One of the first things I addressed when I started trying to live more intentionally was how I’m educating my kids. My oldest is 3, so he isn’t school age yet, but I knew that he was capable of learning preschool teachings. In the past, we’ve worked on singing the ABCs and counting to 20. He knows his colors and shapes and spends a lot of time with a marker or crayon in his hand. However, I didn’t set aside specific times to work with him on learning. Now that I’m making an attempt at living intentionally, I have scheduled in homeschool preschool sessions – and he’s loving it!
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Choosing Homeschool Preschool Curriculum
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Maybe I sound cheap, but I don’t like spending a lot of money on things that I can find on Pinterest for free. When I was searching for a curriculum to use in teaching C, I googled and googled – looking for some kind of free curriculum that would tell me what to do and when to do it. Everything I came across claimed to be free – but that was only for the trial version. That’s when I took to Pinterest. I found tons of other moms that were teaching their own preschoolers at home. So, I had the inspiration and some motivation.
I ended up buying a big preschool workbook on Amazon for less than $5. Also, check out this great clearance section through the end of 2020 for school supplies! You might also print some helpful workbook pages from Pinterest. Instead of working our way through the workbook, I tear out the perforated pages and C does them according to a schedule. I also add in some other activities that I’ve found. We do homeschool Monday through Thursday in 3 sessions per day. I try to give him enough work to take 45 minutes per session, but he usually asks if he can do more when we’ve finished.
Lessons from Homeschooling with Intent
By scheduling homeschool preschool and making it my intent to teach him things he needs to know prior to Kindergarten, I’m noticing a few things. First, he loves to learn more than I ever realized. Second, he picks up some things really fast and some things he has a harder time with. C gets down on himself when he doesn’t understand and says, “I don’t know how.” I stay patient with him – which is easier than I expected. Lastly, crafts are fun for everyone. Seriously, we only do a weekly craft, but I’m considering upping the frequency. My wonderful mother-in-law sent us a box of goodies and craft supplies for this purpose and I am so ready to dive into more art projects!
I always said I would never homeschool because I wasn’t capable. I doubted if I had the ability to teach with the necessary patience. Would I do something wrong? While our current circumstances are because of COVID, I am glad that we’ve gotten the opportunity to homeschool preschool. Even though I don’t intend to continue homeschool, the experience is eye-opening!
There is joy in seeing him “get” something. Plus, there is a light in his eyes when he sees what he’s accomplished. He’s learned our schedule and tries to rush through breakfast so he can start school. C even gets sad when Friday, Saturday, and Sunday come around and there are no planned lessons. Having a set time to teach him – being intentional about making lesson plans – has given me a new purpose as a mom. It’s just the beginning of living intentionally, but I am glad this is the first step I took.
Homeschool Preschool as Daily Life
Surprisingly, adding in this intentional action hasn’t been difficult or overly time-consuming. The time-consuming aspect comes in planning out what I’m going to teach C for the week, but the actual schooling part is mostly easy. When Monday morning rolls around, we eat breakfast and go straight into schooling immediately after. After school, we take a break and the kids get to play until lunch. We have another session after lunch and one more before I start making dinner.
The schedule has made our days so much easier. At the end of the night, I find the appropriate workbook pages to work on the following day and add in the extra activities I mentioned. Usually, this means letters for him to trace or choosing which Bible story to go over. A couple of days ago I planned out using colored popsicle sticks to teach him patterns. Ultimately, I spend between 2 and 3 hours teaching him the material. Then, half an hour each evening is spent preparing for the following day. It’s a small amount of time for such benefits!
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It’s Worth It!
I don’t imagine that every day of homeschool preschool is going to be simple. I’m sure that the deeper we go and the more challenging the activities get, the harder it’s going to be. In fact, if I weren’t pregnant, I’d start stocking up on the wine now! P.S., if you need to stock up, check out In Good Taste wines for a great selection of tasty wines delivered to your door. Nonetheless, whether I need a glass of wine at the end of the day or not, there’s value in homeschool preschool.
Do you homeschool preschool? What activities does your little one enjoy most? Tell me about it in the comments!