We just finished our Summer Fun/Oceans Homeschool Unit and since it was a 'slow' week at our house, I thought I would give a sneak peek on what our homeschool lessons look like. I prepare the plans for all my units and have been growing them since I first started doing 'lessons' with Kyrie when she was about 18 months old. Those first lessons consisted mainly of reading books, singing songs and doing fingerplays plus a few art activties. I have about 30 thematic units, and preparation for each unit begins at the bookshelves. I have 2 bookshelves as seen above and have organized the books into these magazine holders by subject. I go through all the books and find all the ones that fit the thematic unit.
The photo above shows some of the books I read with Degen. His 'lessons' have a lot of repetition, focusing on the alphabet, numbers 1-12, colors and shapes. I also include books and songs related to our theme. This unit we read 'Splash' and sang 'You Are My Sunshine.' The photo below shows Kyrie's books for one day of our unit. We read 3-5 theme-related books each day. I also choose a Bible story each week that reflects elements of our theme (eg. Jonah & the Whale).
After I have gathered our reading materials, I go through all of my curriculum and workbooks. Many of these books I collected when I was teaching public school, and I have collected even more through my Scholastic account. Scholastic is an invaluable resource for me! I have curriculum for pre-k through sixth grade on just about every subject. I keep the ones I currently need in the playroom closet and have all the rest in two large closeted shelves in the basement.
Going through curriculum & workbooks, I look for any activities that are theme- or objective-related. Each week, Kyrie learns a new letter (writing & phonics), practices previously introduced letters, reviews her numbers and has a vocabulary-based French lesson. All other activities introduce or review standard objectives in the areas of mathematics, language arts, science and social studies. You can see the summer & ocean theme in several of the above activities.
After I have gone through curriculum & workbooks, I look at theme-related games, activities and art projects. Above are several of the games & activities we did for this unit. As much as possible, I try to let our themes spill into the kitchen and our daily life. I keep all my plans in the handy-dandy Teacher Plan Book you see below. It is my second planning book, and I have had this particular book for about three years. I make changes & additions each year. I plan to get a new book for Kyrie this year and will then start using this book for Degen around age three.
The following pictures are a typical day of lessons for Kyrie (though I don't have any photos of us reading books or of our art/craft activity). I try to have a variety of activities each day. This first picture is Kyrie doing a 'math mat' activity sorting attribute blocks.
We love dot-to-dots! Before Kyrie starts, I ask her to 'make a plan' by connecting the dots with her finger before picking up her pencil. I have found that dot-to-dots are a great way for Kyrie to practice her counting and number identification. In the fall, we will start doing alphabetical dot-to-dots.
Kyrie is using a dobber to do this worksheet. I like to give her options like using paints, markers, colored pencils, stampers, stickers, etc. to complete her worksheets. It is a simple motivating technique.
I have to adapt all our games for 2 players. It will be nice when Degen can start playing, too. Whenever we play BINGO, it is of the blackout variety to ensure that we are getting in a lot of practice. The game below focuses on measurement. Games are also great motivators for learning.
More & more, I am providing Kyrie with independent 'homework' opportunities that focus on skills review.
Puzzles are another great activity. We also have several educational games for both kids to play on their computer during independent time.
This is Kyrie during her French lesson. I make these vocabulary-based books for each unit (don't judge the illustrations!). We focus on eight theme-related words and then use those words with a sentence. This week we learned the names of sea animals and spoke sentences using the French word for 'swim.' We also practice conversation starters & enders (eg. salutations & manner words) each lesson.
Number identification & counting has not been Kyrie's strength thus far. Mathematics is not Darren's or my strength either, so I try to give it some extra time. Here Kyrie is practicing her numbers 1 through 30. We are working on understanding the patterns that numbers follow. I have seen improvement after just a few days doing this kind of activity.
Here is Kyrie with some of her completed work from this unit. We are very proud of her progress, and I am excited to continue on our homeschool journey.
As our friends head off to Kindergarten, Kyrie has sometimes felt left out and wanting after their experience. This has been difficult for us at times, but we try to focus on all the opportunities & benefits that she will have without the restrictions of a classroom & school schedule. We have a full week of extra-curricular activities and all the one-on-one attention she could need, as well as the freedom to make a lot of decisions about what & how she wants to learn. Right now we are confident that this is the best learning environment for her!
No comments:
Post a Comment