family time

      Lent is here. And this year, rather than have Lent be a time when my kids complain and moan because they can’t have dessert every night, I wanted it to be a more meaningful time of the …

I have been as sick as a dog–sick as a dawwwwg— for the past few days, but today I had a little spring in my step because it was National Grammar Day. And this old gal, though she may have …

I love the idea of doing some sort of service project for the community to honor Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy.  Imagine how great the world would be if every family did something small for others to celebrate Martin Luther …

The following guest post is written by Natalie, of Afterschool for Smarty Pants.   Natalie shares ways she enriches her daughter’s learning at home, after school.  Check it out. —————————— As you can guess from my blog title, Smarty is a …

I’ve shared time and again the importance of using what is around you–environmental print–for early literacy and math skill-building. Signs are everywhere, and they’re free. And they can really help our little ones to become excited about reading. Don’t believe …

We are big into managing our kids’ screen time over here, and that’s no secret. Though we truly value all they can learn with the help of technology, and we also know that they need a whole lot of time …

homemade alphabet book: get personal with the abc’s | early literacy | how to make an abc book | teach kids the letters of the alphabet | teachmama.com

    We have been putting in a lot of pool time lately, but we’ve also been spending a boatload of time indoors–staying cool in the comfort of our ac, eating popsicles and ices, playing games, Wii, and reading. Even …

Maddy, Owen, and Cora have loved the Word a Day we’ve been doing for the past two weeks–more than I anticipated and much to my surprise.  It’s been funny to see which kiddo is the first to remember to flip …

Sometimes it’s very easy for teachers and parents to feel impatient with emerging readers. It’s hard to listen to kids sound out every word on a page and get through only five words a minute. It’s hard to know what …

We are huge weather fans over here. Looking at the day’s forecast has become a regular part of our morning ever since the kids were really little. Though our family may be a growing minority of people who are still …

According to Rachel and Mary Gabriel, the “schema theory tells us that prior knowledge is essential for comprehension of new knowledge and that learning difficulties can often be traced back to insufficient background knowledge” (Gabriel & Gabriel, “Power in Pictures: …

how to teach kids to tie their shoes | teachmama.com

      Holiday time is here, and things are sure to be nutty around our house–and everyone else’s–for the next few weeks. Although I know it’s going to be hard to sneak in a little bit of learning each …

    Read-alouds are the perfect time to sneak in a little bit of learning, whether you’re talking simple reading comprehension strategies, concepts of print, or word recognition. Tonight, we rocked our nighttime read-aloud with a few more thought-provoking and …

This year we didn’t ring in the 4th with our annual July 4th party, and that’s okay. Baby showers, weddings, beach trips, and day trips, have been keeping us busy, so Independence Day was upon us before we knew it. …

    As I’ve said very recently, letter reversals are quite normal for emerging readers and writers. But there’s absolutely nothing wrong with helping our kiddos remember the tough ones. Back in January, I saved a Word World episode because …

Valentine’s Day is almost here! You better believe that our house has been heart-happy and all fancied-up in pink and red since last weekend. I’ve always loved decorating for the holidays, and why not? Any reason to celebrate, right? This …