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Tuesday, July 28, 2020

Waldorf Bread Recipe

This is the recipe we used for our weekly bread day with my little ones!

This recipe makes a BIG batch.  Sometimes we'd make the whole thing and share bread with people we loved...and other times I'd cut the recipe in half.

Mix together:
1/2 C. warm water (bath temp)
1/2 tsp honey
1 packet of yeast

Stir together and let proof and get bubbly while you mix together the following items:

1/2 tsp salt
3 c. flour (whatever blend you want--we did 2c. bread and 1 whole wheat)
1 1/2 C. water
1/4 c. honey
3 T melted butter (or some type of oil)

Mix well. 
Add in the proofed yeast.

Turn out on floured cutting board/table and knead.  Get those little hands helping you! 

Sing: (as you knead)
The Baker Song
Pat-a-Cake

Once kneaded well, decide how you will form your bread.  Either make one large object, or give each child a small ball to make into their own object.  Add items, if desired.  Crasins, chopped nuts, grated (by the child!!!) nuts, etc.  You can use the items to make the face on a cat or the petals on a flower, or the teeth on a dragon....get creative!

Put finished objects on baking tray lined with parchment.  Place in 350 degree oven. Timing will vary, depending how thick you made the items.  Keep an eye on the bread and have the children help you peek at it often.  Observe with all your senses.  How is it smelling?  How is it looking?  Has it changed at all? 

Baked bread freezes well!!!! 



An overview of our Early Childhood Years

I wrote up a long, detailed post for a friend on how we arranged the kids' previous early childhood years, and decided to post it here, mostly in case I want to refer to it again at some point.  :)
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We didn't follow a "curriculum" per say in my kids' early childhood years, but more of a methodology based (mostly) on the Waldorf philosophy with a little bit of Montessori thrown in, where I saw it fitting my particular kiddos well. 


The biggest way we "schooled" was through the rhythm we kept.  We had a rhythm to our days (not necessarily a schedule) and a rhythm to our week.  

Our mornings typically started (after breakfast) with a nature walk with the main focus of observing nature (not the walk itself or the destination).  We walked in every type of weather, as that was a type of observation in itself.  

Each of us had a little fabric nature satchel that we brought along.  We often collected neat rocks or feathers or leaves or acorns to take home to observe more or display on our nature table (more on that).  Usually we went out for 20-30ish minutes to the little greenbelt by our house.  Revisiting the same aren meant that we got to observe the changes the seasons brought.  We stopped and watched fire ants in an ant pile.  We sat and watched a squirrel take nuts up and down a tree.  We picked up colored leaves from the ground in the fall.  We saw goldenrods blooming, that always told us fall was near.  We saw the little leaf buds begin to peek out in the spring.  We saw crawdad holes when it was wet after a week of rains.  Etc., etc., etc.  We slowed down and observed, talked often about what we saw...Some days we went on bigger nature walks to nature parks or a field we had noticed on our way home from the grocery store, etc.  

After our nature walk, we had a snack time and our "morningtime."  For snack, I usually pulled out a big crystal relish-type plate that has 3 little compartments and put some nuts, fruit and veggies on it for snack (tried to do whole foods).  We also brewed a pot of herbal tea (which we'd drink over ice in the summer).  The kids helped prepare snack time.  One would get to choose what type of tea we were making and put the tea bags into the teapot and put the teacups on the table.  The other kid would arrange the fruits and nuts (I'd just set out the large containers from the pantry/fridge) and they would arrange them on the snack plate and then put everyone's little individual saucer on the table.  Of course, in each of these simple tasks the kids were learning language and math and science skills--as we read the names of the teas on the boxes (and they realized that the peach tea had a peach on the front and a P like Papa's name) and that the water changed color when you put the teabags into it...and that the water in the kettle steamed when it got really hot and you could hear the bubbles from the boil...and that if you left the hot water in the teapot it would cool....and how ice cubes look when they are melting in a cup of hot tea...and one-to-one correspondence as you dole out the strawberries equally....

