Some preschool stuff.

I've really enjoyed doing some preschool work with the kids. It's really not that hard; it just takes a little forthought and planning. My plan is to do preschool 3 days a week and the other 2 are meant for errands, storytime (at library...or Barnes and Noble if the library doesn't start up soon!), and dr appts. So far, we've had 2 days and the kids really liked having my undivided attention, more than anything, I think.

I've broken our "schooling" into 3, 20-30 minute timeframes. The first is a lesson/book time, where we'll talk about things that we're learning and read stories to reiterate my point. Next is a video (30 minutes) and then we do a project that incorporates math, phonics that supports what we've learned. If I can, I'll add some FMS (fine motor skills) activities in the project to help Mallory, who I think has weak FMS. She's already greatly improved in cutting in the two days we've worked on it! The last 30 minutes will be a craft/activity that is more fun than anything...and doesn't require my assistance, like coloring, stickers, puzzles, additional FMS work, etc. The first day, our project lasted an hour, but the kids sat there and were GREAT! I was very impressed!

The first day, we read Col. 3:20 (one of our Sept theme verses), talked about who their parents are (mommy/daddy, mother/father, full names, etc) and that God called parents to be an authority over them. We read books about mommies and daddies. Our project included cutting, gluing, counting, color sorting, and reading. They also matched activities that mommy/daddy do to the appropriate role (Daddy - office, tractor, plays, bible, etc; Mommy - cooks, laundry, play, pray, etc). The second day, we read Col 3:20 again, talked about who children were (Mallory/Ethan, son/daughter, child/children, brother/sister) and that God called children to obey mommy and daddy in order to please Jesus. We read books about children and brothers/sisters. Our project was similar to day #1, but included matching roles to the appropriate child (Mallory - girl, sister, daughter, child, obey; Ethan - boy, brother, son, child, obey). Their projects are on our pantry door (for now) and they both look at them often and talk about what they've learned.

We're also reading out loud at the breakfast table each morning. After I read, I ask them what they hear (without prompting them to the WHAT) and it's so cool for me to hear what they glean. I'm reading each book/reading at least 2 days in a row. So far, we've read "The Little Engine that Could" and the Westminster Shorter Catechism for Children (Questions 1-20).

Anyway, that's a brief summary. We take Wed and Thurs off and start again on Fri. We'll be learning about the baby in mommy's belly, looking at ultrasound pics, and creating finger-paint art to hang in his room. Should be fun!

Pics: