your thoughts on early childhood education

[RainbowSprinkles]

I would like what you do with your children before they start 1st grade. Do you let them run loose and play however they want, or do you follow any kind of method/philosophy in an informal, but structured way?

 

I'm very interested in Montessori and Waldorf and combining them in the early years (up until 1st grade). I know the two methods differ in may ways, but I also think that they would compliment each other really well. (As a side note, I'm not interested in the spiritual philosophy of Waldorf.) I like to pick and choose what I like and go with it :)

 

Please share your thoughts, I would love to hear them! :)

[regentrude]

I do not believe in a formal education before approximately age 6. I dislike the push for early academics in the US. There are no data that show that those kids are performing better at age 10 than their age mates in countries which do not start formal academics until age 6 or 7.

 

I strongly believe in the educational value of free play. My kids played a lot outside, climbed, played on swings, we took them hiking and rock climbing. They spent hours digging in the sandbox. At home, we had lots of art supplies for them to use freely, not in structured projects. They colored, painted, played with playdough, strung beads etc. We also read a lot, listened to books on tape, music, attended live performances. We visited museums, state parks, all kinds of interesting locations.

Most important: we talked. I tried to answer all those millions of questions. We talked about books, invented stories, just talked about our day.

 

If I had to phrase this as an educational philosophy, it might be this:

My goal is to help my children experience the world by including them in the activities I do and that are important to me, to share with them what I find exciting about life.

[8filltheheart]

This is actually a topic I am quite passionate about. :D

 

Unfortunately, I have no time to discuss it today. :( If you are interested in my thoughts on it as well as an article I linked in the past, try this thread

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=153587&highlight=cognitive

[ondreeuh]

I believe in doing what is child-appropriate, which may be different for any given child, but basically is neither pushing academics nor withholding academics. For one child that may mean teaching them to read early and for another child that may mean waiting. Every child deserves to be taught about their world & their body and it doesn't have to be "formal" but I personally don't think there's anything wrong with a little structure. If you have a child with a disability then they may very well need a LOT of structure and formality.

 

My first child was in a daycare that included academics, and she was fine with some PK busy-workbooks. She's 15 so I don't remember details. My middle child was severely language delayed and needed direct instruction & repetition to learn a lot of things (and still does). He is NOT a sponge and if I had delayed academics and not pushed (therapeutically!), he wouldn't have developed as well as he has. My youngest (nearly 3) is thriving with educational TV shows, reading books, talking about colors/shapes, counting things, and brief "preschool with mom." We cut, paste, color, tell stories with cutouts (like a feltboard), make patterns with counters, and talk about the sounds that letters make. It's somewhat structured in the sense that it's parent-led, but nothing is forced and he is learning at his own pace.

 

Basically, I don't think there's a need for set goals or timelines for normally developing preschool kids. Work on the stuff they're ready for at their pace, follow their interests, and show enthusiasm for their new skills. If you do that, I can't see how you could go wrong.

[rootsong]

My preschoolers have always loved "doing schoolwork", so we do it. Right now I spend about 45 minutes most mornings with my just-turned 5 yr old, and nearly 3 year old. We do a mishmash of worksheets from Rod&Staff workbooks, & R&S math. We write numbers, sing songs, talk about the weeks/months, and read books. They enjoy it so much. My 5 yr old would choose "doing schoolwork" with me above playing outside or with toys. He's reading, doing well in math, and he's extremely easily bored. So, it works for us. Plus, my husband wouldn't want it any other way. :D

[Skadi]

While I agree that free play is important, I think young children can get a lot of out directed play that helps challenge their memorization skills. Just as I actively encourage young kids to color to help their fine motor skills, I also create games that help exercise their brains. It's not that I think they'll remember whatever it is we reviewed when they were two, three or four years old...but I think most young children are underestimated and it's a little strange to not ask them to do any sort of memory work until they hit first grade. They truly enjoy the games -- and even if they have no idea what a president really is (even though they can name them all) or what a world map actually represents (despite singing songs about them while pointing out each nation), the point of engaging in "active play" is to challenge them in a way that playing in a sandbox just can't do.

