[HSList] Challenging my 3.5 year old.
VLJensen
In a message dated 98-04-04 19:28:51 EST, you write:
<< << I have a 3.5 year old son, I've been reading to him since before he was
born. >>
<< Sounds like you already know what to do. Read, Read, Read, and when that
gets
old, read some more. Read about everything, read about anything, >>
There are also other ways for your preschooler to learn besides reading &
computer software. Get out of the house and explore nature. Poke around in the
dirt and look for bugs. Do it at different seasons and observe the changes. Do
the same at the beach, especially the tideal pools. Get some Audobon or
Peterson guides so that you can look up the names of the
animals/bugs/flowers/rocks, etc. that you find. Go to the Gilbert House
Children's Museum in Salem (if you're from Oregon, that is) and let him
experience what is offered at the various learning stations. You might do the
same at WISTEC in Eugene or at OMSI in Portland. Visit a petting zoo or a farm
or a wild bird sanctuary.
And don't forget to teach him HOW adding & subtracting and other math concepts
work and why they work. It is very easy for some children to memorize numbers
and facts but not truly know what they are doing. If they don't know what they
are doing and why they do it, they will not be able to apply the knowledge
they have to new situations. This might go for reading as well. If he doesn't
understand HOW letters go together to form words he may have trouble when he
gets older and has to deal with larger, more difficult words.
Hope this helps a little,
Vickie
Jean Riskus
I agree with Jody. My 13-year-old and I start the school day out with table
games to sharpen our minds for the day. He's having fun while learning.
Chess builds a number of skills. When we started playing Scrabble, he was
putting down 3 and 4 letter words. It's amazing how his words keep
improving (I allow him to look up words in the dictionary). Carmen Sandiego
is a good geography and history lesson. There are so many games that can be
educational. Others that can be adapted into educational.
Jean
----------
> From: Scott & Jody Arnold & family <jo...@efn.org>
> To: homes...@efn.org
> Subject: Re: [HSList] Challenging my 3.5 year old.
> Date: Sunday, April 05, 1998 1:28 PM
>
> David,
> My favorite book is _How Children Learn_ by John Holt. It's not
> about homeschooling per se, but it is the book that started me thinking
> about homeschooling.
> You might try playing some non-computer games with him. Yahtzee
is
> a real game that little kids can enjoy playing. "Educationally" it
covers
> adding, multiplying, averaging, probability, and eventually writing
numbers
> and adding long columns. My math whiz (now 15) started playing it just
> before his fifth birthday, and taught himself to write numbers and add
up
> the columns so he could play it solitaire when we refused to play it for
> more than an hour or two a day. He had about three months of lots of
> Yahtzee before he moved on to other things.
> He was also the sports freak who taught himself to read (at
6-y-o)
> by poring (sp?) over the sports section and trying to figure out who beat
> who (whom?).
> Anyway, there are also some card games, and of course checkers
and
> chess, etc. that would be challenging for him and fun for you.
> Have fun!
>
> jody
TIM BANDY
In a message dated 98-04-04 19:39:00 EST, you write:
<< Are there any begining Home Schooling books on the market that anyone
would recommend for a 3.5 year old? >>
How about music. Does he seem ready to start some music training? At his age,
I would let him direct you. His main task is to play and explore. You may want
to read something from the Montassori (sound it out, I butchered the spelling)
school of teaching. You can go to a more German approach later when he is
older.
Tim B.