The bright red paint had just dried on toddler Adam Kobayashi's newspaper-made macaw and it was ready to have its googly eyes glued into place.

"OK, here we goooo!" the 2-year-old exclaimed.

With a perfect pincer grasp, Adam put each tiny eye onto glue dots on the macaw's little head. Adam looked at the face of his new friend, then smiled when he realized what he had done. He stood on his chair to announce to the classroom: "I did it!"

Adam, two other toddlers and their parents were in the middle of an art and science lesson with a rain forest theme at The Growing Nest, a boutique at Ward Warehouse. The class is among those islandwide summer programs geared toward toddlers and preschoolers that take "tot time" to another level, covering topics such as eco-consciousness, Hawaiian language and history, and astronomy. (See box.)

Such programs celebrate young minds, encouraging little ones to put on their thinking caps and develop their problem-solving, critical-thinking and risk-taking skills.

"These types of classes are popular because parents now are really taking control of their children's education, knowing that they are the people who are responsible for giving their children the best educational starting point," said The Growing Nest owner Jen Sarsuelo, who has a background in early education. "Parents are searching for things to expose their children to that they know will benefit their children in their educational journey."

USING THE SENSES

The Growing Nest's art and science class, called Go Green!, teaches children about animals, the planet and being eco-friendly through multisensory projects taught by teachers from Kupono Learning Center.

Toddlers and preschoolers learn by using all of their senses; seeing, hearing, touching, smelling and tasting, explained Geri Kunishima, director of Kupono Learning Center.

"By doing this, you're helping the child develop their type of special learning. ... Not everybody learns the same," added Kunishima, who's also Sarsuelo's mom.

While program topics such as environmental awareness may seem advanced for young minds, they are capable of absorbing the information, Kunishima said.

"Though you think the child does not seem interested, the child is picking up the language, the (parent's) excitement," she said.

Studies have shown that children who are engaged at a very young age with new terms and concepts — from reading, writing or everyday life — can pick them up quickly and naturally, Kunishima said. So if parents expose their children to things early on, even seemingly complex things, little ones will likely be familiar with them by the time they're introduced in school.

"That's the key: Familiarity breeds much more of a willingness to learn and also the joy of thinking," Kunishima said.

FOR PARENTS, TOO

At the Go Green! class, where 2-year-old Adam completed his bright red macaw, his parents, Patrick and Kris Kobayashi of Kaka'ako, showered him with praise: "Very good!" "You did it!" "Wow!"

The toddler swelled with pride.

Sarsuelo encourages parents to consider enrolling their toddlers or preschoolers in educational programs this summer.

"Classes in general that involve a parent and a child, whether it's this or another one, is important because it's time spent with your child," Sarsuelo said.

Classes can also benefit parents by showing them techniques to teach their children and how to expose their children to various concepts and skills, both Sarsuelo and Kunishima said.

"Parents have a natural instinct to want to nurture and help their child," Kunishima said. "By signing up for these kinds of classes ... they themselves will grow along with their child."

Kris Kobayashi, 35, smiled as she watched her son Adam share his feathered rainforest friend with his classmates. The stay-at-home mom said she enjoys the Go Green! class because it offers different hands-on art projects they wouldn't normally do at home.

"I think it's a great opportunity to introduce him to a different way of learning," Kobayashi said.