[Crimson Wife]

I'm a big fan of hands-on activities in the pre-k and primary years.

 

I do start phonics instruction whenever the child shows readiness and motivation to learn to read (age 3 3/4 for my oldest, age 4 1/2 for my 2nd). But I would have no problem delaying that until 1st or even possibly 2nd grade if the child didn't show interest & readiness before then.

 

With math, I don't start formal instruction until K5 even if I think the kid could handle it earlier. And I had no problem shelving K math with my 2nd when he wasn't ready for it and going to MEP Reception (which he loves).

 

I also keep K5 short- 60 to 90 minutes per day, 4 days/week with the 5th being experiential learning.

[justamouse]

I do not believe in a formal education before approximately age 6. I dislike the push for early academics in the US. There are no data that show that those kids are performing better at age 10 than their age mates in countries which do not start formal academics until age 6 or 7.

 

I strongly believe in the educational value of free play. My kids played a lot outside, climbed, played on swings, we took them hiking and rock climbing. They spent hours digging in the sandbox. At home, we had lots of art supplies for them to use freely, not in structured projects. They colored, painted, played with playdough, strung beads etc. We also read a lot, listened to books on tape, music, attended live performances. We visited museums, state parks, all kinds of interesting locations.

Most important: we talked. I tried to answer all those millions of questions. We talked about books, invented stories, just talked about our day.

 

If I had to phrase this as an educational philosophy, it might be this:

My goal is to help my children experience the world by including them in the activities I do and that are important to me, to share with them what I find exciting about life.

 

:iagree::iagree:

 

 

That said, my 4 yo, two weeks away from 5 is driving me NUTSO with wanting to do 'school'. We sit down to do math, she wants to, too. If she would be satisfied with *anything* it would thrill me but she knows the difference. :glare: I really wanted to hold her off another year so I would have a huge amount of time to devote to her--but I'm ending up juggling. This makes me cranky.

 

Have you read the book BRINGING REGGIO EMILIA HOME?

 

http://www.amazon.com/Bringing-Reggio-Emilia-Home-Innovative/dp/0807736600/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1291490494&sr=8-1-spell

 

 

VERY CM, and good. Structured play, kinda. But this is about as far as I would go as far as *school* at that age.

Edited December 4, 2010 by justamouse

[mammaofbean]

no need to do anything. but i do. i can easily spend 20 minutes spread throughout a day on parent directed academics with a preK child and meet my goals for them. i wouldn't spend too much time because SO much time is taken up by child directed learning and discovery which in my limited experience is vital. no matter what their level or ability and understanding, i try to keep the delivery of information and practice developmentally appropriate. i would not teach a 2 year old how to add 2+2 the same way i would an 8 year old.

 

i would never claim not to push my children either. making my 3 year old learn to sort his toys into the proper bin is for sure more pushy than having him count to 20 with me in chinese. i also make him take his dishes to the sink, recap markers, find his shoes, put his clothes away, and sometimes help sweep and vacuum. mostly it is giggles and fun, sometimes grumpy face and whining. he is far from mastery in any of these areas but we keep at it. i don't think any of this is damaging him. i can't imagine that telling hime the properties of a square or how many legs a spider has could hurt him either.

[5Wizards]

I feel very strongly that elementary aged children need a lot of free time to just play and explore their world in their own ways (whether that's through building with blocks, doing crafts on their own, dress up, etc...). I've seen so many young children lately who seem to have no idea what to do on their own without "being bored."

 

That being said, my 2 year old can count to 20, sing her ABCs, do simple puzzles on her own, etc..... I have not set out to teach her these things in any formal sense, but she has picked them up as she has 2 older sisters (my middle child sings her ABCs as she brushes her teeth, and my youngest copies this). I am guessing that she will WANT to start some sort of formal lessons by the time she is 5, just as her sisters did. My other 2 started to show an interest in learning how to read by 4, so we started working on that slowly without pressure. Although we did no formal math instructions at all with my now 5 year old, I'm actually shocked that she has a system for adding numbers in her head already that she can verbalize (I honestly didn't even know that she could add at all yet :blush:).

