#TeacherMom – Page 5

April 1, 2023April 1, 2023

Learning in the Wild: The Herrett Center for Science and Arts

Our favorite learning days always happen to be the impromptu ones. One day when we were out running errands in Twin Falls, Idaho, we decided we needed a break. We were driving past the College of Southern Idaho and chose to stop in at the Herrett Center for Science and Arts. It’s a fantastic museum full of Idaho history as well as a planetarium with showings each day.

We explored a few of the live animals. They had, a tarantula and a very large snake… I wish I could remember what type of snake it was, but I didn’t get a picture. Mostly because I didn’t want to go too close, snakes are not my thing! We took a minute to learn more about those specific animals and the environments they need in order to survive.

We walked through the exhibit of Native Americans in Idaho showcasing how they lived, what they ate, etc. We didn’t have a single worksheet or checklist on a clipboard to tell us what to look for or how to learn, yet we (yes, even myself), walked away with new knowledge.

Learning doesn’t have to be uniform or done in a specific way. It can be a day out running errands and deciding to stop in at the local museum. It can be exploring all of the different rooms with rocks and plants and art pieces. It’s practicing new reading skills while reading a sign about fish in Idaho because it’s interesting and fun.

Learning in the wild is still learning.

March 30, 2023March 30, 2023

Buying Into Kinder Readiness: It Needs to Stop

It was a very innocent Thursday. I was casually scrolling through social media catching up on what was going on in my friends’ lives. There was a video of Cindy’s four-year-old swinging independently for the very first time, a huge win for that little guy! Carly went to the water park with her littles. Sarah posted a video of her 3-year-old naming every shape, even a rhombus! Clark had a picture of him and his daughter sitting in their rocking chair enjoying a chapter book together.

“My daughter can’t name that many shapes, and she’s 4.”

It was an intrusive thought, but it still felt very real.

“She’s starting kindergarten soon, should I be reading chapter books to her?”

These thoughts are coming into my mind even after I’ve written countless articles on this very platform about not stressing over kindergarten readiness and really trying to hit home that what kids that age really need is copious amounts of freedom and play. I’ve scoured research articles, and other online posts, and I’ve even watched my own kids grow and develop. Yet somehow, I’m still here in this position. I’m seeing friends post about their 5-year-old reading entire sentences and writing his own Christmas list phonetically, wondering if I should work harder with my 4-year-old because there is no way she would be doing the same thing at his age. She’s still hit or miss on knowing all 26 letters. Never mind capital versus lowercase.

Even with my background in education and the years of research I’ve done for this blog, I’m still falling hard for buying into the fast track of kinder readiness. I cannot even imagine the amount of pressure parents feel to make sure their kids are doing everything and anything they can to read in preschool and get ahead so they can be the smartest and the best by kindergarten.

So here’s my reminder, to you and to myself.

Your child is doing great.

You can drop the expensive, intensive preschools and they are going to be just fine. Better off, probably.

If together you are talking, singing, reading, writing (drawing, coloring), and playing, then you’re doing everything they need you to do.

Play is a child’s work. Play is not a worksheet or studying magnets shaped like letters or shapes.

If your child is not reading before kindergarten, they are not behind. If your child isn’t reading by the end of kindergarten, they still aren’t behind!

Kids who learn to read at their own pace show a greater love and appreciation for reading later in life.

You are doing a really good job.

I know how stressful the push for kindergarten readiness is, I’ve fallen victim to it as well. It’s made me question if I’m not teaching my kids enough at times! Are they going to be smart enough to hold up in public school someday?

Don’t trust society’s push for your kid to cram everything into their little brains as fast as possible. Trust yourself. Trust your kids. That’s how you’re going to have the best shot at getting ready for kindergarten.

More Thoughts on a 4-Day School Week

A while back I wrote a post about schools transitioning to a four-day school week. I tried to stay very neutral and simply line out the pros and cons of both 5 and 4-day school weeks. However, at the time I wrote the post, it wasn’t something even on my radar to worry about! It was purely just information I had researched. Our schools were doing the more typical 5-day school weeks. Then we moved to Idaho and everything changed. The school my oldest attends, as well as most schools in the state of Idaho, have transitioned to a 4-day school week. Now that we’ve experienced both, I have more opinionated thoughts and feelings on the pros and cons.

If you’re looking for me to choose one side or the other- either 4-day school weeks or 5 days, then you’ve come to the wrong place. After experiencing both, I honestly cannot choose between the two. Both of them come with benefits and downsides.

