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The ideas hub.

A child's brain is a remarkable little creature forming more than a million neural connections every second when activated. Babies learn through spending time with their parents and other special people in their life. Here are some ideas to help create meaningful moments with your child. These meaningful moments, especially if they occur early in a child’s life and often, build strong brains, providing a strong foundation for their life.

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Icon Relationships and communication

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AGE GROUP

3-5

Trolley Companion

Relationships and communication

When you're grocery shopping with your child, hand them some of the items before you put them into the trolley. As they check it out, tell them its name and talk about what you plan to use it for. Make sure it’s a conversation, where they're adding their ideas!

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3-5

Trolley Companion

Relationships and communication

When you're grocery shopping with your child, hand them some of the items before you put them into the trolley. As they check it out, tell them its name and talk about what you plan to use it for. Make sure it’s a conversation, where they're adding their ideas!

BRAINY BACKGROUND

Holding the object in front of your child as you say its name helps them learn new vocabulary. And every time you have a back and forth conversation that extends their knowledge, you're building a brain!

Vroom | Brain Building Moments

Brainy Background™

4-5

Shopping Search

Attention and focus

When shopping for groceries (or anything really), call out something you’re looking for on the shelf and have your child help you find it. Give them a clue: "It's in a red box." Can you do five in a row before you reach the end of the aisle?

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4-5

Shopping Search

Attention and focus

When shopping for groceries (or anything really), call out something you’re looking for on the shelf and have your child help you find it. Give them a clue: "It's in a red box." Can you do five in a row before you reach the end of the aisle?

BRAINY BACKGROUND

Helping your child pay attention and follow your clues improves their focus and self-control.

Vroom | Brain Building Moments

Brainy Background™

4-5

List Master

Planning and routines

When you’re out running errands, put your child in charge of the list. Have them help list out a few things you both have to do that day. When you finish each task, cross it off the list together!

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4-5

List Master

Planning and routines

When you’re out running errands, put your child in charge of the list. Have them help list out a few things you both have to do that day. When you finish each task, cross it off the list together!

BRAINY BACKGROUND

When you make a list and cross things off the list together, it helps your child learn that written words represent real-world activities.

Vroom | Brain Building Moments

Brainy Background™

3-4

Letter Shapes

Attention and focus

Encourage your child to point out letters on signs around them. Help describe the shapes of the letters, like, “Look. The letter A is pointy, like a triangle. What about the letter O?” See if you and your child can find all the letters of the alphabet and describe their Letter Shapes.

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3-4

Letter Shapes

Attention and focus

Encourage your child to point out letters on signs around them. Help describe the shapes of the letters, like, “Look. The letter A is pointy, like a triangle. What about the letter O?” See if you and your child can find all the letters of the alphabet and describe their Letter Shapes.

BRAINY BACKGROUND

Your child is using focus to find letters, self-control to keep playing the game, and memory to use what they know about letters and shapes to make new connections. When you have fun with language and shapes, you help them enjoy learning.

Vroom | Brain Building Moments

Brainy Background™

2-3

Touch Talk

Attention and focus

While you’re waiting, encourage your child to touch the different clothing you’re each wearing. Talk back and forth about how it feels: “We’re both wearing shirts. Mine is smooth and yours is wrinkled.” Take turns using as many words as you can to describe how your clothes feel.

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2-3

Touch Talk

Attention and focus

While you’re waiting, encourage your child to touch the different clothing you’re each wearing. Talk back and forth about how it feels: “We’re both wearing shirts. Mine is smooth and yours is wrinkled.” Take turns using as many words as you can to describe how your clothes feel.

BRAINY BACKGROUND

With this conversation, you’re helping your child learn how to make connections—that one thing (words) can stand for other things (what they touch). You're also helping them learn new words and their meanings as you turn waiting time into learning time.

Vroom | Brain Building Moments

Brainy Background™

0-0.5

In the Bag

Relationships and communication

Before you go to an appointment, grab some safe things for your child to play with and put them in a bag. While you’re waiting, reach into the bag and talk about what you find. “This is a teething ring for you to chew on. Here’s a rattle for you to hold. Let’s shake it!”

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0-0.5

In the Bag

Relationships and communication

Before you go to an appointment, grab some safe things for your child to play with and put them in a bag. While you’re waiting, reach into the bag and talk about what you find. “This is a teething ring for you to chew on. Here’s a rattle for you to hold. Let’s shake it!”

BRAINY BACKGROUND

Talking about what’s In the Bag is interesting to your child and will help them build their vocabulary and their brain. Speak in full sentences. It's okay to use words they don't know yet. That's how they learn!

Vroom | Brain Building Moments

Brainy Background™

1.5-2

Shhh, What’s That?

Relationships and communication

Do you hear a sound in the waiting room? Pause. Ask your child, “What's that sound?” Take turns guessing. Are you hearing a slamming door or papers rustling? The squeak of a sliding chair or someone clearing his or her throat? Name them all together!

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1.5-2

Shhh, What’s That?

Relationships and communication

Do you hear a sound in the waiting room? Pause. Ask your child, “What's that sound?” Take turns guessing. Are you hearing a slamming door or papers rustling? The squeak of a sliding chair or someone clearing his or her throat? Name them all together!

BRAINY BACKGROUND

You're inviting your child to focus on hearing the differences in sounds. This is an important skill for enjoying and learning language so they can communicate with others.

Vroom | Brain Building Moments

Brainy Background™

0-0.5

Sound Off

Relationships and communication

Turn waiting for an appointment into a Sound Off. Make different sounds like a whisper, peep, ding, or roar. Pause after each sound so your child can respond. Do they smile? Look at you? Make a sound themselves? Try a new sound. Keep going back and forth!

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0-0.5

Sound Off

Relationships and communication

Turn waiting for an appointment into a Sound Off. Make different sounds like a whisper, peep, ding, or roar. Pause after each sound so your child can respond. Do they smile? Look at you? Make a sound themselves? Try a new sound. Keep going back and forth!

BRAINY BACKGROUND

This back and forth conversation with sounds gives your child practice listening and helps them learn to notice differences in sounds, the foundation for language development and communicating with others.

Vroom | Brain Building Moments

Brainy Background™

2.5-3

Song-versations

Planning and routines

While waiting, create singing conversations. Instead of talking back and forth, quietly sing what you want to say to each other. How does your child respond? Then try whispering. Keep going back and forth and make it a game.

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2.5-3

Song-versations

Planning and routines

While waiting, create singing conversations. Instead of talking back and forth, quietly sing what you want to say to each other. How does your child respond? Then try whispering. Keep going back and forth and make it a game.

BRAINY BACKGROUND

Singing their words and whispering them gives your child practice with controlling their behaviour to play the game. This self-control is an important foundation for learning and being able to do what it takes to meet goals.

Vroom | Brain Building Moments

Brainy Background™

Every time we connect with young children, it’s not just their eyes that light up—it’s their brains, too. A global program of the Bezos Family Foundation, Vroom(R) helps parents boost their child’s learning during the time they already spend together. Vroom believes all parents want what’s best for their children. So we joined with scientists, researchers, and parents to take the science out of the lab and put it in the hands of caregivers. Vroom provides science-based tips and tools to inspire families to turn shared, everyday moments into Brain Building Moments(TM). Since 2015, Vroom has grown to impact nearly 1,500,000 families in 37 US states and 6 countries around the world. Learn more at Vroom.org.

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