From Heart of the Matter

Summer is a time many homeschool moms rely on for rest, relaxation and rejuvenation.  However, there are many things you can do to teach your preschooler over the summer without wearing yourself out.  Here are five summer activities that will get your preschooler ready for the upcoming school year. {read more}

It is never too early to begin teaching children good manners.  Children who practice good manners live out the Biblical traits of respect and kindness toward others and they are often treated in kind.  These children stand out from the crowd, not only because of their behavior, but because of the confidence that comes from knowing what to say and how to behave in any situation.  Teaching your preschoolers good manners is a gift you give them for childhood and beyond. {read more}

When my daughter "graduated" from our state's early childhood therapy program it was assumed she would go straight to the local special education pre-K. She has autism but I thought that should be no reason not to homeschool her. I also didn't understand why she had to go to the local pre-K when clearly in many ways she was not ready for school. I chose to homeschool her and I have never looked back! {read more}

Crafts

• Egyptian Cartouches

• Venezuelan Waterfall Craft

• Simple Sunflowers

Fun in the Kitchen With Your Preschooler

It’s not always this easy to accommodate the culinary curiosity of a little one. It takes time and patience to deal with the process – and the mess – that are a natural part of helping children in the kitchen. The good news is that with some planning and preparation it can be a fun and memorable experience for everyone involved.

1. Schedule your time in the kitchen.
2. Lay down some ground rules. {read more}

Resources For Cooking With Your Little Ones

Ask Our Featured Homeschooler
{Kendra of Preschoolers and Peace}

Oh boy, have I been in these situations! And I’m never good on my feet, so I usually stutter and bumble around and ultimately mutter something about educational toys and worksheets and Sesame Street. Then I think of an absolutely brilliant answer... on my way home.

First of all, we have to remember Whose we are. Where are we getting our value, significance, purpose, and identity? In those moments where I feel our choices are being questioned, it helps immensely if I can remember that I am Jesus’, that my worth is in Him, that He has called me to this business of homeschooling, and that my identity is with Jesus, not my skills as a home educator, or even as a mom.  

Secondly, it helps to remember that “the proof is in the pudding”. I can think way back to when my oldest ones were just kindergarteners or younger and I hadn’t purposely taught them anything beyond the alphabet and their colors. I hadn’t taught anyone to read, and high school graduation was a long way off.  I remember saying to myself, “the proof will be in the pudding”. And it is! Give yourself time and the nay-sayers (or uber-competitive Tiger Moms, as it were) grace to see that good results aren’t always apparent early on.

Lastly, I’ve never forgotten an article that circulated around homeschooling boards back in the day before blogs and written by homeschooling mom Joanne Ketch called, “Pass the Bean Dip”. The idea was that whenever someone questioned your unconventional choices, methods, or in your case, children’s educational levels, you simply smile and say, “Got that covered! Thank you! Want some bean dip?”  It’s a strategy that shows you’re confident about where your children are and it’s really none of the other mom’s business anyway.

You can read more of Joanne’s wisdom here: http://goybparenting.com/?p=58

~Kendra, Preschoolers and Peace

Although not a homeschooling mom, my mother was super good at teaching us things very naturally. I don’t think she or anyone of her generation gave a thought to “kindergarten readiness”, but by the time we got there, we knew our colors, skip counting, rhyming words, alphabet, and how to tie our shoes. 

And yet, she never sat us down or set out to teach those things. It all came very naturally. “Let’s put your red shirt on today!”, and “2-4-6-8, who do we appreciate?” were just a part of life, as were rhyming games I can remember passing the time in the car playing with her.

Can you do the same? Sometimes it’s just a matter of getting into the habit of really talking to our little ones, and making these learning conversations a part of our everyday rhythm.  I find that mealtimes afford me a few minutes with a captive audience, and I can set out to teach quite a bit while they’re strapped into a booster seat or have their little mouths full. Same goes for the bath. I have a friend who read the entire Chronicles of Narnia to her preschoolers while they were otherwise occupied at bath time. 

You can teach all kinds of things this way, naturally. The other thing my mom taught me as I became a young mom myself was to name things specifically to my children instead of generally. Instead of saying, “Look at that birdie!”, we can say, “Look at the robin!” I have an extensive knowledge of plants and trees because my mother was raised by an arborist who taught her and she in turn taught me, although the “lessons” were by way of everyday conversations. We would be at the nursery buying plants and she would say, “Oh, I just love rhododendrons!”  She could have said, “Those flowers are pretty”, but because she took the time to call them by name, I have been able to identify species of plants since I was a child.

Are you beginning to get a sense of the possibilities? There’s certainly nothing wrong with formal learning, and along those lines I would encourage you to make a list of the concepts you want to teach your little ones. But then ask yourself how you might seize the opportunity to just make the learning of those things a part of your every day lives.

~Kendra, Preschoolers and Peace