Slow Schooling Chapter Nine: Toddlers to Big Kids
Toddlerhood is wonderful!
Homeschooling a Toddler
Tuesday, November 13, 2007 09:23
Sometimes I have to wonder at how hard we make it in teaching our toddlers...I never stressed about how to teach any of my toddlers how to walk as babies and I didn't buy curriculum to teach them to form words. But, somehow, they turn three or four and PANIC sets in. What if I don't teach them right? What if I miss the key hour for implanting the understanding of the numberic system? What if, what if.....they don't get into a private college on a full scholarship ride on their way to making $300,000 a year all because I didn't have (gasp!) the right manipulatives to stretch their brains?!
I love toddlers. I love their chubby little hands, their moist pursed kissie lips, and their wide wondering eyes. I love how, when finding out there is a boundary, they smile up at you while pointing their little feet *just* over the line to see if anything happens. And they're so busy! One minute they're in your cupboards taking out all of the pans, and the next they are in your refrigerator taking out all of the fruit. Toddlerhood is a real time of training in what the routines and rules of the household are, and what the consequences of breaking them might be. Many, if not most, issues with disobedience and attitude can be addressed during this age. However, adults are fairly distracted and seem to either tend towards moralism or child-centered parenting, or expect that their children will just get with the program on their own or with a touch of behavioral modification.
It is small wonder, therefore, that most of them are rushed through potty training, packed up and sent away to go to preschool, regardless of the harm in social and emotional development that may occur (1). By the time they reach the stage of leveling the house with the energy of a Tazmanian devil, both the homemaking mother and the family dog are ready for a respite. Families most concerned with keeping their children home will work diligently to address issues of character--both their child’s and their own--recognizing that it is God’s grace that enables them to persevere as needed. There are many books that Christian parents have been blessed with, both addressing the necessary perspective and providing procedures in child training (2). If parenting has become chaotic, I would encourage the reader to persistent study and prayer in overcoming the challenge(s), rather than simply sending the small child away for another (we hope) adult to address the issues. Seek wisdom from other (successful!) parents who have children you enjoy to have around.
In our home, toddlers are most successful if they know they are not only loved, but that they are wanted and needed. They help with the cooking, the cleaning, and wiping the baby’s hands. They go to the market with me, fold the washcloths, and learn how to make their own beds. In every day, they are incorporated into the workings of running a home and growing a garden. The easiest way to grow a teenager who is annoyed with chores is to wait until the child is a teenager to expect them. Certainly there are times when toddlers seem underfoot, but that time is short and the lessons learned long. Toddlers will know they belong if they have important work to do, for the good of the family.
Routines are key in helping a toddler to thrive. Meal times, nap times, and bedtimes ought to be at regular times; when those are mastered, it is easier to add in other parts of the day, such as table time or play time (more on those to come). Practically speaking, those kinds of strict routines means that we are staying home except for our once a week outing. As another benefit to regular routines and meal time, cleaner diets are easier to prepare and serve, giving the toddler additional support for good physical, mental and emotional health, attitudes, and actions.
Lastly, careful commands and a relaxed, smiling attitude does much to win the day. By careful commands, I mean not asking the child to do something you are not in a position to follow up with in case of disobedience. If you are currently snaking out a toilet clog, it probably isn’t the best time to ask your toddler to go pick up her crayons. But if you choose to do so, keep that relaxed smiling attitude if you need to immediately drop what you’re doing in order to help her do what you’ve asked.
Below are some activities and supplies our family has used in homeschooling our toddlers and small children. Some, such as reading aloud or chores, are daily occurrences. These are children that need constant attention and supervision and continual inspection for chores and jobs to be well done. They are still in training, and the main goal of these years are to capture their hearts for Jesus Christ, that the rest of their years will be an outworking of character development by grace through the working of the Holy Spirit.
chores (home economics and life skills, personal and clothing care, etc.)
reading aloud
practicing instruments
Bible memory work (we like Scripture Memory Fellowship for that)
playing outdoors
learning full name, address, and phone number
Lauri puzzles and toys (they will replace missing parts!)
floor puzzles
music lessons
phonics games
lacing
jump ropes and rebounders
Bingo
sand writing/box
tracing and printing his or her name
stamping
coloring (try other crayons such as beeswax, too)
make place cards for the table
building blocks
construction toys
number drills (hop 5 times, clap 8 times, etc.)
clay
finger painting
inside tents, outside tents
scissors & glue
seesaws, swings
math and science manipulatives
drawing
giant Tonka trucks and mini Matchbox cars
beanbags and targets
go outside
watercolors
stickers
nature walks
listening and drawing to classical music (what does it make you think of?)
earning money through chores
using a field guide for birds and plants
measuring everything (how long is our table, how high is your bed...)
sorting (beans, buttons, coins, washers, keys, M&M’s, animal crackers...)
matching games
magazine collage
write the grandparents
oral narration (tell me all about the book we read)
crafts
toy boats
dress-up play
books on tape (the best ones are the ones Mommy or Daddy record!)
call Grandma or Grandpa
counting backwards
use dice to roll and then count jumps, blocks, toys to pick up, etc.
