Tips & tools to support your homeschooling program.

Ohhh! The long and drawn out days of winter!!  

We've got this! You've got this! 

Haven't we done this so many times before? Made it through the darkness of winter?! Yet, why does it feel so difficult at times? 

When nature is sleeping, it is like a death on the earth. Without the glory of nature to lift our Spirits, we must each do it for ourselves, and for each other. 

It is actually exactly what is being asked of us each year, at this time. That we recognize how powerful we truly are. Even though all of nature is deeply asleep, we humans are soulfully wide awake. We are learning, reflecting, remembering, thinking, feeling, creating, connecting and loving. 

We are truly amazing beings!!

The following inspiration is taken from: Weekly Meditations-Rudolf Steiner's Calendar of the Soul Intentions by Patsy Scala
The world threatens to numb
My soul’s inherent powers.
Therefore, step forth memory,
Shining from depths of spirit,
Strengthen my vision
That only by strength of will
Is able to sustain itself.

Intention: This week, when I feel the tiredness of too much winter, I will remember that, within this winter, I am the one, through my inner spirit, who supplies the warmth and the light that sustain me.

Give Energy to the Things that are Going Right

Do you have more than one child? Do your children have typical sibling arguments? How do you handle it?

Next time you notice a beautiful and peaceful lull between these arguments, be sure to make a point of noticing the absence of conflict. You might simply say," I appreciate that you are not calling your sister names, or bothering her right now." 

Give energy and honor to the positive things in your life. 

What are some positive things you have noticed your children doing lately?

Recognizing Our Own Greatness

What about a little nurturing of our own hearts?

Can you see qualities of greatness in yourself that you can recognize and honour?

Take a moment to name 3 of these amazing qualities, and in what way you express them. 

New to home schooling?  No problem.  Daily Wonder can help you get started.  You can trust that the planning is tried and true and will save your time to use for assembling materials instead of using your weekend to plan.  

Not new to home schooling?  Welcome.  Daily Wonder offers organized, easy to use daily lesson plans when you are re-thinking your current routine.  

Not sure?  No problem, you can sign up for monthly membership and cancel anytime.  Try it for a month and see if it is a fit.  One of the many gifts of home schooling is that you can change and transform your curriculum, routine and schedule as you wish.  With DW you are not locked in, we offer you the freedom to try it when, and for how long, it fits your goals.

Here are five reasons parents are choosing Daily Wonder:

1. Teacher created, teacher researched and tested, child development based, inspiring subjects organized and curated.
2. Step by step daily lesson plans to cover your core subjects in an integrated, creative and artistic way.
3. Links to videos, pdfs, and on-line tools to support every minute of the lesson - all the research done!
4. Examples of expressed learning so you can see how it worked for other kids and families.
5. Parent forum!  "Anyone want to meet up on zoom for a watercolour painting activity?"  Here you can make connections to share content, make friends to share and celebrate the life of home schooling, and find people who will cheer you on.

We know planning can take the joy out of home schooling.  We have your back.  We have been panning for 20 years and feel like it is high time we share.  What is your favourite part about preparing for a year, unit, or day of home schooling?

Help Your Children to See Their Own Greatness

Often in our busy lives,  we pay more attention to the difficult traits that arise in our children because we want to address it and nip it in the bud. 
 
However, when you notice a quality of greatness in your child, don't let the moment pass, be sure to articulate it to them with specific words and explain the context. 
 
In this way they can begin to really feel and see this greatness in themselves, and embody these qualities. 
 
You might comment on their positive attitude in a situation, their responsibility, flexibility, patience etc.  
 
What is something great you noticed about your child recently? How did they respond when you pointed it out to them?

Authentic Validation

Our children long for us to see them and be present for them. How we respond gives our child a feeling for whether we are really present, really listening, or only half there and more caught up in our other thoughts and concerns. 

We want to give our children positive feedback, we want them to feel confident, but our generation of parenting has taken "good job" to the next level. 

We have used it for everything; we have used it so much that it is on automatic pilot, just coming out of parents' mouths, even if it doesn't really fit the circumstance . 

Our children can feel empty words,  words that lack true connection. When we choose words that are more accurate for the circumstance, our children can feel more fully acknowledged. 

Next time you want to say "good job", take a moment and think about what exactly they are doing, and how your feedback could be more accurate. Maybe a more fitting response would be..."that's very creative", "you are very considerate", "you are very resourceful", "you are very responsible", tenacious, committed, a hard worker...

When was the last time you were authentically validated? How did it make you feel?

The pentatonic flute is based on the five-note pentatonic scale. Rudolf Steiner said that this scale harkens back to our ancient ancestors' days and the music that they felt from the spirit world. As human consciousness evolved, so did our understanding and connection to music. 

In ancient days, the familiar seven-note diatonic scale "do, re, mi, fa, sol, la, ti, do"  was not developed yet. The most familiar diatonic scale is C Major-  C D E F G A B C. The pentatonic scale does not use the C or the F, and so, the music from our ancient past was played with five notes, D E G A B. These are the notes that your sweet, little, dreamy child feels most connected to. Your young child feels the pentatonic scale's notes in their soul and delights in these tunes. They are the perfect songs to sing and play when your child is between birth and around eight years old. These are the notes that connect us to our ancient ancestors who walked and sang closer to the spirit world than we do today.

The flute is a beautiful instrument to begin with, as your child will become aware of their breath and learn how to regulate their breathing to produce a beautiful tone. Simultaneously, the flute's fingering requires the development of finger dexterity and fine motor movement, which can be challenging. So your child is also developing the ability to persevere through difficult circumstances. The ability to lift one finger or several fingers at a time is a marvellous brain/body activity. And most importantly, creating beautiful music is inspiring and enlivening. When your child knows a song and can sing it by heart, and then they are learning to play that song on the flute, well, that is a most exciting day to behold!!

So, the pentatonic flute is the ideal beginner instrument for your Grade One child. It speaks to the whole child: body, soul and spirit! And music is a great creative force that brings people together. 

Daily Wonder highly recommends purchasing the Waldorf Teachers' Companion to the Pentatonic Flute, by John Miles.