 

I think my kids would be bored if I didn't do any kind of formal lessons with them in the young years. However, I don't make them sit at the table for 5 hours/day. I try to monitor how many outside activities we have so that my kids have time to just play at home, read, relax, etc...... I kind of feel like the problem today is not necessarily too much structured lesson time, but too much structured time period with school work, outside activities, classes, etc.....

[Joyofsixreboot]

I tend to let mine live like wolves until they are 6 or so. Ok, maybe not that extreme but we just do things kids like as they ask ie. reading, art, puzzles, play-doh. I strongly believe that children should develop their own ability and not 'play' with mom and dad too much. As a pp said, I can't stand kids who are 'bored' (and I have one who likes to complain :glare:)

[Chris in VA]

I don't believe in dumbing down Kindergarten and calling it preschool.

I don't believe you should arrive at K knowing everything that's usually taught there.

There are plenty of skills that come before ABC's and learning numbers, but many parents think that's all there is!

 

That said, dd read when she was 4. She did Saxon K in preK. We did a bible curriculum, too--and I don't regret any of it.

 

But we did it thru play-- thru intentional play, I should say.

 

I do have a pet peeve when it comes to preschools, tho--

I can't stand it when preschools say they are play-based, and really mean they put out a bunch of materials and offer no interaction and no guidance. There's room for "here's something interesting, go have fun!" I don't mean that. I just mean some preschools don't have teachers who are educated enough to scaffold their charges' learning--

 

Oh, don't get me started.

 

At home, I think you should play with your kids on occasion, let them discover a bunch on their own, talk a lot, read a lot, laugh a lot, and be intentional enough in daily living AND in play to cover the fine/gross motor, mathmatic and literary precursors to actually learning to write and draw, figure and read.

Edited December 5, 2010 by Chris in VA

[Halcyon]

I have always felt strongly that PLAY was the key mode of "education" for children under 6. My oldest attended a part-time play-oriented preschool (I was working at the time) when he was 4-5 and enjoyed it tremendously. He became interested in reading when he was about 5-6 and picked it up quickly when we began.

 

Then my younger came along and blew my theory to heck. He started reading on his own at 3 and is reading pretty advanced chapter books at this point, as well as lots of free time history and science reading. He enjoys math, in moderation. He enjoys writing stories and puzzles in his free time. He is so very different from my elder, so I am approaching him differently. Primarily, I encourage him to pursue his interests by frequent library trips, lapbooks and hands-on projects. We keep it fun and try not to follow a "curriculum" unless he asks too. We are doing ES Biology, but at a leisurely pace, when the mood strikes him (usually when his brother is doing his science). For math, he knows where his worksheets are and will choose to do them on some days. We read a lot, but I try to keep in mind he's only 5 despite his desire to forge ahead. He loves crafts, so I try to help him in this regard. Any curriculum we do is optional.

 

So for me, it's about the individual child. Follow their lead, but err on the side of less academic, more hands on play-oriented fun.

[kalanamak]

I like the idea of a huge amount of outdoor time. We did 2+ hours, often 4 hours/day, in all but most extreme weather. I thought it was good if he grubbied up 3 outfits a day. Before he could toddle on his own, Papa had him out hours in a backpack.

 

Read to him 2 hours a day. Lots of art and music.

 

But because I needed to train his lively physical tendencies to sit down and do work on my schedule, I asked for very little time, but REAL concentration and cooperation for those times. I started as he turned 4, 5 minutes sit-down a day doing math, phonics, or handwriting. By 5 it was 10-15 minutes/day. By 6 with 30 minutes and it blasted off from there.

 

The art and music was my idea, but the physical grubbiness, creek wading, and hiking was from my child-rich mother. She also told me that the secret to having a 6 year old who does what needs to be done is to be diligent in teaching him/her from a very young age, step by step, to get to your goal. Her's was not homeschooling, but mine was, and I applied her advice to homeschooling. I believe it worked.

[sbgrace]

I didn't start academic anything until six years old here. I don't regret that at all. My kids loved (love) stories so we did a lot of read alouds. Outside of that they played, pretended, and explored--a lot. I wouldn't do it differently.

