Wishing You Happy Holidays!

The Growing Brain PH community sends its warmest wishes to you and your family for the holidays.

It has been quite a year for all of us, and even if we have had to stay physically distant, this community was able to start within the online environment to advocate for child development through developmentally appropriate toys and learning sessions these last few months.

Year End Review

We launched last June 7, 2020 when we introduced the concept of neuroscience-informed play, toys and activities on instagram under @thegrowingbrainph. Since then, we have reached 2,946 organic followers who have engaged in our learning posts and fun toy presentations. We look forward to sharing more information with more people in the coming new year!

Not long after, we also linked and launched our page Facebook to be able to share additional articles and helpful resources. Please do follow and/or like us there as well.

In September, we started monthly Virtual Learning sessions on different topics:

• Brain Development and Behaviors

• What is Stress in Little Ones?

• Resilience in Early Childhood

• Media Use by Young Kids

• Eat’s Fun

• Breastfeeding and Brain Development

• Understanding behaviors in my child

If you have topics you’re interested in or are a fellow child advocate who would like to take part in sharing during our learning sessions, please send us an e-mail: info@thegrowingbrainph.com.

We sold out on a lot of our favorite toys over the holidays. Rest assured that we’ll be restocking in the new year, and even launching some new products.

The Growing Brain PH toy store reached 441 customers in the first 7 months of its conception. You guys are the fuel for the work we do.

Thank you!!! 🙏🏻❤️

Community Contributions

We may be a young community, but we wanted to be able to reach out and help even in our small way. Sharing some of the ways we’ve been able to connect, give back and touch the lives of others.

Make a Wish Philippines received 15 sets of brick toys for the different children that they serve. Adding to the granted wishes and gifts given to children and teens battling cancer. A small token for our little warriors.

Sponsorship for parent and professional discussions by TheraWee through Project Smile Philippines. We responded to a request for supporting TheraWee’s initiatives to raise funds that provides teletherapy to children with special needs. 2 lucky winners from the sessions received toys from the store.

Proceeds from the November Virtual Learning series were donated through the Ateneo Dream team for the victims of the typhoons that hit several of our fellow Filipinos this year.

Gawad Kalinga’s Kusina ng Kalinga - we became part of the Hunger Warrior movement by contributing one meal for each toy sold over the holidays. Each toy was a Php 20 peso donation to this cause, which provided a healthy meal for a child. This was a profoundly touching experience that even if we were not able to physically volunteer, the collection for our November to December sales provided a total of 451 meals as of this writing. We are currently communicating with GK’s representatives to be able to continue this support even after the holidays.

Lastly, we also accepted requests to assist families from a low income community in Angono, Rizal who were struggling with getting services for their children with special needs. These included developmental screening and parent coaching sessions for 5 families in the area.

Coming in 2021!

Sharing previous topics and new topics for virtual learning sessions in 2021. New topics will include: Communication and Language, Ways of Play, Developmental Milestones, DIR Floortime for families with autism, and more.

A new site for clinic is targeted to open in February 2021. Please pray for us as we plan and organize this new location. We aim to have easily accessible facilities, set-up appropriate health protocols and be a safe haven for check-ups and consultations needed by our young children.

Online consultations for developmental screening, early childhood consultations, parent coaching and DIR Floortime will resume on January 4, 2021. Consult requests can be sent through info@thegrowingbrainph.com or submitting through this link.