Author Archives: Annie Shultz

About Annie Shultz

Annie Shultz lives in Kansas with her three kids: Lizzie (four years), David (two years) and Lucy (11 months). She created her blog Mama Dweeb in 2009 to share her writing and life with other moms. She is also the managing editor of 5 Minutes for Parenting and a contributing writer on the Perspectives blog with pediatrician Dr. Greene. She loves discovering and sharing parenting ideas that help caregivers find success in their role. She has learned that a mother is always learning, always adapting, and forever involved in the most rewarding adventures!

Baby animals: teaching personal responsibility

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Spring – new flowers, new birth, new warmth and happiness! We have a farming supply store nearby. Every Spring they display their banner – “chick days” – and my kids point excitedly out the car windows as we pass.

Normally we go in and look at the rows and rows of new fuzzy baby chicks and ducklings. I allow the kids to pet them, and hold them. But this year, we decided to adopt some!

I said some. My husband interpreted that as a bunch. So we are now the proud owners of a dozen new chicks and seven ducks!

David, Lizzie and Lucy are showing a very active role in the care of the animals. They can tell what the different chirps mean – whether they are excited or anxious. They learn responsibility as they help us clean out their tubs. They change their water and pour the food.

But one of my favorite things they learn from the baby animals is relational. They realize how strong they are compared to the fragile babies. They learn gentleness and how their actions can calm them or cause them more anxiety.

Like the time 4-year-old David saw a baby chick jump out of the tub. It was separated from it’s friends and started to chirp high, loud, and scared. David was in the living room and heard the sounds, rushed over to the chick. He gently scooped her up and held her in the palm of his hand. “It is ok baby chickie. Here, you go back to your home,” he said and tenderly let it down in the tub.

In this world, our actions affect others. Answering cries for help means the chicks grow big and healthy. I smile, knowing my children are learning how to impact this world positively – that is the true definition of responsibility.

How to start your child’s first diary

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My love of writing started very young – I’d say around second or third grade.  I fell in love with reading as soon as I could do it independently. Then, after I grew confident in my writing abilities, I loved expressing my imagination and my feelings on paper.

Reading books and stories about other people who shared my passion only helped to add fuel to my fire.  I remember relating personally to their stories and seeing bits and pieces of my own thoughts in the stories.

Every child is different, and some prefer to express themselves by building things or drawing pictures. What a diary does is encourages self-expression and the free-form of it helps them enjoy the act of writing.

Tips for starting a brand new diary

1. There are no rules.  Writing in a diary is all about falling in love with self-expression, so don’t use this as a grammar lesson.  Misspellings and lack of punctuation are all allowed because what matters is learning the love of writing.

2. Encourage pictures. Some children prefer to draw pictures, so allow that in the journal. Encourage your child to write a few sentences describing the picture too – so that as he or she looks back, they will know what it is they drew.

3. Read books about young writers. As I said above, the stories about writers like me helped me love to write even more! Some of my favorites are Diary of a Worm by Doreen Cronin, Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh, and (for older children) Diary of Anne Frank.

4. Look back. This is one of my favorite things about a journal – reading about the memories I captured! Once a month or so, go back with your child and remember the fun times they captured in their journal.

What are some more tips you have found to encourage writing in young children?

How-To Jelly Bean Math

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Jelly bean math

 

As Easter draws near, I have plenty of colorful, sweet, and tactile objects to use to teach my kindergarten-age daughter early math. She loves the fun games we play with the pastel objects. I hope these ideas will spark some creative new ideas for you too.

Please share in the comments other early math activities you can do with jelly beans and eggs!

1. Learning doubles: It is especially simple to teach the concept of adding doubles when you have two sides of an egg that combine into one egg.  I put two jelly beans in one side and two in the other. I asked, “How many is two plus two?” She looked and counted!

To increase the difficulty and teach her to memorize these math facts, I used a different color for each double. Two in pink, 4 in blue, 6 in yellow, etc.  Then, she put the beans in each egg. With each egg closed, we went down the line, repeating the problem: “One plus one is two!” Pointing to blue egg she said, “Two plus two is four,” and so on.

This activity is excellent for tactile, visual and auditory learners as it uses all three senses at one point.

2. Memory:  Lizzie loved playing memory with the eggs.  I pulled out six plastic eggs and inside each one I placed a different number of jelly beans.  I let her study each one before closing them up. Then, I let her try to remember which egg had 3 beans, 5 beans and 6 beans.

