Tips to the Rescue: Homeschool addition

Getting back in the post-holiday swing of things...

What an adventure homeschooling has been! I'm learning so much about my Gabe, the kinesthetic (hands-on/experiential) learner, and myself who, as it turns out, is kinesthetic, too! We are both easily distracted, as well- so planning ahead is a must!  I'm always on the lookout for tools to make learning fun, practical and the environment a natural place for it all.  This can be tricky when there are other younger children that require a lot of your time and attention. So again, it pays to plan ahead, remain flexible, and research as much as I can about how my child learns. It's also important to train the little ones to be self-directed

to some reasonable extent.

Here are a few a little ideas that have proven to be pretty handy for us.

We love hearing suggestions about what works for others! Maybe we could give them a try!

These are homeschool activity boxes for our preschooler. They are labeled Monday through Friday and contain art projects, games, small dollars store toys to keep her engaged so Gabe can get some uninterupted one on one time. It's good to shake up the contents for the sake of variety, and sometimes include age appropriate crafts that are in synch with what her big brother is learning.

The Monday box is filled with coloring and painting mediums

 We make a big fuss about getting out her homeschool box. She loves to feel included in school activities, and has started to associate the idea of learning with surprise & fun---> which means warm fuzzies for me!

Strategy #2
We coordinated quiet book time. Our preschooler can't wait to grow up.
She loves feeling independent and self-directed. So when its time for Gabe to read his books quietly,
it only made sense to present her with the same opportunity. Book time also breaks up the day. It marks the end of our more structured routine, and is a reliable map for the rest of the day.
We have also found that it is good to edit book options every now and then to make selections fresh and interesting- I would like to say that i do this consistently, but truthfully I probably remember twice a month. When I do remember, she definitely notices and has renewed enthusiasm.