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Recently, I have been thinking about all the wonderful ideas that other moms and educators share via blogs, yahoogroups, personal chats, activity exchanges, etc. And, although the number of ideas I want to try out always seems to far exceed the amount of time (focus and discipline) I have to prepare each idea for presentation to my children, I am always grateful to hear about others tried-and-true activities. They give me lots to look forward to.
Just what did Kim share with us last time? A bevy of activities that focused on classic pre-k skills and just plain inventive fun:
Paper Clip Counting activity (A great Montessori-inspired one!)
a Button Jar
Lacing Cards
Circus Reading -- a fabric book with finger puppet characters
a Buckle Book -- a homemade buckle and fasteners book
Color Carton Fun -- a color pom pom sorting egg box
a Matching Game – paint chip matching cards (A great Montessori-inspired one!)
a Morning Routine activity -- a morning/meal routine card set with real life manipulatives
Alphabet Fun – placemat, foam letters and erasable marker
Fun with Numbers – placemat, foam shapes and numbers and an erasable marker
Golf Tee Hammering -- a foam block and golf tee hammering activity (A great Montessori-inspired one!)
Treasure Hunt -- a rice-filled treasure chest coin search game
Luke and Nina truly enjoyed this these activity bags, and I was especially grateful to have them on hand for days at home that I was too busy or distracted to come up with something myself, as well as for long road trips and a visit to Nana and Papa’s. Without a doubt, exchanging activity bags has proved both entertaining and educational for us --as well as time-saving for Mom
I’d love to hear about to hear favorite Activity Bag ideas, successful exchanges (activity bags, crafts, cookies, whatever...) I find them so inspiring! Please share in a comment, with a link if you’ve got one, below. Also, to read about other things that folks are thankful for this week, please enjoy Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers! Thanks!
P.S. If you want to see what we included in our half of the last exchange with Kim, look at yesterday’s post. As the week continues, I will try to post about another Activity Bag exchange we did and, by next week, I will share what I mail to Kim this weekend.
Some time ago, I got excited by a post on one of the yahoogroups I belong to which proposed an Activity Bag exchange based on the ideas at ActivityBags.com. I quickly responded, knowing that the exchange would motivate me to get going on fall planning for more formal pre-homeschooling with the kids. Within days, I was paired up with an energetic homeschooling mom of toddler twins. Together, we decided to begin our trade by making 24 bags each – a dozen to keep and a dozen to share.
Since, at the time, I had been dabbling in Montessori-inspired activities with my children for a couple years, I decided to focus on putting together the activities for my half of the exchange with Montessori in mind. And, in the spirit of environmental and economic awareness, I opted to limit my materials for use in the bags to mostly things I already had around the house that could be repurposed. These parameters, along with a wish to pay attention to some descriptors the mom I was paired with used to introduce her children, set me on my way. The result? Here are the activities I came up with: Activity Name: Tweezing Pom Poms (Practical Life)
Aims: eye-hand coordination, concentration, learning to use tweezers, preparation for writing (pincer grasp), etc. Activity Directions: Use tweezers to transfer pom-poms from small rectangular containers to large circular one. Then, re-transfer, sorting pom-poms by colors. Extensions/Variations: (1) Swap out tweezers with tongs, strawberry huller, or small spoons. (2) Swap out pom poms with other small objects. (3) Swap out containers with attractive bowls and baskets. Control of Error: No pom poms left in rectangular containers. Unable to make tweezers work. Bag Includes: 2 lidded rectangular plastic containers, 1 open circular plastic container, 5 black pom poms, and 5 orange pom poms Montessori Source Inspiration: Practical Life album from amontessorimarketplace.com and Mommy, Teach Me! by Barbara Curtis, page 92-924 Swap Partner’s Descriptor Inspiration: “Fine motor skills is always on my mind...” (Work with tweezers is great for developing fine motor skills.) WARNING: Although intended for children to use somewhat independently, this activity includes a plastic bag, which may pose a suffocation hazard if placed over head, and may include small parts, which may pose a choking hazard if ingested. Adult supervision is required. Activity Name: Sound Canisters (Sensorial)
