We have had a very strange winter this year, with several periods of spring-like weather. Although I enjoyed the unseasonably warm weather, there hasn’t been much snow this year, which is pretty unusual where I live. Winter can feel really long, but last winter I really embraced the season by enjoying winter activities like snowshoeing (which is both quiet time and good exercise), as well as skating, sledding, and skiing. This year however, there has only been snow for a short time before it melted, and the weather was usually too warm for ice- skating. While I wasn’t able to partake in winter sports, I definitely relished the warmer weather while it lasted. has been snowing for the last three days, however, and there is probably about a foot outside. I guess, now that it’s March, we will have winter after all. Hopefully it won’t last too long.
We spend most of our days during the week at home, and although the snowstorm outside has me reminiscing about the sheer joy we felt whenever there was a snow day and school was canceled, I have been doing some school with my kids. Because they are so young, we are able to get most of our school done in the morning, and they definitely get to enjoy some time out on the growing snow piles. Among other things, I have been using a combination of dictation/ copywork with my two kids who are in early elementary age, as well as teaching my preschooler how to write her name. My preschooler loves this, because she wants to do school like her older brothers. For preschool math, we have been counting and doing easy addition together using raisins or popsicle sticks, and of course she enjoys the snack of raisins at the end. I am a firm believer that workbooks or expensive curriculums aren’t really necessary to teach younger kids, unless, of course, you and your child enjoy them. I certainly don’t use unschooling, but I do enjoy a very natural approach to school lessons. Dictation and hands on math are simple ways to incorporate this. Another area where we like a simple, natural approach is Geography. Right now, I am using a globe or simple map to show where different continents and oceans are, and sometimes countries. I like to see how much they remember from day to day, and it isn’t time consuming. If we want to do more, they can learn the location and spelling of a country.
We don’t have a rigid schedule at this phase in our lives, but our days tend to follow a rhythm of sorts. After lunch, while the toddler naps, I have been letting my older kids have individual quiet play with books, or an open-ended toy like Legos or magna-tiles. Magna-tiles are an all-time favorite over here, and I highly recommend them. My kids probably spend more time with them than any of their other toys, and they are good for a broad range of kids. After the toddler wakes up, we have been doing reading time together. This is when I have been having my boys practice reading aloud to me, and I also read picture books and chapter books to them. I just finished the second book in The Little House on the Prairie series and decided to switch gears for a bit and start “The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe” from the Chronicles of Narnia series.
I want my kids to enjoy learning, at least most of the time, and I don’t think it needs to feel like a grind every single day. Of course there are hard days, and days when I or the kids don’t really feel like doing the work. But there are definitely ways to make it feel more enjoyable and natural. I like little routines to spread school into little pockets of time throughout the day. Like Songs and Catechism or Bible first thing in the morning. Or poetry and Scripture Memory at breakfast. We still have a time when we do sit down for school in the morning, and do things like math and language arts, but a lot of what we do is scattered throughout our day or disguised in the form of reading together in the afternoons. When they are older, I am sure that school will be much more time consuming, but right now, this works well for us. Although I am ready for Spring, I haven’t let that stop me from enjoying time outside in the snowy weather, as well as the coziness indoors. There is something about blustery days and winter snowstorms that adds extra comfort to a cozy home. I hope you can find ways to enjoy your home, your homeschool (if you are a homeschooler), and the weather, even if it isn’t perfect.
