We know that fine and gross motor development are important skills, especially for little people in their early years of life. Motor skills can range from writing or playing with small blocks (fine motor skills), to jumping, walking backwards, or riding a bike (gross motor skills).

One of the times children grow and develop gross motor skills is during unstructured play times, such as playing with family or friends at home, in the community gym, at the park, or at school during outdoor play. These are times where children use their imagination to explore and acquire new gross motor skills without specific directions they must follow. Unstructured play times are beneficial for young children because they allow them to test their own limits and try new things when it comes to their gross motor development.

The preschool years are a time of rapid motor and cognitive development. Some children, particularly children with disabilities, may need structured support to develop foundational skills in these domains. Preschool teachers can help their students develop motor and cognitive skills by integrating them into their daily curriculum.

Balancing the demands of caregiving with your own well-being can be a challenging task. However, by implementing effective tips and strategies, caregivers can seamlessly integrate essential respite moments into their daily routines, ensuring both their own health and the quality of care they provide.

Family stress is defined as any stressor that concerns one of more members of the family, or the whole system, at a defined time (Randall & Bodenmann, 2013). When families experience stress, it can reduce their capacity for providing a nurturing environment for their children, which in turn can impact their children’s mental health and development. In the short-term, unaddressed family stress can affect a child’s ability to regulate their emotions and behavior (Cohen & Roderick Stark, 2017).

Caregiving can be incredibly rewarding, but it can also be physically and emotionally draining, leading to burnout and decreased well-being. A vital, but often overlooked, aspect of caregiving is respite: taking a break or having a temporary relief from caregiving responsibilities. Respite helps provide caregivers with much-needed physical, emotional, and mental relief from the demands of their caregiving responsibilities.