"Learning Time"

For awhile now, I've been feeling like I should have some structured teaching time with the older kids.  Both are at an age where they soak in everything and this is a prime time to guide them in the learning process.  I haven't forced it because I know Reagan will start school soon and I think free play and learning through play is also very valuable.  You are only a kid for so long and I want the kids to remember playing, not Mom forcing school on them before preschool even begins.  However, I decided this summer I really want to focus in on some structured time.

Enter "Learning time."  Ryan and I discussed a very loose curriculum I will follow this summer.  And by curriculum, I mean I came up with a few ideas and we'll learn about them throughout June, July, and August.  At the kids' age, it is more important for them to show an interest in what I'm teaching them instead of having a forced time to sit and learn.  So with this in mind, I have decided to only do "learning time" Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays each week and my goal is about 15-20 minutes (if I can keep them engaged that long!).

This past Monday, June 16 was our first official day of "Learning Time." I talked it over with the kids at breakfast that morning to let them know what we were going to do that day.  Reagan was beyond excited!  He kept asking me if the big "hand is straight down?"  (I told them "Learning Time would be at 9:30a) because he couldn't wait to start learning.  This just reinforced that this was a good idea and it would help structure our day.

I have a tentative calendar of things I'd like to teach them.  Some of our subjects are already familiar, but I want to incorporate different aspects into it so they get a better understanding of the subject matter.  Below I have a list of things we'll be discussing:

Week Of:
6/16 - Shapes
6/23 - Transportation
6/30 - Weather (not sure if I'll do this or not)
7/7 - Farm Animals
7/14 - Zoo Animals
7/21 - Sports
7/28 - ???
8/11 - ???
8/18 - ???

I'm really excited to do this with the kids and I hope they will enjoy it!