Teaching with Toddlers

A reader (I am so happy people are finding this site :) asked me how I handle teaching kindergarten and preschool with a baby. . . here is my answer.

My oldest is 5 and she is doing kindergarten curriculum. My second child is 3 and doing preschool curriculum. My baby is 21 months and joining in wherever he pleases!

Before beginning this year, I too worried about how to do it with my two younger children. I read an article entitled "The Baby is the Lesson" and it totally changed my perspective on what it is I am to be doing.

At first, I thought I would schedule "school time" around "nap time". Thus, removing the "distraction" of my youngest. However, after thinking about it and then reading about it, I realized that my children will learn more from me as they watch me include everyone and work patiently with all my children, rather than shoo away the little ones. So this is what I try to do.

The first 5 activities of the day (devotional, calendar, language arts, pre-school time, and specials) are really subjects and activities that ALL three of my little ones enjoy and can participate in. After lunch, my two youngest do take a nap, and that is when I do 30-45 minutes of concentrated reading and math with Abigail.

As much fun as it is having one on one time with Abigail, I have to admit that I feel more learning is taking place (and we are having more fun) when we are all learning together.

So, try to find ways in which all of your children can participate on some level. Here are a few points to remember:

1) Explain to your children that there are times when you have different expectations for each of the children. For example, I told Abigail that because she is in kindergarten, I expect her to listen and participate through all the lessons. I told Breanna that I expect her to listen and participate in devotional, calendar, and pre-school time- the others are optional. And I explained to my girls that Tyler is free to come and go as he pleases. Suprisingly, the girls were totally fine with these varied expectations.

2)Have quiet toys available for little ones. In our classroom, I have a bin of soft blocks, shape sorters, a basket of books, and puzzles. There is also a chalk board that is low to the ground for quiet drawing. These activities are available for Breanna and Tyler during the "optional" times. Sometimes they go outside, or play with the toys in a different room.

3)Look for ways to include everyone! Whether you are teaching your children of various ages in your home, teaching a classroom with multiple grade levels, or even teaching a classroom full of children all the same age, you are going to encounter various ability levels. Meet your children where they are at, let them participate at their level, and love them through any challenges. The following is an example "math lesson" that includes all three children as well as our "word of the day" activity. We do activities like this during "preschool time":

Simple Math
Tyler: his job is to roll the dice. he loves it.
Breanna: her job is to count the numbers on the dice. one-to-one correspondance, counting, etc. all skills appropriate for a three year old.
Abigail: she writes the numbers on the board (i.e. one die landed on 5 and the other on 1). I put a + or - sign between the two, and she solves the equation on the board.

Word of the Day
Each day I put up "blanks" for the number of letters in our "word of the day". I use activities such as: simple addition, patterns, letter sounds, review questions, etc. (anything can be used!) as "questions" for the children to complete in order for me to give them a letter for the word of the day (if your word has 5 letters in it, pick 5 questions).

After a question is answered, I give the letter sound instead of the name. Abigail guesses the letter and Breanna identifies it after I write it down. As more letters appear, Abigail begins to sound out the word until she reads it completely. Then I have her spell it for me as I write it in the corner of our board.

The word of the day activity is very adaptable. All three children love it and are learning together. . . which is the most important thing. Hope this helps!

Chunky Crayons

This art project is SO FUN! Simply take an old muffin tin, line it (3 thick) with muffin cups, and begin sorting crayons! Take all of your old crayons (bits and pieces), make sure all the paper is off, and sort them into the cups. You can help children sort all the like colors together OR make swirly crayons by mixing colors. Then put the pan in the oven on 200 until the wax has melted. Take the crayons out of the oven, let cool, and voila! You have new "chunky crayons" with a suprise in evey stroke!

The Little Engine that Could

Here is a 3 day lesson plan for teaching language arts using the book The Little Engine that Could, by Watty Piper.

Day 1: Intro.
materials: copy(s) of book, conductor's cap, camera
Read story
Fill out story map (poster of title, author, characters, problem, & solution)
Take pictures of children wearing the conductor cap


Day 2: "I can't" Funeral & "I think I can" train cars
materials: copy(s) of book, cut out of engine & train cars, paint, 1 card for each child with the words "I can't" on it, 1 envelope, shovel, print out of words "I think I can!"
Review story (if you have multiple copies, let children lead the storytelling)
Have children find the page where the engine says the words "I cannot"
Talk about these words. They are sad words and we don't want them in our home.
Give each child a card with the words "I can't" on them. Have the children put their cards in the envelope. Go out into the backyard and bury the envelope. Talk about how we are not going to use these words in our home.
NEXT, go inside have each child paint one or two "train cars" (just a rectangle shaped piece of paper). Talk about all the things that we think we can do. . . introduce the phrase "I think I can!" as the words that we use in our home.
"I can't" funeral


Day 3: Conclusion
materials: printed "conductor cap" pictures
Take the dry train cars and hang up them up on the wall with the words "I think I can!" above them.
Tell the children that even if something we do is hard, the best words are "I think I can!"
Hang the conductor cap picture of each child with their train cars. Fill the train with things you think you can do! (you can draw pictures, or write on each car the things that that child can do)

Prayer. . . It's the "filling" that counts!

I have really wanted our family to improve in saying meaningful prayers. So, here is what came together for FHE this week.