One concern I have with a four-day school week is the longer school days. Elementary school starts at 7:45 am and doesn’t get out until 3:45 pm. An 8-hour school day is long for those littles! Districts are required to meet a minimum requirement of school hours in a school year, so to make up for those missed hours by not going to school one day of the week, the school days and sometimes the school calendar year become longer and more stretched out to make up for those hours.

This can be concerning for two big reasons I’ve personally found. First, meals. With school starting early in the morning, breakfast is naturally around 6:45- 7 am for us. My daughter (in kindergarten) then eats lunch at 10:45 am. Technically, the school is not expected to provide any other food besides optional breakfast for kids that need it, and lunch. So if they are not fed again, these kids go from 10:45 am until 3:45 pm without food. Yes, I know, food is a very privileged thing in a perpetual time of food scarcity. However, when little brains are working so hard on learning and growing, they need more. Luckily, most teachers in our school allow an afternoon snack, provided by the parents on an alternating schedule. But what about those schools or classrooms that aren’t providing extra food for those hours between lunch and going home?

The next concern is for the older grades when it comes to after-school activities. If school is getting out close to 4 pm, then sports and arts and other extracurriculars start their practices after school is out. Our local high school has track practice from 4-6 pm. Once track practice is over, the kids go home and eat, work on homework, and accomplish any other household tasks they may have. Then they need a good night’s rest so they can be up around 6:30 am for school the next day. It makes for such long days when extra activities are considered! This isn’t even bringing in the factor that many high school students have part-time jobs, too!

However, when schools are on a 4-day school week schedule, they have one full day off of school and any extracurriculars can take up the space of that day. This is typically Fridays for most 4-day week schools. That means extra-long practices, tournaments, games, events and more can happen on Fridays when students are out of school, instead of cramming it all in on Friday evening/ Saturday.

There’s also the bonus that even if students aren’t in additional school activities, there is space and time for family events and trips with an extra long weekend. We’ve enjoyed trips to the zoo and many local state parks because we don’t have to worry about attending school on Fridays.

And in the same breath, there are also parents that have the burden of worrying about childcare on Fridays because they are still working parents and need a safe space for their kids to go to when they are out of school but the parents are still working.

There are so many more thoughts and pros and cons I could add to this post, but it’s getting long-winded and I’m not here to bore you. When asked to choose between 4 or 5-day school weeks, I truly could not give you a straight answer. It’s such a double-edged sword! In some ways, I think either is the best and only way to do school! And in other ways, I think both are the wrong answer and make it harder than it’s worth.

What are your thoughts? What other pros and cons have you seen from a 4 or 5-day school week? What are your kids on, and what would your preference be?

March 21, 2023March 21, 2023

Vestibular Sensory Input Ideas for Kids

I have a child with high sensory needs. You can read more about it here. One area we discovered to be a struggle with was regulating his vestibular sensory input. He was having the hardest time eating meals, going to bed, listening to stories, and more. Once we realized his vestibular sensory input needed regulating before we attempted these tasks, it changed our lives! We get all of our kiddos involved with this sensory input and it helps all of them, even those without sensory needs.

I can’t help but be grateful for figuring this all out before he starts kindergarten in a few years, instead of figuring it out when he starts school for the first time. This is not the story with many families, and it can make the transition to starting school that much more difficult.

Instead of pulling sensory input ideas out of my head each time we needed something, I made a quick printed paper of options for my kids to choose from. We have one laminated full sheet of paper to look at, and one that I cut into strips and laminated for when we want to randomly draw them out of a cup.

It’s nothing special, just something I whipped together one afternoon. But if it’s something that can benefit your household or classroom in any way for those higher sensory needs kids (or any of your kids or students that just need a movement break), then here’s the free printable for you! Just click on the pdf to download and print. Enjoy!

Sensory-List Download

March 15, 2023March 15, 2023

8 Different Sensory Inputs in our Bodies

I learned in school when I was younger that there are five senses. When I realized my son was a sensory seeker, these five senses were what I had in mind when I realized I needed to give him more sensory input in his day. After more research, I realized there were actually eight sensory inputs our bodies have!

There are professionals all over our world going to school and working in this field of study that know this information, and then mere uneducated individuals like me that are just now realizing that there’s more to our bodies than the five senses I learned in kindergarten! Wild!

So just in case there are more of you out there like me that are new to this 8 senses game, I’m going to break down what each of the senses is in terms I understand, and hopefully you can too.

Sight

Taste

Touch

Hearing

Smell

And then the three we don’t know as much about.