3. Counting by 2′s: Learning to count by sets of numbers – evens, odds, fives and tens – is a very important building block of early math.

To make it more fun, I filled an egg very full of jelly beans.  I let her count them by singles first. Then I commented, “This is going to take a very long time, isn’t it? How about we count them by two’s?”

What helped my visual learner remember how to count by two’s was writing out 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 on a piece of paper. Then, she just remembered to “start over” when she got to 12 (instead of 2 it was 12, 14 for 4, etc).

The more Lizzie counted, the more familiar she became with the pattern.

I’d love to hear from you! What other jelly bean activities teach early math?

 

Easter Egg Phonics Game

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It brings me so much joy to sit with my daughter and listen to her sound out words. I just get so excited as she builds her phonics knowledge and exercises those skills!  As Easter draws closer, I created a game that uses the plastic eggs we have so many of around the house.

Lizzie loved this game! It took up the majority of our afternoon because she kept asking me to play it again and again.  Since it made her excited to read, I didn’t mind it one bit!

Directions: 

  1. Write letter combinations and vowels on a piece of paper.
  2. Allow the child to cut out each combination/vowel. (This helps with fine motor skills)
  3. Place one letter combination/vowel in each egg.
  4. Hide the eggs.
  5. Allow the child to find each egg.
  6. Grab two or three eggs from the bag and open them up together.
  7. Take the slips of paper and place them together.
  8. Sound out the word.

This is where it became so funny! We could barely read the words, we were laughing so much.  Lizzie might find pieces of paper like “st-a-pl” and try to read it. Laughing, she announced, “that is not a word!”  Then she would grab for some more eggs and try to find letters that spelled actual words.

You can even be more creative if you want! Tape your made up words to a piece of paper and create a story using the silly words.

It might sound something like this:
“One day, the sab little bear walked in the stip. What he really wanted to do was crom some fruit. When he tried to find fruit, he found a shud! He was so excited!”

This becomes sort of like mad-libs, and the hilarity and laughter is priceless!

Positive aspects of attitudes that make learning difficult

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We approach the table. I have organized and displayed all the supplies for our craft and my 5 year old daughter is excited to begin! I show her the finished product so she can get an idea of what it will end up looking like, and try to give her the instructions.

She immediately grabs the scissors and begins cutting. She doesn’t listen, she thinks she already knows what to do!

I calmly ask her to slow down, and follow instructions. She looks up. Her breathing becomes faster. “But mom, no! I know what to do! I want to cut this first, and then put them on the paper.”

I have a choice: demand that she comply – isn’t following instructions something all kids must learn?  - or get inside her head and make this work for both of us.

In fact, with 3 children of various ages, I have noticed quite a few different attitudes and character traits that can either frustrate me as the teacher or help me make learning more effective for them.

Here are just a few traits I’ve seen, and how I turned them around. Please let me know in the comments other traits you work with!

1. Thinking outside of the box – This can also be called “failure to follow directions.”  My daughter will look at a project, and instead of doing it the way the instructions say, she will make it her way. This can be a wonderful attribute to have because she will pave her own way in life – she won’t just go with the flow.

To turn this around, I explain the goal and I allow her to explain how her way will reach the goal. There is a huge difference between defiance and creativity.

2. Stubbornness – This kind of follows the first trait, and usually shows up if I fail to communicate with her. Craft time and learning time can sometimes get rushed and chaotic. When Lizzie feels like she isn’t being understood, she sets her heels in the ground and won’t move.

To turn this around, I stop the activity and communicate with her. Stubbornness is another trait I want her to keep. That means she is tenacious and won’t give up when times get hard! That is why communication is so important. So I teach her how to express her feelings and find a mutually beneficial solution.

3. Not sitting still – My preschool son would much rather run, jump, and play with his toys than sit down and do work. What I see as hyperactivity can actually be a tactile learner.  I just need to let him act out activities, teach him songs with actions, and let him try (and fail, and try again) different projects.

4. Bossiness – I notice this with my oldest when she is doing projects with her younger siblings. “No, you have to use the glue stick!” Constant instructions, and frustration when they don’t do it her way. 

I see a leader in the making. She cares about her vision and desires to see it come to fruition. Molding and encouraging positive leadership traits are so important for natural leaders. I remind her to be empathetic – how would she feel if they did this to her? And also teach her that a good leader cares about how those around her feel, so kindness and gentleness are extremely important.

With young children, you have to teach them best so they will learn. Be creative with your lesson plans and discover success where you once found frustration!