[cjbeach]

We had our children in an amazing MOntessori. I could not have been more pleased. Really. It was usually mornings only. I love Montessori approach. My now 7yo really had a great experience. She loved the art, the sensorial activities, the real life play (dishes, peeling carrots), forgive me here, it's been a few years.... OMG so much. But she went to a true AMS-certified MOntessori with a stellar directress. There was not a lot of "pressure" to read and write, yet it was something that the children just seemed to naturally learn there, based on their natural inclinations. There was a really strong sense of book love instilled in the children from an early age as well:001_wub: A homeschooling friend of mine who had an older dd in the same class as my dd recently started using some activities from this Montessori book and loves it. I intend on purchasing it as well for my 5yo.

[Ellie]

I would like what you do with your children before they start 1st grade. Do you let them run loose and play however they want, or do you follow any kind of method/philosophy in an informal, but structured way?

 

I'm very interested in Montessori and Waldorf and combining them in the early years (up until 1st grade). I know the two methods differ in may ways, but I also think that they would compliment each other really well. (As a side note, I'm not interested in the spiritual philosophy of Waldorf.) I like to pick and choose what I like and go with it :)

 

Please share your thoughts, I would love to hear them! :)

Well, first let me say that my dc didn't "start 1st grade." Or, to put it another way, I didn't decide when or what to teach my dc based on whether they would have been in first grade if they were going to the school down the street.:)

 

So, yes, I let my chldren run loose and play, but I also spent lots of time *with* them doing Mommy things.

 

IMHO, children who are at home with the mothers are learning all the time, regardless of their age. Mothers have been doing "early childhood education" with their dc sing long before someone came up with the idea of sending children away at young ages to be taught by someone else. It seems to me that most of what preschools do is the same thing that the dc's mothers would be doing at home--colors and shapes and number recognition and counting and all that.

 

I think reading Montessori and Waldorf and anything else is a good thing. It gives us an idea of ways to doing things that we might not have thought of.

[Mallory]

We are very relaxed until 6 or 7 and mostly relaxed until 9 or 10 really. Pretty much run wild.

 

My kids spend lots of time occupying themselves, outside (for several hours a day most days) or inside. I think free time is very important and at this point in our homeschooling journey probably the most important reason even for homeschool the older ones. I would hate for them to spend 10 hours a day on the bus or at school.

 

They all spend lots of time helping me- with the yard/garden/animals or with household chores or with errands. We also do quite a bit of volunteer work that they all help with (even the littles help bag up and hand out diapers or t.p. at the food pantry).

 

I also try to keep in mind a list of age appropriate "schoolish" topic for times when we are forced to sit still anyway. Standing in line or sitting in the car. While I don't think it is needed, and I think free play is more important for the littles especially, counting all the carts in our row or finding a letter "e" on a magizine helps our wait ;) So I do have a basic list of things to work on- colors and counting right now for my 2yo, learning letter sounds and basic adding and subtracting for my 4yo.

 

My little's also ask to do school so they have their own school things- like magnet letters or math manipulatives or Kumon workbooks. But they are things that they are free to choose what they do and how they do it.

[RainbowSprinkles]

I do not believe in a formal education before approximately age 6. I dislike the push for early academics in the US. There are no data that show that those kids are performing better at age 10 than their age mates in countries which do not start formal academics until age 6 or 7.

 

I strongly believe in the educational value of free play. My kids played a lot outside, climbed, played on swings, we took them hiking and rock climbing. They spent hours digging in the sandbox. At home, we had lots of art supplies for them to use freely, not in structured projects. They colored, painted, played with playdough, strung beads etc. We also read a lot, listened to books on tape, music, attended live performances. We visited museums, state parks, all kinds of interesting locations.

Most important: we talked. I tried to answer all those millions of questions. We talked about books, invented stories, just talked about our day.

 

If I had to phrase this as an educational philosophy, it might be this:

My goal is to help my children experience the world by including them in the activities I do and that are important to me, to share with them what I find exciting about life.

 

:iagree:Thanks for sharing!