For morningtime we focused on our literacy time.  We sang our hymn of the month (I usually just chose one but now I love the Happy Hymnody website).  We'd start the month just listening to the hymn play while we snacked and then I would turn it on other times during the day, and eventually the kids would start singing along.  I read aloud a book or two that went with that season or just ones that I wanted them to hear.  We had some little cards with seasonal or fun poems/fingerplays/songs/chants (maybe 5-6?) that I would read to them (and they'd memorize lickity split).  We had a memory verse each month from the Bible.  Often we would write or draw cards for someone--if there was a birthday or a sickness, and we also have always done encouragement cards for several people in our village, so I keep a big stack of cardstock cut to card size and they would draw cards for "our people."  We spent about 20-30 total minutes on morning literacy time.  We did the hymn and the read-aloud and the memory verse every day, and we'd start out the month with maybe 1-2 poems (or fingerplays or songs) and then add more as they learned them.  As my kids entered the kindergarten years--5ish, we added in "story," where I told a simple story using some small objects as models.  Often these were fairy tales or seasonal stories.  I'd tell the same story each day of the week, and as the week went on, i'd pause to allow the kids to fill in the details.  Then by the end of the week I'd give them a chance to tell the story and move the objects.  More details on this, if you want.  

One day a week we baked bread.  This is a very waldorf early childhood thing to do.  The exposure to following a simple recipe (usually I did the measuring of the items while I spoke aloud what I was doing and then let the kids pour them into our baking bowl).  The kids get to take part in mixing the bread by hand, which is wonderful for their motor skills and also sensory exploration.  Then we varied on how we formed our bread to bake it.  If we had observed lots of acorns around that day on our nature walk, I might say, "Remember all those acorns we saw today on our walk?  Let's see if we can make our little balls of bread dough into acorns!"  I'd hand each kiddo a manageable sized ball of dough and let them form their shape.  Other weeks we would work together to make one large item--maybe a big cat, like the one we'd read about in our story that day.  We most often baked the whole-wheat waldorf bread (that we ate for afternoon snacks for several days that week with honey or jam or cheese slices) but I also brought in other recipes at times, such as muffins or scones or pieces, often based on the seasons.  As the kids got older, they took on more roles in the bread-baking, until they could really do it all by themselves.  Sometimes we added other items into our breads--crasins, sliced almonds, cheese we grated ourselves, etc.  I can give you the simple recipe if you want it.

After morning time, we'd typically have some free play time.  Waldorf believes strongly in the concept of structuring the day as a "breath in-breath out" type of flow.  A breath in means that the child is taking in their environment.  Morning time is a breath in experience, as the child is taking in the words and songs, etc.  So after that, I'd want to follow it with a less structured, child led playtime.  Of course we always had our playroom as a learning experience all on its own, as it was set up with materials that were age apprpriate and varied and encouraged pretend play.  I'd try to have a pretend play/homemaking area, a block or building area, some books that rotated in and out, and then any other items that fit with my kids' current development.  Sometimes this free play took place in the playroom and sometimes it took place outside in our little play area, depending on the time of year.  

After free play, we had some type of art exploration every day.  Quinn has always been my more artsy child and Beck was not as into it as she ways, but I still felt it was important that he participate with us, to develop attention span and perseverance and fine motor skills and the ability to sit and attend in an age-appropriate way.  We rotated through different mediums on different days.  

Drawing:  Large beeswax Stockmar crayons on large pieces of paper  (often I drew with them and if it fit naturally, I spoke aloud while I drew my picture so they could see my thinking/drawing process)  
(sometimes it was free-drawing of whatever they wanted, sometimes we drew things together, such as pumpkins in the fall or maybe a butterfly we'd seen that day, but I didn't ever force them to draw a particular thing, and we always made drawing time a fun, encouraging, positive experience that everyone participated in)

Beeswax modeling: Stockmar beeswax; liek drawing, sometimes we all made our own items and other times we made something based on a theme.  I can provide more details about beeswax modeling if you want them.  A super activity for fine motor development and requires a lot of patience!

Watercolor Painting: We used the waldorf method, which uses liquid watercolors (not the pallette type) and wet-on-wet method.  More details if desired.

Handwork: age-appropriate projects--sewing large buttons on an embroidery hoop, finger-knitting, stringing beads on a pipecleaner or string, etc.  