Aims: sound discrimination, grading sounds, order, concentration, independence, ability to make a choice, one-to-one correspondence, etc. Activity Directions: Shake the canisters to try to find two with matching sounds. For the first few times, use only the canisters with black and white lids. Then, try using all of them, color side down. Extensions/Variations: (1) Guess the sound and, then, hold canisters up outside to see a shadow of what’s in them. (2) Use only canisters with the same color top and grade them from softest to loudest sound. Control of Error: End up without a match for the last canister. Paired canisters have sounds that do not match. Bag Includes: 2 canisters with white lids, 2 with black, 4 with orange and 4 with yellow. Montessori Source Inspiration: http://www.infomontessori.com/sensorial/auditory-sense-sound-boxes.htm, Sensorial album from amontessorimarketplace.com and Mommy, Teach Me! by Barbara Curtis, pages 103-104 Swap Partner’s Descriptor Inspiration: “Lu...loves music...” (He should enjoy the sound and rhythm of shaking canisters.) WARNING: Although intended for children to use somewhat independently, this activity includes a plastic bag, which may pose a suffocation hazard if placed over head, and may include small parts, which may pose a choking hazard if ingested. Adult supervision is required. Activity Name: Yoga Cards (Practical Life)
Aims: control of movement, balance, calming oneself, concentration, body awareness, etc. Activity Directions: Place all cards on a plate, face up. Pick up a card and attempt the pose. Then, place card, face down, on the other plate. Extensions/Variations: (1) Make up your own poses based on animals, vehicles and other things of interest. (2) Switch out cards with other yoga pose cards. (3) For poses with animal names, find picture cards or toys to match the names. Put them in a bag or basket and draw one out to decide which pose to do. Control of Error: Unable to perform pose to own satisfaction. Bag Includes: 25 yoga pose cards and 2 plates Montessori Source Inspiration: http://montessoribyhand.blogspot.com/2007/06/yoga-in-classroom.html and http://www.newchildmontessori.com/yoga.html Swap Partner’s Descriptor Inspiration: “I have a hard time doing physical things- except chasing after them!” (Maybe this activity will help the kids direct some of that physical energy of theirs!) WARNING: Although intended for children to use somewhat independently, this activity includes a plastic bag, which may pose a suffocation hazard if placed over head. Adult supervision is required. Activity Name: Walking the Line (Practical Life)
Aims: poise, balance, concentration, developing coordination of body movement, etc. Activity Directions: Tear a long strip of crepe paper off, lay it in a line on the floor and try to walk along it, balancing. Extensions/Variations: (1) Walk on the line while carrying a bell, trying not to let it ring. (2) Walk on the line while carrying a full glass of water, trying not to let it spill. (3) Walk on the line carrying something on head, trying not to let it fall. (4) Use the shape control cards to make different shapes to walk on. (5) “Write” letter and number shapes with the crepe paper to walk on. (6) Use painter’s tape or ribbon instead of crepe paper. Control of Error: Feet not on the line. Losing balance. Bag Includes: roll of crepe paper, control cards for line, triangle, circle, rectangle, oval, diamond and square Montessori Source Inspiration: http://www.infomontessori.com/practical-life/control-of-movement-walking-on-the-line.htm and Practical Life album, p. 30 from amontessorimarketplace.com Swap Partner’s Descriptor Inspiration: “I have a hard time doing physical things- except chasing after them!” (Again, maybe this will help them direct their energy in a positive way.) WARNING: Although intended for children to use somewhat independently, this activity includes a plastic bag, which may pose a suffocation hazard if placed over head and crepe paper, which may pose a choking hazard if torn small and ingested. Adult supervision is required. Activity Name: Fabrics (Sensorial)
Aims: tactile discrimination, visual discrimination, one-to-one correspondence, weight discrimination, classification, concentration, etc. Activity Directions: Divide fabric squares between two plates, so the pile on one plate matches the pile on the other. Mix up the pile on each plate. Then, take the first piece of fabric off Plate 1. Look at it. Feel it. Find its match on Plate 2. Place the matching pair on Plate 3. Extensions/Variations: (1) Use a blindfold, close eyes or place fabric in a bag so that only the sense of touch may be used. (2) Swap out fabrics with other fabrics. (3) Swap out fabric with different textures of sandpaper or wallpaper samples. (4) Find matches for and classify fabrics by visual patterns – stripes, solids, flowered, etc. (5) Order