Our own little preschool . . .

One of my biggest concerns about staying home with the girls for the next year was the fact that Sydney would no longer be attending daycare. I worried about this for a few reasons:
- She wouldn't get to be around other children her age on a daily basis.
- She wouldn't be able to participate in all the little activities/art projects that happen at daycare.
- She would miss out on valuable learning opportunities through the little lessons they do.
- Last, but not least . . . . I might go nuts!

I knew I could arrange play dates and take her to the classes mentioned in my previous post that would allow her to be around other kids. However, I felt guilty about all the other "fun" stuff she would miss. Then, it hit me . . . . I am an elementary school teacher. Umm, aren't we known for being good at disguising learning as fun and doing cute little art projects? DUH!! I can do this stuff at home, and quite honestly do it better than daycare. I am definitely not knocking our daycare. I think they are AWESOME! It's just that I will be able to give Sydney one-on-one attention and take her places they can't.

The "seeds" are Sydney's thumbprints!

 So, I bought a Preschool Mailbox magazine full of themes and activities for kids Sydney's age.  I'm going to use it to get ideas for making little lesson plans for the week to cover certain things with her . . . something REALLY simple not real lesson plans! I just want to do fun things that have a purpose, so I need some type of plan! :)

Fingerpaint & Stamps

 I have stocked up on art supplies . . .      washable crayons, markers, fingerpaint, watercolors, wiggly eyes, pipe cleaners, pom poms, stickers, stamps and construction paper. We only had crayons and coloring books before because I honestly didn't do that many art projects with her because they did so many at daycare. I just didn't feel the need to fool with it at home. We've ordered a new little wooden table to keep in the kitchen, so I won't worry so much about the mess. Right now we are using her little table from upstairs, but it just doesn't "go" with my kitchen! So, it can't stay. I even bought a little shelf with rattan baskets to keep all the supplies stored neatly. If you know me very well, you know that I tend to be a little OCD when it comes to keeping things organized.

Messy Hands!

Sydney has already done a lot of coloring at the table, and we've made a couple of things. She made a big mess with the fingerpaints last night, so I don't think we will be using those too often. I don't know if my nerves can take it! I definitely see an apron or smock in our very near future!