[RainbowSprinkles]

We had our children in an amazing MOntessori. I could not have been more pleased. Really. It was usually mornings only. I love Montessori approach. My now 7yo really had a great experience. She loved the art, the sensorial activities, the real life play (dishes, peeling carrots), forgive me here, it's been a few years.... OMG so much. But she went to a true AMS-certified MOntessori with a stellar directress. There was not a lot of "pressure" to read and write, yet it was something that the children just seemed to naturally learn there, based on their natural inclinations. There was a really strong sense of book love instilled in the children from an early age as well:001_wub: A homeschooling friend of mine who had an older dd in the same class as my dd recently started using some activities from this Montessori book and loves it. I intend on purchasing it as well for my 5yo.

 

Thanks for the book recommendation!

[RainbowSprinkles]

Thank you everyone for sharing your thoughts :)

[abbeyej]

One of the great advantages of home schooling small kiddos is that there doesn't have to be a choice between "lots of free time to explore and create and play" and "early academics". I believe very strongly in letting small ones (for as long as is feasible, really) have lots of undirected time each day, with access to open-ended toys (Waldorf-style play silks were one of our greatest toy-investments, paper and scissors and colored pencils, blocks, pots and pans, tape, cushions, blankets, sticks, etc, etc)... But I also had kids who benefited greatly from brief academic lessons from an early age. I don't mean lessons sitting at a desk and drawing circles around things (though they each occasionally chose to do such things), but mostly phonics for a few minutes while snuggled on the couch together, or while using chalk on the driveway. I mean doing math sprawled on the living room floor together with a pile of pattern blocks...

 

I had one child who read very, very early. It gave him great delight. I have another one who read a little later (though still on the early side of normal, I suppose -- my perspective was a little skewed by the first kiddo)... Sure, by age 6 or 7, they were both reading on a late elementary level at least, so you couldn't see much difference in their abilities -- but I don't see why the first one should have been denied an extra 3-4 years of reading to himself because other kids weren't ready to read when he was...

 

I have *zero* regrets about introducing certain academic topics to my kids early. I wouldn't have sent them to an institutional school to do those things at those ages -- but snuggled together on the couch or rolling around on the floor, laughing and playing together? We all have wonderful memories of those times.

 

I also have zero regrets about making sure they had lots and lots and lots of free time in the early years -- time when they put on tutus (okay, usually not ds, lol) and grabbed their swords and put on plays of The Odyssey (really -- when they were 3 and 5, they wrote out a whole script based on a play they'd seen, and rehearsed and assembled costumes and set up flashlights for lights and...), or invented restaurants, or built elaborate cities out of blocks (and everything else small enough to move in the house), or... All those wonderful things. Beautiful memories, wonderful creativity... I'm so glad that they had the time and I had the flexibility to allow them that for all those years.

 

And I'm so grateful that home schooling gave us both -- the chance to explore academically without giving up freedom and creativity.

 

I did draw on a few ideas from Waldorf and Montessori along the way. The things about Waldorf that I considered valuable and useful to my family were: tradition and routine -- throughout the day and throughout the year. I struggle with the day one, but I do better with the year. But creating family traditions has been so very important to my kids -- the things they can rely on happening over and over -- and these can be big or little things. Also, Waldorf encourages simple, natural, open-ended toys. This is wonderful. I mentioned the play silks above. Ours are no longer used quite as much, but for years they were used pretty much daily -- as capes, wings, blankets, table cloths, turbans, ropes, hand-cuffs, rivers, veils, leashes, skirts, belts, castle walls, tents, and a jillion other things. I suppose I agree with Waldorf in terms of minimizing screen time in the early years (though we have never been a completely screen-free family), and minimizing branded clothing and toys... As the kids moved into elementary age, we did embrace a few plastic toys -- Legos and Playmobil and American Girl dolls -- but kept those things pretty limited. Waldorf places a high value on nature, story telling, singing, handwork... I think all of those things are valuable.

 

Montessori is great for encouraging kids to be independent and responsible, for acknowledging that the work that children do is meaningful -- both to themselves and their growth, and within the family and community. I know that sometimes it has been hard for me to recognize quite how competent and capable my children can be -- and Montessori reminds me to give them the tools they need (tools in terms of equipment, but also in terms of knowledge and instruction) so that they can go forward and work on things for themselves, rather than being kept reliant on adults.