fabrics by heaviest to lightest. (6) Order fabrics by darkest to lightest. Control of Error: The color, texture and design of fabric. Ending up without a matching pair. Bag Includes: 8 pairs of matching fabric swatches, 3 paper plates Montessori Source Inspiration: http://www.infomontessori.com/sensorial/tactile-sense-fabrics.htm, Mommy, Teach Me! by Barbara Curtis, pages 107-108 and various activities in Sensorial album from amontessorimarketplace.com Swap Partner’s Descriptor Inspiration: “They are just starting to show interest in how to dress/ undress...” “Le...loves manipulatives” (Clothes are made of all sorts of fun patterns and fabric weights. Manipulating cloth might be of interest. WARNING: Although intended for children to use somewhat independently, this activity includes a plastic bag, which may pose a suffocation hazard if placed over head. Adult supervision is required. Activity Name: Color Grading (Sensorial)
Aims: visual discrimination, appreciation of color, color names, order, concentration, etc. Activity Directions: Take the color cards of the envelope. Separate by color first. Then, put each set of colors in order, top to bottom, from lightest to darkest. Match these with the strips on the tri-fold control card. Extensions/Variations: (1) Use only black cards first to get the concept of lightest to darkest. (2) Use primary colors only. (3) Use two primary colors and the secondary color they “mix into”. Then, use water and food coloring to explore the colors further. (4) Look at rainbow pictures or a real rainbow. Use the color cards to make a rainbow pattern, which moves from darkest to lightest or lightest to darkest. (5) Use color cards for mosaic patterns. Control of Error: Order of cards does not match control card. Bag Includes: envelope of 6 shades of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple and black cards and tri-fold control card Montessori Source Inspiration: http://www.infomontessori.com/sensorial/visual-sense-color-tablets.htm,Mommy, Teach Me! by Barbara Curtis, pages 102-103, pages 91-98 of in Sensorial album from amontessorimarketplace.com Swap Partner’s Descriptor Inspiration: “They love colors, so we are working on naming them.” (This will help them extend their color vocabulary using “dark” and “light”, etc.) WARNING: Although intended for children to use somewhat independently, this activity includes a plastic bag, which may pose a suffocation hazard if placed over head. Adult supervision is required. Activity Name: Color Matching (Sensorial)
Aims: visual discrimination, appreciation of color, color names, one-to-one correspondence, concentration, etc. Activity Directions: Take out all cards. Make two columns of cards, so the first card in Column 1 matches in color to the first one in Column 2, and so on. Extensions/Variations: (1) Use only primary colors. (2) Use only secondary colors. (3) Find an object in the room that matches each of the colors and place object on the corresponding card or the corresponding card on the object. (4) Turn cards over and play Memory with them. (5) With a partner, play a simple version of “Go Fish” with cards. (6) With a partner, lay all cards face up. Take one away. Ask partner to discover which one is missing. Control of Error: Row 1 and Row 2 do not match. One card does not have a pair. Bag Includes: 2 cards each of red, yellow, blue, orange, green, purple and black Montessori Source Inspiration: http://www.infomontessori.com/sensorial/visual-sense-color-tablets.htm, Mommy, Teach Me! by Barbara Curtis, pages 100-101, pages 91-98 of in Sensorial album from amontessorimarketplace.com Swap Partner’s Descriptor Inspiration: “They love colors, so we are working on naming them.” (This will help them name the different colors and explore primary and secondary colors.) WARNING: Although intended for children to use somewhat independently, this activity includes a plastic bag, which may pose a suffocation hazard if placed over head. Adult supervision is required. Activity Name: Color Clips (Sensorial)
Aims: visual discrimination, appreciation of color, color names, one-to-one correspondence, concentration, shape names, shape concepts, fine motor skills, preparation for writing (pincer grasp), etc. Activity Directions: Use only the squares. Lay them out in a line. Match the colors of the paper clips with the cards, laying the paper clips on the cards. Extensions/Variations: (1) Do the same as above, but try to push the clips onto the square, one on each side, and begin noticing that a square has four sides. (2) Do the same, but with the triangles, noticing that the triangle has three sides. (3)Using the same colored clips, triangles and squares, make a pattern row. Have a partner try to copy it. (4) Match the two triangles, puzzle style to corresponding colored