Guest Post: Mommy School with Cheri

Take it away Cheri!

Hello!  I’m Cheri from I Am Momma Hear Me Roar.  Stephanie asked me to write about how I handle Mommy School for my boys.

Here’s a little background.  My older son was having a hard time with a couple things in preschool, so I started working more with him and realized how important it was for me to take part in his education – even though I don’t home school him.  I started working with him while his little brother napped.

When summer came, I wanted to make sure he wouldn’t forget all the things he’d worked so hard to learn, so we officially started “Mommy School.”  I do an informal lesson with both boys (ages 3 and 5 now) Monday through Friday.  You can search through our ideas HERE.

I wanted the boys to learn, but I also didn’t want to overwhelm them.  I thought that if it felt like play, that they would be excited about it.  Well, Mommy School helped our summer a whole lot.  They loved the structure, the ideas and projects, and the learning – even though they barely realized that they were learning something.

So, here are 5 ideas I thought I’d share to help when teaching your kids.

1) Learning can be serious fun.  I think it’s easy to get this picture of kids in desks with no talking allowed when you think of school and learning.  I taught at a very free-thinking private school for a year before having my kids and it changed my views a bit.  The kids went on lots of field trips and planted gardens.  It was so cool.

Even when painting a cardboard doghouse, I feel my boys are learning something.  Creativity itself is an important skill.

2) Activities can be personalized to all age groups.  My boys are two years apart, but there are ways to involve them both.  You just have to think about what they are capable of.  For example, one day we laid out a city with painter’s tape on the floor.  For my oldest son, I gave him directions to follow with his car.

“Head up Main street.  Turn right on Rex street.  Turn right on Dog street and drop your kids off at school.  Turn left onto Rex street.  Turn right onto Baden street.  Turn left onto Green street and pick up some paint at the Home Depot.”  This helped him firm up his right and left.  It also helped him use his reading skills.

I find that personalizing things for them makes the activity more enjoyable and they like having their own “duties.”

3) Consistency.  I believe that all children thrive on regularity and schedules.  Mommy School works best for us when we do it right away in the morning, which means I need to do my planning for it the night before.  If I’m not ready or haven’t made a plan, they don’t get really excited about it.  When I have a good game plan, they are thrilled.  Generally, the boys are still in their jammies, but it makes me happy to see them anxious to participate.

4) Let them feel your love of the subject.  I think excitement is contagious.  If you are really excited about a subject, they will be too.  Teach them about the things you love and why you love them.  I love teaching my boys about music.  My husband enjoys teaching them about money and finances.  I think excitement will take you a lot further than nagging or pushing.

5) Mix it with the things they love.  When my oldest looses excitement for a subject, I try to involve superheroes, because he it absolutely obsessed with them.  He might get tired of trying to read, but if I plan a superhero scavenger hunt, he’s happy to try and read those clues.  It’s fun again.  I’m not saying that you have to put on a clown costume and entertain your kids, but I do think it’s helpful to apply the concepts to their interests.

Teaching my boys has become really fun to me.  It’s so fulfilling to watch them master a concept.  I love the idea of being their personal tour guide of life.  There is so much to show them and teach them.  I feel lucky to get the chance to do that.

Thanks for having me, Stephanie!  – Cheri