Lessons from the Kitchen

Time to bake with mom!!!

When I thought about what is important about education I asked myself a lot of questions. I think if you plan to homeschool you need to do the same thing. What is your goal? Why choose homeschool over public school or even a private school? Is your child going to benefit most with you at home or could they achieve the same education being in "school"?

As an educator, I have always dreamt that I would have the opportunity to teach my own children. I have never been a part of a homeschool group and I don't know what a typical homeschool truly looks like. What I do know are the basics of what kids need and I understand the developmental process. As much as I do know, I also know that I don't know it all and I will learn a lot along the way.

So ask yourself, "What are the objectives that I want my child to learn?" Figure out those important areas and see if you can fit them into the days of the week.

My important areas are: Art, Bible, Science, Language, Cooking, and Math Concepts

My plan is simple:

I will cover math concepts (calendar, patterns, numbers, counting, money) mostly in the morning, but these will most likely randomly happen throughout the day. (Teachable moments are so valuable.)

Each day will have an activity and they will correspond with an alphabet letter.

Week #1 August 3-7

I will be planning activities that start with the letter A.

Stay tuned....next week I will post my lesson plans. Yes, there will be more details!

How do children learn?

Katie in her little apron ready to make cupcakes with mom.

What is your child's learning style?

This is an important question for any parent, but even more so for any parent who plans to homeschool. If you don't know how your child learns it will be a much more frustrating experience for everyone involved. There are many learning styles. I have not covered them all here. Hopefully this can help you figure it out.

Mom's Adventure in Sewing and Baking

In the last few years I have learned some new skills. Sewing was a huge step of faith for me. I have always admired people who could sew and figured that it couldn't be that hard. After I purchased a basic Singer machine I started getting to know her. We haven't always been friends, but once we got to know each other we've become the best of pals. Sewing has certainly been a trial and error learning experience for me.

Another skill I learned last summer was cake decorating. My sister-in-law and I went together to the Wilton classes. Cake making stresses me out because I want it to be perfect. By the way no cake is ever perfect (not even mine). But I still love making cakes and cookies for casual social events.

Learning Styles

You may have guessed that I am a hands on learner. This is very important to know about your child. I am not sure about Katie yet, because she is only 2, but I would say that she is a lot like me so far. By the age of 5 or 6 (or when they start reading) you will be able to tell how your child learns best. Once you know that, teaching them will be a whole lot easier. Until you know for sure use a lot of visual and hands on approaches.

In my classroom when I had 18 -24 students with several learning styles I had to keep my lessons loose. There had to be 2 or 3 approaches in my lesson to get the skill across. Some kids are auditory, which means they learn by hearing. Others, who were hands on or visual learners would be staring out the window missing every word. Fortunately for us, we know our kids very well. We may have a variety of learning styles in our homes, but we don't have 18 more kids to worry about. Well, unless you are in the Duggar's family.

In August when Katie and I start our homemade preschool we will do a different style of activity each day.

Monday: Recipe (cooking) This is a hands-on experience.

Tuesday: Art, This too is a hands-on activity. Library storytelling, auditory lesson.

Wednesday: Bible, This will be an auditory lesson. It will have some visual aspects as well.

Thursday: Reading, This day will incorporate all three learning styles. She will be listening, actively writing or tracing, and (visual) seeing letters/words. (This is our most intense day.)

Friday: Science, Katie will be exploring and discovery learning (including field trips).

**There is a book titled Science Play in my list of preschool resources. I will use this as a guide for ideas. There are hundreds of everyday simple activities we can pull from.

Once you discover how your child learns best it is important to teach using those learning styles. However, it is also good to stretch your little one. If they are not auditory, like myself, give them a more simplified version of the auditory learning style. They will always have a dominant learning style, but this will helps strengthen weak areas.

Children Learn What They Live

If a child lives with criticism, He learns to condemn.
If a child lives with hostility, He learns to fight.

If a child lives with ridicule, He learns to be shy.

If a child lives with shame, He learns to feel guilty.

If a child lives with tolerance, He learns to be patient.

If a child lives with encouragement, He learns confidence.

If a child lives with praise, He learns to appreciate.

If a child lives with fairness, He learns justice.

If a child lives with security, He learns to have faith.

If a child lives with approval, He learns to like himself.

