Using Shopkins To Teach

Yesterday was my daughters birthday, and as requested she received a bunch and bunch of Shopkins. If you do not know what Shopkins are, they are small toys that resemble things in daily life, food, shoes, items. These toys encourage imagination, take up little space, and make little noise. They are a great teaching tool. Counting the first thing we did was count how many shopkins she had now. Ordering We separated the shopkins out by order. The food went in a pile with the food. The shoes went in a different pile. The appliances went in a pile, and so on like that. She also separated out all the petkins, rares and ultra rares. Matching We made matches as well. Not only did we match shopkins that looked alike, but we also matched shopkins that went with each other. The baseball glove and the baseball bat, for example, were matched as a pair since they were both needed to play baseball. Reading The shopkins come with the list that you can read. The kids can read the list and see what Shopkins that they have. Pattering. We made patterns with the shopkins. A food shopkins, A shoe shopkins, a food shopkins, a shoe shopkins. We took turns making patterns and seeing if the other person could guess what it was. Math We added the food and the shoe shopkins together. Then we took some away. Besides adding and subtracting the shopkins, you can set up a little store. Give the children a certain amount of fake dollars that they can give you to pay for the shopkins. This is a good way to help teach children money sense. Here are some worksheets and other activities involving shopkins. https://www.totschooling.net/2016/08/free-shopkins-sorting-printables.html- shopkins sorting printouts- https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Shopkins-Math-Dash-2451335- Shopkis addition game-

Thanksgiving Gratitude Pack

Thanksgiving day is almost upon us.  This is a good time to teach children about gratitude. In a recent study by the Wall Street Journal children who practiced gratitude had better grades and were less likely to be depressed. When a child practices gratitude the child is more likely to have pleasant interactions with other children and adults.

Its important for us all to appreciate what we have. Thinking back on all I have to be thankful for this year, I can see times myself when I failed to practice gratitude. I have used these mistakes as teaching moments. When we discussed gratitude  I brought up times when I should have been more grateful. Then we discussed what could have gone differently.

I have made this packet to help go with the gratitude theme.

There are leaves where you can write what you are thankful for and attach it to the thankfulness tree.
You can do one leaf a day until Thanksgiving, or give a couple of leaves per child and let them write what they are thankful for.

There are worksheets that help us think about what we are thankful for. The worksheets feature God, Family, Friends, Country, and Needs. There are ten places to write what you are thankful for each subject, but you do not have to use them all. It could be overwhelming for some children.

There are Thankfulness place cards that you can use for Thanksgiving day.  These cards have a place for a name on the front. On the back people can take turns writing why they are thankful for that person. Then the person can read the cards during Thanksgiving Dinner.

There are also Gratitude Cards. These cards can be handed out to anyone who has made his life a little better. There are special cards for mailmen, garbage men, cashiers, doctors, librarians, teachers, bus drivers, cafeteria workers, and anyone else you think needs a special thank you.

Screen free week 2018

The week of April 30th is screen free week.  Families, schools, and organizations across the country are turning off their tvs, computers, tablets, and phones.  Instead, they will be reconnecting with their family. Many are taking this time as a reboot. A time to rest, reflect, and reevaluate  what is important in their lives.

Why is screen free week important?

Many parents are worried that their child's screen time.  In a recent poll, 45 percent of children 5 and under had their own tablets. 70 percent of families had a tablet that there child could play on. The number of children that have their own electronic device increases as the children get older.

Electronic dependency is a real thing, and it could affect a child badly. One effect is that it keeps the child up at night. The light from electronic screens messes with the brain and prevents the release of melatonin. A chemical that helps make us sleepy.
The electronic devices also send dopamine to your brain. This is a chemical that makes us feel nice and happy. A child may come back again and again to their devices to get this feeling.

 30 Activities to do during the screen free week.

Here is a list of things that you can do instead of playing on a device.

1) Explore the library
2) Have a family book club where you all discuss the same book
3) Explore a local museum
4) Color, draw, or paint
5) Have an art gallery where your children show off something they made
6) Have a talent show where the children show off a talent
7) Have a board game tournament
8) Use the random dice, game pieces, of games that are lost and create a new game.
9) Have a picnic at the park
10) Go on a spring scavenger hunt, where you find spring items such as flowers, robins, and clovers
11) take pictures
12) make a scrapbook
13) go bird watching
14) go on a bug safari and see how many bugs you can find
15) go on a walk around your neighborhood
16) make cards for your neighbors or other important people in your life thanking them
17) think of random acts of kindness that you can do
18) volunteer at a nursing home or animal shelter
19) walk your dog or a neighbors
20) go on a hike
21) ride bikes or roller skate
22) go bowling
23) make a backyard obstacle course
24) go camping
25) see how many stars you can name at night
26) tell spooky stories with a flashlight or candle
27) make a puppet show
28) cook together as a family
29) learn a new skill or hobby
30)create a fort, theater, robot, whatever out of old boxes.

What to do after screen free week is over

The American Pediatric Association recommends that younger children only get an hour of screen time a day. Of course, it's only a recommendation. You need to figure out where and when to fit screen time into your day, so your child can still play and explore the world beyond the screen. For some they narrow screen time down till a certain time of day, or a few hours. Others have certain days when the screens go off. You could do a combination of these. Whatever works best for your family.

Bird's nest

It's spring.  My older children are learning zoology this year. I thought since we were on the subject of birds it would be the perfect t time to build a bird's nest.  We set out on the coldest day in spring. It was time for plan two.

I took some hay that  we use to feed the rabbits, and made a bit of paste for the mud. We made next in the house, and though it didn't all go to plan the kids had fun. Sometimes in homeschool you have to improvise

Letter E worksheets

Today I wanted to share with you a pack of worksheets that I have created to help your child identify, write and learn the vowel sound of the letter E. These worksheets go with the E story that I have created. You can watch the story below.

This worksheet packet includes E tracer sheets, animals that start with e, and other fun activities to do to learn about this letter. To get the worksheet pack click here 

Letter A package

Today I want to share with you a package of worksheets I have created to help your child, recognize, write and learn the vowel sound of the letter A.

This package goes along with this story that I wrote about the letter A that you can view below.

Here is a picture of a cut and paste alligator that my child made from the package. She said it was terrifying, so I included another head that you can choose from that might not be as scary.

The package also includes worksheets where you trace the letter a, find the letter a, find the foods that start with a letter a, find the animals that start with a letter a, Find letter a in a story, and the lyrics to an alligator song. There are in total sixteen different things for you to do.

So here is the package. I hope that you find it enjoyable.


Click here for worksheets

Hello I Just wanted to tell you a bit about what I plan on doing here

Hello,

I wanted to tell you my plans for this blog. I hope this space will be a place where I can share my ideas, and maybe help some of you on your homeschooling journey. Feel free to add and express your ideas as well. I 'm a homeschooling mom on a tight budget who is currently teaching five year old, and a nine year old.  My homeschooling philosophy is that anything and everything can be a learning experience. We are always learning.

My first plans for this blog  or to share some ideas teaching the alphabet, and teaching about space. So you can look forward to that.  I'll see you soon.

Melissa.