Preschool-part one

*Before we delve into this post, I want to clarify that what I am about to write is my opinion.  Some of you may agree, some may disagree and that is fine with me.  Take away what you like.

[This will be the first of two posts about preschool at home.]

I had a few requests for posting each preschool lesson I do, but since Alayna and I have "school time" everyday, I don't think that will be a reality.  Occasionally I will post some things we have done, but not everyday.

I have really been thinking a lot about what I could say that would be helpful in this post.  So, I decided to ask my former co-worker who is a kindergarten teacher (and one of the best kindergarten teachers ever, might I add) what she thought parents/preschool teachers needed to teach their kids before entering kindergarten.  She told me they had just recently had a staff meeting about kindergarten readiness and everyone agreed that they wished preschools/parents would focus more on social skills and self-help skills.  She said preschools are focusing more on academics and possibly overlooking the importance of these other skills.

Let me just say, I totally agree!  Since this specific post is more about doing some sort of "school" at home, let's focus on that.  I have views on preschool as well and I could talk about that some as well, but let's save that for later.  

So, in reference to my co-worker's response, I think that the majority of what we should teach our kids revolves around the social and self-help skills.  In order for our kids to be successful in kindergarten/school, they need to know how to socialize with others and do things for themselves.  They need to be somewhat independent.

Sometimes as a parent, I find this hard.  I am a little bit (or maybe a lot at times) of a perfectionist.  I like things done a certain way.  So when it comes to letting my little ones be independent, it can be a bit of a struggle. In fact, I constantly remind myself to let things go.  I need to let Alayna learn things for herself and explore.  I am afraid my leash is a bit too tight (so to speak) at times. But over the last couple years, I have really been trying to let go some.

For Kindergarten teachers, having kids that are able to do things for themselves is such a help.  It is inevitable that as teachers we will be zipping coats, tying shoes, and fixing other problems throughout the day.  But if your child knows how to do many of these skills, all the better.

Let's talk about what us parents are responsible for.  When it comes to helping our children learn social and self help skills, it really falls on our shoulders as the parent.

So, what should we do?  Well, I'll tell you a few of the main things.  

-Give your kids responsibility.

-Make sure they know how to use the restroom independently as well as washing their hands after.

-Encourage them to dress themselves.  Give them the choice of what to wear.  Let them learn how to make decisions on their own.  This is something that you can start when they are young, but helps them learn how to make a choice.

-Give your child chores.  When children have chores, they learn responsibility.  They learn how to complete a task on their own and they learn consequences for their actions as well.  Alayna has had chores for quite sometime now, but we just started a simple sticker chart system recently (for chores) that has gone well.   When her chart is filled up, she gets rewarded for all her hard work.  But she also has learned several lessons about the consequences of her choices.  She is free to complete her chores as fast or as slow as she wants, but until they are done, there is no electronics (computer, tv, etc.) and she cannot go to a friends house or got to something fun like story time at the library until all chores are complete.  (I know this seems basic, but it's SO helpful.)  Learning to have responsibility helps in the classroom on SO many levels.  Kids need to know how to take charge and be responsible for their actions.

-Make sure your child knows how to listen and follow directions.  I know.  Easier said than done, right.  While it is our responsibility as parents to reprimand our children when they do not listen and follow directions, I believe it is more important to offer praise to them when they do.  I have noticed children respond well to praise, especially those rule breakers.  In the classroom, one way I liked to get those children who were off task, back on, was by complimenting those children who were following instructions.  Kids thrive on praise.  They want to be praised.  

-Teach your child to be still.  This is a biggie.  Kids need to be able to sit still (for longer than 5 minutes).  This can be practiced starting at a young age.  So much anymore kids do not want to sit still or some of them can't sit still.  Most likely it's the first.  But unless we teach them, they won't know how.  We can't let them run around when it's time to be still and just assume that they will learn this on their own.  How do we do this?  Start at a young age and start with short amounts of time and work up.  Having something like story time is a great way to teach this.

-Make sure your child is respectful to adults.  It's sad that this is more of an issue than you think.  It is so important that respect is shown to adults.

Now, onto developing those social skills.

We should look for social opportunities for our children.  There are many options out there for social interactions.  For example: Playgroups/play dates, story time at the library, playing at the park, organized activities like sports or dance, church, events in the community, just to name a few.

