a day) to provide healthy choices in these three areas.
Food
At The Academy centers, we serve a nutritious continental style breakfast each morning from opening to 9 a.m. We schedule meals and snack times are according to a group’s age and developmental level.
Sleep
Rest times are scheduled in the middle of the day after lunch for children who are one year old and up. Rest times will vary according to the group’s age and developmental level. We do not “require” children to sleep, but they must rest quietly. This allows other children who are sleeping not to be disturbed. Infants sleep at will throughout the day and form their own sleep patterns.
Activity
During a day with a normal routine and when weather permits, children will play on the playground once in the morning and once again in the afternoon. We have separate playgrounds for different ages. This allows us to provide age-appropriate equipment.  Our play areas contain a minimum 50 square feet of usable play space for each child in the play area.
Note: If weather conditions do not permit outdoor play, the classrooms support gross motor activities.

The Academy of McCrory Lane Will Join the Best Daycares in Nashville Soon

The Academy of McCrory Lane is the newest Academy daycare location under construction. It supports all the same values and routines that promote health as the other twelve Academy locations throughout middle Tennessee. Learn more about our award-wining daycares.

The Best Daycares in Williamson County Teach Children Cooperation

Cooperation is a necessity in our adult lives. Whether it’s at home with our partners, at work with colleagues, or on a sports team, cooperation enriches our lives. This is why it is so important to teach children cooperation at an early age. It will enhance their lives today and prepare them for their future. At The Academy, one of the best daycares in Williamson County, teaching children to cooperate is a high priority.

Teach Children Cooperation

Cooperation is the character trait that can help us reach goals as a group that we couldn’t reach by ourselves. The following are ways to encourage cooperation in your children at home:

• Modeling Cooperative Behavior. Encourage children to work together in cleanup so they will understand how much faster it can go when they work as a team.  At home demonstrate how working together as a family can help with dinner time.
• Playing Games. Simple activities such as working together on a puzzle or playing games as a team will help them learn to work together.
• Pointing Out Examples of Working Together. As children read books or watch a movie, encourage them to discuss how the characters worked together to complete a task.
• Planning a Family Activity. Choose an activity where each member has a task to complete.  The family can clean the house or yard, plan a special meal, or play a board game together.  All these will unite the family as they work and play together.
• Praising a Child for Helping Others. Praise children when they help others without expecting something in return.  Such things as playing with a young sibling or helping a grandparent with a task will instill in the child a sense of cooperation.

The Academy Is One of the Best Daycares in Williamson County

Our staff at The Academy emphasizes cooperation every day and our curriculum supports it with classroom activities. Our award-winning Frog Street Press curriculum makes The Academy the leader in educational preschools in Nashville.

Why the Best Williamson County Preschools Include Make-Believe Play in Their Curriculum

Are you looking for the best Williamson County preschools? Then look for schools with an award-winning curriculum that includes make-believe. Make-believe play is a child’s way of learning and a form of self-expression. That’s why we at The Academy include make-believe play in our curriculum.

Benefits of Make-Believe Play in a Curriculum

Children love to pretend to be someone else. It can be Superman, a princess, or a firefighter. The benefits are many.

• Thinking differently. Make-believe encourages creativity and imagination. As a child assumes the identity of someone else, he experiences how others do things and how they behave. This allows him to see things differently when he encounters a similar situation in real life.
• Using energy. Parents and teachers know how much energy preschoolers have. When engaging in creative play, they use up the energy they have in a beneficial learning experience.
• Learning social skills. When children play make-believe with others, they will need to negotiate roles and solve issues. They must exercise self-control as they co-operate with their classmates in their role-playing. As they put themselves in different situations, they learn compassion for others. All these things will serve them later in life as they develop the social skills to live and work as an adult.
• Overcoming fears. Make believe can lessen fears a child may have. If she fears going to a dentist, she can role-play being the dentist and then the patient. This will put her more at ease when she actually has a dental appointment.

The Academy Has the Best Williamson County Preschools Any Parent Could Want

The Academy’s preschool curriculum encompasses many elements. We feel that make-believe play is a very vital part of the learning experience. Learn more about our award-winning preschools in Franklin TN and preschools in Brentwood TN at the links provided.

Getting Ready For Kindergarten

Kindergarten can be a big adjustment for kids, as well as parents. If you haven’t been getting ready for kindergarten, there are still some things that you can do to help your child adjust.

Tips for Making Kindergarten Easier

Before school started, sleeping times could be adjusted according to the activities of the family. However, once kindergarten begins, some routines might need to be adjusted:

• Eliminate nap time. Most children by the age of five have quit their naps. But if your child still wants one, help your child adjust to a day without naps.
• Have a set time for bed. Your child will need to get into the routine of going to bed earlier and at the same time. This will make it easier for him to be ready in the morning to get dressed, eat, and leave for school.

Expectations for Kindergarten

Parents need to talk to their children about what kindergarten will be like. Here are a few things to discuss with your child:

• Length of the school day. Most kindergartens are full day. At first, your child may be tired by the length of the day and the many structured activities. When your child gets home, have a healthy snack ready allow him time for some favorite activities.
• Clothes and school items. Your child may need to dress a little bit differently for kindergarten. If that’s a problem, encourage your child to pick out school outfits. Definitely let your child choose items for school such as back packs, crayons, etc. Your child will be excited to go to school to show the other kids the new purchases.
• Daily kindergarten routines. Talk to your child about the importance of following instructions, listening carefully to the teacher, and getting along with the other children. Make this an ongoing discussion as the year goes on.

The Academy Is Your Child’s Partner in Getting Ready for Kindergarten

While Parents prepare their children for kindergarten at home, we are doing the same thing here at The Academy. Our pre-K programs in Nashville focus on preparing the students on a daily basis. Our Kindergarten Boot Camp program is a concentrated summer program that brings all the training together. If you have a child that is pre-K age, now is a good time to start preparing for next year.