Where I’m at: Educating My Littles

My kids are only 2 and 4 years old,  but what am I doing to guide their education right now?   First of all, books!  We read a lot of books!  Those books drive discussions and some other discussions drive us to refer to books.  We read a lot of books and we have a lot of discussions and those two things are a huge part of their education.   We go to the park almost daily, meeting kids and playing with old and new friends constantly.   I set up play dates with more and more people.  I decide where and when, and the kids decide what to do!   I involve my kids around the house.  There are things I expect them to do in terms of cleaning up and tidying up, but I also invite them to join me in the chores that I am doing.  I also involve them in grocery shopping, cooking, planning, and other aspects of daily life.   We go on outings to the zoo, the beach, museums, hikes, libraries, and farmers markets.   I’ve signed them up for a couple of classes and am looking to sign them up for more: swim, dance, martial arts, gymnastics, art, and music.   Do I use a curriculum? No… But I have purchased quite a few!  I’ve got a lot of early literacy and early math materials and curriculum supports but we aren’t currently using almost any of it.  We’re just now starting to work on learning letters in a concentrated way, but all of the learning is still mostly from books.   Do I follow a particular educational philosophy? We do some unschooling although it’s probably better described as relaxed homeschooling because I have a specific idea of what I want them to learn, but I go at their pace and follow their lead.   We also follow some wildschooling philosophies, with trying to constantly get outside.   I also adore the Montessori math materials and have purchased some of that and follow their general concepts on how to teach mathematics, although I am not as rigid in our set up or presentation.     For learning letters, I’m playing with a Waldorf book: The Alphabet to inspire them to learn each letter.  I love the playful fantasy of Waldorf while also loving the real concreteness and practical application of Montessori.   As my kids start to show preferences over a particular style of acquiring information, our educational system will be further tailored.   And all of this is just what works for us!  You will find your own path and what works best for you!