The Night before New Year's: Library Notes

 

The Night Before New Year's has a great rhyming pattern to it. Written     by Natasha Wing, it is a book I never read before but recommend to others.  As we read the book we do not just go through a single day's events but we are inspired to try many activities throughout the year.

The book starts by answering two basic questions: when and what. It is the month of December and the last day of the year, the bridge to a new year.  Right away we find an activity as this is a good place to go through the months of the year song and practice being able to recite them all in order. If you know them in English, why not try to sing it in French?  It seems to fit the tune quite well when I try!

The children then do what children do.  They beg their parents, "PLLLEEEAASSSSSSE!" They want to stay up late. You can practice time at this point.  What is your child's bedtime?  How much longer do they need to stay up to make it to midnight? Can they do the math?  Can they tell time on a clock? Try.

When mom and dad say yes, they go to a store for party supplies.  How exciting!  Make up a list of items you would buy if you were going to stay up late.  Try to plan out the cost for it also. Is there anything different you would buy for December 31st? When you write your lists and plan ahead you practice a lot of valuable skills such as organization, reading, writing and arithmetic!

Decorations can be purchased or made.  You could make your own banner for your celebration to brighten up the room and declare the theme of the party. Pull out all your favourite art supplies for this.

For any party, are there special foods that you love to plan for and include?  Is pizza, chicken wings or hamburgers on your menu? No? Yes? As with any meal time the child can keep busy setting up the table. They can set up the napkins or put out the placemats or serving spoons.  Once seated at the table, they can pass the food along, talk about the meal, give thanks for the person who cooked it and enjoy all the various tastes, textures and smells.  There is so much learning involved in meals!

They gave toasts and shared their resolutions.  If you were to make a speech at the start of a new year, what topics would you talk about?  Brainstorm some ideas together.  It is especially helpful if you purposefully give thanks for the things you appreciate most in life.  It is good practice to do this on a daily basis and just magnify it more on such a special day.  You can discuss the definition of a resolution and think if you have any plans for the day/week/month/year ahead. It is always good to have a plan so you can begin to take steps toward it even if you get off track from time to time. It makes the steps clearer and helps you focus on goals that are meaningful to you.

After dinner there were games. Do you like 'minute to win it' games or 'charades' or 'musical chairs'? They added in checkers and card games.  Try learning a new game this year.  What are the rules to it? Can you explain it to others?  Enjoy these positive interactions and use them to build turn-taking skills.

The family takes a walk down memory lane by looking at old photos which is something you can do too.  They then take a walk outdoors which is also something that you can happily do on December 31st

They go back to watch the ball drop at Times Square on television.  Sometimes it is good to visit places you cannot go to personally through television.  They practice their cheers...toot horns, cheer and pop poppers.  Can you have a little dance party, band session or party cheer?  Practice creating, writing or repeating a special cheer.

In the end, the children fell asleep before midnight with visions of fireworks dancing in their heads.  They missed ringing in new year but that was okay as it helped them decide on the right resolution... to stay up for next new year's eve!

All of the planning and thought that went into the activities to make one day memorable should inspire you to plan for a memorable day too!  At least one day a year, a month or a week.  If you are especially inspired you can make a plan to do something special every day! Why not? A walk outdoors? A special meal?  A board game? These are simple things. It is all about creating good memories with the child(ren) in your life and that is something that truly matters every day of life!