At-Home Preschool Tips

Through the years, our family had various dynamics.

• Full-time working parents, kids in early learning centers
• Full-time working parents, kids at in-home day care
• Full-time-part-time-in-office working parents {yep, about as confusing as it sounds 🙂 }
• Full-time stay-at-home-mom

In these situations, my husband and I did a lot of research into the care our children would receive. We interviewed several day care providers and early learning centers. The structure we loved at the learning centers was simply beyond our budget when you multiply it by three! (Our “dream learning center” would have cost us $700/week!) And we knew we craved structure for our kids.

We dissected the information received from the various centers and we learned some key tips as to how to structure our days when I started staying home in order to ensure maximum learning for our family. Here are the things that work well for our kids.

Minion Preschool Guidelines

• Teach in the morning. Kids and adults learn best early. Take this opportunity to fill their minds while you have their focus. Here are my Favorite Home-Preschool Sites.
• Do not go more than 3 hours without food. Preschools have snack time for a reason. It keeps the savage beasts toddlers/preschoolers blood sugar steady and so they maintain energy and focus longer. {Aim for healthy snacks with high protein/low-sugar content for the best results. Check out my “Healthy Kids Food” board for some ideas.}
• Pick a theme and stick with it for the week. You might be surprised how many activities you can come up with talking about Bears. With proper planning, you will have your preschool week set in no time! And, if you really have absolutely no idea where to start, click here for a year’s list of themes 🙂
• Incorporate songs, finger plays, books, sensory play, math and writing lessons about each theme. The repetition helps children remember.
• Imagination Stations are so fun! If you are learning about vegetables, set up a little “Farmer’s Market” in your family room with play food, a cash register, and an apron. The kids will enjoy their pretend time and it allows you to witness their application of the things they are learning. {Here are various “Pretend Play” ideas to inspire you!}
• Rest is essential, for both you and the kids. Whether they sleep or not, kids need a quiet time to calm their bodies. During this time, I do my “Mommy Chores” and also prepare for the kids’ post-rest activity – typically art-related. I also get some much needed Mom{Me} Time!
• Don’t forget to play! Kids learn so much by simply playing with each other. Schedule a play date {we have a few standard play times each week} and allow the kids some time to unwind. In addition to this, getting down on the ground and playing with the kids relieves stress and creates some long-lasting memories. 🙂

Those are the tips that we have found helpful and I hope you do as well.

Please share any additional tips you have found to be helpful in the comments below.

Have fun!