Each morning, begin school together in the floor reading a Scripture passage. In our home, this was a chapter in Psalms. Although little ones might not understand, their souls will begin to soak in the Lord’s Word.
If you waited until they understood, they’d be teenagers or older before they heard the Word of God! Begin young and they’ll grasp quickly as the Spirit speaks to their hearts.
When I began doing this, my ‘just turned 3 year old’ would stop me every other verse practically asking what it meant. If your child does the same, take the time to stop and share with them.
Feel unprepared for this?? Pre-read the section the night before, and ask the Lord to show you what He’s saying in that passage. The Lord will give you the answers for your children! As you finish reading, invite your family to circle together and begin your school day with prayer.
Board Time
My BoardI traced scrapbook die cuts (the card left AFTER you punch out the die cut) to make the weather cards and letters for the words. If you notice, I did each day according to the colors of the rainbow.
Begin by removing the prior ‘day’, and placing all the days together.
Each day, ask your child how many days are in a week. As much as you’d like to help them, give them plenty of time to think and answer themselves. If they are right, praise them!! If they are wrong, simply encourage them to “count them with me and let’s see how many there are!”
Point to each day as you say the name. Sing the days of the week to the tune of “Merrily We Roll Along”, again, pointing to the correct day as you sing them.
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Days of the Week Song – "There are 7 days in a week, in a week, in a week, There are 7 days in a week, and I can say them all. Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday is the last day – and I can say them all!"
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Days of the Week Song – "There are 7 days in a week, in a week, in a week, There are 7 days in a week, and I can say them all. Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday is the last day – and I can say them all!"
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Ask your child what day yesterday was, and point to it on the chart. Ask them what day they think today might be.
If they seem unsure, silently point to the ‘next’ day after yesterday (today), and see if they recognize it by “reading”. If they still are unsure, slowly begin to sound it out – allowing them to finish if they suddenly remember, or you complete it and ask them to say it with you.
BE SURE to never criticize your child for wrong answers!! Instead, gently correct them and explain what is right, and how you can tell what is right.
If you work WITH them, they will love school and succeed. But if they feel they can never get an answer right and will always be scolded or looked down upon, they will lose interest and give up altogether.
Review “yesterday was”, “today is”, and “tomorrow will be”.
Next, move onto the weather for the day. Look out the window and ask your child to “be the weatherman” and tell you what the weather looks like for the day. Keep it simple – sunny, cloudy, windy, storms, and snow.
Colors on the Board –
Dollar Tree had a cute border last year that had the basic colors. I cut them out separately and stuck them onto colored card stock of the same color.
Dollar Tree had a cute border last year that had the basic colors. I cut them out separately and stuck them onto colored card stock of the same color.
Review the color of the week each day – saying the name, asking your child to point to the color on the board, and then spell it together.
For our color song, we sing the “Colors of the Rainbow” song off of Signing Time (sign language for children). You can either watch Signing Time on public TV (Sat. AM), or order the DVDs on their website – http://www.signingtime.org/.
As with any outside program, always be sure to supervise content. They sometimes have music or dancing on Signing Time that we ourselves turn off in our home, especially the newer episodes.
Check out Sign Language cards we offer on the sidebar.
If you'll notice, there's a large open section in the center of the board. This is where I would stick each week's Bible verse, or maybe if you had a theme that week, stick something up there.
Letter/ Number of the week –
Say the letter name of the week, point to and trace it with your finger on the board as you sound it out. Invite your child to trace the letter too!
Say the letter name of the week, point to and trace it with your finger on the board as you sound it out. Invite your child to trace the letter too!
Review ‘letter’ verse of the week on Scripture verse chart. (Again, easy and inexpensive to make WITH your child - see more info further down post.)
Sing ‘letter’ Bible verse song of the week. (Available SOON!! If not on complete CD, then maybe I can at least get the first few loaded online for you to hear.)
And finally, review number of the week. Pointing to it, and then playing a quick version of “find 2 red things in the room”. This allows your child to visually see the number in reality, as well as recognize the color of the week again. After board time, move over to the calendar…
Calendar Time
My CalendarBegin by reviewing the current month. To begin with (for 4 or under), I wouldn’t worry about the whole year at this point, just focus on each month as they come.
Next, ask them again what day it is – referring back to the board if necessary. Then together find and point it out on the calendar.
Count all of the days past in the month, pointing and saying each number as you count aloud together. This is important especially if you have younger ones, as they will listen to you and eventually pick up on the numbers themselves.
When you get to the current day (this is still blank on the calendar), ask them what number comes next – which number is ‘today’. Prompt them only after they’ve had time to try themselves.
Allow them to stick up the current day after they know which number it is. You’ve now completed your daily routine! This is important to stick to closely each morning – keeping letters, numbers, months, days, etc… fresh on their minds each day!
Scripture Verse Time
Next, ask them again what day it is – referring back to the board if necessary. Then together find and point it out on the calendar.
Count all of the days past in the month, pointing and saying each number as you count aloud together. This is important especially if you have younger ones, as they will listen to you and eventually pick up on the numbers themselves.
When you get to the current day (this is still blank on the calendar), ask them what number comes next – which number is ‘today’. Prompt them only after they’ve had time to try themselves.
Allow them to stick up the current day after they know which number it is. You’ve now completed your daily routine! This is important to stick to closely each morning – keeping letters, numbers, months, days, etc… fresh on their minds each day!
Scripture Verse Time
My Chart Here I measured out enough spaces for all 26 letters and verses, along with coloring in a little at the top for my children to be attracted to.
For each letter, I used scrapbook stickers – and use marker to write the verse each week with my children.
Each morning, go to the chart and point/ say each letter and verse together that you’ve learned.
Use either Sonbeams Music CD to sing along with the verses available soon at http://www.sonbeams.com/, or create your own music!
Alright, that's the morning routine
FYI - My boards were put together using Velcro tape that I cut according to size (I found this at Wal-Mart, but believe Dollar Tree might have it??)
I used 3M Adhesive Command Strips for hanging my calendar and Bible verse chart. I cleaned the wall down with vinegar first, then after that dried, stuck the clear sticky part to the wall.
After that 'cured', I attached the hooks. It's been great for hanging lightweight things in our school room - and it won't leave a bad spot on the wall when I remove it!
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