Skip to main content

Getting Started

I have decided that I want to start 'working' with my son on a more formal basis for a toddler- Structured Play. I do not want him to notice that this is going on but I want to know that we are focusing on skills he should be learning. 

Ok, ok..... I miss teaching!!! I taught for 9 years before being a stay-at-home mother. (Do not get me wrong, I LOVE!) I just miss teaching. I know I will go back to it someday soon but in the mean time I have these skills I might as well use them! AND share them! :) I have a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and a Master degree in Curriculum Development. These degrees along with my experience should help me to put together something that will really be helpful.

In my search for 1 year old 'curriculum' I was not satisfied with what I found. So I have decided to put something together myself. This way I know it will work for us. I am NOT an expert and do not claim to be! I am using my background in child development, methods in teaching, and curriculum writing to put together something that will attempt to stretch my son as well as something that may get you started with your child/children.  

I am one of those 'crazy' people that is uber organized and like to do my planning that way too. I have decided to work in Monthly Themes for two reasons. First, themes can be inspiring and a great place to start. Themes also facilitate repetition, that is very important in learning a new skill. 

When working with children it is important that they do not think they are being taught. That can sometimes take the fun out of an activity especially when it comes from a parent. The way I will be preceding will include activities that you would normally do but just slightly more planned out and goal oriented: Structured Play. 

Feel free to take what will work for you and your family and leave what will not work. Every child is different and can learn in different ways. My little man is very active and does not sit down. Given that knowledge I am aware that my planning must include movement. I must acknowledge that when I read to him it is ok for him to be moving around the room or babbling. He is a multi-tasker! ;)

The million dollar question: When to start? I hope that you have been reading, singing, and talking to your baby from the womb so you have already started. Curriculum is not recommended before the age of 18 months because most children will not be responsive. With that being said, I will be starting this with my 12 month old. We will see as we go what needs to be changed, modified, or thrown out. 

Feel free to contact me with questions, comments or for clarifications. AND please contact me for suggestions. Enjoy!
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Play to Write- Week 3

We participating in a Wednesday Play Group called Play to Write over at Cherrios and Lattes . This is week 3- Write/Spell Your Name.  We started this week's practice with some name tracing. Cherrios and Lattes provides the printable for some dotted letters. She suggested doing rainbow writing with this sheet. I showed Jacob but he was more interested in writing all the Jacobs. I started by modeling on the first name. Then I held his hand and we did it together. Finally I let him do the last three on his own with only my verbal prompts.  He took this very seriously and was very proud of himself! I was surprised at how much he liked doing this activity. He has a long way to go but he did pretty well! One thing I had to repeat was not to go around the o and a more than once. He wanted to go around and around. This is an activity that I think he will want to do again! The next activity was Missing Letter Name Practice. We started by singing a little song I sing for Jak
2 comments
Read more

Name Writing Practice

Jacob did a little name writing practice today. He was asked to trace the dotted lines to write letters for his name. This is good practice with spelling as well. I had him say each letter as he wrote the letter.  As you can see he is very choppy and not exactly on the dotted lines. His motor skills are not quite sharp enough yet to be able to hold the crayon and he especially loses control as he works on towards the end. We also did a Missing Letter Name Practice. Both of these ideas came from Cherrios and Lattes ' Play to Write, Write to Read. These are good ways to practice names and writing. He gets very angry if he thinks he made a mistake. See the scribbling. I have to reinforce that it is ok to make a mistake and that everyone makes mistakes but we just keep trying. Practice is the only way to get better. When this happens I cannot help but think of my former students that did the very same thing and proceeded to throw fits and give up. I hope to help Jacob ge
1 comment
Read more

Building Good Readers

"Your boys are such good readers! I wish mine loved to read like yours do! How did you do that?" Can parents build good readers? How do parents build good readers? This might seem like a daunting question, a task too difficult to tackle. But truly, it does not have to be.  As our children grow and become readers on their own accord they often feel that they do not need or want parents to read to them. It is very common for this to happen, but as their parents, it is our job to push back.  Readers are not born, they are made.  We must find times to read to our children. That might mean reading aloud looks different as they get older. Maybe instead of before bed; you are reading at the dinner table, as they are playing, or during snack time. The point is to share books that will pique their interest and hold their attention. You might have to choose books you might not otherwise choose. The key to reading aloud is to m odel reading for them and to show them th
2 comments
Read more