square. Clip together with corresponding colored clips. (5) If you have a magnet string, “fish” for specific colored paper clips and then lay “catch” on the corresponding color cards. Control of Error: Paper clips and color squares don’t match. Bag Includes: 1 pink, 1 blue, 1, orange, 1 red, 1 green, 1 yellow and 1 white color card, 2 triangle cards of each color, 4 paper clips of each color Montessori Source Inspiration: http://www.infomontessori.com/sensorial/visual-sense-color-tablets.htm, Mommy, Teach Me! by Barbara Curtis, pages 100-101, pages 91-98 of in Sensorial album from amontessorimarketplace.com Swap Partner’s Descriptor Inspiration: “They love colors, so we are working on naming them.” “Le... loves... manipulative.” (They will likely extend their color and shape naming skills with this game while enjoying manipulating the cards and clips.) WARNING: Although intended for children to use somewhat independently, this activity includes a plastic bag, which may pose a suffocation hazard if placed over head, and small parts, which are a choking hazard if ingested. Adult supervision is required. Activity Name: Color Lacing (Practical Life)
Aims: eye-hand coordination, concentration, fine motor skills, colors, etc. Activity Directions: Lace chenille strings through corresponding color cards. Extensions/Variations: (1) Try to lace color cards from lightest to darkest, using three-color cards as control cards. (2) Sew chenille strip in and out of three-color color card. (3) Make creative constructions with chenille strips and color cards. (4) Replace chenille strips with yarn, wire or shoelaces. (5) Punch holes in pages of defunct board books to make new lacing cards. (6) Lace chenille strings through non-corresponding color cards. Then, have partner correct “mistake”. Control of Error: Chenille strings won’t go through holes Bag Includes: 2 blue, 2 orange, 2 yellow, 2 green and 2 pink chenille strips, 5, three-shade cards (blue, orange, yellow, green and pink) and 15 small color card (3 blue, 3 orange, 3 yellow, 3 green and 3 pink) Montessori Source Inspiration: http://www.ehow.com/how_5141365_make-montessoriinspired-developmental-toys-cardboard.html and Mommy, Teach Me! by Barbara Curtis, pages 117-118. Swap Partner’s Descriptor Inspiration: “They love colors, so we are working on naming them.” “Le... loves... manipulative.” “Fine motor skills is always on my mind.” (They will likely enjoy using their fine motor skills to lace colorful strings through equally colorful cards.) WARNING: Although intended for children to use somewhat independently, this activity includes a plastic bag, which may pose a suffocation hazard if placed over head, and chenille strings, which may have sharp ends. Adult supervision is required. Activity Name: Sorting Buttons (Practical Life)
Aims: eye-hand coordination, concentration, control, preparation to write (pincer grasp), order, counting, visual discrimination, etc. Activity Directions: Transfer buttons from small rectangular container to ice cube tray sections, one button per section. Extensions/Variations: (1) Pair the buttons by putting two that are the same across from each other in the ice cube tray. (3) Switch out buttons for other small objects. (4) Count buttons as they are transferred. (5) Sort buttons in the ice cube tray from darkest to lightest. Control of Error: One ice cube tray section does not have a button in it. More than one button is in each ice cube tray section. Bag Includes: 12 buttons (2 of each kind) in a lidded rectangular container and 1 ice cube tray Montessori Source Inspiration: Mommy, Teach Me! by Barbara Curtis, pages 73-74 and http://www.ehow.com/how_2065543_use-montessori-develop-fine-motor.html. Swap Partner’s Descriptor Inspiration: “They are just starting to show interest in how to dress/ undress...”“Le...loves manipulatives.” (With learning how to dress comes an interest in buttons. Buttons make great manipulatives!) WARNING: Although intended for children to use somewhat independently, this activity includes a plastic bag, which may pose a suffocation hazard if placed over head, and small parts, which may pose a choking hazard if ingested.. Adult supervision is required. Activity Name: Animal Numbers (Mathematics)
