K is for Kid

Thank you for visiting my homeschool blog. I've been blogging through the alphabet. You can read more of my homeschool A to Z posts here. Feel free to leave a comment. I'd love to hear what you have to say.

K is for Kid

One big challenge of having a small scholar is convince IntelliGent there is more to life than learning letters and numbers. He loves to learn, but I know he also needs time to just be a little boy. He needs to run and play. He needs to climb and throw balls. I try to encourage those activities by taking him to the park or letting him play in the back yard. We also do movement activities during our school time.

While camping in Michigan, IntelliGent got to be a kid. He didn't insist on school (though he asked about it a few times). Instead he ran around, played ball, and watched his cousins. He was a happy carefree child. If I didn't know better, I would have thought he was a normal 2 year old. It did my heart good to see him so happy being a boy.

Running through bubbles

Rolling balls down the hill

Learning to catch

Playing putt-putt golf

I've noticed, since returning from our camping trip, IntelliGent is far more confident in his physical abilities. That confidence shows up in other areas as well - most noticeably in his potty training efforts.

IntelliGent is a wonderful gift. I am learning to balance his need for learning with his need to play. I often have to remind myself though he's in kindergarten, he is only two.

I is for Imagination

Thank you for joining me as I blog through the alphabet. You can read more of my homeschool AtoZ posts.

I is for Imagination

One worry I have about IntelliGent's rapid mental development is he will be so focused on academic learning that he misses cultivating his imagination.

While other children seem to be content playing, IntelliGent focuses on letters and numbers. Does he play? Yes. But even his self-directed games have an educational bent. He loves to count things, discuss the beginning sounds of words, and has recently taken an interest in spelling. All these things are wonderful, but it does leave me a little concerned. Imagination is such an important part of life.

I've encouraged IntelliGent to play imagination games. He loves his train set, and we make elaborate tracks for Thomas and his friends to go on. He'll reenact the adventures he's seen on the show, but doesn't make up his own story. He's only two-and-a-half, but I would love to see some original creativity come out of his playtime.

Last week, I finally saw the first real glimpse of his imagination. He was eating his Pb&J when he looked at the piece in his hand. "Look! It's a boat." He spent the next few moments pushing his boat along the table. I don't usually allow him to play with his food, but I was too excited to see his imagination at work to stop him. That time.