Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Changes Ahead...

Esmé's Mommy here.

Wow - just when I think things are under control in one area, I find out I'm way behind in another. Know what I mean?

That Tot School post that just went up with Monday's date on it? I've been working on it since Sunday, but just haven't found the moments to squeeze into get it up until now. And it didn't even take that long in terms of total time

I've been meaning to write a post about the direction of this blog for a while (like since New Year's Day when I was going to write about all my resolutions?), but living life always trumps blogging about life for some reason.

The fact is, I love blogging, and I've had a dozen ideas for blogs I want to start, but so far I've managed to kick myself in the backside before doing so (except for that Winning Readings book blog, which has grown way too fast all of a sudden). I need new projects like a hole in the head. But I REALLY want to start a devotional blog. And a weight loss blog. And a vegetarian cooking blog. And a Project 365 blog. Not because I like cooking (I detest it). Or am any good at photography (though I blame it on the camera). More because I find motivation and accountability through blogging.

Well, I managed to last through most of January without starting any of that stuff, so I think I can convince myself to put it off for another year. Because I really don't have time. REALLY! (Still trying to convince myself.)

But I do have a few brainstorms I'd like to incorporate on THIS blog. So here's the schedule I'm outlining for myself.
  • Sunday: Mission Sunday
  • Monday: Motion, Matter, Mitosis, and Me
  • Tuesday: Tiny Talk Tuesday
  • Wednesday: Wordless Wednesday
  • Thursday: Learning Spaces
  • Friday: Fashion Friday
  • Saturday: Tot School
I'll throw in other stuff here or there as I feel compelled. And life will continue to trump blogging, so I'm not gonna stress if I miss out here and there. Because one of my biggest resolutions is to be "present." Not thinking about how to blog about the event, but actually ENJOYING the event.

Mission Sunday. We're gonna mix this up a little. Instead of just random links, Esmé and I will focus on a specific country each week. We'll find it on the globe, learn a little about the language and food and religion, and find a blogger in that country who we can say hi to! And we'll give you a link so you can say hi, too...

And we'll be doing something here locally, too! We're starting right at home - we've found some yummy muffin recipes we're going to try - and first we'll bless Pappa with them to make sure they're edible; then we'll start "Operation Know Your Neighbor" and sharing some muffins with the neighbors, too. It'll take a few of weeks to get through the immediate neighbors...

Motion, Matter, Mitosis, and Me. It seems like everywhere I turn lately, I'm tripping up against how important science is for preschoolers. We've been churning out and burning out on printables and worksheets lately, and I'm looking for an alternative. Esmé loved the science stuff we did in our recent book reviews, so I'm planning to put together at least four science activities each week - in physics, chemistry, biology, and human health/anatomy. Fun and basic stuff, though I don't shy away from big terms. Check this out if you'd like ideas, and let us know what ideas you've got or posted about!

Tiny Talk Tuesday. I love how this meme helps us document Esmé's growth and cutisms! Nothing new here.

Wordless Wednesday. An easy post and a fun way to meet other bloggers.

Learning Spaces.
I've mentioned our school house before. Sadly (or not so sadly from another perspective), the little 12x16' house is wrapped and boarded up at the moment, since Pappa is overwhelmed with other work, and the jobs keep coming in. But in considering how to set it up and decorate it, I looked for examples of play/schoolrooms online, and I didn't find too much that I really liked!

So I've been doing more research on it, and want to focus on difference aspects of learning spaces each week. I'm going to wait on this one until the Motion, Matter, Mitosis, and Me feature is well underway, but if any of you have previous posts about your own learning spaces that I could borrow, or if you'd like to do a guest post on the topic, I'd LOVE to hear from you!

Fashion Friday. As long as Esmé stays fashionable, we'll keep this coming! We'd love to see others join in with Mr. Linky, too!

Tot School.
You may have noticed we're not focusing on letters anymore. Esmé's got the alphabet downpat, and I'm using a curriculum now. I think the alphabet school concept has served its purpose (and well) for us - and we are putting it on hold for now. We'll leave the links up on our sidebar so others can reference them, and at some point, like when I'm done with this curriculum, I'll reevaluate if we go back to letter themes.

In the meantime, I'll just be posting snapshots of some of the activities we've done, though I can't disclose the entire curriculum, of course! And we throw extra stuff in, too...

So there you have it - the focus of this blog - for now! Until it changes...

4 comments:

ShEiLa said...

For the most part you stick to your daily agenda too... I may need a little structure like that.

or
maybe not.

ToOdLeS.

Chel's Leaving a Legacy said...

You are truly amazing!

I love having a structure in place like this...I can plan and organize and get it all together. I'm motivated to get it going...but I always seem to fizzle not too far into the implementation. I don't fizzle the whole plan, but something always seems to fall off the wagon.

Sigh.

Maybe if I OVERplan, then I will end up exactly where I really wanted to?

At any rate, you are very motivational in a post like this.
:-)

Brooke said...

i <3 a good plan. i just struggle with letting life over ride the plan. but you do, because you're a good mommy.

Julie said...

It sounds like you have a good plan in place. I hope it works out for you! I have a few specific weekly items going now, as well. And I do find it makes blogging a bit more manageable. Thanks for stopping by my blog, by the way!