If a child lives with acceptance and friendship, He learns to find love in the world.
-Dorothy Law Nolte-

Peaceful Plans

Visiting my parents in Daytona Beach is a regular thing since I am an only child and this little princess is an only grandchild (for now). Katie loves the beach and that is where this photo was taken. She was perched on top of her Pop Pop's shoulders for a ride. I love her expression. She doesn't have a care in the world. She is just simply enjoying the wind through her hair and the sun on her head. I have to remind myself how sweet she can be since she is 2 and a little tricky some days.

I have decided on some preschool plans for in the Fall. I am planning on starting our new routine in August. I am basically creating my own homemade version of preschool. Okay so why reinvent the wheel? Because I like my "wheel"!!!

See as mom I already have a full plate....don't you? I do laundry, I make meals, I make beds, give baths, sort clutter, check email, and shop. I keep very busy. Adding school to the mix is sure to throw something off. This is why I must ease into this slowly.

My preschool plan is mostly for me. She does not understand the structure of our day. But, I need a plan. My schedule will help me fit the teaching in our day. I have to be able to do it all! Super MOM!!!!!!!! Okay so maybe not, but I am still going to try.

Here's the plan in a nutshell. I wrote down my objectives. This is a list of things I want Katie to learn this coming year. Then I organized those ideas. I have 5 groupings which are math concepts, reading readiness skills, art, science, and Bible. I decided that I could manage one activity per day. I really don't want this to stress her or I out. I am corresponding a letter of the alphabet with each week. So the first week we will working with the letter A. My activities will all involve the letter A. Our recipe that week will be applesauce. I will post each weeks plans the week before. I am still trying to complete the 26 weeks worth of plans.

We are going to have so much fun. I am so excited!

Katie

Katie

My inspiration

My motivation

My little girl.

I am sure that after God created the heavens and the earth he had in mind this little angel. I have hoped and prayed to be a mom like many other moms out there who struggle with fertility. I longed to hold my own little bundle in my arms. Before I had her I taught elementary school and loved my students. Many still write me now to remind me that even though the years have passed I am still their favorite teacher. I think that stems from the fact that I "truly" loved them. I have a passion for teaching and really do enjoy it. The only reasons that I am not teaching now are my daughter and the lack of support for teachers. Often I think about my old classroom and the lives that I touched. I do miss it. However, being home with my daughter has meant more to me than you could even imagine. I do remind myself daily that I am truly blessed to be home with her. As soon as I started teaching I started my master's degree in Reading and ESOL. This was something that I wanted to accomplish before having kids because I knew that I would never do it later. I mean come on if I had to choose...play with my baby or write a 30 page paper.....hands down I pick my baby. So once I graduated and got that out of the way I started "trying" to get pregnant. To my surprise I would spend the next 3 years "trying". We did experience a miscarriage, but through it all God was with me. There were times I cried and begged the Lord and there were times when I had total peace. I had a desire deep in my heart to be a mom and kept believing God for that miracle in my life.

In January of 2006 I found out I was pregnant. I was elated. My pregnancy for the most part was uneventful. I just had the normal bouts of nausea and crazy cravings. I went on to deliver my most amazing accomplishment, Katie. Her delivery was rough, but we made it and I knew at that moment God had a plan for her. From the very beginning I knew she was special and she was mine!

My little angel Katie is 2 years and 9 months old. I know she will be 3 soon, but I want keep her 2 everyday until she is 3. We as moms tend to look forward. We say, " he'll be 4 next month". Why rush it? So for now....she is 2.

As an educator I really want the job of teaching my daughter. I have been trained for this. I have learned a lot about kids. I certainly don't know it all, but I love learning. Everyday I realize how much I don't know and I want to know more. As a planner by nature, I have started looking into homeschooling. This was a tricky place for me. I don't want to start too early or too late. I know what is expected developmentally for school age kids, but preschoolers??? I don't know. Not only do I want to teach my child...I want her to excell. I want to do it right and do it well. I know that I can learn from mistakes, but I really don't want to make mistakes with my child. So although I shoot for the moon, I know it won't be perfect.

Looking at websites about homeschooling is so daunting. There is sooooooooo much out there. There is a ton of free information and resources. You will find just as much you can buy. Where do I start?? Well, that is why I am here blogging. I am at START on the game board that is my child's education. I learned in college that 50% of the potential to learn is developed by the age of 4. I don't want to wait until she is 5 to give her the big stuff and I don't want to overwhelm her either. Hmmmmm..... Let's see where this leads.