Pre-Homeschool Spring Chat - Page 2

[Momma Aimee]

Originally Posted by RoundAbout

Anybody else not doing preschooly stuff with their preschooler? I've just recently been shifting more towards unschooling and/or delayed academics.

we will for the next 6 to 8 vacation / travle status weeks. and maybe the summer -- but after that no. We do not PUSH .. but we have some challanges and he doesn't pick some 'academic stuff" up by chance -- so we do work a little harder and have ST and many other things. But we never push. I doesn't really expcet much real seat work till 7 or 8 ...

Right now my primary goal is to get him outside every single day for a LONG time. I am also workiong on this. we live on 33 acres. but i get so bored.

I've decided that outside time is a huge value of mine and I want as much of it for his childhood as possible. I have a very high energy little boy and he NEEDS this. We go to a popular playground where he can run around like crazy for 2 hours and I can take a break and read a magazine or a book. JEALOUS> LOL i have to be RIGHT THERE evey single second. I can't just left mine go. But that sounds so cool.

He loves it! I love it! An he started taking naps again - YAY! I've also vowed to get him on the balance bike at least twice a week. We live on a hill, so I've been trying to remember to take it to the park with us. I've also been seeking out hikes, botanical gardens, and new outdoor experiences for us. We hit the beach once a week usually and spend hours playing the sand and surf.

Everything else has been a dud lately. We dropped his gym class and also our toddler/preschool playgroup. It was starting to get filled up with more and more little kids and my moose of a 3 year-old wasn't having fun. We still do the YMCA for 1-2 hrs a day so mama can get her workout time, which I think meets his social needs pretty well (along with the playground).

Other than reading - which we do a TON of everyday since my DS LOVES books - we really don't do much. He hates coloring and crafts, and has limited patience for most planned activities. He used to be a whiz at puzzles but has completely lost interest. The sensory table is still a hit, and he plays well by himself well, and is great with imaginative games (at least once during the day he wants to sail the couch to Africa or play "airport" by hauling luggage around and getting on an pretend plane, or makes things in the play kitchen), but I'm a little envious of all the great stuff I read here. Sometimes it feels like we're not doing much of anything.

[kgianforti]

We are also plugging along. Today, we are going to make a weather vane but probably won't get to take it outside since it looks like it will rain soon~! I can't say enough good things about Sonlight Science!! My big girl LOVES acting out various things she learned like the water cycle or how a hailstone is formed.

I have a pile of various craft projects on the kitchen table. She recently made a bear to give to Grandma and a turtle (out of paper plates) to give to the mailman.

She is exceling in math a lot faster than I expected so I have to make adjustments there. I tried introducing more math games and such but she doesn't like them for some reason. She rather work out of a workbook! Strange kid.

[Momma Aimee]

Originally Posted by kgianforti

We are also plugging along. Today, we are going to make a weather vane but probably won't get to take it outside since it looks like it will rain soon~! I can't say enough good things about Sonlight Science!! My big girl LOVES acting out various things she learned like the water cycle or how a hailstone is formed.

I have a pile of various craft projects on the kitchen table. She recently made a bear to give to Grandma and a turtle (out of paper plates) to give to the mailman.

She is exceling in math a lot faster than I expected so I have to make adjustments there. I tried introducing more math games and such but she doesn't like them for some reason. She rather work out of a workbook! Strange kid.

I, personally, as in me when i was a kid, just wanted to do worksheets or text books -- i got so fustrated and tired of the "be creative" and trying to make things into games and so on ....i just wanted to cover the work. for me -- the math concepts were hard enough, trying to think 'cute" as i called it -- toplay a game, remember the game, remember the math, and so on -- was jsut too much ...

I don't know what my kids will be like but personally i'd love a 'books kid" so much less work for me a uncreative mom.

[Stacey B]

Originally Posted by RoundAbout

Right now my primary goal is to get him outside every single day for a LONG time. I've decided that outside time is a huge value of mine and I want as much of it for his childhood as possible. I have a very high energy little boy and he NEEDS this..

We spend most of our time outside. We live in the city so outside means long walks and various playgrounds, rivers and favorite snack stops. I also get jealous of some of the activities here but then I remember than everything will come in time and that this learning journey is for him and his needs. When I remember to kneel down more often and see what he is seeing I realize there is a whole lot of learning going on even without cool supplies. This is why our camera goes everywhere with us!

