toddler home school ideas?

Offtopic: I remember being 4 or so and helping my dad squish the playdough in a plastic bag after it had been cooked. He added cinnamon so it smelled yummy.

On topic:
What about a textures table? One common thing in science museums and things is a table with rice or sand and lots of scoops and things. For out doors you could also add water to the mix by letting the hose pour in as a stream and let him play with blocking off the water flow and digging new channels and stuff.

Songs with hand motions are terrific ways to learn things. (For adults too, incidentally.) Like for colors and shapes you could sing (while holding up the appropriate object) "Red, red, red, red cir-ir-cle, Orange, orange, orange, orange squa-are, yellow, yellow triangle, are the shapes and colors here" You'd both have shapes to hold up and of course you'd hold up the 'right' ones so it wouldn't matter if he was just having fun waving one shape around and didn't want to change.

Now, this last idea is really obvious, but very important, talk to him. As you go about your day, just talk to him about what you're doing and seeing.

All your baby needs is your love, and your interaction. Unless you're needing to brush up on them yourself, you don't need to be "working on" body parts, simple wooden puzzles, or anything else. He DOES need more interactive stimulation- he needs to be going to the playground to explore what he wants to explore there (could be climbing, could be swinging, could be sand, could be bits of grass- watch out for the cigarette butts, though).

He is learning all the time- whether you're doing a "kid" thing like making playdoh, or holding him while you vacuum, make dinner, or read your email.

All of the "homeschooling" things you find are geared towards older children because basically everyone agrees that babies and toddlers don't need a curriculum, and whether they're "homeschooled" or at a daycare, they need interaction and play, not projects and bookwork.

Read to your child, play with your child, love your child, include your child in your own daily activities- that's how you homeschool a 16 month old. Stick with that until he's at least 4 or 5 years old. The play gets more sophisticated, but it should never be imposed- let your son show you how much of his learning comes from inside of him, and follow him.

The toddler-years forum here often has discussions (and might have a sticky?) about activity ideas for little ones, if you're just looking for some creative spark.

Hi Faith! Starting homeschooling early - beyond the normal things that are not generally considered "homeschooling" but just regular parenting - doesn't make for a better outcome. It can actually result in just the opposite of what you might be after.

For age appropriate ideas, you can look through the links underneath the box of articles on this page: preschool/kindergarten learning activites. The box of articles at the top of the page starts out with two articles that also offer lots of other suggestions for little ones. Lillian

Before "school age", it's just good parenting! Go out, play in, talk, explain, build, visit people. that's it.

If he needs more interaction, join a mommy-and-me music group, or a playgroup, or whatever. You probably won't anything fun for him on the 'net

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Right, not for him to do, but there are lots of ideas online for things to go out and do with him - like on Mr. Rogers' site. Lillian

Thanks for posting the Mr. Rodgers site- we are big fans around here, and I know I may need some "activity inspiration" after the baby comes!!!

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Oh, great! Yes, I thought it was an awfully nice site too - love that man. If you look underneath the box of articles on this page, there's a whole list of annotated links to such sites:
preschool/kindergarten learning activities
Edited to note: Whoops! I forgot I'd posted this link earlier in the thread!
Lillian

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well said....so ditto!

There is so much you can do with this age without getting into 'school'. There is definately a different mindset in parents that are planning to homeschool, they're always looking for the educational spin on things...even if the don't realize it.

At this age you can work on your dc learning colors, shapes, body parts, learning about animals and plants, vehicles...all it takes is talking to him. Try to use as many adverbs and adjectives as you can. Point out everything interesting that you see. Just because you've seeen a gazillion ants in your lifetime and view them as more of a pest than a wonder...point it out to him. Work on his observation skills - when you walk around outside point out any changes...summer decorations on houses, new buds on trees, the grass getting greener.

Kids NEED physical activity. Take him to the playground and teach him to climb (like he really needs to be taught ). Let him walk around outside as much as possible.

Wanna teach him to read early? Read to him. It helps if the books separate the words from the pictures and use big, clear words. He'll pick it up before you know it. Wanna teach him to write his name? He's not too young to start...when he draws a picture write his name on it for him in big, neat, clear letters.

Puzzles are a great activity. They're so much fun and they do develop coordination and problem solving skills. Water play is another thing that does these things. It also helps with mathmatical concepts. Dancing to music works on coordination. Make believe play helps many kids be more verbal and helps them work out social problems. Involving him in cleaning and cooking will help him learn to follow directions among other things.