We didn't necessarily have an art experience dedicated to each day of the week, which made it nice when we ended up going somewhere or having a playdate/dr appt/ helping a family member, etc.  Basically I just had all of the materials ready in our little art cabinet and whatever art experience we did last, we rotated on to the next one.  This required very little prep time on my behalf and lots of flexibility.  Sometimes we also rotated in seasonal art experiences--leaf rubbings, flower pressing, etc. during this time, and just paused our regular art experience rotation temporarily.  

Usually after art we had lunch.  Often we'd lunch outside, if the weather worked out.  Then the kids would help clean up lunch and we'd have a read aloud time on my bed before rest time.  Then rest time for all.  Both my kiddos boycotten napping at 18 months, but we still continue to have an hour of quiet time in rooms.  They usually listen to audiobooks on cd while they play in their room.

After rest time we had a sensory time at the table.  I had several choices of sensory play ready to go in my art cabinet, so we rotated through different items.
Examples:
Bean tray
Water tray
Playdough
Cracked corn
Waterbeads
Dried oats
Herbs
Flower cutting/Arranging
Shaving Cream

Sometimes we did sensory exploration outside...we had a sand box and a cracked corn box they could play in.  

Lots of examples listed under the tabs as "sensory."

I typically sat down with them and started playing/exploring along with them to give them some gentle guidance, but after a few minutes they got into it on their own!  Usually while they finished up with the sensory play, I would prepare our afternoon snack.  

After snack, we had more outdoor time and this was usually when we did our gross motor play--bikes, scooters, walking to the playground, driving to a park, running around with the neighbors in the front yard, playing in the sprinkler, drawing a hopscotch, etc.  

And that was it!  

Nature table:  We always kept a little nature table in our kitchen.  It was the top of a bookshelf.  The kids were primarily in charge of it and we had some pretty fabrics we'd change out for the tablecloth during various seasons, and then they could collect things outside to display-dead dragonflies, feathers, acorns, rocks....They could bring the items in their satchels from our nature walks and put them on the nature table.  Every month or so we'd clear it off (somewhat) with the kids' involvement, and then rearrange it a bit.  Sometimes we added little figures or seasonal items.  It was a great place for the kids to come back and re-examine things they had found.  As they got older we added in a small magnifying glass and some nature identification books, as well as some guides we created ourselves--the trees in our yard, types of butterflies that came to our house, etc.  

For Montessori inclusions, I used a lot of the practical life and self-care strategies.  I had a little rug (similar to the one your kids use in my entry way) with several shoe cut outs on it where my kids were responsible for storing their shoes in their closets.  We kept all our napkins and silverware and a set of dishes down at kid level.  I taught them to set the table and they would have increasing (age appropriately) responsibility for setting the table at dinner.  Montessori and Waldorf both place emphasis on bringing beauty into the world of children, so we had a little cupboard with a few different tealight candle holders and small vases, etc.  Quinn adored setting up the table centerpiece every couple of days.  Beck wasn't as into this, but sometimes he wanted to.  Mostly because if you set the table you got to use the match to light the candles. :)  I keep a set of cleaning washcloths down where they could reach them, as well as a bottle of cleaner, and they would help with cleaning the table and chairs.  I kept a tiny broom and dustpan and they would help sweep up under the table after meals or if they spilled anything.  We had a small whisk broom in the garage (a regular-sized one with a wooden handle that Matt cut down to child size) and they helped me sweep off the patio.  I always included them in as many kitchen tasks as possible, as well.  Food prep and clean up.  They would put away the silverware from the dishwasher, etc.  Also we used real, breakable dishes with the kids starting as toddlers. Both philosophies believe in the concept of teaching care in handling materials, and for children to handle things carefully, they have to handle fragile objects.  Obviously I didn't use precious china, but we did use real, beautiful teacups (from the thrift store!) and real saucers for plates for our lunches and snackls, and regular ceramic dinnerwear for our meals.  Honestly, so few things got broken because my kids understood that they were fragile.  Equally important, it is necessary for kids to see things break occasionally, partly to learn how to clean something up carefully and safely, and also just to see what happens for the cause-effect relationship.  Both of my kiddos had a special teacup that was theirs and they had a lot of ownership for them.  When I taught in the toddler classroom at the little lab school where I worked, they used real dishes with the two year olds and people touring would always freak out.  It was funny because us teachers always broke more dishes (by trying to stack piles too high or hurrying too much) than the kids ever did, and whenever we broke something, a litany of kiddos would rush over with their little brooms and dustpans and know how to safely clean up the shards.  It was adorable.  
I have lots of posts on what we did for practical life on my little education blog if you want any more ideas.  

