sierramv1 Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 How do you teach days of the week, months, etc? Do they just memorize it until the realize where they are in that "timeline"? It seems way to abstract for my 5 year old. Is simple repetition enough? Work-at-home, homeschooling mom of DS (9), DS (5), DD (3). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyfaithe Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 We sing the Barney song. We use the calendar....what day is today. What was yesterday? How many days until soccer practice? What is the 3rd Tuesday of the month? How many months until your birthday? What are their names? How many months are there? Can you say them in order?? Etc. Ad nauseum......all year long. Maybe another year too.....they forget easily. I have my kids fill in blank calendars too....then number, add in birthdays, Put in their soccer practices and games, Add in any special dates etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pippen Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 (edited) I taught the days and months using songs, at ages younger than five! I added in the calendar later. They will pick up facts like learning the days of the week and that church is on Sundays early on, but true sense of time is something that was gradual. Edited May 13, 2012 by Pippen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom24cuties Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 We sing songs for days of the week and months of the year everyday. Also we have a cute little calander that i got from the book store that we do everyday that goes over the date, weather, days, month and year. btw my son is 4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mytwomonkeys Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 definitely songs. i think we used the barney tunes too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blondeviolin Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 We sing the Barney song. We use the calendar....what day is today. What was yesterday? How many days until soccer practice? What is the 3rd Tuesday of the month? How many months until your birthday? What are their names? How many months are there? Can you say them in order?? Etc. Ad nauseum......all year long. Maybe another year too.....they forget easily. I have my kids fill in blank calendars too....then number, add in birthdays, Put in their soccer practices and games, Add in any special dates etc. This. Though, I'm not sure if we sing the Barney version or not. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dinsfamily Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I taught the days and months using songs, at ages younger than five! I added in the calendar later. They will pick up facts like learning the days of the week and that church is on Sundays early on, but true sense of time is something that was gradual. :iagree: However, I didn't expect mastery until about 1st grade. Ds6 could recite all of them by 3 but didn't understand the calendar until he went to preschool and they talked about it every day. It all came gradually with my oldest as he was motivated by knowing when certain events were coming up on the calendar. It took him awhile to get the order of the months down but he got it eventually. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tawlas Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I do the same stuff as pp's. Also, we have things like Sunday is "donut day", Tuesday is "swimming day" and Wednesday is "Dad day". What did we do yesterday? How many months/weeks/days until your birthday/Chrismas/Easter? Count down days until auntie visits, mom's bday, first day of summer, etc. And every day, we did calendar (for two years at age 3 and 4) and he could easily recite the days of the week and months of the yaer. I also clipped little pictures of family members faces next to the months of the year on the board, and then moved the faces to the days of the month on the calendar according to birthdays. It's also how he nailed down reciting the numbesr to 20+. Gonna start the whole process over again with next son (who will be three this summer), but will add years, place value (counting 100 days type stuff) and a few other things for the older ds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OrdinaryTime Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 My kids have learned the days of the week from repeated readings of Heckedy Peg and The Very Hungry Catepillar . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfamily Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I kept a small bulletin board calendar with both of my girls for K and 1st grade. Every day they would add the next date. We practiced saying the complete date and then on a rotational basis (completely random...I didn't plan it out) would use this time to review the days of the week, months of the year, math skills and anything else that seemed to need attention. We also kept a weather chart on the board and dd would change the weather for each day too. We could practice math skills with simple word problems such as the difference between the date it was and the date for a person's birthday in that month. Sometimes we tied in weather or seasonal books and/or poems. They used to sell complete ready-to-go calendar kits for bulletin boards from teacher supply stores and you can also find them online. I remember I had one that cost less than $10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I don't think I ever drilled them. I just talked about them with the kids. They have also asked me what comes after this or that. (I think my husband probably drills the days of the week in his language.