Aims: counting, sort, numbers 105, preparation for writing (pincer grasp), sorting, etc. Activity Directions: Turn plates to side that animals are drawn on. Take foam animals out of container and put them on matching plate. Count how many animals are on each plate. Extensions/Variations: (1) Take foam animals out of container and sort by type of animal. Use side of the plates with numbers and circles written on them. Match the animals to the type of plate that has the number of animals written on it. Turn plate over to self-correct. (2) Swap out foam animals for other things. (3) Use foam animals to make a number book. Control of Error: Animals on plate do not match each other. Bag Includes: 8 pairs of matching fabric swatches, 3 paper plates Montessori Source Inspiration:http://www.infomontessori.com/mathematics/numbers-through-ten-cards-and-counters.htm Swap Partner’s Descriptor Inspiration: “Le...loves manipulatives...” “They love...animals...” “Le...tries to count on her fingers with me...” “Fine motor skills is always on my mind...” (Using fine motor skills to pick up the animal counters should be fun for them!) WARNING: Although intended for children to use somewhat independently, this activity includes a plastic bag, which may pose a suffocation hazard if placed over head, and small objects, which could pose a choking hazard if ingested.\. Adult supervision is required. Activity Name: Sorting Shapes (Mathematics)
Aims: matching, shapes, sizes, sorting, order, concentration, preparation for writing (pincer grasp), etc. Activity Directions: Take shapes out of bag. Lay them on the card with the corresponding shape outline on it. Extensions/Variations: (1) Match small shapes with large shapes. (2) Match small shapes with small shapes and large shapes with large ones. (3) Find objects in room that have the shapes and place shapes on them. (4) Make patterns with the shapes. Control of Error: Foam shapes do not match shapes on cards. Bag Includes: 2 larger and 2 smaller foam hearts, circles, squares and triangles. Montessori Source Inspiration: http://www.infomontessori.com/sensorial/memory-games.htm Swap Partner’s Descriptor Inspiration: “They love ... crafts.” (Foam shapes are often used in crafts. These colorful ones may be fun for them to play with.) WARNING: Although intended for children to use somewhat independently, this activity includes a plastic bag, which may pose a suffocation hazard if placed over head, and small objects, which may pose a choking hazard. Adult supervision is required. And, what did get in return? A plethora of fun and learning, which I will post about tomorrow or Wednesday.
I just realized I never actually linked this post to One Hook Wonder, the wonderful blog that hosts Montessori Monday. So, I am doing so now. Please be sure to check out links at One Hook Wonder for lots of great Montessori inspiration.
Luke and Nina have had an affection for the Irish classic, the Unicorn Song for some time now. So, a few weeks ago, I made them Montessori-inspired 3-part Unicorn Song cards. And, while the kids are not ready to use these in the traditional way (as described at The Joy of Learning), we have been enjoying playing many games with them. Among these are the following:
1. Concentration/Memory (for 1 or more players) : Using either two sets of picture cards, a set of picture cards and a set of picture-word cards, or a set of picture-word cards and a set of letter cards, we lay the cards face down in even rows. Then, we take turns revealing two cards. Anyone who finds a match (same pictures or pictures and starting letter/sound) gets to keep the match and go again, until they find no match.
2. Go Fish (for 2 or more players; if there are many players, use more sets of cards): Using either two sets of picture cards, a set of picture cards and a set of picture-word cards, or a set of picture-word cards and a set of letter cards, we lay all the cards face down as “fish in a pond”. Then, we each take three cards. One of us asks another, “Do you have a ___?”, naming a card we hold in our hands. (Nina sometimes simply shows us one of her cards when asking instead of naming it.) If the person asked has the card requested, the card is given to the first person, who lays the match down. If not, the person says, “No. Go fish!”” and the first person takes a face down card from the “fish pond”. The next person takes a turn asking. Play continues until all cards are matched.
3. The Everyone-Gets-One Slap Game (for 2 or more players): Using enough sets of picture, picture-word and letter cards so that each person can have one, we lay all the cards, minus one set down face up, so each card is showing. Then, the “caller” holds the remaining set as a deck. The caller looks at the first card and says, “Find a ___?”, naming the animal pictured on the card, or, “Find an animal that starts with ____?”, naming the sound of the letter or letters shown on the card. (This easily scaffolds the game to the different levels of student learning – simply matching pictures, matching pictures with phonics sounds, etc.) The other players each take one card as described. Play ends when all cards have been used. (Both Nina and Luke love being the caller. When Nina calls using the letter cards, she simply stands and says, “Who can find a card with this letter?” and shows us the letters, as she doesn’t know the sounds and letter names quite yet.)