I didn't introduce many "abstract" academic concepts (math, reading) to my kids prior to first grade, which Waldorf believes is when children are truly ready for these.  If the kids showed interest in a concept or asked about it, I honored that and answered/showed them, but I didn't give them any workbooks or anything like that.  

We also had little songs that went along with all the different times of our day that indicated the flow of the day and helped the kids move through transitions.  

Thursday, December 15, 2016

Cutting cord

I noticed earlier this year that our 5 year old isn't terrific at cutting.  He isn't interested in art and craftiness like his older sister, so he typically doesn't choose projects that encourage him to practice his cutting.  He is also a lefty, so that makes things a little tougher.  When I realized he was a pretty terrible cutter, I made sure we had plenty of left-handed scissors and started looking for ways to invite him to cut...in a way he'd find interesting and useful for his world!

He currently loves any type of string or rope, so I got out some red cord, his scissors and an art tray and he spent some time hacking the cord up.  Then he wanted to try the wire cutters from his tool box, so he headed out to the garage to get them.  They didn't work super well, so then he wanted to use MY wire cutters, which are much sharper and worked pretty well!

All this to say, he spent about 20 minutes engaged in cutting and was highly motivated to participate in it...and he practiced his scissoring skills!  I was working on my own project at the table, so I chatted with him, helped him hold his scissors correctly, and gave a few suggestions, but mostly he worked independently on this task.

I have more "cutting for boys" ideas I will hopefully post in the upcoming weeks!



Sunday, August 28, 2016

Morningtime

We start out Morningtime with a verse.  I print off a label for each of our journals with the current verse.  We use white blank-paged (unlined) journals so we can draw/paint/write with no lines in our way.  
 Just a quick snapshot when we were making prayer lists last week during Morningtime.

Saturday, August 20, 2016

Block Challenge

One day this week I made up a game on the fly...my two bigs were getting a bit wild and rough with one another and needed to be close to me.  I needed to finish handsewing some projects I was working on for Quinn's school event.  So....we made up a little game I could officiate while still having busy hands.  The kids LOVED it and have asked for it several times since.  This would be a great game to have in my toolkit when I need to interact with them and make dinner at the same time, or even on a roadtrip.  Thought I would share....though it is really nothing fancy!

My kids haven't played with these bristle blocks in a while, and they happened to be in the dresser drawer next to where we were sitting.  So I had them get out the blocks.  Each kiddo decided on their own team name, which I wrote at the top of a piece of paper.  Then I gave them different challenges, that I made up on the fly.

Build a boat using 6 blocks.
Build a restaurant using 15 blocks.
Build a playground using 13 blocks.
Choose just 1 color of blocks and build a school from them.

Etc., etc,.

Each kiddo had a little bell (this was Quinn's idea, which turned out to be a fun addition!) that they could ring once they were finished building.  It wasn't at all a race, but they did have fun ringing the bells.

When they rang their bell, I would ask them to tell about what they built, and they'd spend a couple minutes explaining their design.  I would ask some questions (and I did all this in an "announcer" voice and used "announcer-y" lingo).  Then the other person would have to say 1 thing they liked about the other sibling's design.  My kiddos weren't having a great morning getting along, so this was a way I used to help them practice kind words with eachother.

After they built each object and told about it, I gave them a point.  Quinn was much faster than Beck, so she got a couple challenges ahead of him, which still worked out fine.  I just wrote down at the bottom of the paper what the challenges he still needed to do were, so I didn't forget.  I had them return all the blocks to the box after each challenge, so that when they started the next object they'd choose different blocks, otherwise if I let them keep them out, they'd use the same ones and there wouldn't be much variety in what they built.

When they got tired of the game (which lasted about 45 minutes!!) and I was at a stopping point, we ended the game (in the announcer voice) and then I told them their reward was to share a cupcake (that we happened to have leftover from a babyshower the weekend before).  Of course the rule is that one kid cuts the cupcake and the other gets to choose their piece first. ;)

This game achieved my goal of peaceful play, but it also encouraged some problem-solving and higher-level thinking.  Educational AND fun!!  It could be played with any types of blocks, so it's very versatile!