The more you get him involved in LIFE, the more he'll learn. So many parents figure that they'll play with their kids and involve them when they 'have time'. It ends up being such a small percentage of their day. I think the best thing to do is to always have something for them to do that is 'educational' in an age appropriate way (which at this age includes water and or cornmeal to play in - if you don't have a sandbox - puzzles, books, art stuff, real life 'toys' (i.e. pots and pans and cleaning supplies) to play with...) and spend alot of time with them.

Ugh, I am not monsterboy, I'm eminer (his wife), but I'm too lazy to cut this post and log out. So just don't blame Sean for whatever nonsense I spew.

16 months is a great age for joining in with housework (including cooking) and other "practical life activities" -- as long as you allow the joining in to be spontaneous, and don't expect practical results. For a 1-year-old, any activity is an end (and a joy) in itself. For example, if I were stirring a pot, my 1-year-old would watch me with tremendous interest and would probably want to take the spoon. Then she might "stir" (ineffectively) and watch the pot contents drip off the spoon as she raised it. (I would probably discourage more hands-on levels of interaction such as dumping, smearing, and throwing, despite their tremendous appeal and educational value. ) If the pot were hot, that would be another learning opportunity: I would mention something about how it was hot, and carefully ensure that dd was just close enough to notice and understand that. If I am cleaning and mini-dd tries to grab my rag, I give her her own rag, which she uses to imitate me, usually briefly, before coming up with more interesting uses that amount to a self-designed water exploration activity.

My little dd has also brought home for me that some kids this young enjoy being read to and making art. I believe that when you read to toddlers you're supposed to use a meandering style, dwelling on and discussing the pictures, rather than slavishly reading the words. I'm not very good at that, though, so dd will help out by turning the page when she's heard enough. (Turning pages is, by the way, a fabulously sophisticated fine motor project, for a 1-year-old, as well as a social art.) Art: When he is ready, he will take your pen or pencil and begin making lines on paper. It is so amazing to watch a child go from interest in holding the pen, to interest in seeing what it produces on paper! They can paint -- if still oral, with anything edible (make your own food colored "paint" using whipped cream, flour-and-water, etc) in the high chair or bathtub.

You mentioned the body parts, which I think are big with every toddler. I remember that just before my older dd began saying words (i.e. around your ds's age) she would point to lots of other things and pictures, as well, to hear the names. For some reason, she latched onto animal sounds. (Which I always considered kind of a hokey part of the "world of childhood," but who am I?) We would also do tours of wherever we happened to be, discussing the stuff that interested dd. (And because I had to take her to the back of the church and try to keep her busy -- read, quiet -- during the service, one of her first words ended up being "Ees ees", or Jesus. ) Maybe this is too obvious -- I certainly don't mean to insult anyone -- but for me, it bears endless repeating that the best ways to spend your time for interaction are usually child-led. At any given time, your child already knows (with whole mind and body and spirit) what s/he needs to learn and do. Tuning in and giving your full attention, at times, to the repetitive game that s/he currently finds hilarious, or the book that s/he wants to read over and over and over, or the forbidden cabinet that s/he is desperate to get into, or whatever, is an amazingly powerful thing.

[Note from Sean -- I just read all the above, and it's all gold by me

]

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This is so lovely, I just had to pull it out and quote it. Lillian

ITA with the child led thing. In fact, after reading a convincing statement to the effect that babies and toddlers need no toys at all, I realised that if I just let my dd help with whatever i was doing, then it would not matter (costwise) if she spilled a few beans, tore a few sheets of paper, etc and she would be able to pursue her interests with minimal interference or rather minimal restriction from me. Minimal of course includes keeping actually valuable / dangerous things out of reach, but letting her have free range with what is in reach. This way I did not have to "teach" her not to spill beans, tear paper, etc since I believed that she would learn these things herself and was now learning other things as per her own desire.

By a year or year and a half she was actually helping with lots of things like mixing dough, pouring rice / water, drying clothes (we dry on drying racks in the terrace). She also tried measuring ingredients (which she can actually do now, including levelling off flour) and folding clothes.

As far as intellectual stimulation, she enjoyed music, rhymes, finger plays, dances as well as shapes - drawings or shape toys.

I remember searching various sties and reading lots of books trying to make sure i was not missing out on any learning opps with my toddler, and in fact i am still doing so but most of the time I find that if i can just put in the effort to minimise the times i have to say no or otherwise restrict / curtail my dd's activities and explorations - which often merely requires slowing myself down - then that itself facilitates her learning. Though I said "merely" I often have to remind myself to slow down and often create parallel activities for myself so that I am not hung up on when dd will finish measuring that cup of flour so that we can get on to the next ingredient :