[kgianforti]

Originally Posted by Momma Aimee

I don't know what my kids will be like but personally i'd love a 'books kid" so much less work for me a uncreative mom.

A workbook approach definitely doesn't bother me...we are child-led and that's where she is leading, then I'm on board!!! LOL! She enjoys Horizons Math but is just asking for harder stuff. I am NOT mathy so she is making things interesting, that's for sure!

And yes! It definitely makes things easier than having to try and think up activities and games and such! That is exactly why I love curriculum. I love the Sonlight Science - it's all laid out for me and all the materials are there for me.

Anyways, we made the weather vane! We got it outside for a few minutes before we were both too cold!

[LuxPerpetua]

Can you tell me more about Sonlight Science? Is it just books or projects or . . . what? Also, how much did it cost (if you remember) and what is your child's age? Trying to get new ideas here . . .

[mommariffic]

DD is young still, but we are unschooling/homeschooling hopefuls

This spring we have done a lot of planting indoors - starting our seeds, reading books about spring, and doing some Easter-type sticker crafts for decorating the house. It's been really, really RAINY so our outside play has been limited to days when it's nice because DD and I aren't into puddle stomping if it's still pretty darn cold out.

And yes, so we are into crafts reading and going to the parks. DD loves to make friends, and she has a blast for hours when she can run, explore and "talk" with everyone she meets. We are leaving in a week [!!!!] for the Bahamas so she will get to swim and see some wild-life which will be awesome, and of course we are preparing for her baby brother so lots of nesting/spring cleaning and projects around here that she can partake in

[kgianforti]

Originally Posted by LuxPerpetua

Can you tell me more about Sonlight Science? Is it just books or projects or . . . what? Also, how much did it cost (if you remember) and what is your child's age? Trying to get new ideas here . . .

Sure can! Sonlight Science K has either a 4 or 5 day a week program for lesson plans. We are using the 4 day a week and we do 3-4 lessons a week. It's a spiral program and SL doesn't stress mastery, just an introduction to several topics. Science K is called "Biology, Botany and Physics".

It uses books, activity sheets, a DVD and experiments. We completed Week 3 today and here's what the week looked like:

+++++++++

Day 1 - Reading pages 8-11 from a weather book and doing questions #1-4 on the activity sheets.

Day 2 - Reading pages 12-15 in the weather book and doing questions #5-7 on the activity sheets. There is an optional "Do Together" activity - making a tornado in a bottle (which we did).

Day 3 - Reading pages 16-19 in the weather books and doing questions #8-9 on the activity sheets. There is an optional "Do Together" activity called Disaster Relief (we did not do this).

Day 4 - Watching clips 12-13 from the DVD (clip 12 was about 1:04 mins and clip 13 was about 4 mins). Then we read and did the science experiments in the Science Activities book - we made a weather vane. There is also an optional "Do Together" activity - make a windsock (we didn't do).

+++++++++

The activity sheets are cut and paste, circling an answer, matching, writing in stuff (I do the writing). They are black and white so my dd colors the pictures too.

The topics do move quickly but it's easy to stop and go deeper if you want. I also added my own activities while going through the lessons - like acting out the water cycle was my idea, making hailstones was my idea and we pasted cotton balls on construction paper as the various clouds - my idea. In the list above of the week's lessons, I didn't include any extras we did with my ideas, I kept it strictly to what was in the lesson plans.

We will start Week 4 on Thursday. I don't stick to doing all of "week 3" lessons in one week, if we have to run into the next week then it's fine. It took us 3.5 weeks to do the 3 weeks of lessons (this is because my plan was to do two lessons per week and have it take two weeks to do one week of SL lessons but my dd wanted more!!)

Sonlight also has Science P4/5 but that doesn't come with a supply kit (unless they changed it). That is why I choose K, I wanted everything! I didn't want to have to plan or search for activities.

Cost...SL is expensive. I bought SL K with a supply kit and the resource pack (I think) and it was about $142 with shipping. They do offer payment plans. They did distribute a new catalog and I noticed Science K went up in price by about $5, I think. I used my Christmas money to buy it!!

I absolutely love it and it completely suits every need that I was looking for!

