Introduction and Beliefs

I am Jessalyn. A wife, daughter, sister, friend, teacher, and MOTHER! I am a human being who makes mistakes every day and my life is no where near "perfect" (whatever that is). I am thankful to live for a forgiving God, whom I lean on daily.

I have a Master's Degree in Education and taught 1st grade for 4 years and kindergarten for 1 before the arrival of our first daughter. Teaching is my passion, but of course it comes second to spending time with my family. Fortunately, our decision to homeschool our children fulfills both of my passions and I couldn't feel more blessed.

Our sweet girls are currently 33 months and 11 months old so we are just beginning the journey of preschool. Here are a few of my beliefs about "teaching" very young children:

*Learning at this age should be child led. In other words, lots of PLAY! Pay attention to your child's interests and find activities that include them. If your child is not having fun, stop the activity. I don't believe in drilling facts into children...they will learn things as they are ready and interested. Relax and have fun playing!

*Children need a variety of learning activities to expose them to different skills. Music is something we include on a daily basis because my girls LOVE it. I try to maintain a balance between music, art, ABCs, numbers, and physical activities. There are days when Little Bear would rather turn the music off and look at books for 30 minutes so that's what we do. A little TV/DVD or computer time is not a bad thing. Don't overdo it with these, but there are so many wonderful programs that get kids interacting and up and moving, plus teach them something at the same time. Put on your dancin' shoes and have fun WITH them!

*ALL CHILDREN ARE DIFFERENT! Boy am I learning this just from having 2! Children can have different personalities, learning styles, and interests and not every child (even if they are in the same family) will learn at the same pace. Our first born has an extreme interest in learning the sounds of the letters of the alphabet and is able to identify beginning sounds in many words before the age of 3. I would love to find out that our second daughter has the same interest, but I'm not going to push her if she doesn't. Wouldn't life be boring if all of our children were the SAME!? Let's enjoy their differences!

*"School Time" doesn't always have to take place at home or at a certain time of day. Trips to the grocery or convenience store provide GREAT teachable moments. You might be surprised at how much your child is learning by simply interacting with you during your day to day activities and errands. Visits to the library can expose children to a variety of books, toys, and even people. Include your child in helping with chores around the house. Matching socks, folding their own underwear, or putting away the silverware from the dishwasher all teach children responsibility as well as many other life skills. Cooking with your children is another wonderful way to teach different concepts. Allow your toddler to hold the measuring cup as you pour in the sugar, then watch as they delight in dumping it into the bowl! Life's daily doings might take you a little longer or be a little messier, but your child will thank you for these lessons later!

*READ, READ, READ! You can't ever have too many books (although sometimes I feel like I'm drowning in all of ours!). Make sure you have a set time you read to your child, be it before nap or bedtime or some other time of the day. Lucky for me, Little Bear LOVES to read and she initiates most of the reading time done in our household ;) Reading not only gives you quality time together, but it also exposes them to letters, words, sentences and many other skills and lessons. Talk to your child about the author and illustrator and even read the dedication page if there is one! Children need to know that books are wonderful tools written by REAL people.

AND REMEMBER.........
YOU are your child's first teacher and whether or not your child goes off to school one day, she is counting on you to be involved in the learning adventure!