Let Them Cut

What parent doesn't want their kids to end up healthier, smarter and happier than they were as a kid?? I'm no exception. As parents, we do our best to feed them the freshest, most nutritious foods so they grow healthy. I know a lot of parents who swear by eating only organic, locally grown food but what about their little minds?? Are we feeding those too?? Being more creative than book smart, I'm hoping to teach my kids and help them to flourish in areas where I fell flat. I will admit, I didn't learn all seven continents until my adult years. My hubby will NEVER let me live this down...quiz me on which country belongs where and I might still struggle. I'm not proud of this. And math?? Forget about it! So began my quest to raise a pair of smarty-pants!
After agonizing for months, my hubby and I finally decided to attempt homeschool for Jovie starting this year for pre-school. I figure it's a good place to start. I probably can't screw up too badly and if it goes well, will give us good footing to start kindergarten. So beginning this month, I'm going to commence lessons officially with Jo three days a week, although let's face it, I've been teaching the girl her whole life! This new venture will just be a bit more...structured. I tend to go full-speed in many different directions with Jovie but she loves it! Book reports on Sacajawea one day, learning about Helen Keller and the greek alphabet the next. So far, so good. It might be the whole schedule thing that becomes my biggest hurdle. So with school looming and my brain racing, I decided to start with a few projects this summer to give Jo a taste of what's to come. Where better to start than with those darned continents??
This is a great project for little ones just gaining coordination as they will be using scissors and honing their writing skills. This project is not only fun but super educational. It allows children to begin to identify countries on the map and discover that there's a whole world out there. I started with the states about a year ago and suggest you begin there too. You can teach them the "Fifty-Nifty United States" song and pull up images online or buy a map to stick on the wall and learn about different states. I had Jovie make a "state notebook" focusing on one state per day. I had her write the name of the state and draw the state flower and bird. It was a hit! So start there and when your child is ready, move on to continents. I drew the shape of the continent, had Jovie write the name of it and cut it out. We taped all of them on the wall, giving her a great way to visualize the rest of the world. Your lessons can be very simple but don't hesitate to do projects out of fear that it may be over their heads or unnecessary. Even if they don't retain everything, it gives kids a great foundation so why not? Here she is: