Five Ideas for Keeping Children Happy

Five Ideas for keeping children happy are:

1. Love Children-Find something in each child that you cherish. Remind a child how unique he or she is, by noticing something about him/her each day. Say things like, "you have a red shirt on today!" Or, "I love how you smile when you play with the play dough."

2. Keep Them Safe-Do what you can to provide a safe environment for all children. Make household rules based on safety: " Inside walking keeps us safe-please don't run."

3. Follow A Daily Routine-Have a daily routine that you follow. Eat breakfast, lunch and snacks around the same time every day. Play games and read books around the same time everyday. Remind children about the routing: "We always read books after lunch before we take our naps." Children feel safer when they follow a routine.

4. Learn About Child Development-Learn about how a child typically develops. Learn what activities, games, books, and songs are good for a child during each year of life. Have plenty of opportunities for children to explore those activities. At times, an adult will have to show a child or a group of children how to play a new game or how to play with a new toy. Children need plenty of time and experience to learn now things-even how to play with other children. Be understanding as children are learning.

5. Explore Simple Activities Together-The world is new to a child. Exploring even the simplest items can make a child happy and encourage them to learn. Melt ice in a bowl. collect milk tops, find twigs outside, or watch ants crawl on the ground. These are simple but powerful activities that help a child learn about the world around them and can help keep them happy.