Tag Archives: links

Preschool Supplies

Thoughtful Thursday, ,

Supplies

It’s always fun to have some “school” supplies and to do crafts. The dollar store is a good source for these items but don’t forget places like Michael’s and Hobby Lobby where you can use their weekly 40% or so off coupon on an item.

Here are a few links to some webpages of ladies that share what they’ve gotten to use with their preschoolers from the dollar store. Oh, and remember that stores get new inventory weekly, so check back often for different supplies.

(Sorry about the formatting of this post. I was exhausted and I needed to get it up, so I took a few shortcuts and it isn’t the best but the links are good. :) )

Dollar Tree Homeschool Deals

Homeschool Supplies at the Dollar Tree & Goodwill

Play dough mats:

https://www.time4kindergarten.com/2011/07/rainbow-write-or-play-dough-mats.html

How to use mats:

https://www.supplyme.com/products/play-dough-shape-mats-a3298

Dollar Store Deals for Preschool Days {and toddlers, too!}

Homeschooling Bargains at the Dollar Store

Dollar Store Preschool Homeschool Curriculum

I hope these links help you.

Until next time,

Michele ºÜº

Going to Bed Together

Marriage Monday

For the majority of our marriage I have gone to bed at the same time as Michael. I am more of a night owl by nature and he is more of an early bird. Until the kids were grown, I forced myself to go to bed when he did. (Of course, I had limits–I couldn’t go to bed before 9:30 unless I was sick or I’d gotten up extremely early.)

Lately though, he’s had a bit of trouble sleeping and frequently gets up way too early (4 and 5 am). Thankfully, he doesn’t wake me up but this means that he is tired earlier and goes to bed before my requisite 10pm. Consequently, since I’m going to bed after he’s already in bed and asleep anyway, I’ve taken to going to bed a bit later some times (anywhere from 10:30pm to 1:45am). If I’m involved in a good book, I’ll keep reading for a bit.

While this has been fun for me, it has taken away some cuddle time and closeness with my hubby. Now, this really can’t be helped under the current situation but is not optimal for the long term.

Sheila Gregoire wrote a post that mentions this as well. Her hubby has a cute saying about it but I’ll let you click over and read it for yourself. It’s a good article, so I’ll keep this short so you can read their take on it. :) And she wrote a whole article about adult bedtimes here; I hope you’ll click over and give it a read too. :)

Until next time,

Michele ºÜº

 

Preschool at Home

Thoughtful Thursday, Tips, , ,

It’s hard to believe our grandson is now three years old. I think he’s adorable.

This post is in an effort to help any mom new to homeschooling. I’m going to include some online preschool resources to help you. But first I need to say,

Don’t go crazy.

Make sure you give them plenty of time to explore things on their own. Don’t get them so structured that you suck the fun out of learning and play time. ;)

Make it fun.

Little ones learn so much through play. If you can make it a game, as in something they like, they are going to be so much more engaged. Don’t insist that they do everything your way. Allow them to play and explore things.

Have a schedule.

I know this one kind of goes against the previous ones but many children thrive on schedules, as do most adults. ;) Find a way to convey your schedule to your little one. They will pick up on things like after lunch we go outside and play or after we play we come in and eat a snack and take a nap or after dinner we take a bath, read a story, and go to bed. Children do well, generally speaking, with routines.

Get them outdoors.

When the weather is not dangerous, get them outside to work off some energy. I know my grandson has a boundless supply of energy. Getting him outside helps to wear him out a bit.

I suggest getting him outside to run, climb, and play before nap time and before time to make dinner to help him be tired enough to take a nap or have quiet time quietly. ;) And also be ready to go to bed at night.

If it isn’t tornadic, sweltering, or storming, it is even good to let them outside in the rain and jump in puddles, when dressed appropriately. ;) Of course, that might just be the grandma in me and not the cool mom. :D

Read books with and to them.

It’s good to run your finger under the words as you read, so they can see a correlation between the words you are saying and what is on the page. You don’t need to do any instruction with this, just simply run your finger under the words as you read them. :)

Books are so important!!! Reading is a fundamental milestone that everyone needs to attain in their lives–but there is no age when they MUST learn; it’s about when they are ready. The important thing is to read to them and to read on your own, showing them that you read too helps them see it is important.

If your stuck with some ideas of some good book choices, here are some lists to consult.

  • Ambleside Online – be sure to scroll down the page for the book titles. I’m sure you’ll see some familiar ones. :)
  • Simply Charlotte Mason – has a good list too
  • 1000 Good Books List – Note that this link is for up to 3rd grade, so some of them will be too much for your little one to sit and listen to. Don’t force long periods. Choose books the right length for your child’s attention span.
  • What is Twaddle? – with a short list of preschool book suggestions.
  • Scribing Life – This lady combined books she found on some of the lists I’ve mentioned above and made a comprehensive list.

Seriously though, once you get a feel for the kind of books on the list and that your child enjoys, you can just pick books from the library.

