As a mother and past educator, now homeschooler, I am always trying to find a happy medium between teacher and parent.
I want the best for my child.
The mother part of me wants them to be happy and health. As a teacher, I want to create life long learners that love to learn. The balance is meeting my children where they are and equipping them with the right tools for optimal learning and development. Best practice is building on a child’s schema and teaching in an engaging and exciting setting.
Best practice also means identifying where my children are gifted and deficient.
Knowing where my children struggle allows me to address any specific emotional, cognitive, or social needs that could potentially be hindering their ability to learn.
Fun an Function was started by a family looking for kid-friendly sensory tools and toys that would make an authentic difference in the lives of children.
Who is Fun and Function
The founder of Fun and Function used her expertise in occupational therapy, as well as being a mom, to develop products that support children with special needs. Everything designed is kid-friendly, affordable, and most importantly, makes a real developmental and therapeutic difference in the lives of children. Fun and Function listens to their customers in order to refine and develop tools that meet the needs of real children.
Fun and Function products cover a vast variety of needs and resources. As their name states, their tools are not just for special needs but also to make learning engaging and developmentally appropriate.
Their website is a great resource for searching for the perfect tool that is in your budget, meets special needs diagnosis, or helps with deficiencies. In addition they provide resources for parenting, finding therapists, and running productive intervention sessions.
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Fun and Function
Cocoon Climbing Swing
Both of my young children are introverts but often project themselves as extroverts. As a result, my children often get over stimulate after interacting with large crowds or having an eventful day. At first I blamed their bad behavior and melt downs on fatigue. As a grew as a mother I started to recognize signs of over stimulation and my children looking for a outlet to recuperate.
So when outfitting our homeschooling room, I wanted to cater to the specific needs of my children and create a “detox” safe place.
The Fun and Function Cocoon Climbing Swing was the perfect solution!
My 3 year old son is able to climb in and out of his swing independently. This means his safe place is always accessible whenever he feels he needs it. I love that he doesn’t have to ask, but rather can jump right in on his time.
A durable cushion is easily installed in a zip pouch in the bottom of the swing. The cushion is inflated with air which keeps the swing light weight; which means less stress on the suspensions.
It also gives the base structure so children can easily adjust and move without feeling like they are trapped in a bag.
I love that my son is able to sit cross legged and read or lay down and relax.
The high backing assures my children are safe and won’t tumble out during swinging.
The Cocoon Swing is made with highly durable fabrics and can hold up to 100 lbs. Since my children are still young they are even able to share the swing together. It is a safe quiet place for siblings to bond and share a good book.
When the suspension is moved to a single point, children can have more active play. This swing can be a great outlet for all those little monkeys who love to climb and swing. I am sure as my son gets older and develops more balance strength he will love the play of spinning and twisting on his swing.
Most importantly, this swing is fun! It engages little minds and bodies while developing and challenging them to grow towards success.
Something for Everyone
I do really want to stress that while Fun and Function has a passion and talent for designing for special needs children, their products are universal.
All children benefit from active, engaging, developmentally appropriate learning!
Sensory play has proven to support the brain’s growth while also improving cognitive, social, and emotional skills.
As all moms know, children have a LOT of energy. Physical activities keep kids healthy while positively impacting cognitive skills and academic behavior. Not to mention exercise has been said to help increase oxygen for to the brain and improve its function.
I lastly want to note that all kids have strengths and weaknesses. As parents looking for the best for our children, I find it so important to meet our child at their weakness. Even if that “weakness” is just a skill waiting to be developed. Rather than avoiding or discipling our children’s fixation, fidgeting, hyperactivity, or anxiety we have the power to celebrate their uniqueness. As parents we can empower our children with tools to find success and build confident life long learners.