[justthinkn]

Subbing! We've been doing a lot, but most of it feels like just real life and playing, lots of home and nature stuff, a good amount of building with blocks and crafts... It all seems to arise pretty spontaneously, which I love, except for gathering my weekly armful of books from the library, which I do search out carefully, place holds, etc. But it's the reading that inspires most of the other activities.

My current favorite thing is High Five magazine - it totally inspires DD, we get so much out of it. We've made a flower garden craft, talked about manners when she's in a group with other kids and an adult leading, done art based on triangles and spirals, experimented with sand castles - plan to make a bus and try the "bunny salad" recipe later this week.

[dubatatamama]

We have been doing a lot of seasonal/holiday crafts lately, and they seem to be enjoying that. DS asked me if we could do some butterfly crafts, so we made waxed paper butterflies and decorated construction paper butterflies with bits of paper mosaic-style.

For Easter stuff, we painted some wooden bunnies that DH cut out with his scroll saw and today they painted construction paper Easter eggs with the new paints that DD got for her birthday.

It has been really rainy here in MA (like MONSOON rain), but the weather is supposed to clear up by Thursday so we can go to the park with friends. LOVE park days!!

[onyxravnos]

kgianforti - how christan-y have you found sonlights science program? i have their p3/p4 which i'm liking just cutting out the 3 bible books but christan science programs always make me nervous.... is there any/much obvious christan things in it? (Ie intelligent design talk)

[kgianforti]

Originally Posted by onyxravnos

kgianforti - how christan-y have you found sonlights science program? i have their p3/p4 which i'm liking just cutting out the 3 bible books but christan science programs always make me nervous.... is there any/much obvious christan things in it? (Ie intelligent design talk)

Actually, the books that they use are not Christian - they are the Usborne books. So, of course, they talk about "millions of years" but the Instructor's Guide tells you how to get around that. Also, the lesson plan notes mention stuff about God and the Bible. But, personally, this isn't "rocket science" so I don't even look at the lesson plan notes. So it's very easy to get around the Bible stuff. In those optional "Do Together" activities, I don't think the Bible was mentioned in any of those from what I can remember without looking.

So all in all, it has some stuff in it but it's very easy to make it secular especially since the books included are secular. Just avoid the lesson plan notes or just weed out the Biblical stuff from those notes.

HTH~!!

[SundayCrepes]

I've been lurking here and in the winter thread. I have a question.

I have a 4 year old and 20 month old. We had a rocky first 15 months or so. (Got call about just born baby available for adoption, was nursing her 4 hours later. No prep time that baby was coming. Then lots of aggression issues from older brother. Finally got all that under control a few months ago.) I am finally getting it together to live in more than survival mode.

One of the things I haven't figured out is HOW to incorporate all these activities you all do into our life. Before the baby was born, my son and I did puzzles, playdough, cutting and pasting, playing, etc. With the baby here I just feel so lost. It's like I only have so much energy and I don't know how to funnel it productively. I don't know how to organize to get the activities back. There's got to be a little soundbite out there to help me.

I have found help in other areas of mdc to organize other aspects of our life. Menu planning/shopping. I used to look in the fridge in the afternoons around 4 and run to the store if I needed anything for dinner. That doesn't work with 2 little kids so I learned to plan my menu and grocery shop to that menu once a week. Simple answer, but I had to learn to do it. Same with housecleaning. My house was so clean, even after baby 1 (well, once he reached 14 months.) With 2 kids I was going nuts from the ongoing filth. From mdc I learned that we do family cleanup after dinner. Easy solution, but I had to learn how to do that.

So, what is the easy solution to doing planned AT HOME activities with my kids? We're great about going places, it's the at home stuff I want to learn to make happen. What do you all do or suggest?

Thanks

[Savoir Faire]

I'd say to pick a time of day where you typically have some quiet/calm. You know, either baby naptime or just after breakfast.

We do our homeschool activities in the morning for this very reason.

[Momma Aimee]

Originally Posted by SundayCrepes

I've been lurking here and in the winter thread. I have a question.

I have a 4 year old and 20 month old. We had a rocky first 15 months or so. (Got call about just born baby available for adoption, was nursing her 4 hours later. No prep time that baby was coming. Then lots of aggression issues from older brother. Finally got all that under control a few months ago.) I am finally getting it together to live in more than survival mode.

