Okay, after many, many recent requests about a new series of homeschooling, here it goes. I didn't forget, I promise, but sometimes actual life interferes with me keeping up my humble blog. Or big events take priority (for instance, Apollo will be seven months old tomorrow!) So bear with me, ask your questions, and, I hope, enjoy!
I did an extensive series a couple of years ago about homeschooling. Here are some great old posts about: homeschooling with preschoolers, top picks for preschoolers, awesome preschool ideas, preschoolers and math, more on loving math. As amazing as it seems, I don't have any toddlers or preschoolers at the moment, so many of these ideas are not currently in use.
So, I will begin with my little ones.
First of all, let them be with you, work with you, help you. What preschooler doesn't love being in the kitchen?
Obviously Tucker (5) does!
And Avi (5) too!
When I asked for volunteers to slice the peppers for dinner, these two practically jumped out of their seats in anticipation.
I demonstrated how to slice off the top of the pepper, gently pull out the white stuff on the inside, and rinse out the seeds.
These two were as happy as could be. I begin letting my children handle knives at age three. First they slice bananas, then olives, then anything else handy. We have never had a casualty (unless you count 10 year old Judah who needed ten stitches and an artery cauterized…but he was fooling around!)
These two love to cook, wash dishes and pretty much do any real work around the house. They want to contribute to the family. This is what builds confidence, not mindless praise about how "wonderful" they are.
As far as academics, I'm a strong believer in waiting until age seven or eight for formal learning. Homegrown Kids is hands down my favorite book on the subject. Fourteen years ago I believed the book in theory…now I believe I've seen it come to frutition in my older children. Delaying formal learning doesn't mean we ignore them all together though. Both Avi and Tucker are learning to read. Tucker uses my favorite Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons and Avi is using The Reading Lesson Book. I feel like Teach Your Child is the far superior book, but I got the second one to use with Mordecai. He seems to prefer the bigger words and less cluttered pages. If a child is inclined to do work books, I provide those.
I don't like playing games with preschoolers. I pretty much consider it torture. So I didn't play them with my older children. Now I have enough of an age range that my children can play with each other! I have however, discovered some nifty little games that I actually enjoy. And games that I am convinced boost thinking/mathematical skills.
Loose Change is awesome! This is a game all my children enjoy, and one even I can stomach.
The game consists of cards with money photos and values on them. Players take turns laying down cards, trying to reach one dollar. If you go over, you lose points. I found thirteen year old Judah and five year old Tucker playing this the other day. They were not posing for these pictures, and I didn't ask Judah to play with his little brother.
Talk about a great way for a little one to learn to count money!
I just love the focus on his face as he considers his next move.
Another great math game is The Number Chase. Get this one for sure. It's fairly cheap, and fun to play.
Other than real life, reading lessons, and math games we: read, read, read, play with playdough, bead, draw, tie dye, fold laundry and play with quality toys.
My favorite toys for this age?
Wedgits, Mini Wedgits, Zoob, Legos, Playmobil, unit blocks, wooden kitchen and toys, quality plastic animals, and various toys of those sort.
We're big believers in a few quality toys over bazillions of cheap plastic toys.
To be continued…
by 
Sometimes I imagine you talking like this: “Mordecai Five, can you come here? Adalia Fifteen, it’s time to go. Apollo XIV Seven Months, do you need your diaper changed?” I’m easily amused.
Ive actually had many, many requests from people to list the kids ages…and for the record, I only list them once per blog post, the first time I mention said child…but anything to make you smile, Shawn…
Thank you so much for this. We are really considering bringing our 5 year old home for school (for many reasons). He tells us that he doesn’t want to go and asks several times a week to be homeschooled! I am more then willing to do that and my husband says that if I want to take that on then he is behind me 110% so after the school year is over we might be starting on this journey. I really value the things you have to say on parenting and homeschooling so I am really excited about this series.
I agree with all you have said!
