I haven't blogged about our "homeschool" much lately. Mostly this is because we really haven't been doing much. It's summer, and we have been trying to take advantage of the rare sunshine that we get here in the Pacific Northwest. We've been enjoying going to parks, playing in water, and exploring our new sand table. We try not to underestimate learning through play. Mommy tries to take a backseat to this learning, and let them do their own thing as much as possible.
We've been especially enjoying our sand table. Technically, it's a plastic train table, but we've put it outside and added sand to it. The boys are really enjoying it. I believe that one of the best sounds in the world is siblings giggling and playing with one another. They are also learning to work out their squabbles so Mommy doesn't have to intervene every time there is a problem (although it does still happen a lot).
As for our "formal homeschooling," this mainly takes place during Button's naptime as it is the only uninterrupted, scheduled time we have. Basically, our time looks like this...
We've been especially enjoying our sand table. Technically, it's a plastic train table, but we've put it outside and added sand to it. The boys are really enjoying it. I believe that one of the best sounds in the world is siblings giggling and playing with one another. They are also learning to work out their squabbles so Mommy doesn't have to intervene every time there is a problem (although it does still happen a lot).
As for our "formal homeschooling," this mainly takes place during Button's naptime as it is the only uninterrupted, scheduled time we have. Basically, our time looks like this...
- 10-15 minutes of reading a book that is too advanced for Button
- Books that we are reading...
- 10-15 minutes of some schooling activity (Reading, Math, Science in random rotation - whatever Mommy or Buddy wants to do that day)
- For Reading, we do some of the following activities
- Play with our Alphabet Avalanche
- Delightful Reading Program
- For Math
- Play with our Block Buddies
- Play Sum Swamp
- Dominoes
- Animal Counters
- For Science
- Pick an experiment from The Everything Kid's Science Experiments Book
- Bake something with Mommy
- 30-45 minutes of Starfall (this is mommy's break for the day so sometimes it goes longer)
- We've purchased the membership for $35/year, but they have a lot of free stuff on their website as well. I full-screen the webpage, so he can't accidentally get out of it.
That's it! And, I really feel like this is plenty for us right now. It's very relaxed, and if it doesn't happen one day, it really doesn't matter. Sometimes we take advantage of the fact that Daddy works from home and Buddy and I do errands instead. He likes to be my big helper.
I'm liking this set-up, and I'm not sure that we will be being too much more than this in the fall. Buddy is learning a ton and he has a desire to learn more. This desire is the most important thing, and I want to cultivate that passion rather than bore him with school stuff.
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