Six simple activities for visual learners

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My 5-year-old daughter Lizzie is a visual learner. She loves to look at and describe what is happening in a story based on the pictures. She can pick out what is different between two photos, find the hidden picture, and has a very photographic memory.

Children who are visual learners can recall facts based on images. They remember information best if they see it in a photo, infographic, or other visually appealing way. They are also very sensitive to the body language of others.

Since my daughter is a visual learner, I have discovered a few ways to help her learn best.

Please share in the comments what your favorite visual learning activities are! 

1. Words written on objects

I print words and place them on the objects they represent. That way, when she sees the door, she will recognize that “D-O-O-R” spells door. It is all about visual recognition and familiarity.

2. What is different

I find printable sheets online all the time for this! Picking out the differences in two similar photographs sharpens her critical thinking skills.

3. Seeing words on pictures – reading software!

I love how Rusty and Rosy reading software is so effective for visual learners.  The pictures and words teach reading in a fun and engaging way.  I also make sure that all her other entertainment is educational too.

4. Describing the story as they see it in the pictures

Before we read a page in a book, I always ask Lizzie to describe the story she sees on the pictures. This helps increase her reading comprehension. Visual learners that take time to study the visual parts of their task will find more success at meeting their goals.

5. Seeing math via textile objects

Instead of merely repeating and speaking math, pull out objects that teach the math so the child can see it.  Here is one of my favorite examples: Hold 4 marbles in your left hand, none in your right. Ask the child to count the marbles. Then, switch 2 marbles to your right hand. Close your right fist.  Ask the child to tell you how many marbles are in your right hand.

By seeing the addition and subtraction, they can picture the math problem in their head when they are doing math later on!

6. Learning in everyday life

Read road signs. Allow the child to pay for things with cash and count out the money owed and count backwards the amount of change received back. Everyday learning experiences will be remembered – especially visual ones like food and objects in the store.

 

Favorite 15 books to read aloud

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book cloud

One of my favorite memories from school was listening to my teachers read books.  I loved the quiet time, listening to story unfold, closing my eyes and seeing the characters in my mind. This was especially enjoyable before I was able to read the words as fast as my teachers. I could really imagine the adventures and characters even while I was still learning how to sound out difficult words.

Below, I am sharing my favorite 15 books that I loved listening to as a child.  Please share in the comments what books you read to your kids, or what books you loved listening to!

  1. Sarah Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan - This is a very short book, full of heart and family values.  I remember really loving Sarah, and feeling so strongly for her and relating to her not feeling beautiful. It is short, so really a quick read for younger children.
  2. Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder – All of the “Little House” books are perfect for any age group. Laura is such a relatable little girl, I loved her spunk and especially fell in love with her Pa – a compassionate, wise and funny man.
  3. Stewart Little by E.B. White – The adventures of a tiny mouse, adopted by a human family, Stewart Little is fun to read aloud and listen to. It took my imagination to new heights (and tiny lows) as I saw the world from the perspective of 3 inches off the ground.
  4. The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis – This is the first chronological book in the Narnia series and one that captivated me as a child. I remember just wishing I had a magic ring that I could use to jump between worlds!
  5. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare – This book was read to me in 5th grade and I believe it is best for older children just because it teaches so much history with it. It also has some socially difficult scenes that tugged at my heart – rejection and hate.
  6. Number the Stars by Lois Lowry –  This  fictional book deals with a little Jewish girl’s experience in Denmark during World War II.  Due to the history, I suggest this for older children too.  I remember this book as a 4th grader.
  7. The Black Stallion by Tim Farley - This book is appropriate for all ages, although in the beginning there are a few scenes of the horse being mistreated that might affect sensitive children.  The entire book is told from the view of the horse, and helps children see the world from another perspective.
  8. Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White - E.B. White has a heart for animals, and this story is perfect for all ages! It is such a sweet story and you really fall in love with Wilbur the pig.
  9. Animal Stories by James Herriot – Based on actual experiences, Herriot tells heart-warming stories of animals he helped as a veterinarian in England in the 1930s.  Each story made me smile, from the dog that only barked once, to a cat that had adventures in town.
  10. Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater - This is such a silly and funny book! It is a short read, perfect for all ages.
  11. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl - This book is a million times more enjoyable than the movie. I laughed at the outrageous characters and enjoyed the images of the chocolate factory.
  12. The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary - Just like Stewart Little, this book takes you on a journey through a house from the tiny point of view of a mouse. It was so fun to listen to and even more fun to play and act out with my toys afterwards.
  13. The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks  – Not only is it really cool to imagine your toys coming to life, but this book teaches children empathy and how to do what is better for others as opposed to yourself.
  14. SuperFudge by Judy Blume - Judy Blume books are great for kids, she really has a way of writing so they laugh at and relate to the voice of the characters. I remember laughing at the hilarious situations poor Fudge always found himself in!
  15. Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling - These are imaginative stories told in a very poetic voice. My favorite is still “How the Elephant Got Its Trunk.”

