Pages

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Sample Kindergarten Schedule!

One of the joys of homeschooling is that you can set a schedule designed just for you that reflects your priorities!  Still, as everyone with little kids knows, a schedule can be defeating if you think that it's the thing your world will spin according to.  So, while you may benefit from having a structure to your day, just remember to be realistic.  Expect that there will be times you will need to wing it, and make it a habit to tweak your schedule when it will help you to better accomplish your goals.

As a friend once shared with me:  "Schedules aren't sovereign: God is."

Monday, Tuesday & Thursday

Morning:

Calendar Time
Reading & Writing Notebook
Math Activity
Bible Time: Old Testament

Evening:

Catechism Questions
Bible Memory

Friday
Special Projects & Activities
Field Trips/Errands
Home Care Assignments

Free-Time Activities: Imagination Station (self-made crafts and little inventions); Math Games & Manipulatives Table; Reading Corner; Coloring Exercises (painting, crayons, colored pencils, sidewalk chalk); Magnet Board; Flannel Board; Dress Up and Role-Play Station; Toddler Trunk; Listening Activities (audio books, playtime music).

Monday, August 3, 2009

Calm, Cool and Collected

These days the pressure has really increased...not really with homeschool issues, just with life issues...and it seems hard to believe but by the grace of God I am doing just fine. In fact, the more distressed I am tempted to feel the more I am seeking to lean on the Lord and to trust Him with strength, with hope and with joy.

My biggest concern is that once homeschool starts the pressure will increase to such a point as to make it a difficult experience and thereby discourage us! It has caused me to realize, yet again, that the matter of sending one's kids away to school is sometimes because the other issues of life are permitted to crowd out one's mind, heart, time and energy. Of course, public school may be the only option for some...I'm not being insensitive to that...it was, after all, the only option my mother had at the time. Yet, I do have the choice and along with that the obligation to make the best decision(s) that I can!

I'm asking the Lord to enable me not only to walk through the various trials and difficulties of life in dependence upon Him but also to enable me to discern where my own decision making or even my own personal pursuits contribute to the complexity of the day. There is nothing wrong with weeding out the unnecessary and in fact, it is a desirable thing to do for one who wants to make the most of the opportunity!

From a worldly perspective it may seem silly to put aside my own desires and preoccupations, like continuing my education or involving myself in more church activity, in order to stay home and make purple hippopotamuses out of egg cartons, but I'm not living according to the expectations of this world! I am living for my Savior and committed to His will for me! He is leading me to be at home with these kiddos and He will supply the strength and the encouragement that I need!

Toddler Trunk Idea

Here's a nifty idea for keeping the little ones busy during school time! It's called a Toddler Trunk! Inside are safe and fun things for kiddos to do to better their coordination and concentration skills!
  • Old pictures glued onto index cards and hooked together with a ring ( or a piece of ribbon) make a quick photo book.
  • Plastic tongs can be used to pick up little objects (erasers, little bouncy balls, little rocks, rotini noodles, etc.) for a great fine motor skills activity!
  • A magnifying glass and different items to observe (old piece of carpet, sea shells, different textured fabric scraps, etc.) can be a great learning activity for your toddler!
  • Give your child a paint brush, small cup of water, and a sheet of construction paper for some water painting!
  • Fill a deep baking pan or bucket with rice or beans. You can hide foam letters and numbers in the pan and have them search for the hidden treasures. I often sit my children inside an old plastic swimming pool along with the container of rice/beans and let them dig away!
  • Colored craft sticks can be placed in matching colored cups.
  • Have your child clip clothespins to a piece of decorated cardboard.
  • Old paper towel tubes and boxes make great tunnels and garages for that little car lover in your home!

JoEllen Hurst (CurrClick.com Weekly Newsletter, dtd. 07/27/09)