4. The Competitive Slap Game (for 3 or more players): Two sets of cards are used. One is laid face up so all cards are showing. The other is held in a deck by the Caller. The caller draws a card and names it or names the letter/sound pictured. Players compete to be the first to slap the corresponding face up cards. Whoever slaps it gets to keep it. Whoever has the most cards at the end gets to be the next Caller.
5. Sequencing Game (for 1 or more players): Each player gets a deck of picture or picture-word cards and tries to play them in a row in the order they are mentioned in the Unicorn Song.
6. Guessing Game (for 2 or more players): One set of picture or picture-word cards are laid face up so all cards are showing. Player 1 gives Player 2 clues, such as, “These are small.” “These are gray.” “These came after the cats.” Or, ‘These start with an /r/ sound.” Player 2 tries to guess what Player 1 is thinking of. “The rats!”
7. Scavenger Hunt (for 2 or more players): Player 1 hides one set of picture or picture-word cards in different places in the room and holds another set as the calling deck. Player 1 draws one card from the calling deck and tells Player 2 to go find it’s match. Player 2 has to find the match in the room.
8. Classifying Challenge (for 1 or more players): Players try to classify cards by different attributes, for example making groups of big and small animals, of real and imaginary animals, of two-legged and four-legged animals, etc. If more than one player is playing, the other players try to guess what the groupings are about.
9. Hold It Up! (for 1 or more players): Each player gets a set of picture or picture-word cards. As we listen to or sing the Unicorn Song, we try to hold up the cards as the things pictured on them are mentioned in the song. This can get pretty funny and challenging with the fast “cats and rats and elephants” part.
10. Match ‘Em Up (for 1 player or a team): Using all three sets of cards, players try to match cards in groups of three, For example, the cats picture card with the cats picture-word card, with a “c” card.
And, of course, there are other ways to use the cards. One is as typical three-part cards and another is as pieces for a felt board story/song. (These can be made by printing the cards as is or enlarging and printing them, on cardstock and, then, attaching some velcro to the back. Or, by printing them on iron-on transfer paper – being sure to use a mirror image so the letters and words don’t come out backwards) and ironing them onto white felt.)
However the cards are used, they can help facilitate lots of fun and learning with culture/holiday studies, beginning phonics, word recognition, music, story telling, logic, classification, Bible story extensions, even literature extensions. (See The Late Passenger, a related C.S. Lewis poem, below.)
Please feel free to enjoy and share the cards and the ideas here, giving credit where credit is due. You should be able to click on any of the thumbnails throughout this post to get full-size versions for printing. Or, you can leave a request in the Comments and I will email you the document.
Also, I would love to hear about how you end up using the cards. Be sure to leave a comment, with a link if you’ve got one, to let me know.
Well, I missed posting on Friday again this week, as we were busy with Luke’s OT appointment and having fun watching our youngest niece Gianna. But, as the saying goes: Better late than never. So, linking up to Conversion Diary a day late, here is our 7 Quick Takes (Missed) Friday (Again) post for the week:
~1~
Titles, Acronyms and Catch Phrases
Call it the literary/linguistic learner (and teacher!) in me, but I love titles, acronyms and catch phrases that help me stay focused, get motivated and dig deeper in thought and action. This week, I realized my family’s homeschool journey is full of these: Jammies School, Our Rule of Seven, Our Core Four, SMART Goals, Faith First... The list goes on. And, I am wondering, do other homeschoolers and parents have acronyms that help them with home education, organization, spiritual life, etc. If so, please share your favorite through a comment below. I'd love to collect some more hoemschooling, child-rearing or just life-in-general titles, acronyms and catch phrases... In the meantime, a few thought on some of ours...
A Jammies School S.I. Book Study extension activity gets out of hand, but brings such laughter!