Hey, Timberdoodle on facebook posted your blog today. I was scrolling through and there you were. I thought that was pretty neat!
completely agree…
we do pretty much the same thing, except I love playing games with the kids. 🙂 Oh and the 100 easy lessons book is awesome!
love the pictures too!
britt
I agree with everything you said except we didn’t really care for the Teach Your Child book. I’ve used a system called Phono-graphix with great results. As for most “little kid” games, I loathe them. I’m thrilled that I have a range in ages so that I never have to play them. I have been known to bribe older kids to play with the littles. Their reward? I play a game with THEM. As a general rule our family loves games, I just can’t stand the prescool ones.
Thanks so much for all the great information! My oldest turned three in October (I also have a two year old and a 6 month old), and I’ve been looking for ideas for what to do with him while his younger siblings nap in the afternoons. I want to make use of that time when I can be one on one with him, but I do also try to accomplish some things around the house then too.
Also, my son received Candy Land for Christmas, and we’ve only played it twice so far, because it makes me want to hit my head against the nearest wall repeatedly. I’ve been feeling guilty, but I’m relieved to see you don’t enjoy games either!
I’ve been reading and occasionally commenting on your blog for about a year and a half now. I think your pictures are great and such fun content!
Anyway, I made this collage of my kids for v-day and wanted to see if you would do it too. I wanted to see what you might come up with just for fun. You are so creative and I bet you would have fun with it =) I used my version as my blog title picture so it’s easy to find when you go to my blog: http://familycircus6.blogspot.com/
Just a fun “photography challenge” or what-not. Just for fun! =)
Hi Im a new follower to you blog 🙂
Your blog is really cool and I think its so cool that you homeschool, I would love to be homeschooled but I go to a pretty amazing catholic school so Im happy! It is also so cool that you adopt.
All Avi needs is a feather in her headband to be a perfect Native American princess!
Renee, thanks so much for this post…and thanks in advance for the ones to come. 🙂
This year, I’ve watched my oldest son (who used to LOVE math) turn into a grumbling math student; and I am determined to change that. I’m inspired by this post (and the ones you’ve posted previously about math) to find ways to make math fun and practical and fascinating again for him!
He doesn’t know it yet, but someday he’ll thank you. 🙂
I’m still hoping some day you’ll do a knife skills tutorial! How you teach your kids to handle knives, what the rules are, etc.
I’d love to hear a bit more about each of your kids in turn–understandably you’re blogging a lot about Apollo right now. I know dedicating a blog to each of them once a month would be a lot. That would take up half the month after all. But maybe one day a month you could give us a small update about each child, like in list form? It would be a nice record for you to have, and I know I’m not the only one wondering how Ezra likes high school and living away from home, as well as how Tilly, Kalina, Jubilee, and Boaz are doing, among others.
Love your blog!
Thanks for the math game ideas. It is always nice to have new tools in the education arsenal.
I think its awesome that you just said playing games was torture… wicked. I mean, I felt much the same way both as a child and an adult! I hated them, all of them. My husband loves them and did that job, now I have a heap of learning games that I do love to play but it took time… I think I also got from your blog, correct me if wrong, that you do not read books that you hate outloud to your kids. When I read that years ago, I felt liberated and took the same action and realized, if I do not enjoy reading it to them and I feel tortured (think pink, fairies, barbie-ugh) then it isnt worth it. I like learning books!
PS we did the knife thing from age 3 also, and we took a lot of criticism. Do you have that problem with the life skills you teach? Its not the only one, we did a lot of early learning concerning fine motor skills and we supervised, but lots of people thought it was terrible. Thankfully we moved and dont know lots of people anymore…
Danielle, youre in luck! Ive just joined a new blogging community, and next Wed, well all be posting an introduction to our families, so stay tuned!
Really, I just hand them the knife and tell them how to use it. They have enough innate caution, it seems, to not go flailing it around (unless they are 10 year old boys showing off). Not much to tell about it…