 

I found useful specifics about Montessori for young ones in Teaching Montessori in the Home and Basic Montessori. I'm sure there are other useful texts out there as well -- I by no means did an exhaustive survey (how can one with toddlers around?!) and it's been a number of years now.

 

Things I'd try to remind myself, if I were able to have another set of young ones... ;)

--Take joy together. *What* you do matters less than the attitude and experience of being joyful together and taking pleasure in each other's company. Sometimes this means temporary unpleasantness as you discipline and guide a child towards respectful, appropriate, kind behavior towards you and siblings and others. But for the most part, keep your focus on being trying joyful in each others' company.

--Establish comfortable, flexible routines, through your day, your week, and your year. Meal times are often the easiest anchors. From there, build in time for reading and storytelling, caring for your environment (chores!), singing, playing outside... Knowing what is coming day-to-day is important to children. And over time, you'll find wonderful annual traditions that your kids will positively cling to.

--Establish respectful, gentle, *consistent* discipline within the home. If your children are (basically, lol) obedient, and you are (basically!) calm, gentle, loving, and reasonable, you will enjoy each other's company so much more, and you'll find the academic work (whether you begin at 3 or at 8) much smoother and more pleasant for all.

--Avoid distractions. Keep "screens" and electronics to a minimum in the early years, and keep the toys available simple. Too much *stuff* really does make it hard to play or work with anything. A few good quality, open-ended toys are far, far, far better than endless piles of things that overwhelm a child.

--Don't forget singing. Even if you're an awful singer (like me!), sing with your kids. :) And introduce them to fairy tales, nursery rhymes, and children's games. These things are important. Truly.

 

There are all sorts of specifics I could have given in terms of things we did, books I bought, etc. But when I think back, I think these are the things that matter. :) Which phonics program you use or which math manipulatives you buy just aren't nearly as important, in the end...

[Ellie]

:iagree::iagree::iagree:

[RainbowSprinkles]

One of the great advantages of home schooling small kiddos is that there doesn't have to be a choice between "lots of free time to explore and create and play" and "early academics". I believe very strongly in letting small ones (for as long as is feasible, really) have lots of undirected time each day, with access to open-ended toys (Waldorf-style play silks were one of our greatest toy-investments, paper and scissors and colored pencils, blocks, pots and pans, tape, cushions, blankets, sticks, etc, etc)... But I also had kids who benefited greatly from brief academic lessons from an early age. I don't mean lessons sitting at a desk and drawing circles around things (though they each occasionally chose to do such things), but mostly phonics for a few minutes while snuggled on the couch together, or while using chalk on the driveway. I mean doing math sprawled on the living room floor together with a pile of pattern blocks...

 

I had one child who read very, very early. It gave him great delight. I have another one who read a little later (though still on the early side of normal, I suppose -- my perspective was a little skewed by the first kiddo)... Sure, by age 6 or 7, they were both reading on a late elementary level at least, so you couldn't see much difference in their abilities -- but I don't see why the first one should have been denied an extra 3-4 years of reading to himself because other kids weren't ready to read when he was...

 

I have *zero* regrets about introducing certain academic topics to my kids early. I wouldn't have sent them to an institutional school to do those things at those ages -- but snuggled together on the couch or rolling around on the floor, laughing and playing together? We all have wonderful memories of those times.

 

I also have zero regrets about making sure they had lots and lots and lots of free time in the early years -- time when they put on tutus (okay, usually not ds, lol) and grabbed their swords and put on plays of The Odyssey (really -- when they were 3 and 5, they wrote out a whole script based on a play they'd seen, and rehearsed and assembled costumes and set up flashlights for lights and...), or invented restaurants, or built elaborate cities out of blocks (and everything else small enough to move in the house), or... All those wonderful things. Beautiful memories, wonderful creativity... I'm so glad that they had the time and I had the flexibility to allow them that for all those years.

 

And I'm so grateful that home schooling gave us both -- the chance to explore academically without giving up freedom and creativity.