~2~
Jammies School
Official public, private and charter schools have names, or titles, if you will. Some of these are no-brainers, for example schools are often named are after the towns they are in. But, other school names are discerned only after much thought about the school's purpose and mission: Will learning be modeled after a certain philosophy? Will the school honor a specific saint, deceased member of the community or historical figure? Will the education provided reach toward a particular goal? Is there something unique about the education provided at the school or the area in which the school is built? Our homeschool falls into this second category. Early on, it occurred to me that our home pre-school was different from “normal” ones in a very silly way – the attire the kids wear to it – often pajamas! With this realization came an insight about how I wish for learning to proceed at our school as opposed to at public schools. Where many public schools seem increasingly test-not-learning driven, I want my children to learn in a relaxed, unhurried environment. Thus, the name, or title, of our school became “Jammies School.” And, of course, anyone browsing through this blog can easily see that we are literally true to our name -- much of our learning time takes place in our p.j.’s!
Nina enjoys a sensory activity inspired by our Book Study book of the week.
Have you named your household or homeschool? Please share a comment with me about what it is and why. I am inspired by little things like this..
~3~
Our Rule of Seven
As we set out on our homeschooling journey, we knew one thing that many schools “separate” (and ignore!) is something we wish to fully integrate. No “church and state” divisions at Jammies School. Loving and learning about God and His will for us is a primary focus in how we wish to train up our children. With this thought in mind, one day, while I was thinking about the “Five Finger Prayer”, a prayer I love for teaching young children to talk to God, I had numbers in mind. It was then that I ran across this post. I loved Melissa Wiley’s concept of a Rule of Six and found myself clicking links to other blogs, curious how different families let themselves be guided by their own Rules. I also immediately brought the idea up to my husband, as a way for us to clarify our own Jammies School mission and purpose. Within a week, we realized that Melissa’s literally “handy” idea for keeping her family accountable to their Rule of Six by tallying off the first five things on their list with each finger and then clasping hands together for the sixth would not work for us, however clever it was. Why? We could not narrow down our list to just six things. Getting to seven was work enough. And so, we settled on Our Rule of Seven:
loving God
loving Otheres
loving Movement
loving Beauty (nature, art, music, culture, etc.O
loving Work
loving Play
loving Learning
Luke enjoys loving God and Learning, through "tranforming" Jesus with glitter as we study last Sunday's gospel, the Transfiguration.
Seven? Four? What’s this? Well, as we move forward with home-preschooling, I continue to keep in mind what I like about Classical Education and things I gleaned from The Well-Trained Mind. (See this post for details.) Among these things is the fact that I need not feel compelled – as I so often do – to “do it all”. Rather, at the pre-K and K-level, concentrating learning activities around “the three R’s” -- Reading, ‘Riting and ‘Rithmetic does nicely and prevents that feeling of being overwhelmed by the responsibility of homeschooling that one can too easily slide into. Indeed, when my weeks get too busy with paid work, house stuff and the myriad of other things that vie for my attention along with the kids and their training, instead of beating myself up about what I am not doing with homeschooling, I ask myself, “Which of our Core Four could I do something special with the kids about right now?”
"Core Four?" you might asked. "You just mentioned three things - Reading, ‘Riting and ‘Rithmetic.”
Well, in Jammies School, we have a primary goal that squares off our main foci of learning: Faith Formation! By ensuring our kids participate in focused activities about the following four things on a regular basis, I know I am doing okay:
Faith Formation
Reading and Pre-Reading
Writing and Pre-Writing
Math Literacy
As part of our focus on Faith Formation, we've been studying the gospels from each Sunday in Lent. Nina and Luke enjoyed coloring and "tranforming" Jesus this past Sunday.
It really takes the pressure off and inspires fun!
~5~
S.M.A.R.T Goals
As an individual, a one-time public educator and former advisor for a leadership program, I have found myself returning to the acronym S.M.A.R.T when thinking about goal-setting for myself and encouraging students and mentees to do so. As a home educator, the acronym is just as apropos. For example, during LENT, I had a simple S.M.A.R.T goal, which continues to drive our Lenten Learning with Little Ones:
Specific (well-defined and clear to all involved): We will Pray, Fast and Give throughout the season and the kids will come to associate these three things with Lent.