Curriculum

  • Mama Hustle Repeat has some good preschool homeschool ideas. :) And more on this page.
  • Brightly Beaming Resources! – This is one my sister used with her children. This preparatory set of lessons is good for ages 2-4 and covers just 26 weeks. It focuses on a theme of the week but introduces them to a letter each week too. Utilizing a Learning Poster, changing the focus each week (completely described on the website and very simple to do). This can be made easily with a presentation board from Dollar Tree or simply a poster board.  * The first week covers the theme Cows with the vocabulary word calf, shape square (shapes alternate with colors), letter A, and number 1. It gives some book suggestions, some poems, and songs that relate to the theme. Then it also offers a gross motor skill activity, a fine motor skill activity, and a nursery rhyme. * The focus is not on the alphabet but does simply expose them to the alphabet in this 26 lesson period since the next step focuses on a letter a week. :)
  • Easy Peasy Getting Ready 1 (for 4 year olds – similar to Letter of the Week by Brightly Beaming). I only include this so you are aware that there are options but I do not recommend it for 3 year olds.

I’m sure you can see that I highly recommend Brightly Beaming Resources Step 1. They have more curricula for older ages as well. So if your child is a bit older and is already familiar with the alphabet, check out Step 2 or whichever step is appropriate for your child’s level; better to start lower and it be too easy than to be too challenging and frustrate your precious one. :)

I hope this is of help to you and that you have fun as you continue to teach your child. Remember, you’ve already taught them a lot. You’re just helping them explore more ideas and things. :)

Until next time,

Michele ºÜº

Early Learning Printables Galore Link

Thoughtful Thursday, , , ,

While I was looking for the preschoolers passport last week I found several other things that I’ll be sharing over the next little while, starting with today. :)

The Reading Mama has loads of printables!!! I clicked on Preschool Printables and then on the Preschool Fun Packs and then on the Summer Smileys Preschool Fun Pack. Once there I found some summer book suggestions as well as quite a few printable pages in the free download.

This download focused mostly on number recognition and used dice too. It had some two piece puzzles and some tracing pages all in color and black and white. Oh, there’s even some sequencing cards.

You could print the color for eye-appeal and the black and white pages for coloring.

There are so many printable pages on this site covering a lot of different areas like reading readiness, cutting practice, sight words, reading family books, and even Bob Book printables.

Oh! You can laminate or place the page in a page protector so that the page can be used repeatedly. And I’d probably glue the cards to a colored piece of paper/cardstock instead of printing color on the backside and thus saving ink.

There’s also a simple phonics assessment and spelling reference folder for those that have children that already reading somewhat.

I hope this website with its free pages to download and print are a blessing to you.

Until next time,

Michele

Summer Math Skills

Thoughtful Thursday

Reading isn’t the only thing that needs to be kept up through the summer, although you might think it is by the posts I make about it. But math skills need to be kept sharp as well. This does not need to be a drudgery. Not at all. It can be quite fun and help encourage family togetherness, if you choose to do this together. ;)

A simple deck of cards is all you need to have to work on those math skills. You could probably even use Uno cards. :) Cards can be purchased, sometimes, two decks for $1 at Dollar Tree and generally a dollar a deck there otherwise. Generally, you can get a deck or two for under $5.

For the youngest set, they can merely sort the standard deck either into colors or shapes or numbers and letters. Slightly older children can add sequencing to their activities with the cards.

Those that can add, there are a lot of options. Many of those options can be adjusted for those that can multiply.

Here are some links with some wonderful ideas to keep math skills sharp throughout the summer without having to resort to worksheets. ;)

I encourage you to work on those math skills this summer, the fun way.

Michele ºÜº

Learning about Weather

Thoughtful Thursday

It’s storm season here in Oklahoma. This week has had several storms and tornadoes springing up. Living in tornado alley, my kids have grown up with this threat and have learned what we do when one arises.

In our second year here there were monumental tornadoes that occurred. Since we both lived in a mobile home and only five minutes from my parents, we all went over to wait out the storm together. We quickly found that OK is on top of any tornadic weather. The kids all played together (or slept) as we watched this weather coverage. Of course, we adults prayed as we watched too.

I believe that it is important to teach children about storms and what we need to do to protect ourselves but balance it out, so as not to frighten them.

There is a book entitled Storm in the Night that we used when the boys were little with Five In A Row (FIAR) that talks about storms. Looking back, it is possible that this book and our study with it may have contributed to my children liking rain and storms. Although, this was not a favorite book, it is a good one.

Here are some links to blog posts others have shared about Storm in the Night:

Then if you are interested in some study with tornadoes, click on over to homeschoolshare.com and click on Title Index. Scroll down and you will find MANY MANY learning ideas for many ages. :) (I hesitate to share the link here because they may be notified and I don’t want them to try and get rid of the archived page link above. ;) ) The study called Tornado looks interesting as does the Weather Lapbook and Printables from the Lapbooks tab.

For more tornado specific ideas, check these out:

I hope these ideas help you in your study of weather.

