Homeschool is perfect for our 5 year old daughter. She wakes late, is a motivated learner and has a very creative mind. Here is a glimpse into her homeschool life. I will try to separate our activities into academic subjects, but please know in real life most subjects overlap.
Family Bonding
Most weekends our 5 year old has sleepovers with her grandmother. She enjoys this quality time and starts her Friday countdown as soon as Monday comes. I got to my mother's house around 11am. Our 5 year old is super excited after hearing we are taking the train. Our plan is to visit the children's museum to watch the eclipse.
Mental Math & Physical Coordination
While we wait for the next train, we head outside to play catch. She loves doing math in her head, so she tracks both of our points. Every time someone catches the ball we get one point. Whoever reaches 5 first wins. We played several rounds in which her throws got stronger and her catches more precise.
Craft
We also make our own eclipse viewer. It is a quick, easy and fun project.
Self-Motivated Project
While I was finishing the viewers (we made 3), our kindergartener crafts her own wordless book with a bookmark. It is 4 pages and has all the essentials -- a beginning, middle and end. I am super impressed that she not only came up with the idea herself, but she completed it.
Time
As time passes, our 5 year old reminds me to start walking so that we don't miss the train. When we get to the station, she keeps checking the clock and asking me the time.
Mapping
From the station we walk to the museum following her set-by-step instructions. Again, I am impressed with her memory and her confidence in knowing the difference between left and right. We did take a wrong turn and we end up walking in the opposite direction for about 5 minutes, before she agrees to make a u-turn.
"Worst Mom" Moment
As we approach the museum, I quickly notice families leaving. Did we miss it, I desperately ask a passing mother with her children? Yup, we missed the eclipse, a once every several years event. I feel like the worst mother on the planet. I pull myself together and remind myself, that our daughter is watching how I deal with disappointing moments.
New Experience
Her face lights up when we arrive at the museum and see kids fishing. Nope we didn’t see the eclipse, but she happily tries something new (fishing), overcomes a fear (held a crab), and we both learn more about bait and fishing techniques.
Science & Mythology
Staff let us borrow glasses and we are able to see the sun. “It looks orange,” she says. Per Nasa's homeschool recommendations, I request a few library books about sun gods from different cultures and the meaning of the eclipse.
Mastery
On the way back to my mother’s house we stop at a playground. Our five year old is excited to show me a new trick. Over and over again, she attempts to hang from this structure. I’m not sure if she did the trick she meant to do, but I notice with every attempt she is getting stronger and more focused.
Health & Science
We check on my mother's garden and find ripe tomatoes. It is a proud moment for us, because we planted the seeds back in May or June and our crop is finally sowing juicy tomatoes. Besides munching on this fresh crop, our 5 year old makes healthy food choices throughout the day and consumes a lot of water. I hope she maintains these habits and gardening skills.
Community Relationships
She is excited to see her neighborhood friends. They play for about two hours.
Music & Culture
We arrive home very late and do not get to read our bedtime stories. She eats dinner and hangs out with her father listening to reggae classics until he is ready for bed.
We had an extremely long and productive day. I’m pretty amazed at the information the girls retain when they are having fun. I’m happy that they are learning just by living.
Click here to see our two year old's homeschool the same day.
Until next time...
Love The Journey,