Measurable (know the goals is achievable and how far away completion is; know when the goals has been achieved): We can measure our success through our Lenten bean Jars and we will know we have prayed, fasted and given during the season when Easter comes and our bean jars are “made new” with treats in place of beans.
Action-Oriented (There are obvious “do”s): We will say formal and informal prays daily; we will discuss negative behaviors we might “fast” from (too much Internet time, biting and pinching, hitting, etc.) , replacing them with better behaviors and habits (quality time together, using our mouths to sing and pray, honoring God, using our hands kindly and with purpose – for crafts, cooking, etc.) we will list ways we can “give” and act upon them;
Realistic (within the realm of available resources, time and knowledge): Bean jars, crafts, Lenten reading, etc. all fall within the constraints of our resources, time and knowledge.
Time-Based (enough time to achieve the goals, without so much time we stray) Six weeks of daily efforts, usually taking seconds to less than an hour each, seems perfect!
A little sensory pre-reading anyone? Luke and Nina sure enjoyed their shaving cream "B's" and "snow" this week!
As relaxed as we wish Jammies School to be, being S.M.A.R.T with goal planning for our Core Four and other things should keep us from tripping along our path!
~6~
Faith First
I truly believe putting “faith first” in all we do, literally and figuratively, can lead each of us to a healthier, more whole- hearted lifestyle. Thus, “Faith first,” is a motto I try to live by and to instill in my children. For a short while this past year, this mean , literally, putting “faith first”, by starting out days with morning Mass. It was a challenging experience, at times, but enriching, too. Unfortunately, early medical appointments, weather too cold for walking, pregnancy-induced sometimes-morning-sickness-most-times-exhaustion and a variety of other things broke our daily Mass habit. Still, we aim to make “faith first” an important part of Jammies School. So, the kids are encouraged to recite this simple prayer each morning shortly after waking:
Dear God, I offer you this day. Please be with me in all I think and do and say
And, we include prayer and faith readings as a part of our Morning Circle Time. For this special daily time, we have quite a collection of books we refer to – and always love hearing about others. So, if you have favorite faith-inspired books that you use with your children, please share the titles in the comments below. Thanks!
~7~
B.L.E.S.S.
Each week, as I reflect on how our homeschooling journey is going and pray for guidance in training them up, I think, ‘Am I B.L.E.S.S.ing my children through our endeavors?” This week, my thoughts and prayers include:
Bodies (health/healing, "daily bread"/physical needs being met) – Dear, Lord, thank you for helping me key into my children’s Bodies As I learn more about Sensory Integration and make simple adjustments to ensure a healthy sensory diet for Luke, I see both Luke and Nina enjoying and growing more and more.
Labors (individual work, school and daily tasks) – Dear, Lord, I have been slacking on ensuring that my children participate in household labors habitually. Sometimes, it seems more expedient to attend to chores and tasks by myself, without the “help” of little hands. Please help me remember that taking the time to include them regularly now will save me time chiding and undoing bad habits later.
Emotional Needs (comfort, reassurance, hope, joy, peace, etc.) – Dear Lord, thank you for every opportunity I have to laugh with my children, to comfort them when they cry, to redirect them when they are fussy. Please help me maintain the patience to deal with their more challenging emotions and to model positive ways of recognizing, dealing with and expressing all emotions. Help me stop yelling. When did I ever become such a yeller???
Social Needs (healthy relationships with family, friends, associates) – Lord, thank you for the blessings of our town’s storyhour, playdates with cousin Gianna and time with other folks. Luke and Nina truly love these opportunities to play and learn with peers.
Spiritual Needs (continually deepening relationship with God) Lord, the other day when Luke and Nina set up a tea for their stuffed toys, I was so amused and pleased. Then, when they stopped to pray “grace” and the “Hail Mary” with their stuffies before digging into imaginary food, I beamed. Thank you for the encouragement of knowing that my efforts to train Luke and Nina to “pray unceasingly” in both formal and informal prayer, are bearing fruit!
The kids and their cousin enjoy "reading" to each other during a quiet moment. Moments such as these are so special.
As always, I love sharing with and learning from others, so comments and suggestion below are much appreciated!
by Barbara Curtis, page 92-924