Legos or Duplos
stencils
rubber stamps
playdough
illustrate poems read aloud
board games (Chutes and Ladders, anyone?)
educational computer games
buttons
baking measurements (cups, ounces, etc.)
bubble pipes
telling time
making pictures for grandparents
magnets
outdoor sand boxes
stringing large beads
pegboards
making placemats
using a calendar
watercolors
garden tools sized for little hands
puppets
card games (Memory, etc.)
tricycles, scooters
crafts and handwork (toddlers in other parts of the world spin and knit!)
making bookmarks
field trips to the farm, beach, post office (behind the scenes), etc.
sorting (buttons, beans, seeds, beads...use a muffin tin)
flannelboard
water play
kites and pinwheels
markers (washable!)
flannel and felt boards
counting money
visit the library often
miniature people and animals (Playmobile for example)
have I mentioned the great outdoors yet?
picking flowers
seed pictures/mosaics
yarn pictures
hammering nails
workbooks from Rod and Staff (preschool) or other companies
sidewalk chalk
soccer balls, wiffle balls, tennis balls...
planting seeds
making or playing instruments
reading books
writing in a journal
helping in the kitchen (or laundry or bedroom....)
fingerplays.
Lastly, I recommend Ruth Beechick's books (3); her ideas make homeschooling effective and fun, and they can release you from the pressure of making your home into a school. Have the wet washcloths ready and let the finger painting commence! No aspirin, school buses, or tuition necessary.
Here is an example from a day in teaching my children when they were all small:
My preschool/kindergarten time for my 3 and 6 year old begins around 9am. Where is everyone else?
The 7 year old is doing his music practice and watching the baby. The 10 year old is doing her morning chores and music practice. The baby (21 month old) is playing alone in his playpen (in full view of older brother) for 30 minutes, and then plays with his brother once music practice is complete. I have found that breaking up my children into smaller groups of two at the table make it easier for me to focus.
The first thing that happens with my two “students” is some Bible study. For my 3 yo, it looks like coloring a page from a story we’ve just learned or read.
For my 6 yo, she is working on her Bible notebook. She is copying a verse I gave to her, illustrating it, and then completing the statement, “This means...”
I like that they can self-start on something independently, because it gives me a moment to gather my thoughts and any supplies I might need while they work.
After about 5 minutes or so (depending on how engrossed she may or may not be that day), I begin working with the 3 yo. This day, we worked on cutting and pasting figures with numbers on them (in order). Then, because she is a very busy and “hands on” girl, we got out the buttons and counted the right amount for each figure (one button on the “1”, two on the “2” and so forth). She started to wane when we got to five, so we put that away.
I thought she should do a Lauri puzzle, but she still had her hands into the buttons, digging and looking at all the colors. So we brought out some color cards and began putting red buttons on the red card, and so on.
By this time, 30 minutes had passed and it was time for her to clean up and go play with her big sister. Other things we do during this time might be working out of workbooks, playing with letter stencils, stringing beads, doing puzzles, or easy artsy crafts. We love the Rod and Staff workbooks; they are easy to do, and thankfully inexpensive. She is read to a lot during the day as well (along with her siblings!).
Meanwhile, my 6 yo is working on her math....or her spelling....
Every day she does work with reading and phonics with writing in her journal, Spelling Power, Reading Made Easy or Explode the Code (never all in the same day!). She always does work in math as well. Sometimes that is from a workbook, other times it is completely hands on.
When my 6 yo is finished with those tasks, she gets to work on what she really likes to do: a craft. Currently, she is working on her collage castle, an activity we got from Usborne’s Things to Make and Do With Paper.
Sometimes the two of them will do a task from the book, Making the Most of the Preschool Years. By 10:00 (an hour later) we are all packed up, and heading down for Bible Time with everyone else. After that is snack time, and time for the older two to get to work while these two girls go off to play (the baby eats his snack and either naps in his bed or plays in his playpen--depending on his mood!).
Today, I have two “toddlers” I am homeschooling: my eight year old, Poppy, with Down syndrome, and my five year old. I’ve been teaching toddlers for more than 20 years straight and I have even more years to come!
You know, no teacher will love on your babies and care about how they are doing more than you, and that is reason enough to keep them home even without all of the "research". Enjoy teaching and being with your small children; they are only little once!
Preschool At Home
Wednesday, February 27, 2008 10:04
I am so thankful to have my children at home, every one of them. I am grateful not to miss out on the funny things they say and the opportunities to quickly correct them when they do something wrong. I love the amazing front row seat I have to watch their ever expanding minds grow, learn and stretch. I know when to challenge them in their schoolwork, and when to back off. And while I do not pressure them to keep up with anyone else, I can lovingly push them to achieve their potential. I am here to provide nutritious snacks when they’re hungry, and bandaids and hugs when they’re bleeding from bicycle boo-boos. I love learning alongside with them, digging into ancient history or impressionist artists, and nothing beats the ongoing banter that occurs during chore time or meals...Homeschooling a preschooler is as easy as putting him or her onto your lap for a good story.
There are some studies that show that preschool is effective for “at risk” students (presumably from broken families, because other studies have shown that neither higher income nor greater parental education equates better educational results, even in homeschooling), but even there, a key component in what works is, “Parental involvement is intensive, and integral to the lessons. Parents are taught how to continue their child's learning at home.” Also, consider a recent study done by UC Berkeley about how preschool actually harms social and emotional development. Another study found that “the more time children had spent in nonmaternal child care across the first 4.5 years of life, the more adults reported conflict with the child and such problem behaviors as aggression, disobedience, and assertiveness." Is it no wonder parents count the days until summer vacation are over? These studies are easy to find, but I do not make the case for keeping children home by study, but by the authority of the Word of God, which states that children are a blessing from the Lord unto their parents, and ought to be diligently raised up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord by those same parents.
Books include Shepherding a Child’s Heart by Tedd Tripp, Let Us Highly Resolve by Davide and Shirley Quine, and Hints on Child Training by H. Clay Trumbull.
The Three R’s by Ruth Beechick
If you’re looking for a simpler, more purposeful life outside of the rule of technology, perhaps you can glean from my experimentations in seeking a more present life. Learn more about the book (and how to get it) by clicking on its image.