What are your favorite books to read? Do you have fond memories of being read to as a child?

25 lessons from a single Gingerbread house

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We recently made Gingerbread houses together. As soon as I brought out the graham crackers and frosting, I wished I had purchased one of those kits instead. But, the entire gingerbread house-making project was full of lessons and learning experiences (and so much gooey fun too), it was worth the extra hassle.

Here are twenty-five of the thousands of lessons we have learned from making the gingerbread houses.

1. Stability – You can see in the photo above, which house is stable and which is on the verge of collapse. Teaching my children why the first house is wobbly is foundational geometry. We explained how the bottom and side pieces all work together to support the top of the house.

2. Creativity – Adding the candies to the houses was full-on, no-rules expression of creativity. Just letting them have fun and playing with all the different colors and textures releases things in their brains and fuels their other educational moments.

3. Generosity – We put each type of candy in one large bowl and all three of my children had to share the candy. When one person needed the gum drops, another child helped them reach the bowl.  This is a lovely social development.

4. Science – why frosting becomes hard.  My 3-year old asked my why the frosting became hard as a rock. It was fun explaining to him and watching him learn!

5. Health/Nutrition – “Why can’t we eat all the candy, Mommy?” That was a fun one to answer! We explained how our bodies need to eat a variety of healthy foods to stay strong. The 5 year old understood the different types of food and vitamins too. “Like how oranges help my cold go away (Vitamin C) or carrots help me see in the dark (Vitamin A).”

6. Patterns – Lizzie (5) absolutely loves patterns! They are a foundation for early reading success and we use them in almost every educational activity. For the houses, I laid out candies on the table in different patterns and let her finish the pattern: (AB, ABC, ABB, etc)

7. Addition – We asked Lizzie if she added 3 chocolates to her house that has 2 chocolates, how many will she have total? She counted 5.

8. Subtraction – Then we asked her if she has 5 chocolates and mommy eats 2, how many will she have left? This left her with a frown of protest, but she answered and I gave her 2 more chocolates for her house.

9. Teamwork – My three children worked so well together! They shared candy, passed candy, helped each other by adding candies to each other’s houses. And since they are so young, we also taught them to “use your words if you are frustrated.”

10. Problem Solving – When they ran out of one candy, we helped them think through a solution. What other candy will work? If they ran out of room on one side of the roof, we looked at all options.  It was helpful to teach them how to consider all options instead of giving up.

11. Story telling – creating stories is another beginning skill for early reading. As we built the house, we created characters that might live in it, then added twists to the plot – who will destroy the house, how will they escape? It was so much fun!

12. Colors – Two year old Lucy had fun learning the colors of the candy!

13. Shapes – The house is made up of so many different shapes.  And for fun we even used candy on the table to create more shapes like hearts and hexagons.

14. Patience – Learning to take your time and not rush through a project is a life skill.  I constantly instructed them to take it slow, calm, and think before they act to make sure the project turns out how they want.

15. Perseverance – Even when things do not go as planned, it is important to pick up the pieces and try again. As you can see, the house on the left took some patience!

16. Planning – This is another skill they will use their entire life. Thinking before acting improves the success! We organized the candy and planned out which candy would go on the top, which on the sides and which they would eat.

17. Hypothesis and estimation – Science and math! I let Lizzie create a hypothesis that she tested. She estimated how much candy she would use on the right side of her house. Then she either accepted or rejected her hypothesis after making it.

18. Pride – Seeing the beautiful house all decorated with candy sure fills my kids with pride! Pride in their work means they try harder next time and always do their best.

19. Personal information – I just used this time to say “This is a house. Do you know the address of your house, Lizzie?”

20. Fine motor skills – From picking up individual Skittles to stringing the licorice, every activity improved their fine motor skills.

21. Making  mistakes – Kids must be able to handle the mistakes they make and learn how to improve their actions so they don’t make the same mistake twice.

22. Spatial concepts – Thinking through spatial relations is early geometry. “Will this piece of candy fit in between these 2 large chocolate pieces?”

