End of School Traditions
What is your end of school tradition? Those who knew my children growing up could easily answer that question. It’s ice cream! Our family has ice cream for dinner on the first and last days of school every year. It was fitting that our oldest served ice cream sundaes at her graduation party. Two intentional ideas were wrapped up in this end of school tradition. We were building family memories, and we were having intentional table talks. “How was school today?” will get you the typical “fine” answer, but put ice cream in a kid’s hand and ask “what was your favorite project this school year” and you’ll likely get an answer that’s more than a word long. And you’ll likely get questions from other parents about why you are giving your kids ice cream for dinner. Since we were not a family who ate dessert after dinner on a regular basis, this is the stuff memories are made of. And who wants to feel overstuffed after a meal. Not me. So when the kids were younger, ice cream was the meal. As they grew older, the ice cream tradition remained strong but sometimes it followed dinner or was eaten…
Math Conversations with Preschoolers
How do you begin a conversation about math with a preschooler beyond singing the Ants Go Marching Two by Two? Introducing young children to math at home does not have to be complicated, but it can go beyond simple counting songs or fingerplays. Young children are naturally curious about math. Numbers, geometry, and patterns are easy to incorporate into a preschool life, and so are math conversations with preschoolers. Even a walk around the neighborhood can be an opportunity to talk about math. Count dogs. Talk about how one dog counts as one no matter the size. Later you can categorize the dogs or count several categories of animals. Ask open ended questions. Geometry and patterns are also easy to incorporate. Name shapes as you walk or read books. Talk about how shape names do not change even if a shape is a different direction. Cut a few shapes out of paper and let your child arrange them to make pictures or create patterns. Tangrams are also a fun way to play with shapes and patterns at any age! I have been known to set out Tangrams and other shape puzzles at multigenerational family gatherings just because it’s fun to…
Sensory Strategies for Learning
How can you squeeze a little learning into playtime? As a teacher and tutor I have had to think creatively and quickly to come up with out of the box sensory strategies for learning to help students learn in a way that makes sense to them. This happens usually when their frustration becomes evident. The student begins to act out or shut down. For some reason they are unwilling or unable to focus on the learning. That brings out my creative side! I WANT every kid to find joy in learning! And if they are not, I want to know why and what I can do to make it better. Getting creative with sensory learning is a good starting spot. It’s not the only way to teach and learn, but there can be fun activities connected to our senses and our study time. Learning styles are basically just how your child learns best – by hearing, by watching, or by doing. These are not the only way your child learns, so do not discount all the other ways we can learn, but understand that sometimes it helps your child to focus on the content when we present it in a…
Put On Put Off Chart
What area of disobedience do you find yourself nagging a child about? It’s common to tell children to “stop doing that” but less common to take the time to tell them what to do instead or to probe into the heart issue behind the problem. Even with our own faults, it’s common to focus on the fault not on the flip side of what we could do to change it. When my kids were little, I happened upon an obedience chart that gave suggestions for replacing bad actions with good ones. It gave Biblical principles and verses of what to “put off” and what to “put on” in an easy to read chart. I used this idea over a few years, making similar lists according to the top few problem areas for my kids. This chart is still available on the internet as Wise Words for Moms. It also gave heart probing questions to ask, which are useful in the moment of discipline or as table talk conversations in general. Many types of “if-then” consequence lists are available, but this one is great for the younger years and will help you with Biblical parenting that sets a foundation for middle…
Waiting Games
What game can you easily play while waiting in line? Waiting games are invaluable resources for every parent and teacher! Waiting is part of everyday life. We wait in lines at amusement parks, at vaccine clinics, and in traffic jams. We wait for events like ball games, symphonies, and movies to start. My list was curated when I was a 4th grade teacher and we went every year to the North Carolina Symphony. Our students had to dress up, ride the bus, and sit quietly waiting on the performance to start. Kids get restless! And unless you give them resources, restlessness can easily turn into ruckus! I created a list of ideas my students could quietly use with their seatmate. Soon other teachers wanted to know my secret! Why were my students pleasantly occupied without me having to fuss at them? High expectations and tools they could use. This also became helpful when I took high school students on service trips around the world. They could entertain themselves in airports and vans. They could also entertain younger children waiting for Vacation Bible School to begin or parents to pick them up at the end. Most of the games require little…
PreK Play Makes Learning Fun
What is your favorite activity for creative learning at home with preschoolers? I’m often asked for tips for homeschooling preschoolers, from a teacher’s perspective. While most people are looking for workbooks and curriculum advice, I’m giving hands on fun ways to incorporate learning into everyday life. Play and adventures are two great ways to experience learning opportunities and have fun at the same time. Look below for five fresh ideas for educational activities for preschoolers. Read Aloud. Read silently together. Read books. Read kids magazines. Go to the library. Designate a colorful blanket as a reading spot but occasionally move it around the house, yard, and city. Let your child read to a row of stuffed animals, retelling a favorite story, with or without the book. Go to the library regularly. Read new books and old favorites. (Tip: Put kids magazines on the birthday wishlist when grandparents ask for ideas.) Act out a Favorite Bible Story. You can do hand motions, use stuffed animals, or dress up. You can let your child take the lead on how you can act out the story. Have the Bible or story book open to review the order of the story. Try Window Clings.…
In Order
Do you ever wonder why students jump around project to project without finishing? Teaching students or your children to prioritize and complete projects in order is a doable goal. One easy way is to write a list of things to complete and teach them to complete it in order written. In the elementary classroom during a block of work time, I write down a list of things on the board that need to be done. I teach my students that my lists are always meant to be completed starting at the top. When you complete the first item, you move on to the second item, etc. Sometimes I draw a line dividing the top part of the list from the bottom part. This is usually a visual reminder that the things above the line must be completed and the things below the line are things to do if you get time or if you actually complete all the above. I’m not fond of long lists of things to do, but occasionally this is necessary on a “catch up” day where students are in various stages of completion on projects or your family is cleaning up the house after the holidays.…
Be Honest
Do you know that feeling of relief you get when you just tell someone the truth? “Be honest” is one of the few rules I have for my tutoring clients. I’d rather a child tell me they didn’t turn in their homework than to lie to me about the teacher losing it. Being honest allows us to get to the heart of the matter, such as lack of motivation or feeling overwhelmed at the amount of overdue work. Honesty is a character trait that we should strive for, but we also need to strive to create relationships that cultivate honest conversations. Being honest is hard work but being known as a person of integrity adds much to your character. We tend to want to hide the truth when things are not going as planned or when we think we will disappoint people. Being honest in a relationship builds trust. Our homes, offices, and classrooms can be spaces where it’s safe to tell the truth. Spaces where we reach out to one another. Where telling the truth is honored and help and hope is offered. Spaces where condemnation and criticism drip from the lips of those in attendance do not value…
Table Talk
Are you more like a pencil or a school bus? I love to ask people this question! I have asked it around the dinner table, to help a student prepare for an interview, on an airplane, in line at an amusement park, at gatherings, walking down the beach, and many more places to people both young and old. Mostly I just love to get people thinking and talking. I always ask them to give one reason to support their answer. I have heard plenty of interesting answers, the best being from my daughter who said she was sharp like a pencil but you never knew when she might snap! If you think this is just a silly idea, let me explain. A question like this causes one to think about a pencil then to think about a school bus. Probably floods of memories come when they think about their own experience with buses or lack of experiences. Then they have to think about themself and what they want to review or hide about themself when they give an answer. Next they have to evaluate both options and analyze the object and themself. Lastly they have to make a judgement… are…