It's important that our kids learn how to interact with other children.

They will learn valuable things such as sharing, taking turns, being kind, and dealing with conflict.

Now, you probably are all rolling your eyes at me and thinking duh, Erica!  Why would I not do all these things with my child before I send them to Kindergarten?  But let me just tell you from experience, you would be surprised at how many children do not have these skills.  It's sad.  And kind of scary.

Social and self-help skills are imperative for children to thrive in school as well as in life.

Next up, a post more about the academics.  I will give you a little peek into our "school at home" and give a few tips for determining what kinds of things to teach your kids as well as what kinds of activities are "school worthy".  

A little more detail

Why hello, blogging friends.  I have been a little MIA.  And really not for any reason other than the fact that I can't seem to get the things on my to-do list done.  And apparently blogging falls to the bottom of the list.

I want to blame my lack of accomplishing things on the fact that my baby is teething and she will.not.let.me.put.her.down.  Seriously.  Every time I lay her down, she just whines and cries.  And the second I pick her up, she is happy as a lark.  What a stinker.  Alayna says, "Mom, I think Brylen is not happy because her teeth are growing up."  Well, these teeth better hurry and "grow up" already.

Now, let's talk about the fam.  We are doing great.  We are really enjoying Rock Springs.  Gasp. 

 I know, I know.  Can you believe we are actually liking "Rock Bottom"?(As we have heard it called.)  We are LOVING the fact that Dan is home WAY more and the fact that he works like three blocks away.  Seriously.  His commute has gone from an hour (one way) to a minute.  Yep.  That's a pretty drastic change.  And we are loving it. 

Dan is really enjoying his job.  The people he works with are really nice and the atmosphere is a lot more positive than at the mine.  He is loving his schedule and the fact that he doesn't work shift work anymore.  No more waking up at the crack of dawn or working in the middle of the night.  I think his body is almost fully recovered.  He says he really feels like he gets to see us so much more and he feels more a part of everything.

Alayna is adjusting to life here pretty well.  The hardest part for her probably has been the weather, but I think she is becoming more accustomed to the cold. (And it hasn't even really been cold yet.)  Although, you can tell she has not lived in cold places much because we bought her a coat and she calls it her "snow jacket."  Everything is a jacket.  She hasn't really had much need for a heavy coat the last couple of years.  She has made some friends here.  We live in a young ward so there are A LOT of kids her age.  We also are in a play group once a week where she gets to play with six other kids her age.  She is really enjoying that.  But she also still talks about her Arizona friends ALL THE TIME.  We talk about how they live in Arizona and we live in Wyoming now.  And then she proceeded to tell me one day, "Mom, when we are done with this house and we go back to Arizona...."  We had a little talk about how we probably won't be "done with this house" for awhile.  And we probably won't get to go back to Arizona for a really long time.  Bless her heart.  She loved Arizona.  

Brylen is doing well (other than the fact that she is a grouch due to teething).  She is going through a growth spurt lately.  It will be interesting to see how much she weighs at her doctors appointment.  She LOVES her sister and thinks everything she does is funny.  It is so fun to watch her watch Alayna.  It is no secret that Brylen adores Alayna.  (And vice versa.)  They are interacting more and more, and this mama is loving it!  It does every mom's heart good when their children play together.

As for me, I am adjusting to life here.  Overall I am loving it.  Every now and then I have a twinge of sadness when I think about Arizona, but that is to be expected when you move.  Our ward seems nice, and I have met several nice people.  The biggest adjustment for me has been our schedule.  Where I used to have 14-16 hours to complete my to-do list, I now have 8.  How do you moms do it?  Some days I wonder what I have accomplished.  My to-do list seems to get longer and longer and I can't seem to keep up.  I wonder why it is so different for me here.  I think it is the shortened days.  I also had a lot more night time hours where children were in bed and I had time to get things done uninterrupted.  But we are making it work.  I wouldn't change it for the world.  School time with Alayna has also been keeping me busy lesson planning and teaching.  We are loving it.  I am loving the one on one time together.  (By the way, I am going to post some preschool "stuff" soon, but I have to admit, I am a bit nervous.  I don't have anything profound to say and I am afraid you might not find it helpful.  Nonetheless, I will do my best to make it somewhat interesting.  But I am not promising anything.)