23. Language skills – While you are building the house, recite your favorite Christmas song or poem, like “The Night Before Christmas”!

24. Distinguish similarities and differences – Lizzie loves looking at things and how they are similar and different.  Both houses are made of the same thing (graham crackers) but they are different.  Why are they different?  How can you tell they are different?

25. Mathematical concepts of “more than” and “less than.” – I would dip two pieces of candy in the frosting, “which one has more frosting?” Then I told her to say “this one has more frosting than this one.” We also did this with “whose house has more candy on it?” And so forth.

Have you made gingerbread houses with your children?  Please share your learning experiences too!

Education is found in imperfection

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Let’s get real here. I have a 5 year old, 3 year old and 2 year old. Educational activities are not going to be perfect with them.

And that is ok.

The focus and goal is always their achievements and learning as they participate, not how brag-worthy the end result is or how closely they followed the directions.

Take those cookies above.

Making Christmas cookies is something we always try to do together. We sure do dirty up the kitchen! I let the oldest do the measuring (as I coach and instruct her). Three-year old brother shares pouring responsibilities with his little sister. When she was a baby last year, they shared pouring responsibilities, as well as fit-throwing contests and “hey I want to do that” screams.

Fun times.

But we learn. Every time we make cookies together, we learn teamwork, how to follow instructions, problem-solving, and self-confidence. In the cookies above, my children learned that they needed more green food coloring to even out the shade.

It was so fun to watch their minds work!

“Mommy, why isn’t it green enough?”

Me: “Hmm….I don’t know. We put a little bit of coloring in, didn’t we? What do you think we can do to make it look darker?”

Thinking….“Oh! Maybe we can stir more color in the cookie dough! Mommy, get the green!”

I love that. So full of hope, solving the problem, and then feeling confident when their solution works!

Plan for mistakes, allow them to happen, and let the mistakes be the best educational tools you ever used!

Share: How have you used mistakes to be the teacher? 

 

Pilgrim History Lesson

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pilgrim

One of my favorite things to do every Thanksgiving is remember the brave people that first came to America in search of religious freedom.  I want to teach my children to never take for granted their freedom of speech and religion, so I came up with a fun way to teach them about the Pilgrims.

Please share in the comments the ways you try to teach your kids about the first Thanksgiving!

I teach my children with one art project or game or skit for each letter!

P – pioneers.  Teach them about the adventurous spirit of the first pilgrims. They didn’t have any of the modern conveniences we do today. When they traveled by boat over here, it was beyond hard work. If you can, try to give your kids a small taste of their life by taking them on a picnic. Pack in a cardboard box foods the pilgrims might have eaten. Hike to get to your spot.  On your hike, talk about why the pilgrims took the hard journey, what they were thinking, and how they might have felt.

I – Inspirational: Since it was not easy to leave their homes and travel to a strange new place, they had to have passion.  Ask you child to write a paragraph or illustrate in artwork something about who inspires them to do things they might think is impossible.

L – leaders – Teach your child about William Bradford, Governor of Plymouth Colony.  There is a fantastic 25 minute animated movie on YouTube about William Bradford and the first Thanksgiving.

G – grateful to the Native Americans.  When winter was upon the pilgrims and they had no food, the kind, Native Americans gave them food.  Take food to your local food pantry together. Discuss other ways you can give to others and also how it feels when someone is kind to you.

R – Religious. You don’t have to believe in God to enjoy religious freedom. Play a short role-playing game in which one child is a Puritan and you or other children are England. Make silly rules – like they have to wear their shirt on backwards to eat at the table, or they can’t talk about their favorite video game/music/show without being put in prison.  Discuss how precious freedom is.

I -Initiative.  The pilgrims did not blindly follow someone. They endured sickness, fear, and hunger to have freedom in a new world.  They had initiative.  Allow your child(ren) to spend the evening in their own rules, with no money or electronics. Let them do the cooking for dinner and ask them to lead a discussion about their thoughts on pilgrims and what it felt like to be one.

M – Mayflower Compact. Before the travelers signed the compact, they only ever knew what it was like to live under a monarchy. You can teach your child(ren) the difference between a monarchy and a democracy by living it out for an activity. You be the ruler, they have no choice. Then, switch! Let them have a leader they elect and vote on changes and decisions. Talk about the difference!

What are some other ideas for teaching early history around this amazing holiday?

 

 

Image courtesy of debspoons / FreeDigitalPhotos.net