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Home > Notes from a Homeschooling Mom
Blog

Notes from a Homeschooling Mom

April 6, 2020 | No Comments

JL Powers and son

Hello, friends of Cinco Puntos Press. How are you holding up?

We know life has changed for most of you. Some of you have lost jobs. Some of you are trying your best to work from home and not strangle your kids while you “homeschool” them. Some of you are eating too many brownies. Some of you are just trying not to cry into your beer as you obsessively watch CNN. (Tears don’t improve the flavor of beer, you know. Just saying!) Some of you count your dwindling supply of toilet paper and pray that the stores will restock before you run out altogether.

We get it. We can’t change a lot about the situation. But as you begin or continue trying to teach your kids at home (depending on where you are in the process), and as you realize that it doesn’t take that long for your kids to finish their schoolwork when they’re receiving one-on-one attention, we’d like to encourage you to keep the screens off (for the most part) and let them use the remaining time to play!

Kids learn a LOT by playing. This is one of the fundamental principles of Montessori education: play is a child’s form of work. They learn how to engage others, they learn about the world, they explore, they learn social rules, etc. You don’t need to play with your kids all the time, though. No. Let your kids be bored. Tell them to figure it out! Boredom leads to creativity, if you give your kids the right tools.

Here are a few ideas:

  • Give your kids lots of raw materials and let them make a mess. Paper, drawing pencils, paints, art supplies, yarn and knitting needles, Legos, glue, scissors, magazines they are allowed to “damage,” cardboard, boxes, markers, blocks, origami paper.
  • Let your kids listen to audio books and podcasts.
  • Let your kids create their own podcasts.
  • Let them make music.
  • They can play board games and card games, with or without you. (Solitaire works too!) Or, they can play chess online with another friend stuck at home.
  • It’s spring-time. Let them outside to garden, go hiking, shoot hoops, play catch.
  • Give them tools like wood, hammer, and nails, and let them build something.
  • Let your kids explore hands-on math or math games—dice games, Cuisenaire rods, or games like Stop Thief.
  • See what interests your kids and do hands-on projects, like cooking together or making a solar system. There are lots of youtube videos about this.
  • Most of all: let them read! There are so many books that might never be on their curriculum but can enrich their lives. We have a few suggestions from Cinco Puntos below.

Front cover of Mi Familia Calaca

Mi Familia Calaca

Learn the word for everyone in the family, in English and Spanish, with these fun and friendly skeleton characters! *bilingual teaching guide available
by Cynthia Weill
 
Front cover of Don't Say A Word Mamá

 

Don’t Say a Word, Mamá

A collection of short stories following Mexican-Americans leaving home and moving to the heart of gringo America. *bilingual teaching guide and storytime video available
by Joe Hayes
 
Front cover of Watch Out for Clever Women

Watch Out for Clever Women!

 
A collection Southwest tales where women save the day with quick thinking! *bilingual storytime video available
by Joe Hayes
Front cover of Remember Dippy

Remember Dippy

Johnny ends up having the summer of his life when he befriends autistic older cousin, Remember. *teaching guide available
by Shirley Reva Vernick
 
 
Front cover of Bloody Seoul

Bloody Seoul

Rocky has to choose whether to follow in the footsteps of his father, an out-of-control gang leader, or forge his own path. *teaching guide available
by Sonia Patel
 
Front cover of Sammy & Juliana In Hollywood

Sammy & Juliana In Hollywood

In the New Mexico barrio of Hollywood, Sammy goes through some of life’s most significant experiences: first love, alienation, and the death of both family and friends. *teaching guide available
by  Benjamin Alire Sáenz

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With roots on the U.S./Mexico border, Cinco Puntos publishes great books which make a difference in the way you see the world.

With roots on the U.S./Mexico border, Cinco Puntos publishes great books which make a difference in the way you see the world.

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