 

I did draw on a few ideas from Waldorf and Montessori along the way. The things about Waldorf that I considered valuable and useful to my family were: tradition and routine -- throughout the day and throughout the year. I struggle with the day one, but I do better with the year. But creating family traditions has been so very important to my kids -- the things they can rely on happening over and over -- and these can be big or little things. Also, Waldorf encourages simple, natural, open-ended toys. This is wonderful. I mentioned the play silks above. Ours are no longer used quite as much, but for years they were used pretty much daily -- as capes, wings, blankets, table cloths, turbans, ropes, hand-cuffs, rivers, veils, leashes, skirts, belts, castle walls, tents, and a jillion other things. I suppose I agree with Waldorf in terms of minimizing screen time in the early years (though we have never been a completely screen-free family), and minimizing branded clothing and toys... As the kids moved into elementary age, we did embrace a few plastic toys -- Legos and Playmobil and American Girl dolls -- but kept those things pretty limited. Waldorf places a high value on nature, story telling, singing, handwork... I think all of those things are valuable.

 

Montessori is great for encouraging kids to be independent and responsible, for acknowledging that the work that children do is meaningful -- both to themselves and their growth, and within the family and community. I know that sometimes it has been hard for me to recognize quite how competent and capable my children can be -- and Montessori reminds me to give them the tools they need (tools in terms of equipment, but also in terms of knowledge and instruction) so that they can go forward and work on things for themselves, rather than being kept reliant on adults.

 

I found useful specifics about Montessori for young ones in Teaching Montessori in the Home and Basic Montessori. I'm sure there are other useful texts out there as well -- I by no means did an exhaustive survey (how can one with toddlers around?!) and it's been a number of years now.

 

Things I'd try to remind myself, if I were able to have another set of young ones... ;)

--Take joy together. *What* you do matters less than the attitude and experience of being joyful together and taking pleasure in each other's company. Sometimes this means temporary unpleasantness as you discipline and guide a child towards respectful, appropriate, kind behavior towards you and siblings and others. But for the most part, keep your focus on being trying joyful in each others' company.

--Establish comfortable, flexible routines, through your day, your week, and your year. Meal times are often the easiest anchors. From there, build in time for reading and storytelling, caring for your environment (chores!), singing, playing outside... Knowing what is coming day-to-day is important to children. And over time, you'll find wonderful annual traditions that your kids will positively cling to.

--Establish respectful, gentle, *consistent* discipline within the home. If your children are (basically, lol) obedient, and you are (basically!) calm, gentle, loving, and reasonable, you will enjoy each other's company so much more, and you'll find the academic work (whether you begin at 3 or at 8) much smoother and more pleasant for all.

--Avoid distractions. Keep "screens" and electronics to a minimum in the early years, and keep the toys available simple. Too much *stuff* really does make it hard to play or work with anything. A few good quality, open-ended toys are far, far, far better than endless piles of things that overwhelm a child.

--Don't forget singing. Even if you're an awful singer (like me!), sing with your kids. :) And introduce them to fairy tales, nursery rhymes, and children's games. These things are important. Truly.

 

There are all sorts of specifics I could have given in terms of things we did, books I bought, etc. But when I think back, I think these are the things that matter. :) Which phonics program you use or which math manipulatives you buy just aren't nearly as important, in the end...

 

 

What a great post! Thank you so much!!

[Rosy]

Up until 1st grade, I think it's totally up to the child. For the most part, you'll know if your kid is ready for reading, math, etc. and if they like formal schoolwork...if they do, it's just a matter of getting them the materials and letting them work as much as they'd like. Some kids do better with structure, but even then I think you can adjust when you determine that they want more/less formal schooling. I had a couple that begged me for workbooks and a couple who, well, didn't. :) I don't think the early schooling (or lack of it) made much of a difference--they would have soaked it up when we started doing school if they hadn't already had it.

