DAILY WONDER
  • Home
  • ABOUT
    • ABOUT US >
      • THE CREATORS
      • WALDORF
    • SAMPLES >
      • LESSON PLAN SAMPLES
      • LEARNING PORTFOLIO EXAMPLES
    • FAQ
    • HOMESCHOOL PLANNING
    • PARENT EDUCATION
    • TESTIMONIALS
    • PRESS
    • NEWSLETTERS
  • PRODUCTS
    • Lesson Plans >
      • Parents
      • Teachers
  • SERVICES
    • Tutoring
    • Homeschool Coaching
    • Learning Pod Support
  • CONTACT
  • Blog

Tips & tools to support your homeschooling program.

10 Fun Homeschool Activities that your Child will Love and, Shhh! They Link to Learning Outcomes too!

12/27/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture
Hey Parents! After you have been a super hero and guided your child through the Daily Wonder morning lesson, maybe you want to take a step back, maybe you have to attend to your regular job, or maybe you need a coffee break.  Whatever the reason, learning does not have to stop. In fact, learning is an ongoing process, and Daily Wonder will show you how easy it is to connect regular homeschool activities like free-play and everyday life experiences with your Ministry of Education Big Ideas and Learning Outcomes!

1. Build with Lego

Applied Design, Skills and Technologies
Grades 1-3: Big Idea/Concept: Designs grow out of natural curiosity
Grades 4-5: Big Ideas/Concepts: Designs can be improved with prototyping and testing.  Skills are developed through practice, effort and action.

2. Bake Muffins!

Math
Grade 1: Big Idea/Concept:  Addition and subtraction with numbers to 10 can be modeled concretely, pictorially, and symbolically to develop computational fluency.
Grade 3: Big Idea/Concept: Fractions are a type of number that can represent quantities.
Grade 5: Adjust the recipe and learn this Big Idea/Concept: Numbers describe quantities that can be represented by equivalent fractions.

3. Clean Your Room!

Career Education
Grade 1-3: Big Ideas/Concepts: Strong communities are the result of being connected to family and community and working together toward common goals.  Everything we learn helps us to develop skills.  Communities include many different roles requiring many different skills.

4. Family Meeting Time

Career Education
Grades 4-5: Big Ideas/Concepts: Strong communities are the result of being connected to family and community and working together toward common goals. Leadership requires listening to and respecting the ideas of others.
Grades 6-7: Big Ideas/Concepts: Practicing respectful, ethical, inclusive behaviour prepares us for the expectations of the workplace.  Leadership represents good planning, goal setting, and collaboration.

5. Climb a Tree!!

Career Education
Grades 1-3: Big Idea/Concept: Confidence develops through the process of self-discovery

6. Make a Healthy Snack!

Physical and Health Education
Grades 1-3: Big Idea/Concept: Knowing about our bodies and making healthy choices helps us look after ourselves.

7. Work Through an Emotional Outburst!

Physical and Health Education
Grade1: Big Idea/Concept: Good health comprises physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
Grades 2-3: Big Idea/Concept: Having good communication skills and managing our emotions enables us to develop and maintain healthy relationships.

8. Work Through Social Conflict with Friends

Physical and Health Education
Grade 1: Big Idea/Concept: Good health comprises physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
Grades 2-3: Big Idea/Concept: Having good communication skills and managing our emotions enables us to develop and maintain healthy relationships.

9. Participating in the Digital World

Physical and Health Education and Career Education
Grades 6-7: Big Ideas/Concepts: Our personal digital identity forms part of our public identity. Practicing respectful, ethical, inclusive behaviour prepares us for the expectations of the workplace.

10. Knitting!

Applied Design Skills and Technology
Grades 1-3: Big Idea/Concept: Technologies are tools that extend human capabilities. 
Grades 4-5: Big Idea/Concept: Skills are developed through practice, effort, and action. 
Grades 6-7: Big Ideas/Concepts: Design can be responsive to identified needs. 
Complex tasks require the acquisition of additional skills. 
Stay tuned for new activities and life lessons to be shared on the Hub!!
Picture
0 Comments

Assessment & Strengthening Activities For Child Development

10/5/2021

0 Comments

 
Daily Wonder recommends that you take time to conduct a baseline assessment when you begin teaching your child each school year. Then, by observing them in everyday activities, you can track their development and become aware of areas that may need extra attention. Below, you will find specific areas to assess, ways to observe your child, and suggested activities to help strengthen particular areas of need. 

Establishing Dominance

Children typically favour a dominant side of the body around age seven.  You can check if your child has done so by observing them with the following activities.

ASSESSMENT ACTIVITIES: 
  1. To determine hand dominance: Toss a ball to your child and observe which hand they catch with. Then, ask them to throw it back to you and watch which hand they use.
  2. To determine foot dominance: Roll and soccer ball to your child and observe which foot they kick it with. Then, ask them to kick it back and watch which foot they use.  Another activity for observing foot dominance would be to have them step up and down off a box and see which foot they lead with.
  3. To determine eye dominance: Use a kaleidoscope or a rolled-up piece of paper and ask your child to hold it up to their eye.  Observe which eye they use.
  4. To determine ear dominance: Use an object like a conch shell or something they can listen to and observe which ear they use.
Picture
Mixed dominance
If you notice that your child has mixed dominance, it means that they have not come to favour one side of the body as their dominant side. This can lead to delays in absorbing and responding to information because circuits may need to jump from the right side of the brain to the left hemisphere to process information. 