Opening Prayer
Song: Children All Over the World, Primary Songbook p. 16
Scriptures: Mark 11:24, Matthew 6:5-7, James 1:5, D&C 68:28
Treat: cream puffs

First I used pictures from the gospel art kit to recap the story of Joseph Smith reading James 1:5 and then going to the sacred grove and sincerly praying to the Lord about his questions. I focused on the fact that Joseph was a young boy when this happened, and that he was very sincere in his prayer.

Next, we read the scriptures listed above. We focused our discussion on believing that the Lord hears and answers our prayers and not using vain repetitions.

For the activity I drew a very abstract :) "cream puff" on a piece of brown paper. On the top of the cream puff is written "Dear Heavenly Father" and at the bottom is written "In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen". Then we talked about how the best part of cream puffs is the filling. On cream colored pieces of paper (the "filling") we wrote down things that we can pray for (i.e. "Please help us to choose the right", "Please bless our family", "We thank thee for our prophet"). I taped each of the bits of filling on our cream puff until it (in a very abstract way) looked delicious!

I challenged our family members to say at least three of the specific statements in their prayers from now on.

For the treat, I made cream puffs and amazingly they were SO yummy!Here is the recipie (Thanks Laura!):
Puffs:
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 eggs, lightly beaten

Filling and topping:
1 container (8 oz) frozen whipped topping, thawed
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbls chopped pistachios or almonds
1/4 cup prepared chocolate frosting, melted

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 375. For puffs, in small saucepan combine water, butter and salt; bring to a boil over high heat. Add flour all at once. Stir mixture vigorously about one minute or until mixture leaves sides of pan and forms into a ball. Remove from heat; place dough into bowl. Add eggs and whisk until smooth and very thick.
2) Lightly spray mini muffin pan with oil. Using slightly mounded small scoop, scoop batter into cups. Bake 22-25 minutes or until deep golden brown. Remove from oven and make a small cut into side of each puff to release excess steam. Remove puffs from pan and allow to cool completely.
3) For filling, combine whipped topping, powdered sugar and vanilla. Mix gently until well blended. Attach small holed tip to pastry bag, fill with filling and pipe into center of each puff. For topping, chop nuts and microwave frosting on high 5-10 seconds or until melted. Drizzle frosting over puffs and sprinkle with pistachios.

Yield: 24 puffs

To prepare filling using heavy whipping cream, combine 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream, 3/4 cup powdered sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla. Beat with whisk until stiff peaks form, about 5-7 minutes.

Here is a picture of the "cream puff", the real cream puffs, and the scriptures we read.

PERSONAL NOTE: Although Breanna cried through most of the lesson, she calmed down and gave our closing prayer. It was precious. I could tell that even through her tears she had learned more about prayer and talking to her Heavenly Father. Just a testimony to me to KEEP GOING, as moms, everything we do DOES make a difference.

Little Artists. . .

Art is SO much fun! Being Artists is something we are exploring this year. As a kick off, we talked about what an artist is. . . . Artists: one who creates. We talked about all the different mediums artists use, and how being an artist carries over into music, dance, and other skills as well. Then we took our hand at sculpting, drawing with markers, and painting. It was a fun rotation and the kids couldn't decide which "art tools" they enjoyed the best. Oh well, I guess we'll continue to dabble in it all!

Lil' Sculptors. . .
Breanna created a colorful octopus!

Tyler loved just pinching off little balls of clay. . .

Abigail's "colorful mommy" creation

Lil' Sketch Artists. . .
My little rockstar! Breanna drew a picture of a guitar. . .

Our house and an orange tree. By, Abigail

Markers?! Mom's letting me use markers?! Sweet!

I love this picture because Tyler is "mid-grunt" as he is trying to put a marker lid back on. . .

Lil' Painters. . .

Markers and paints in the same day?! This is heaven!

Okay, get the paint off of me! (Thank goodness for painting tee's)

Introducing the Raven Family Art Exhibit. . . showing at all times in our home! Visitors always welcome.

"I Think I Can. . . I Think I Can. . ."

The Little Engine that Could. It is a favorite story for most. The idea and reality of telling yourself over and over that you can do it- you can climb that mountain, you can reach that goal- is one that is motivating and true. Telling yourself that you can do something gets you that much closer to actually doing it.

Our first week of school, this book was the focus of our Language activities. I wanted to set a tone of encouragement for the school year- I wanted to tell my children over and over that they can accomplish anything they put their mind to.

On the first day, we read the story. We took pictures of each of us with our "conductors cap" on. We mapped the story and became acquainted with each of the characters.

The next day we painted "train cars". We talked about all the things we think we can do. . . and most importantly we had a funeral. I gave each child a card with the words "I can't" on it. We talked about these words and how they are sad words. We put our cards in an envelope and buried them in the backyard- they won't come into our home again! :) The kids loved digging the hole, and I feel like they really got the concept.

Our last day, the girls helped me tell the story. Again, we talked about the characters and then we put together our own "Little train" on the wall in our classroom.

Here is to a year of thinking and believing that we can do ANYTHING!

A Time to Learn. . .

To my Children,

I love you! I love every minute I have with you- I treasure them. This year, we are learning together. We have a schoolroom. We have all day, every day, together to learn, laugh, and just be together. I love that.

So now it begins (actually, just continues. . .) our journey of learning together.

I love you.

Love Always,
Mommy