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy_of_4 Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 Barney songs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BinahYeteirah Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I've never explicitly taught calendar information. I just asked my 9-year-old if she knows days of the week and months of the year. She knew them, so I think most kids will pick it up from daily life given enough time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susie in MS Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 Thanks to our short stay with HOD I learned Months (to the tune 1 Little 2 Little 3 Little Indians) Jan, Feb, March and April May, June, July, August and Sept Oct, Nov, and Dec These are the months of the year. Days of Week (to the tune of Clementine ) Sun, Mon Tue, Wed Thur, Fri Sat Sun, Mon Tue, Wed Thur, Fri Sat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thia Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 We do our calendar board every day. We have a song for the days of the week and the months of the year. They've memorized the traditional poem for how many days are in a month. Etc. By doing this every day, we've been able to skip the calendar sections of our math curric. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 We did Saxon K in preschool, and dd went to 2 day a week preschool when she was 3 and 4. Covered all we needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In the Rain Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I taught my kids the order with songs because it seemed like the right thing to do. :lol: In hindsight, they didn't really understand the concept until later. One day it just clicked. At that point I felt like the song hadn't really helped them.:tongue_smilie: Like a previous poster mentioned, my kids seemed to get the most benefit from repetition in our lives: Sunday is church, Monday is shopping, Tuesday is small group, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThreeBlessings Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 For days of the week, reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar and playing with paper versions of the foods in the story with days of the week word wall cards. You'll find an amazing number of printables for this story if you google 'very hungry caterpillar printables'. Also copywork. For months, reciting this poem and using it for copywork. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 We just talked about days of the week and months of the year. The dc could see the calendar I used to make notes on, and when they were, oh, 5ish, they wanted calendars of their own, so we bought cute calendars for Christmas that they put up in their own rooms. For things like this, I try to remember that parents have been teaching their children days of the week, months of the year, telling time, for centuries, long before there was any such thing as "curriculum." :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2squared Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I hang a monthly calendar up, label the days with specified activities, and refer to it when we go over our day. They eventually get it. My 5yo seems to be working on getting the concept of time and order. He is putting together that dance day comes before Baxter day, church day comes after a dh stay-at-home day, and dh goes back to work after church day. He is also constantly reviewing whose birthday comes next, how far away that is, and how his birthday falls in relation to the current day. Very important information! I sang songs with the oldest, too. They obviously weren't necessary since the others are getting it just through living life and covering it as it comes up in our schoolwork. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Love2teach0307 Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I kept a small bulletin board calendar with both of my girls for K and 1st grade. Every day they would add the next date. We practiced saying the complete date and then on a rotational basis (completely random...I didn't plan it out) would use this time to review the days of the week, months of the year, math skills and anything else that seemed to need attention. We also kept a weather chart on the board and dd would change the weather for each day too. We could practice math skills with simple word problems such as the difference between the date it was and the date for a person's birthday in that month. Sometimes we tied in weather or seasonal books and/or poems. :iagree:This is learned very gradually and naturally. With having a school calendar (we used a removable sticker daily to show the date) and with naturally talking about what we were going to do what day, around 1st grade they do get the concept of days, weeks and months. We never did the songs, just talked about it slowly over time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nov05mama Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 We just talked about days of the week and months of the year. The dc could see the calendar I used to make notes on, and when they were, oh, 5ish, they wanted calendars of their own, so we bought cute calendars for Christmas that they put up in their own rooms. :iagree: DS actually taught himself...He would ask me about the months/days of the week and I would always answer his questions. He eventually wanted his own calendar to count down to different dates (his birthday, a big trip, etc) and pretty much just learned them that way. No formal lessons though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sierramv1 Posted May 13, 2012 Author Share Posted May 13, 2012 Thank You all for your help! I can wrap my mind around it now, I actually bought a nice cloth hanging calendar, but he just had no idea what he was doing and it seemed really awkward. I like the songs and think if I try and keep it more organic and less forced like you said, it will come in time! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 Thank You all for your help! I can wrap my mind around it now, I actually bought a nice cloth hanging calendar, but he just had no idea what he was doing and it seemed really awkward. I like the songs and think if I try and keep it more organic and less forced like you said, it will come in time! Thanks! I tried to "do" a formal calendar time this school year (K). I also thought it felt beyond DD's mental grasp, very abstract. I just dropped it completely. We still talk about days/months in context of events in our lives (When's my birthday? June. When's June? Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InLieuofPreschool Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 I do calendar time (though not regularly) with my 2 and 4 year old. My oldest has a really good understanding of the days of the week. We sing the days of the week to the Addams family theme song. We sing the months of the year to the Ten Little Indians tune. I also have a regular calendar in my oldest's room which we write important things on, like birthdays, holidays, trips, etc. and we talk about what day they're happening and how long before that day comes, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 I wrote a blog post about what we do during Circle Time each morning. I talk about our days of the week and months of the year stuff in it. I even got my girls to sing the songs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 Like some PPs, we just talk about what days things are happening, and my kids ask what day is today, what day is tomorrow, how many days until xyz happens, etc. Same goes for the months. My oldest figured it out on his own fairly young (3 or 4). My middle one takes longer on these types of things, but he's starting to figure out what order the days are in. I don't think he fully understands months yet, but I'm not concerned about it. He's 5.5. They do have a calendar in their room (Nashville Predators posing with dogs :lol:). My oldest also went through Saxon K in school, which has calendar time everyday, but he already knew his days/months before that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Lulu* Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 We just talk, and talk, and talk about the days and months in context of what we a doing. There are several calanders around the house and the kids take part in keeping the family calanders. I have some laminated strips with the days of the week and the months of the year printed on them that I use as a reinforcement for my emerging readers, but that is a tiny slice of time every few weeks and not the main vehicle for learning calander skills in our home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SorrelZG Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 I taught them with the classic Mother Goose nursery rhymes and daily use of a calendar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EducationX2 Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 For the months of the year, we read Chicken Soup with Rice by Maurice Sendak. We read one page each night, and kept reviewing which months we had already read. (So, we read the little poem about January, "Which month is first?" January! Then the next night before we even read, "Which month is first?" January! then we read Feb. then, what are the first two months of the year? Jan, Feb.) By the time we got to the end, DD could recite all twelve months of the year. Days of the week were learned just in the course of life. Anytime DD wanted to know how long until an activity (dance class for example), I'd tell her that dance class was on Saturday, and since today was Thursday, and tomorrow was Friday, and after Friday was Saturday that meant dance class was in 2 days. It worked really well because she is a planner to the nth degree and we do quite a few activities on a regular basis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bttrflyvld Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I had my daughter watch the leap frog videos. I think it's the getting ready for school one that covered months and days of the week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vwsmith Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I had a weekly chart that listed each day of the week and a special acitivity for that day. For example: Sunday: Church Monday: Baking Tuesday: Swim Wednesday: Awana Thursday: Big Clean-Up Friday: Painting Saturday: Free Day I started this before he was reading (3yo) so I had the days of the week written out but the activities were picture cards. Everyday I'd say something like, "It's Monday, what do we do today?" And he would respond by looking at the chart, "Baking!" He eventually understood the order and names by doing it this way all before he was 4yo. I waited on the months of the year until he was 5 for numbering purposes. Then I started having him make his own calendar and gave him stickers to mark activities, holidays, and bdays. I also wrote out the months of the year on cardstock and made cards out of them for him to put into order. He used a control chart at first but quickly learned to do it on his own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classically Minded Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Saxon math and FLL 1 & 2 both add in the days of the week and months, so I didn't even have to bother with them as they are integrated into the lessons! ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 Starfall. The Calendar link is to the right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AbbieJack Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 Songs and Calender work. DD had to switch the date on the calender each day, as well as the day of the week. (Tune Oh my darlin' Clementine) There are 7 days... There are 7 days... There are 7 days in a week! Sunday , Monday, Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday ,Friday ,Saturday There are 7 days... There are 7 days... There are 7 days in a week! (Tune Michael Finnegan) January , February ,March and April,May and June July and August, September, October,November, December these are the months of the year! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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