preschool homeschool-- summer + a sweet summer tutor

We received a list of the 45 words that Logan would need to know before completion of Kindergarten. We wanted to get a head start in tackling this list being that some of them should pretty familiar as we we have worked on them this past year at home. I'm big on the "Use It, Don't Loose It" method in teaching, and feel that review is always a good idea. Plus, the more familiar she is with words, the more confidence she will have in reading and writing them.

My nephews spend a great deal of the day here during the summer. That means lots of distraction for my nosey girl here. So we've been struggling to get much of anything accomplished. This morning we were all sitting around in the living room when I had the brilliant idea to have one of them work with her. I didn't have to convince my nephews all that much to work with Logan. The two younger ones (almost 12 and 13 year old) both wanted to sign up. Logan chose Angelo today.  He was thrilled and eager to teach. Surprisingly it worked out perfectly. He took his big-cousin responsibility (and the fact that he was in charge) very seriously, and in turn, Logan did too. I gave him complete and total freedom to tutor how he saw fit, I just provided the materials. After all, it is summer vacation and anything learned is something. I had to laugh a bit when I saw him return from the kitchen with a reward: juice. He's too funny. But very smart. Apparently having to earn it made it all the more enjoyable.

A few of my favorite videos for learning beginning sounds are below. They are cute catchy tunes perfect for beginning sound memorization. I wanted to share them and document them here for easy reference. We've been listening and watching them on youtube for several years, but now that Logan is learning about beginning sounds, they are even more appreciated. Phonics Song, Phonics Song 2,Phonics Song 2 (new version)

The entire KidsTV123 is wonderful. It's easy listening, even on repeat. I will often play songs in the background while Lo colors or plays at the table with play dough. It's so cute when I catch her bouncing her head or signing along. A few of our other favorite songs on the channel are: Spooky Spooky- Halloween Song, The Baby Animals Song, The Planets Song, Colours Song 2

We plan to continue with beginning sounds, daily writing, and word recognition throughout the summer. As always we will continue to focus on Nature, as it happens, naturally. This means no formal lessons or focal points, with one exception: a nature exchange.  We have signed up for a couple of nature exchanges with friends from different parts of the world. We are looking forward to preparing our items to send out to them. We will pick through our nature box for items to share. We also have a beach date coming up where we will gather some treasures to share as well. 

It's summer. We hope to swim swim swim, eat lots of popsicles in the sun, and enjoy good food and cold beverages late  into the summer nights. 




**I wrote this post in the beginning of july and never got to posting. Better late than never. Update to follow.