Read "Common Questions About Homeschooling" to get more information if homeschooling is right for you.
If you are reading this, I am guessing you have some interest in homeschooling. You may be wondering how to get started. I know some of you who read the post "Common Questions About Homeschooling" were probably thinking I was crazy when I said "As far as when you should start really planning out a structured day, I believe that should start around age 3. I have started a 15 min. structured day with my 3 year old. We spend this time in a variety of ways." Before I explain what I mean by that, let me tell you how we have started out.
Your child begins learning as soon as s/he is born. From nursing, grabbing your finger, holding a toy, laughing, rolling over, cooing, sitting up, to crawling....and on and on and on. Of course this seems obvious to any mother. So why do we hold back our children from learning? We think that they couldn't be ready for something so we don't teach it. Even if your child is not totally grasping something, they are learning something whether you are aware of it or not.
As soon as both of my children were able to focus their attention on something, like around 3 months, I started introducing them to sign language. I did this in a number of ways. I played the award winning Baby Signing Time series for them. Through this DVD series, they learned many basic words that were useful in communication as they grew older. It increased their understanding of many topics like feelings, eating, drinking, pets, bed time, opposites, etc. I also sign some of the signs in every day life. I not only sign the sign, but I also say it out loud. If you think about it, this is teaching GRAMMAR! I am using vocabulary in context. Not only I am using the words in an visual way, but also in an auditory (saying it aloud) and kinesthetic (motion) way.
As my daughter got to be about 1, I introduced her to the Signing Time series. We started learning clothing, numbers, letters, farm animals, zoo animals, etc. I knew she was ready for the transition when I could tell she was signing words and using them in the proper context. Of course learning our numbers 1-10, some basic shapes, colors and animal sounds naturally came next. It was around her first birthday that we started practicing counting 1-10 because we talked about how she was 1. She loved watching LeapFrog's Numberland and LeapFrog's Numbers Ahoy DVDs (on Netflix) to review counting. Shapes just kind of happened. She started recognizing hearts first. They were on one of her outfits. Then, I started teaching her circle and squares with just shapes around the house and in books. Animal sounds started a few months before the 4-H fair. Of course she loved signing and saying animal signs as we walked around the fair.
Soon potty training started for us. She had started squatting on the mat before bath time. So...we got the potty out. Next to her potty I posted a ABC strip. While we made the 100 trips to the potty every day, we would go over all of the letters. We started by learning the letters in her name, which happen to be on her wall above her crib, and then moved to the rest of the letters. Then, as she got more familiar with the letters, we started singing the ABC song. So for 10 min. each hour, she was learning her letters. No wonder by 1 1/2 she recognized all of her letters.
Next came learning more animals. We started with zoo animals and their sounds. This made going to the zoo when she was 2, so much fun! At this point she was making some of the sounds of the alphabet without knowing it. A monkey says "E-e-e Aw Aw Aw" so I started using some vowel sounds when we brushed her teeth. Long E for brushing the front of her teeth. Short O (aw) for the back molars and tops of teeth. Short E (eh) for brushing her tongue. Of course we started coloring around age 2 which started the development of fine motor skills.
At 2 1/2 she got the LeapFrog Scribble and Write pad to practice writing and recognizing her letters. So now that she was learning some of her vowel sounds, this transitioned into learning AEIOU and their short sounds. This quickly flowed into learning all of her letter sounds. LeapFrog's Phonics Farm DVD is how she learned all of her letter sounds. I She loved seeing all of the animals she knew and learning a couple new ones too! I also recommend the LeapFrog's Phonics Fridge Set and LeapFrog's Word Whammer Fridge Set. Around turning 3, she was writing some of the letters and knew almost all of her letter sounds when asked. About 2 months later she was watching the Phonics Farm and said the letter J sound and said her brother's name, which starts with a J. It was time for a new transition! Now that she is 3, we have officially started our 15 min. "structured" learning times. We are starting right where she is at...letter sounds and some fine motor skills.
Here are some of the activities we are doing for our homeschooling time:
(1) tracing different kinds of lines
(2) learning to trace and recognize all of the basic shapes (square, triangle, rectangle, circle, oval, diamond and heart)
(3) going onto StarFall's ABC sections to review our sounds and practice blending sounds together
(4) coloring
(5) making cards for others
(6) finding the beginning letter for words by listening for the sound (What does M-M-Mommy start with?)
(7) counting objects out loud as we touch them
(8) Bible memorization for Philippians 2:14 & Colossians 3:20 (most of the time this is in the moment when she is disobeying or whining about something)
(9) assisting me in baking, cooking and canning
(10) signing together and watching Signing Time videos together
(11) having a "dance party" to praise music
(12) housework (she's my helper in almost every cleaning activity)
**We have used some activities out of the Big Preschool workbook.
So, do we do all of these together every day? NO! As it fits into life, we throw them into our daily schedule. Sometimes we might have 5 of them that just happen, while other days we may have 2. This is as "structured" as I meant. I do try to do one activity that requires her to sit still a day so that she can get some practice at this. This is a definite area of hers that is difficult. As I am typing this to you it is quiet time and she is moving all over the couch :)
So I hope this helps you know where to start. This is where we have gone with the natural progression of her learning. Maybe you're thinking that your child is not interested at all in learning his/her letters. Start where your child is at and what s/he is interested in. All children are different. I am sure my son will have a different starting point.
The key is to make learning a part of your child's day and make it natural with the things you do. Want to practice couting? Have them count the pretzels from lunch time. Want to practice letters? Find letters on signs, books and things around your house. Want to have them learn some bible verses? Start with some verses that are useful in your everyday life! Most of all...relax and have fun! There are no rights and wrongs or firsts and lasts. Just start building on what's already there!
Here is a great article that is very helpful called "How to Spot Your Preschooler's Hidden Talents". This is a great starting point if you are trying to find ways to teach your child successfully, but don't know what would work for him/her.
If you need any help, you can leave a comment! I'd be glad to give you any suggestions.
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