Quiet Centers

All children need time during the day to play quietly by themselves. One such place for them to relax is the Quiet Centre. Here a child can work on a puzzle, string some beads, use a flannel board with shapes and pictures, stack a few toys, simply grab a book and nuzzle up between a few cozy pillows.

Such quiet activities exercise the fine motor skills and teach children concepts of sequences (a math readiness skill) by allowing children to string beads in a certain repeated order, recognize and use variations in shapes, letters, and numbers.

A great Quiet Centre would consist of:

wooden puzzles or regular large piece puzzles
beads of various shapes, sizes and colours
string nesting boxes or rings flannel board and accessories
card games
sorting objects such as buttons, shells, and rocks picture dominoes, etc.