We will be focusing our home study on a book we received as a gift for Christmas from a dear friend and women's rights advocate. We will be going through, chronologically, the women in Herstory: 50 Women and Girls Who Shook Up the World by Katherine Halligan. I decided to use this as the basis for our preschool study for a few reasons:
I also want to be sure to incorporate nature study into our time at home. Nature study might be the center of your entire time! Or, perhaps, it's just a space for free play. However, we are choosing to incorporate it more regularly for a few reasons (maybe you'll see the connection to the reasons above):
Nature Study WeekendsWith Herstory at the center of our weeks, nature study will be at the center of our weekends. So much of it can be done for free, but if you are looking for inspiration or a little help, consider bopping over to the Firefly Nature School's online shop. Her lessons are $4 each, and you can get the first one for free for signing up. Our Morning LessonOur morning lesson was a hike! We just walked around our favorite regional park, Hidden Falls in Saint Paul. We explored a marshy area, my husband and daughter had a stick fight, they hiked the stream, the baby napped in her carrier. We honestly had a fantastic morning in the woods. I did no preparation. There was nothing to "learn about." We were just enjoying being outside. If you wanted to do something more intentional, consider bringing a pad of paper and some markers or colored pencils. Have your child find the coolest place they can (encourage each child to find a different place) then sit down and draw what they see. This is a simple nature journaling exercise. It doesn't matter if your child spends 2 minutes or 45 minutes working on their piece. When they're done, they can explore around them until the other child(ren) are completed. Just ensure the child(ren) still working get peace and quiet. P likes to use sticks to measure how deep the water is. That is a math lesson waiting to happen! Our Afternoon LessonWe spent a little time this afternoon pressing flowers. My kind husband brought home some flowers for me after work the other week, and now that some of them are dying, we decided to press them! We have the Moulin Roty le Jardin flower press, but you can press in a big old book or make your own press if you're even the slightest bit handy. My daughter did a little journaling. She is currently in the Phonetic Spelling stage so I really encourage her to write out her own thoughts. For younger kids, you can be their scribe. By writing down word for word what they say, you are modeling the power of writing. This is an important step towards literacy. She answered the following questions in her journal:
Wrap it UpEach night after dinner and after the baby goes to bed, we're playing a board game together as a family. Not only are board games a fun, family activity, but they also promote executive function skills in kids and usually incorporate math. Tonight was my night to pick the game so we played Monopoly Junior! What Will You Be Doing?I'd love to hear about you're structuring your time! Share with me and others in the comments so we can get more ideas!
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AuthorEmily Barstad ArchivesCategories |