One of the things I haven't figured out is HOW to incorporate all these activities you all do into our life. Before the baby was born, my son and I did puzzles, playdough, cutting and pasting, playing, etc. With the baby here I just feel so lost. It's like I only have so much energy and I don't know how to funnel it productively. I don't know how to organize to get the activities back. There's got to be a little soundbite out there to help me.

I have found help in other areas of mdc to organize other aspects of our life. Menu planning/shopping. I used to look in the fridge in the afternoons around 4 and run to the store if I needed anything for dinner. That doesn't work with 2 little kids so I learned to plan my menu and grocery shop to that menu once a week. Simple answer, but I had to learn to do it. Same with housecleaning. My house was so clean, even after baby 1 (well, once he reached 14 months.) With 2 kids I was going nuts from the ongoing filth. From mdc I learned that we do family cleanup after dinner. Easy solution, but I had to learn how to do that.

So, what is the easy solution to doing planned AT HOME activities with my kids? We're great about going places, it's the at home stuff I want to learn to make happen. What do you all do or suggest?

Thanks

for TN adotive nurseing

My boys are 23 months apart -- and there are days we can do a lot at 2 and 4 and days we live in choas and i am trying to learn to go with it.

we still SMALL amounts of time. we all color at the table and If Big askes for a school sheet i give them each one and read the directions to both of them, then i watch Big a big more closely --- i have faith than when i have a 6 adn 4 year old we will be able to do more school, i am sure they will both be there.

we do stuff everyone can do -- both play playdough ... buig will last longer adn little will move on and i will put a cusioru george on for him.

I read and read and read -- Big ists with me, Little runs areound the room, climbs on me or nurses ...

i jsut have faith that is i take it slow in 2 years when it matters more -- 4 adn 6 -- we will be there.

[onyxravnos]

before ds2 was born i took some time to prepackage the next two months of home school stuff. you don't have that prep time but maybe for a little while you could get something predone ? just so you can whip it out on bad days? (it's what i do)

for fairly cheap but nice i have carols affordable curriculum i like having a month or two on hand so i can just pull it out and get the glue.... baby can just sit on my lap or nap while we do it and it requires little planing on my part. Funshine express is pricey but VERY nice if you can afford it. the kumon 2+ workbooks are good to. just 'color in the circle' 'fold the line' and 'cut here'

[Momma Aimee]

Originally Posted by SundayCrepes

I've been lurking here and in the winter thread. I have a question.

I have a 4 year old and 20 month old. We had a rocky first 15 months or so. (Got call about just born baby available for adoption, was nursing her 4 hours later. No prep time that baby was coming. Then lots of aggression issues from older brother. Finally got all that under control a few months ago.) I am finally getting it together to live in more than survival mode.

One of the things I haven't figured out is HOW to incorporate all these activities you all do into our life. Before the baby was born, my son and I did puzzles, playdough, cutting and pasting, playing, etc. With the baby here I just feel so lost. It's like I only have so much energy and I don't know how to funnel it productively. I don't know how to organize to get the activities back. There's got to be a little soundbite out there to help me.

I have found help in other areas of mdc to organize other aspects of our life. Menu planning/shopping. I used to look in the fridge in the afternoons around 4 and run to the store if I needed anything for dinner. That doesn't work with 2 little kids so I learned to plan my menu and grocery shop to that menu once a week. Simple answer, but I had to learn to do it. Same with housecleaning. My house was so clean, even after baby 1 (well, once he reached 14 months.) With 2 kids I was going nuts from the ongoing filth. From mdc I learned that we do family cleanup after dinner. Easy solution, but I had to learn how to do that.

So, what is the easy solution to doing planned AT HOME activities with my kids? We're great about going places, it's the at home stuff I want to learn to make happen. What do you all do or suggest?

Thanks

can you baby wear? DS1 at the counter in the learning towner and i me standing (rocking) with DS2 in a the sling / MT worked for a while and would totally work now if we had another little one --

[SundayCrepes]

Thanks for all the ideas.

The biggest logistical problems I have is a toddler who still puts EVERYTHING in her mouth so trying to include her in playdough, crayons, etc. is an exercise in futility. She wants to be part of the action. She competes for space on the learning tower. Plus, I'm lucky if she naps for an hour. Since I let my son watch a documentary when I'm putting her down, most of her naptime is him finishing watching the movie.

I guess the more focused questions would be:

1. Where do you get your ideas for activities? onyxravnos's idea of a curriculum could be the ticket. I have lots of activity books, but nothing I just open up and there's the answer. I did just order a science book and I'm hoping my son will open the pages and say, "Let's do this." We're on the unschooling spectrum, but to me having a curriculum of ideas we choose to use or not is just fine. They're just suggestions and we decide if we like them.

2. I'm trying to find the activation energy to make activities happen. In my prior post I used menu planning and housecleaning routines as examples. I grocery shop on Saturdays so I need a menu and a shopping list before then and then I actually load the kids up in the car and go (while my husband is bike riding.) It's just making it part of the routine, I just haven't found the magic answer that works for me for activities. Savoir Faire's suggestion to just pick a time is probably very good. I'm just on this hand wringing hamster wheel saying, "How do I do it? How do I do it?" Instead of just deciding to step off the hamster wheel and saying, "Just do it now."

I appreciate all your ideas. Especially since I know somewhere someone is going to say something in just the right way and I will have an epiphany.

[justthinkn]

SundayCrepes, I find lots of ideas from magazines, storytimes, a few lit-based resources (PWB, BFIAR)... And the ideas I get there really spark my own creativity. I've found I plan very little, but keep good art supplies, etc., around so we can jump to work when inspiration strikes!

We built and painted a salad table today; DD loved the tools and the painting. She got a board scrap of her own to shoot staples into (with DH's help, of course), and to pound with the hammer. Lots of pics on the blog! Can't wait to continue the gardening and harvesting process with her.

[Momma Aimee]

Originally Posted by SundayCrepes

Thanks for all the ideas.


1. Where do you get your ideas for activities? onyxravnos's idea of a curriculum could be the ticket. I have lots of activity books, but nothing I just open up and there's the answer. I did just order a science book and I'm hoping my son will open the pages and say, "Let's do this." We're on the unschooling spectrum, but to me having a curriculum of ideas we choose to use or not is just fine. They're just suggestions and we decide if we like them.

2. I'm trying to find the activation energy to make activities happen. In my prior post I used menu planning and housecleaning routines as examples. I grocery shop on Saturdays so I need a menu and a shopping list before then and then I actually load the kids up in the car and go (while my husband is bike riding.) It's just making it part of the routine, I just haven't found the magic answer that works for me for activities. Savoir Faire's suggestion to just pick a time is probably very good. I'm just on this hand wringing hamster wheel saying, "How do I do it? How do I do it?" Instead of just deciding to step off the hamster wheel and saying, "Just do it now."

I appreciate all your ideas. Especially since I know somewhere someone is going to say something in just the right way and I will have an epiphany.

I pull ideas i like from blogs (print them) or whatever

I put them in a bninder.

about once a week i come up with 2 art projects and i gater all the stuff we need into a tubbie and leave it int he craft area -- so it is ready to just grab. then when the situation presents itself i am ready. DS1 has some emotiona type SN so while i can say for example moringing are normally better 0-- i have to go with the flow. this also allows me to have something if he says "let's do art". These are what i call real art -- glue , cutting,. paint, tools .... we have paper (blank) and coloring books on the table all the time and a container of crayons.

I might cut apart bunny parts and carrots of paper and have them ready to glue bubbies -- nothing too advanced. I also print out directions, or cheatsheets for me (like if i sasw the idea here or on a blog).

i have a 2nd binder -- of work sheets, mazes, and so on .... ready to grab and do printed off all the cool websites i find.

both binder live on my shelf in the kitchen -- i have one shelf in one cabnet. my stuff is there (day timer, planner for school, notebook of to do and so on).

my plan is to have file folder games in a little holder on that shelf too so i can just grab one - but i have never gotten any made

but you are 100% right -- you have to jump in, sink, then find your own awy to arrange it that works ....

we have a pretty routine routine -- but there is no way i can plan like i seen in all the planners --- so you find what does work for you.

I can tell you though -- DS1 is 4 and DS2 is 2 and i am finally getting to a point where i feel some what "ordered" ... but i also know inf 2 ot 3 years it is gonna have to look 97% differnt here as we apprach real school work. my hope is for us to wade into real work and keep seat work to a min an dhold off really expecting much till 8 (actually 6 and 8).....

it is a transition. you have to jumop in and try someting, anything, even if it doesn't work like you want.

and ours are little and we have years to get this right before it matters.