Until next time,

Michele ºÜº

Toy Car Play Ideas

Thoughtful Thursday

Toddler Car Toy Ideas ~ Lifeofjoy.meMy two year old grandson is into toy cars right now. So, I decided to look up some ideas for Lauren to use for him, to add a bit more fun to his fun. ;) And I thought I’d share them here, so she can find them easily.

There are some fun ideas here from simple play ideas to counting and alphabet.

I hope they are helpful to you,

Michele ºÜº

P.S. Here is a simple and cute tunnel idea.

Planning for Easter

Desserts, Thoughtful Thursday,

Preparing for Easter ~ Lifeofjoy.meWell, Lent is nearing its end which means that Easter Sunday or Resurrection Sunday as we sometimes call it, is nearly upon us. Lent is about preparing for Easter. I’ve been reading the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) this month, filling my thoughts with the deeds of Jesus. I just finished Matthew a few days ago and feel really good having the historical account of what Jesus did in the forefront of my mind as we approach Easter.

There are a few activities you can do with your children, on top of reading the Bible with them in preparation for Easter. I’m sharing today, so that you can buy the ingredients to make the rolls and cookies and be prepared. :) The first takes the most prep work and the last is the easiest.

I may make these Easter Cookies with my grandson when they are up around Easter. I believe that I can easily modify them to be sugar free and everything else in them works on THM, keto, and other low carb eating plans. Of course the Resurrection Rolls will take a bit more work because of the marshmallow. ;) Maybe next year I’ll figure that one out.

I hope this helps you prepare for Easter,

Michele ºÜº

Preparing for St. Patrick’s Day

Thoughtful Thursday

It’s that time once again, when I’m confronted with a National Holiday of which I never really knew the significance. I didn’t even really do it justice when my children were young. So I write this to help you not do what I did. ;)

I’m sharing a post I shared several years ago but have checked (and fixed when necessary) the links to ensure they still work. There is a five day study, which also has suggestions for turning into a two week study and another is complete with copywork, art study, and a recipe. :) Lots of stuff here.

So without further adieu, here’s the post from the past.

 

The article I’m sharing with you today is short because it is Saint Patrick’s Day and there is more than enough information packed into this small article. I got it from the email newsletter of  The Teaching Home. If you don’t get this newsletter, you should; it has lots of great stuff in it but not so much it is overwhelming.

I hope you find this helpful.

Until next time, God bless,

Michele ºÜº

St. Patrick's Day Links ~ Lifeofjoy.me

St. Patrick’s Day

by Cindy Short and Sue Welch

St. Patrick’s Day

presents an opportunity to teach your children the true story of Patrick of Ireland, who at the age of 16, was kidnapped by pirates and taken to Ireland as a slave. After he found God while herding pigs and escaping, he returned to his home in Roman Brittan, and later returned to Ireland as a humble and brave missionary!

We have included many excellent resources, a free unit study, and free e-books below.

•  Free 5-day St. Patrick Unit Study from Knowledge Quest. Includes: biography about St. Patrick, research, and report; science, nature, and craft activities; timeline, mapping, and lapbook activities; and an Irish dinner.

•  Free 23-Page E-book from Living Books Curriculum, St. Patrick’s Day Holiday Helper. Includes: a biography, rare illustrations for picture study, a recipe for soda bread, and more.

•  Read more about Patrick in the online article from Joyful Heart, “Will the Real St. Patrick Please Stand Up?.”

•  Read a shorter account (on AnniesHomepage.com) for children of Patrick’s life and how he used the shamrock to explain the Trinity.

•  St. Patrick’s Breastplate: Read this poetic prayer, listen to and see it sung in an Irish setting, and study vocabulary, geography, and comprehension questions.

•  Free eBook: Confession of St. Patrick. Read this brief story of St. Patrick’s life, told through his own eyes.

Copyright 2016 by www.TeachingHome.com. Reprinted by permission.

Book Suggestions and Lenten Read Aloud

Thoughtful Thursday

March Reads ~ Lifeofjoy.meSeveral weeks ago I raved about the book Teaching from Rest and in the past I have talked about the Read Aloud Revival website. Well, I had forgotten that the two were both by the same lady, Sarah Mackenzie until I received (and read) a recent email from her.

She recently sent an email with a list of picture books for March. I thought it was a great list and would share the article link with you today.

Some of the books she shared are “funny” books. I didn’t recognize very many of them. Two books that I read to my kids when they were young were Fox in Socks by Dr. Suess (pronounced Soyss) and Stand Back Said the Elephant, I’m Going to Sneeze by Patricia Thomas. Both of these had me laughing as I read them. They were not on her list though, so I thought I’d suggest them to you. :)

And finally, another book I have not personally read but think it would be a fun read is by the same authors of the wonderful advent stories I’ve shared about before. The story is Amon’s Adventure by Arnold Ytreeide. Bear in mind that I have not yet read this one but it is set up like the advent ones and are to be read throughout Lent which starts the week of March 3rd and goes until Easter. :)

Well, that’s it for me today.

Until next time, God bless,

Michele ºÜº