Pediatric Associates of Fairfield

11/10/2025

Cooking with your kids is beneficial in so many ways - it not only helps them learn new skills, such as following recipes, but allows them feel a sense of accomplishment as they engage in meal preparation from start to finish. Introducing these skills to your kids can help them establish self-confidence at such an early age!

All information provided by Monday Campaigns — https://fb.com/HealthyMonday

11/09/2025

Your child’s growing independence from the family and interest in friends might be obvious by now. Healthy friendships are very important to your child’s development, but peer pressure can become strong during this time. Children who feel good about themselves are more able to resist negative peer pressure and make better choices. Here is a positive parenting quick tip to help you support your 9 to 11-year-old during this time:

BE AFFECTIONATE AND HONEST WITH YOUR CHILD AND DO THINGS TOGETHER AS A FAMILY.

Check back soon for more positive parenting quick tips!

All information provided by the CDC — https://fb.com/cdc

11/09/2025

11/09/2025

As children get older, parents may start to notice that the afternoon nap has a noticeable impact on nighttime sleep. A common saying is “sleep begets sleep” (meaning that the better a child sleeps during the day, the better they will sleep at night) but this seems to run counter to our experiences as parents. Most parents report that when their child takes a long or late nap during the day, they have trouble falling asleep at night and when they skip a nap, they fall asleep at the dinner table.

A review study published in 2014 found that napping during the day is consistently linked to falling asleep later at night as well as decreased sleep duration and quality of sleep at night. In other words, children who nap tend to go to sleep later at night and sleep for a shorter time and more poorly at night than children who do not nap. However, this association was strongest for children over the age of 2 years, suggesting that naps may only significantly impact nighttime sleep for children over 2.

Another recent study examined napping in 1.5-year-old children and how naps impacted nighttime sleep. The researchers found that the longer toddlers nap during the day, the later they went to sleep at night and the less time they slept at night overall. The timing of the nap also seemed to have a significant impact with late afternoon naps disturbing sleep to a greater extent. In other words, it may not be napping in itself that disrupts nighttime sleep but napping for longer or later in the day.

TRANSLATION: A shorter nap in the early afternoon may help if your child struggles with nighttime sleep. However, if your child is napping well and sleeping well at night, there is no reason to cut their nap short or skip it altogether.

Visit the Parenting Translator newsletter for more research on napping (including links to all of the research) including why children stop napping and what to do as a parent when your child drops their nap!

All information provided by Parenting Translator Foundation — parentingtranslator.org

11/06/2025

Flu season is beginning! Help keep your family healthy with these simple steps:

🤲 Wash hands often
😴 Get plenty of rest
🥦 Eat nutritious foods
💉 And most importantly: get the whole family vaccinated!
Protecting your little ones starts with protecting everyone around them.

Call the office to schedule your child's flu shot today.

11/05/2025

Accommodations aren’t about giving kids who learn and think differently the upper hand, it’s about giving them an equal chance to thrive. 📚🎒✎

Learn more: https://www.understood.org/en/articles/classroom-accommodations-for-adhd?utm_medium=organic&utm_source=instagram&utm_campaign=evergreen-fam%E2%80%93reducestigma%E2%80%93accommodations-carousel&utm_content=carousel

All information provided by Understood — https://fb.com/Understood

11/04/2025

Childhood adversity often falls into these three categories of experience: abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction.

If you have questions or concerns about these experiences, do not hesitate to contact your health provider.

All information provided by Policy for Maternal Mental Health — www.2020mom.org — https://fb.com/policycentermmh

11/04/2025

Seeing that high number on the thermometer is tough! 🌡️ A fever (over 100.4 degrees F) is just your child’s defense mechanism kicking in. Treat it with an over-the-counter fever-reducing medicine and remember this golden rule: They must be fever-free for 24 hours without medication before returning to school or daycare. 🏡 Let's keep everyone healthy! https://pediatricassociates.us/Fever

11/04/2025

Improve your chances of steering clear of serious flu symptoms with an annual flu vaccination. Flu vaccines protect against three seasonal influenza viruses.

All information provided by the CDC — https://fb.com/cdc

11/02/2025

Thanks to vaccines, your child can be protected from serious diseases. 🎉

Vaccination is one of the safest and most effective ways to keep your child healthy.
Here's why vaccines are important:
* 🛡️ They protect your child from preventable diseases.
* 👪 They also protect those around them, like grandparents and babies too young to be vaccinated.
* 🌎 Vaccines have saved millions of lives worldwide.

All information provided by Ohio AAP — www.ohioapp.org — https://fb.com/aapohio

11/01/2025

Visit parentingtranslator.org/resources to learn more about developmental, delays and disabilities!

If you are concerned about your child’s development, you should always seek help from professionals. However, if your child does not meet criteria for services or if you have to wait for an evaluation or services (unfortunately waiting lists for early intervention are all too common), here are three ways you can help to advance your child’s development:

1️⃣ Increase the language: Research consistently finds that the more you talk to your child, the more advanced language skills they will develop. In particular, research suggests that you should focus on back-and-forth conversations with your child (even if their response is only a babble or some type of movement). You don’t have to practice language in formal lessons or using flashcards– just work more language into your everyday routines.

2️⃣ Read to your child: Research suggests that reading to your child is associated with improved language and academic skills. Create a routine in which you read to your child at least once per day. Make sure you are not just reading the words but talking to your child about the book and allowing them to make comments or ask questions.

3️⃣ Play, play, play: Get on the floor and play with your child whenever you have a chance. Follow their lead in play and allow them to choose the activity and how the play goes. Research finds that this type of child-directed play helps to advance cognitive, physical, social, and emotional development.

All information provided by Parenting Translator Foundation — parentingtranslator.org