Number Skills

Around here we had a very busy weekend of doing absolutely nothing. Well, a load of laundry and the dishes may have gotten done, but that's all. I've been battling this massive cold for over a week now so I haven't had much energy. One thing I did manage to do was creating a number recognition game for my oldest son. I got the idea from Pinterest. (side note, if you're on pinterest leave your link to your profile below so that I can follow you!)

As you can see, it's really very simple but tons of fun for the little ones (plus educational, and you can't beat that!). All it takes is a paper plate, a marker or two, and a sharpie. I divided the plate into ten different spaces and put dots ranging from one to ten into each space. I used different colors to make it more interesting. Then I wrote the numbers on each clothespin that corresponded to each dot. It was Drake's job to correctly match up each numeral with the correct number of dots. He had lots of fun counting the dots and using the clothespins.

Who knew mastering our numbers could be so much fun! You can check out the original post (and my inspiration for this game) here: Naturally Chic Mama

Arts & Crafts

I'm a firm believer in creativity. Much of the artwork around my house is homemade, either by myself or other creative people. I installed a simple string with clips on it to display Drake's artwork and his worksheets that we've been working on. He's always really proud of whatever he creates and wants it to go straight on the wall. Most of his work I take photos of, then trash it. I save his best work or stuff that I'm unwilling to part with. Go ahead, call me a packrat (the husband does) but I prefer the term "sentimental."

Today was arts and crafts day with some paint in bowls, some construction paper, and simple but easy to use brushes consisting of q-tips. Drake had a blast, and Link was interested too for a little bit.

School is in Session

Here's some things I learned today about Drake and trying to do my own version of preschool with him:

1. Safety scissors are not all that safe. In fact, they can cut skin, specifically, Mommy's finger.
2. Cutting Mommy's finger is apparently HIL-A-RI-OUS.
3. Drake will sit not sit still for more than one book to be read in a row. Good to know.
4. No matter how much planning you put into making a schedule and a curriculum, it's not really up to you. It's up to him.
5. Glue makes an excellent hair gel.
6. ...and last but not least, he has a voracious appetite to learn things and I really need to cultivate it.

To that end, we're starting our own little version of preschool here. Complete with useless schedules, fun crafts, loads of coloring, and the alphabet. Tomorrow we're going to head to the library to pick up some books that are on our schedule this week. I know I said that schedules were useless, but they do give me a good jumping point for the day's lessons. If he happens to show more interest in craft time, or coloring, or whatever, then I'm going to be flexible.

In the meantime, I'm looking around on the web for more coloring sheets and worksheets. I didn't realize we'd go so quickly through them. Now..if only there were more hours in the day to do everything that needs to be accomplished around here and become Drake's teacher...