In today's fast-paced world, carving out quality time with family can feel like a monumental task. Between demanding work schedules, extracurricular activities, and the ever-present allure of screens, the simple act of sharing a meal together can easily fall by the wayside. However, overlooking the importance of family meals is a missed opportunity. More than just a time to refuel, family meals offer a powerful platform for building connections, boosting nutrition, and fostering communication, ultimately shaping healthier and happier individuals and families.

Juggling work, school, and the endless demands of raising young children can leave you feeling drained at the end of the day. The last thing you want is the added pressure of figuring out what to make for dinner. But healthy, nutritious meals are crucial for growing bodies and busy families. So how do you manage to put delicious and wholesome food on the table without spending hours in the kitchen? The key is to focus on simple recipes that prioritize fresh ingredients, quick cooking methods, and kid-friendly flavours. This doesn't mean sacrificing taste or nutrition – it's about being smart and efficient with your time.

In today's fast-paced, consumer-driven world, it's easy to get caught up in wanting more. This can be especially true for young children, who are constantly bombarded with advertisements and exposed to the possessions of their peers. That's why cultivating gratitude in young children is more important than ever. Learning to appreciate what they have, rather than focusing on what they lack, can foster happiness, resilience, and a positive outlook on life. But gratitude isn't an innate quality; it's a skill that needs to be taught and nurtured. Fortunately, there are many effective ways to help young children develop a grateful heart.

In today's digital age, screens are everywhere. From smartphones to tablets to TVs, they’re a constant presence in our lives and, consequently, in the lives of our children. Figuring out how much screen time is appropriate for young ones can feel like navigating a minefield. This article aims to provide clarity by outlining the latest recommendations for children from birth to nine years old, helping parents strike a healthy balance between the digital world and real-world experiences.

As parents, we're faced with a multitude of extracurricular options for our children. While many activities promise physical development, enhanced coordination, and an energy outlet, not all programs are created equal. Catrobatkidz stands apart, offering a holistic approach that goes beyond the typical benefits. Here's why enrolling your child in Catrobatkidz can make a real difference...

The question, "Should my child continue with Catrobatkidz next year?" is one we hear frequently, and it's a valid one for any parent considering their child's development. The brief answer is an emphatic "Yes!" However, the reasons behind this recommendation are multi-faceted and deserve a more detailed exploration. Children are not static; they are dynamic beings constantly evolving and growing. Their physical capabilities, cognitive understanding, and social-emotional skills all develop in a series of stages. Therefore, during these formative years, it's essential to provide children with a consistent stream of enriching, age-appropriate learning experiences and challenges that match their increasing abilities.

Remember, W-sitting can be one simple sign that the child may have a retained primitive reflex, which is neurological. Sometimes, the insufficient trunk strength is a result of a retained primitive reflex called the Symmetrical Tonic Neck Reflex (STNR). This reflex impacts actions, which makes changing a muscle habit difficult.

Children learn through interactions with their environment. W-sitting inhibits much of that exploration, discouraging integration of balance reactions, sensory input and muscle activation. It is very important that a child gains strength and control in their abdomen and back. This allows for greater capacity to run, jump and move with coordinated control, which helps with visual planning, hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills.

What do brushing your teeth, shaking someone’s hand, and reading this article have in common? A skill called “crossing the midline”. Around 3 months, babies can cross the midline with their eyes as they visually track an object moved in an arc in front of them. By 6 months they begin reaching across the body with one hand, and around 8 months they cross the midline with both hands by transferring objects from one hand to the other. By age 4, children should generally cross the midline with ease. Crossing the midline is very important to a child’s learning development. It’s an essential key element to helping children flourish and learn in the classroom as they get older. Our ability to reach over our midline with our arms and legs to perform tasks on the opposite side of our body plays a huge role in our day-to-day functioning.

Anyone who’s ever seen a child jumping knows what the face of true joy looks like. Children are typically ready for jumping between 16-18 months and will begin by jumping in place. Jumping is one of the simplest, cost-effective workouts that combine fun and fitness together, providing physical, health and educational benefits to children, young or old. Best of all is that jumping is enjoyable and can be done any time of the day, anywhere.

Ball skills are an important activity for all children to practice consistently. It is not just an activity for boys only, or for the athletic child. No matter the child’s interests or abilities ball skills will benefit all children in developing bilateral skills, eye-hand / eye-foot coordination, timing, sequencing and motor planning, plus it is a great way to spend quality time together and build relationships.

It doesn’t matter if your child is an athlete or an artist, core strength is important no matter who you are or what you’re doing. All children need core stability in order to be functional in daily school and home tasks. You need a strong core to do everything from playing games with your buddies to participating in sports…. and for controlling your paint brush in art class!

What on earth is a growth mindset and how can it turn your child into a regular Super-boy or Super-girl? Of course, you want your children to be happy and achieve their dreams! Developing a growth mindset early on has been strongly linked to greater success in life. When children know their brains are capable of growing, they feel empowered, more confident, resilient, get better at things and can push through the fear of failure. Amazing things can happen!

We often hear messages in the media that children aren’t getting enough physical activity. But what exactly does “being physically active” mean when you are an infant, toddler or pre-schooler? And is it important for their health now and in the future? When we talk about physical activity for young children we don’t mean going to the gym. These ideas of physical activity aimed at adults, are not suitable for young children. They are still learning to inhabit their bodies. For young children, physical activity is about active play and exploring their environment. They are learning how to manoeuvre themselves physically and how to orient themselves in space.

More and more parents get called into the school office and get the bombshell dropped on them…. “Your child has Low Muscle Tone!!!” What does this really mean? Muscle tone is the amount of tension (or resistance to movement) in muscles when they are at rest. Our muscle tone helps us to hold our bodies upright when we are sitting and standing. Changes in muscle tone are what enable us to move. Since tone only describes a muscle when it is inactive or resting, it is quite possible for a child with low tone to still be very strong when they exert themselves and activate their muscles. There’s a big difference between muscle tone and muscle strength. So, what are the symptoms, and how can you help a child with low muscle tone? Read further……

Research suggests that thousands of parents are causing permanent damage to their children’s feet by buying them the wrong shoes. At Catrobatkidz, we’re all about encouraging and inspiring children to be active. In other words, to be on their feet and taking part in activities that help them become stronger, fitter and more confident. Most of the times we ask children to remove their shoes for our classes to allow their bare feet to “feel” the exercise and use the foot muscles. A lot of parents find shoe shopping for a pre-schooler downright overwhelming. The fashion options are endless, from rubber to leather soles, flip-flops to boots to Crocs, but not all children’s shoes are created equal. Making the right choice is more important than just style and colour. It’s especially important to make sure you are choosing the right shoes for your children because their feet are still growing and their gait is still developing...

Movement is a powerful tool for developing the minds and bodies of young children. As a parent, you looked forward to seeing your baby start crawling, you waited to catch their first step on camera and you’re looking forward to cheering them on at school sports events. Reaching these milestones are all indicators that your child is growing and learning. What you might not know, is that movement contributes to more than a child’s physical development. There are many other areas where movement plays an essential role in developing a well-rounded individual.