Blissful Bedtimes (stretch and breathe)
Audience:      Parents/Caregivers and PALS students
Date:              Wednesday, April 7, 7-7:30 p.m. or Wednesday, May 5, 7-7:30 p.m.

Join Sara to create a new bedtime routine with a predictable stretch, breathe and relaxation sequence that helps both you and your child transition into a restful sleep. This approach can help with night worries and fears, as well as helping children settle down for sleep when the sun is still shining.

Spring Fun with Intellidance
Audience:      Parents/Caregivers and PALS students
Date:              Fridays, 11-11:30 a.m., April 9, 16, 30

This will be a lively, 30-minute, online series of classes in which caregivers and children can experience the joy of music and dance together! There will be songs, rhymes, props and simple choreography to keep your kiddos moving the whole class. All while working on balance, flexibility and co-ordination—and of course, a lot of FUN!

April Sessions: Spring Space and Place/Sound and Silence
In the three sessions, we’ll discover and explore the movement and musical concepts of space and place, sound and silence. We’ll explore through a spring theme, so get ready for lots of bunny hopping!

Fine Motor Progressions
Audience:      Parents/Caregivers
Date:              Tuesday, April 13, 1:30-2:15 p.m. or Wednesday, April 14, 7-7:45 p.m.

Many fine-motor tasks develop in a predictable sequence. We’ll go over the stages of fine-motor development and provide ideas for activities and play at home to support this skill development.

Speech Development
Audience:      Parents/Caregivers
Date:              Tuesday, April 20, 1:30 p.m. or Thursday, April 22, 7 p.m.

By the time children reach the age of seven, they’re usually making all of the speech sounds of their first language. As children's speech develops, the number and type of errors they make changes. Many parents have questions about whether their child's speech-sound errors are typical or whether they should be concerned. This interactive online session, hosted by two EIPS speech-language pathologists, will provide information about the progression of speech-sound development and strategies parents can use to support this development.

Storytime with the Strathcona Library
Audience:      Parents/Caregivers and PALS students
Date:              Friday, April 23, 9:30-10 a.m.

Early literacy staff at the Strathcona County Library are excited to share an interactive, virtual storytime with the children, sprinkled with fun facts about the library for the grown-ups. Come find out how the library has been adapting services over the last year and learn about upcoming programs and services for families!

Social Learning
Audience:      Parents/Caregivers
Date:              Tuesday, April 27, 1:30-2:15 p.m.

What is social learning and why is it important? Join us to learn about typical social development and how to embed social thinking vocabulary into everyday activities. The session will help you to encourage your preschooler to grow socially and will cover the social vocabulary that’s often used in both pre-kindergarten (PALS) and kindergarten classrooms.

Understanding Sensory Processing and Regulation
Audience:      Parents/Caregivers
Date:              Wednesday, April 28, 7-7:45 p.m. or Thursday, April 29, 1:30-2:15 p.m.

Join the occupational therapist to discuss what sensory processing is and how it influences regulation—the ability for your child to be calm and ready to participate. We’ll review some home strategies that can become part of your daily routine to support regulation.

Self Help: Building Independence
Audience:      Parents/Caregivers
Date:              Tuesday, May 11, 1:30-2:15 p.m. or Wednesday, May 12, 7-7:45 p.m.

Join the occupational therapist to learn strategies to help your child build independence. The session aims to increase your child’s successful participation with daily routines. We’ll discuss both motor-learning strategies and sensory-regulation strategies you can use at home.

Rhyme Time with Intellidance
Audience:      Parents/Caregivers and PALS students
Date:              Fridays, 11-11:30 a.m., May 14, 28, June 11

Get ready for a lively, 30-minute, online series of classes in which caregivers and children can experience the joy of music and dance together! There will be songs, rhymes, props and simple choreography to keep your kiddos moving the whole class.

May/June Sessions: Body Parts and Rhythm
In the three sessions, we’ll discover and explore the movement and musical concepts of body parts and rhythm. The foundational movement patterns we explore in these sessions are fundamental for increasing our little ones’ physical literacy.

Building Language Through Everyday Conversations
Audience:      Parents/Caregivers
Date:             Wednesday, May 19, 7 p.m. or Thursday, May 20, 1:30 p.m.

Parents play a crucial role in supporting their children’s language development. Engaging in rich and meaningful conversations is one of the most powerful strategies parents can use to expand their children’s language skills. The session will focus on the foundational strategies that build vocabulary, expand sentences, improve comprehension and promote thinking skills. In this question-and-answer session, speech-language pathologists will present conversational strategies that build language and answer questions parents may have about using these strategies with their children.

Transitioning to Kindergarten
Audience:      Parents/Caregivers
Date:              Wednesday, May 26, 1:30 p.m. or Tuesday, June 1, 7:30 p.m.

Moving from PALS to kindergarten is an exciting step in your child’s educational journey! Join us as we explore ways to support your child in making the transition into a new classroom/school setting.