Proprioceptive: This one is the “hard work” one in my mind. This sensory function utilizes muscles and ligaments in our bodies to move us through space. It also tells us where we are in space and in relation to other objects. Sensory seekers for this area are going to be pulling and pushing objects, carrying heavy things, or running, doing all of these things with as much force as possible. Sensory avoiders will be using their limbs and muscles the least amount possible. Things like lifting or pushing can feel very overwhelming to them.

Vestibular: When I think of vestibular, I try to remember the “inner ear” because that’s the key point to vestibular sensory input. It’s spinning, swinging, and hanging upside down. Those that avoid vestibular input want their world to stay put. Anything that makes them dizzy or feels out of control is a no-go for this sensory input. Those that seek vestibular input are doing everything they can to throw their inner ear off balance- spinning, swinging, rolling, hanging upside down.

Interoceptive: This is the feelings and senses that we have within ourselves. It’s within our brain letting us know how our body is doing and what we are feeling. And not just emotionally, but physically as well. This can be a headache from dehydration, it can be pain in your arm when it’s burned, or even just the feelings of a sad, broken heart. This sense can be incredibly strong for some and dull for others, meaning we all feel pain and emotion at different levels.

I hope this mostly simplified version of the three new senses helps you understand them a little more.

Do you have a sensory seeker or avoider in your home or your classroom?

Photo by Ameruverse Digital Marketing Media

March 8, 2023March 8, 2023

Discovering Our Child Was a Sensory Seeker Did Nothing But Positivley Impact Him and Our Family

My son is currently 3.5 years old. From the time he was born, I knew there was something going on that I just couldn’t put my finger on. Was it autism? A learning disability? But how can you even diagnose that at such a young age? You cannot!

As he got older we discovered his love for music. No… not love. Obsession.

Spending time outside digging in the dirt wasn’t just our routine, but our essential routine.

We quickly started acquiring more and more supplies in our house such as swings, slides, crash pads, soft mats, and more.

At 2 years old our doctor finally gave us the term sensory seeker and suddenly our lives started making more sense!

When I started my research on a sensory seeker kiddo in a classroom, I found information on adaptive seating in classrooms. And OT time outside of the classroom. Teachers offering pencil toppers for chewing and small, quiet sensory toys to keep inside of their desks.

But the biggest turning point for our family was when I discovered this little golden nugget of wisdom-

“Learning cannot and will not happen unless all sensory needs have been met.”

Take out learning and swap it with any verb needed- Eating. Sleeping. Listening. Participating. Reading. Independent play. It all applies.

Once I started learning more about the different senses in our body, touch, taste, sight, feel, hearing, vestibular, and proprioceptive, and the needs that come with each of them, it started making more sense to us. We were realizing that a lot of the behaviors we were shutting down and trying to stop were actually just him craving the sensory input his body was seeking. Now instead of dismissing his sensory needs, we’ve fully embraced them and used them to our advantage, too!

Since then, he’s been eating better, sleeping better, playing better, and learning so much more.

It’s fascinating what we can learn about our children in the way they learn and think and develop! And it’s even more fascinating to see what develops when we allow them the space to do so on their own terms, and not ours.

We still have a long way to go on this journey for him and for us, and I’m very curious to see how it plays out with school and around peers someday. But for now, we’re loving and embracing this information.

March 4, 2023March 4, 2023

A Trip to Japan And a Global Learning Experience

Last month I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Japan. This has been a ten-year goal for us to visit and experience the country of Japan, so it was exciting once we were able to make it there finally! We ended up leaving our kids home during our trip, but after only a few days in the country, we quickly agreed that we needed to set a new goal to bring our whole family back in ten years because Japan is incredible!

Here is a quick rundown of what we learned and experienced while we were there, through the eyes of a global learner-

Children independently riding and navigating the train and subway systems in the busiest parts of the city to get to and from school and extracurriculars on their own.

Family-friendly everything.

Many school groups out on field trips during the weekend (when they do not have school). All of them were dressed in school uniforms and acting incredibly respectful.

Everyone having a deep respect and reverence for their cities and communities, working together to keep them clean and tidy.

As well as students having the same respect and reverence for their schools and spending time cleaning after the school day is over. (Could you imagine that in the U.S.?! That would be incredible!)

Very safe and clean streets, which make walking and biking very easy and accessible for adults and children alike.

Respect from everyone in the community for the disabled and elderly or anyone that

Students attending tutoring sessions in their free time outside of school, not just for extra help, but for extra learning hours.

One big recurring theme I saw was the respect level for all ages and abilities from all ages and abilities. Learning about the culture and more about the school systems in Japan was so eye-opening to me and influenced how I move forward with my kids and how I view and use the educational system in the United States.

Have you ever traveled somewhere and had it completely changed your perspective?