Morningtime...why I love it!

During the summer all kiddos, and during the school year with whatever kiddos aren't currently away at school, we do "Morningtime."  This is a simple routine that lots of homeschool families (especially ones that practice the Charlotte Mason philosophy) partake in.  We do it because I think it's a beautiful and powerful way to be together and learn each morning.  AND...it's a great fit for us because it can be adapted to include a wide variety of ages!

Here's what we do:
Bible Study--we start by reading a focus verse together--the same verse every day for a few months until I feel like we're ready for a new one.  The kids eventually memorize it because we read it every day.  I print it off on a label that I put in their notebooks.  Only 1 of my kiddos read, but I still think it's important for the others to connect the words to print, even if all they know is that it says what we are saying orally.  Occasionally I have my oldest look up the verse in the Bible and read it from there, to remind us all that it's God's word we're reading.  Currently our focus verse is Jeremiah 29:13-14. 

Then we have a short little Bible lesson, which varies, depending on what we are studying, but about 10 minutes total.  We try to remember to pray, but I don't do a good job on this one.  That will be one of my goals for the upcoming school year!

After that, if I have all the kiddos, I read aloud some poetry.  I read the same few poems for about a month, and begin replacing them with new ones, one at a time, once my kids begin to get bored of them...or memorize them!  Often during this poetry time the kids ask to recite one of their past favorite they've memorized, and I always say yes!

We sing a hymn together--one that we are currently learning the words to.  Usually my kids like to move to the couch for this, so we can huddle up and all see the words in the old hymnal we use.  At our church, we sing using a projector and words, and more praise songs than hymns, so it is important to me that my kids learn the joy of using a hymnal and the beautiful words and truths in great hymns.  My kids love this time, and I love hearing them sing or hum little bits of the hymns during the day!

 During the school year when my oldest is at school, we do fingerplays, counting songs, and rhymes during this time, as well, which I consider my preschooler's literacy time for the day (of course we still do many read-alouds of great picture books several other times during the day, as well.)

Sometimes while we are already at the table for Morningtime, we might do an art project or activity.  This happens more when my oldest is home, because she loves art.  My littler ones are usually ready to get down and move around!

Sometimes Morningtime lasts 15 minutes and sometimes it lasts an hour, depending on the interest and attention of the kiddos and what we are doing.  It is structured in the sense that we follow the same flow, but we don't have a set number of poems to read or fingerplays to say....it flows naturally based on what the kids need that particular day.

Morningtime is powerful because it exposes my kids to scripture and beautiful language in a way that is natural and doesn't require a whole lot of preparation from me.  This makes it more likely that it will happen every day.  We also light candles and drink tea and sometimes even eat something yummy during this time, which makes it feel more special.  :)  Morningtime is great because there aren't any rules--you can do what feels right for your season and your kiddos....And it starts the day out on a positive time together rooted in God's Word.

Because we're a foster family, we often have a baby or toddler in our mix.  We include them in Morningtime if they are awake--I put them in their little highchair seat or pull the bouncer in the kitchen next to the table.  Sometimes toddlers get to hold the fingerpuppets or scribble with a marker during Morningtime.  Sometimes they last the whole time, and sometimes they need to get down and go play because they aren't up for sitting still.  We go with the flow here, too, including the little ones however is working out for that day and working our hardest to be patient and inclusive to find ways to involve them, as well.  Often it's singing a song we know they like or doing more fingerplays with manipulatives to they can follow along.  I know when I model how to include these little ones, my older kiddos are learning these skills that will hopefully translate to the times they need to include littler ones in play, etc.

HERE is a link to a more in-depth discussion of Morningtime.   

Making board books "irresistible" to toddlers....an invitation to read.

This little one LOVES books, but I have a little trick up my sleeve to get her interested in books throughout the day.  Occasionally when I walk past her little basket of books, I'll grab a few out and take them to some spot in the house and set them open, on end.  This always grabs her attention and she sits down with them and "reads" through them for a few minutes.  It's a fun and simple book invitation and a little surprise that gives her joy!!