Tag Archives: toddlers

Indoor Nature Study on Apples

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I’m going to let you in on a little secret: I don’t like to be outside.  I love to be indoors where there’s no critters that attack you and leave you covered in itchy red bumps. I don’t like to be outside, but God gave me to boys that LOVE the outdoors.  This year I committed to doing more nature studies and nature walks with my guys. The calendar may see that it’s Fall but where I live it’s still Summer. It can be too hot to be outside so I’ve started doing some nature studies with my boys indoors.

Indoor Nature Study on Apples | heidistjohn.com/tbmb

When I think of fall I think of the leaves changing and pumpkins and apples. I thought it would be fun to do a quick nature study with my boys about apples. They are one of our favorite fruits so it was fun to learn about how they grow.  I started off with a short story called “How the Apple Blossom Came Back” from Outdoor Secrets. I also asked both my boys for a narration and then we headed to the table for some hands on fun!

Indoor Nature Study on Apples | heidistjohn.com/tbmb

Our short story explained to us that you can find a blossom on the inside of an apple. I never realized this because I typically cut our apples the other way. My boys were very excited to see the blossom in the center of the apple once it was sliced. The trick is to cut the apple from side to side and not top to bottom.

I had one more activity for my boys before I was going to let them eat their apples: apple stamping. This is the first year that we have been keeping nature journals and I love them. My plan was to have them stamp the apples on a page so that we could still see the blossom in the center. It didn’t work out that well but they still had a lot of fun. Also both my boys wrote short poems that I copied at the bottom of their pages.

Indoor Nature Study on Apples | heidistjohn.com/tbmb

While my boys enjoyed apples for a snack we read some books about apples and apple trees. I wish that we had an apple orchard to visit, but we grow citrus where we live. We spend some time reading books about apples, orchards and farms. I even threw in some fun picture books and stories about Johnny Appleseed.  I found some pictures of apple orchards and blossoms online and we had fun looking at the beautiful pictures. Here are some of the books that we enjoyed:

We have actually gone on a few one nature walk so far this school year. But we have done several indoor nature studies.  My boys found a frog by our front door and we spent some time looking up different frog species. We were able to identify our little friend and my oldest son even drew pictures of the life cycle of the frog.

What about you? Do you get outside and explore God’s creation with your children? Do you have a favorite indoor study that you’ve done? I’d love some more ideas.

Heidi St John Guide to Daylight

Homeschooling Preschoolers {or not}

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Best idea I EVER heard for homeschooling preschoolers:
 DON’T.

Play with them. Take them on walks. Read to them. Bake cookies.

These precious young years fly by.

“People” say we’ve got to start school at the age of three. But I’ve got to say: I think we miss out on some of the best years of childhood when we start formal education too soon.Of course now that our oldest two are grown, I have the gift of perspective. If I could go back, I would have played more and stressed less over “school” for my littlest ones. Even Kindergarten and First/Second grades require very little “book” work.

Study what crawls out from under the stones on your garden walkway. Talk about the mysteries of the heavens. Smell the flowers in your neighborhood. Nurture curiosity. Above all, nurture their spirit. ♥

Heidi St John Homeschooling Guide to Daylight

It’s A Beautiful Way to Live

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–This is from a blog post I wrote at my old blog, “Confessions of a Homeschool Mom” back in 2006. I thought many of you would enjoy it.  Our daughter, Summer is now 9. She doesn’t suck cookie dough off her toes anymore. I’m glad I caught a picture of it.–

 

“Spencer Jay!”

“Yes, Mama?”

“STOP JUMPING ON THE COUCH!”

“I’m not, mama! The couch is bouncing under me!”

And so it goes.

Yesterday I walked into the kitchen just in time to see my newly-turned-three-year-old enjoying the cookie IMG_6135
dough that she had just stepped in… she was licking it off of her toes! Don’t call the sanitation patrol. I’ve got it covered. Believe me, it won’t help.

Fifteen years ago, I would have freaked out but I just handed her a washcloth (after the picture, or course) … and moved to the next crisis.

At least life is never boring, right? What happened? Oh yeah. That.  I remember now! And we rather ENJOY it!

It’s not that I’m complaining because I wish my life were different, because I really don’t!

It’s just that sometimes a girl needs to vent. Ya know? Take this post for example. I started writing it three hours ago. Since I sat down to type a “quick” entry, I’ve changed a poopy diaper (remember she’s just now eating cereal so it’s not the picnic it used to be!) , nursed the baby, wiped a teary-eyed face, handed out peanuts to the neighborhood (at least it felt that way) , located the Bob the Builder Bandaids, checked the pot roast, corrected an essay and
answered the phone at least five times.

Sunday afternoon is supposed to be my “time” to goof around while my kids play quietly… reading every volume of their Little House books and
inventing new theories for determining the speed of madagascar beetles.

Right???

And now I can’t remember what I wanted to say when I sat down to say it three hours ago.

And—it’s a beautiful way to live.

Heidi St John Guide to Daylight

The Importance of Discipline

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Your child depends on your loving correction!

Several years ago, a friend of mine pulled me aside and pointed out a character flaw in one of my children. Apparently this child was not only being disrespectful to another adult, but rude as well. It hurt to hear this from my friend. It stung. I was mad—and a little embarrassed too. But you know what? She was right. I needed to address the problem, and not allow my child to hide behind me.

That meant apologizing to the adult and asking for forgiveness. It’s amazing the peace that follows conflict when it is addressed and corrected.

Are you disciplining your children? A loving mother will lovingly discipline her children. As parents we must remember that much of the responsibility our children’s behavior rests with us.

There are consequences to refusing to address character issues in the lives of our children. Ask the Lord to give you a discerning heart so that you can see what the real issue is and then follow-through with your child. He’ll thank you later.