[Closeacademy]

My biggest regret is starting academics in preschool with my oldest. With my youngest, I held off. I think A Little Flower Garden's book is probably the best resource on what to be doing during this time. Things I like to do with this age group:

 

plenty of play time

go outside, talk about what you see and tell stories about it

build fairy houses

cook together

sing and be silly

dance and have fun

read books and tell stories

play with friends

paint, play with clay, draw, color, be creative

 

This is a time that will end very quickly and you will never get it back. Enjoy it to the fullest.:001_smile:

[NanceXToo]

For preschool, we do not do anything formal at all. We do nature walks. We play preschool board games and computer games. We do arts and crafts (if he wants to). We listen to music and sing songs. We have dress up bins, musical instrument bins, building toys etc. We play outside. We watch educational kid's shows. We play conversational games about opposites and rhymes and lefts and rights and so on. We bake and cook and fold laundry together. We go on outings and field trips and educational tours. We play and use our imaginations. We talk. We laugh. We pretend. We watch clouds and bugs. Sometimes we play "crayon math" games (oh you have three crayons! How many will you have if I take one away?) But only if he wants to play along. There's nothing structured or formal. We have fun. And we learn TONS in this manner.

 

For Kindergarten, we will be using the Oak Meadow curriculum. It's very gentle and laid back in the earliest years- hands on, creative, story and nature and craft and music and movement based. It doesn't push heavy academics, it teaches the upper case letters of the alphabet in hands on ways like finding the shapes in nature, drawing them in the dirt with a stick, making them with popcorn and glue and different nature/crafty ways like that. It's not Waldorf but it's kind of Waldorf-inspired in the early years.

 

(Actually, we will use Oak Meadow well beyond then, too, my daughter used OM4 last year, which was her first full year homeschooling, and she's using OM5 this year, we love OM over here)!

[Chris in VA]

ITA with Abbeyej. You know just how to say things, girl!

[TheApprentice]

I believe free play is very important and a lot can be "learned" during free play. And there is something to be said for structured "play"/learning. I see no harm in spending a half-hour a day with a 5 year old on some things that either they are interested in, or you think they are ready for. I'm a middle of the road kind a gal, and I don't fall on either extreme of the child education continuum.

[Ester Maria]

I'm somewhat child-led in this particular area - even though, as a principle, I would not do formal school with a child under 6 (as well as with a small, but tangible minority of children - which might need an additional year to mature enough to handle school - under 7 years old), many young children, particularly bright ones, do require some amount of something which resembles schoolwork on a daily basis or so. They require it by the way the think, the way they're bored with the endless repetition of known activities, they are the ones that usually self-taught themselves to read at an early age and are willing to explore the books, or are just otherwise very, very curios about school things and do possess the emotional and intellectual maturity needed to tackle them. In those cases, I don't consider doing some "quasi-academic work" with a 5 y.o. (mind you, the "work" we're talking about might as well be squeezed into a single hour daily or maybe not even every day, so it's not that you're robbing them off playing or anything along those lines) necessarily bad, if the child requests it, enjoys it and doesn't feel burdened by it.

 

Most of European school systems start at 6, some start at 7, some start at 6 while allowing the option of deferring that small percentage I mentioned earlier to the next year and in my eyes, that's a lot better rule of the thumb than the US approach of pushing kids into institutions as young as 5.

On the other hand, traditions all over the world differ significantly with regards to early/late start. We can speak of the beauties of the Finnish model which lets all children play unburdened by any formal academics until the age of 7, and which certainly produces many wonderful and happy children; but we may also speak of the traditional Jewish model where early academics are not even spontaneous, but planned and guided, starting as young as 3 in many cases, and let us not forget that such and similar systems have also produced many wonderful and happy children. There are various extremes, and then there's everything that's in the middle, and it's a very vast "middle" field where one can certainly find what suits the best the needs of the individual child.

 

Personally, I had at home two very bright and very eager little girls, who seemed to almost physically need their daily dose of something quasi-formal to be satisfied, feel important, and enjoy the free play before and afterwards, so about the kindergarten age they were already doing bits of actual learning. I don't think it suits every child, but it suited them.

[2squared]

Maybe I'm old and crabby, but I think all you need to do with preschoolers is to talk to them and engage them in your life. Provide an enriching, loving environment (books, outside exploration, pretend play, playdoh, etc) and life will be good. Draw with chalk on the sidewalk, dance in the rain, blow bubbles, sing songs, watch the sunset, follow an ant, make cookies....it's all magical.