(We still incorporate some worksheets- but then we turn the paper into another creation- the kids loved cutting these up)
I'm not a very creative person. I have to work hard to come up with ideas for my girls and for our home. I'm a listmaker, and like to follow a plan instead.
So when I decided Emma needs to be challenged a little more at home, and decided to start doing preschool with her, I was a little nervous. But then I found a website with some great worksheets. I thought, "I can do this!"
After further research(see, again with the planning), I realized that worksheets are NOT the way I want have my children educated. I think they are beneficial to some extent, but I don't want to have them learn primarily from tracing their letters, numbers and shapes. I despised those things as a kid, so I don't know why I would force them on my kids.
Anyway, so I have been scouring the internet for ideas. And my friend Charlotte, suggested THIS website. And I already love it. We have done one discovery box already and it was a huge success. I love her ideas and feel like that is much closer to how I want to teach my children.
I have found that as I relax and try to be more creative, it has become easier for me to come up with lessons.
As my girls participate in the activities, I've seen a huge change in them, too. They seem more confident and more independent. I love watching them discover and learn new things. One of my favorite things is watching how their thought processes differ from one another.
3 comments:
I hardly ever did worksheets with my students when I taught preschool. I'm more into the hands-on learning thing too. I watched a mom from another class throw her child's paper in the garbage on her way out the door though. I can see you did find a great way to use those worksheets though-cutting! :)
I'm glad you love the Imagination Tree as much as I do. I love that all the activities are so simple and, for the most part, free. I have so many "why didn't I ever think of that?" moments when I'm browsing over there.
I found another site the other day: pinkandgreenmama.blogspot.com. It's an arts & crafts blog, geared toward older kids, but I've still found it helpful for ideas. On her sidebar she has a section about favorite art supplies for toddlers that I really liked.
Right on Melody! Research shows that children learn best through PLAY, and it turns out that's the way the children prefer it, too. In my preschool, I taught Montessori style so the children could focus on whatever they were most passionate about. And they were happier kids at the end of the school day because of it. Even now as I homeschool my kiddos, I let them just be kids and play as often as possible. And I play with them! That's the best part, lots of connecting time with mom. :)
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