The main work here is brain lateralization, which is the left and right hemispheres learning to communicate. This involves having a preference for the right or left side of the body. 
Crossing the midline is a necessary skill that is related to bilateral coordination. This is the ability to use both sides of the body in a coordinated and organized manner, where one hand is the stabilizer, and the other hand is the performer.
​
Crossing the midline is the spontaneous movement of one hand, foot, eye into the space of the other hand, foot, eye.  


You can see how handwriting requires this skill, as the arm, hand, and eye travel from the left to right, crossing the body's centre. Letter formation also requires this crossing. 

Many everyday activities require us to do this; however, some children may need more specific focus to cross the midline fully. Activities that address the hand and foot are easier to practice and can help support the eye and ear to align as well.
STRENGTHENING ACTIVITIES:

Activities to Support Hand Dominance and Crossing the Midline: 
  • Catching and throwing a ball (Throw or roll a ball to the opposite side of the body so your child must  reach across the midline. Call out the side of the body that it is being thrown or rolled to, to bring this awareness to your child.)
  • Tie shoes
  • String beads
  • Cutting with scissors
  • Tear paper with hands
  • Create Figure 8 motion with arms, so it looks like an elephant trunk
  • Create or solve mazes
  • Do word searches
  • Touch toes with the opposite hand
  • Draw a Lemniscate (horizontal figure 8 shape) with the dominant hand. Trace the shape in sand or on the floor
  • Card games like solitaire
Picture
Lemniscate
Activities to Support Foot Dominance:
  • Climbing stairs (calling out the dominant foot every time it takes a step)
  • Draw a Lemniscate (horizontal figure 8 shape) with the dominant foot. Put a crayon between the toes. Trace the shape in sand or on the floor
  • Opposite knee to elbow movement
  • Soccer practice- with something to mark the dominant foot- rolling it to them, so they have to cross the midline
  • Stand on stabilizing leg and use the dominant foot to stamp out a rhythm. Then try clapping hands at the same time.

Healthy Posture & Pencil Grip

It is essential to have healthy habits when it comes to posture and pencil grip.  This will serve your child over the years as the demands for sitting at a desk and writing increase. 

ASSESSMENT ACTIVITIES:
  1. Observe your child while they are seated at the work table. Their feet should land on the floor, and their legs should be at a right angle to their body.  Take note of whether they seem very tired or have trouble keeping their spine straight. 
  2. At the same time, you can observe their pencil grip. It will be important for them to learn the proper pencil grip to maintain stamina while writing.  Proper pencil grip also includes relaxed shoulders, allowing the non-dominant hand to play the role of stabilizer. 
Picture
Proper pencil grip
STRENGTHENING ACTIVITIES:

Ways to Support Healthy Posture:
  • Model good posture
  • Breathing practice
  • Set your child up for success with proper chair and height of table
  • Use a one-legged stool
  • Body breaks every 30 min—doing squats, arm rotations, plank pose, yoga sequence.

Ways to Support Healthy Pencil Grip:
  • This requires the development of fine motors skills (see Activities to Develop Fine Motor Skills)
  • Encourage and remind the proper grip
  • Pinch/flip method
  • Activities to Develop Fine Motor Skills
  • Hole punching
  • Lacing activities
  • Play Doh: pinch, role, cut, form
  • Folding laundry
  • Twisting with nuts/bolts, screwdriver
  • Medicine dropper activities with food colouring
  • Cut grass for a picture/art project
  • Cut in a zig-zag pattern

Eye Tracking

Eye-tracking is an important foundation skill for reading. It’s important to notice whether your child can move their eyes horizontally while their head stays stationary. It is common to observe a tremor at the centre midline, which may indicate difficulty crossing the midline. ​

​ASSESSMENT ACTIVITIES:
  1. Observe your child watch a bird or airplane pass through the sky. Do their eyes move smoothly as they follow? 
  2. Tie an object to the end of a string and swing it back and forth. Observe your child’s eyes as they move from left to right while following it.
  3. Observe your child as they read a book. Watch for smoothness as they track from left to right.
Picture
Maze
STRENGTHENING ACTIVITIES:
  1. Ask your child to find certain things within a room.  For example, all the squares, all the circles etc. 
  2. Playing Simon Says or other games where your child must mimic your movements.
  3. Sorting playing cards (by colour, suit, numbers etc.).
  4. Using a flashlight, have your child track the beam as you wave it around the house.
  5. Fun paper activities to try that strengthen eye tracking: 
  • Connect the Dots
  • Spot the Differences
  • Mazes
  • Tracing

Memory

We use our memory for imaginative thinking. For example, when we remember something we’ve been told or see, we build imaginative pictures in our brains, leading to high-level thinking. The ability to build pictures takes practice, and we can strengthen this skill through memory games.

ASSESSMENT ACTIVITIES:
  1. Ask your child to describe their bedroom to you while you are both sitting in the living room. 
  2. If appropriate, ask them to tell you the days of the week or days of the months.
  3. Ask them to tell you what they had for breakfast yesterday, or the day before etc.
  4. Any memory question like; where do we go for summer vacation or who was at Sunday dinner last week? Etc.
STRENGTHENING ACTIVITIES:
  1. Tell a story and have your child tell it back to you the next day.
  2. Keep practicing describing things they have seen or experienced in the past.
  3. Play ‘What Has Changed’ where your child observes you for 30 seconds then leaves the room.  While they are gone, you change something about yourself like; undo a button, part your hair on the other side, roll up a sleeve etc. Then, have them return and tell you what has changed.
  4. Play ‘What is Missing’ where you line up a random line of up to 30 objects.  Have your child observe the objects, then have them close their eyes while you remove one of the items. After your child opens their eyes, have them tell you what is missing.

Links for More Info & Activities

Establishing Dominance and Crossing the Midline:
  • Play, Games, and Sports in Childhood – The Right Thing at the Right Time from Waldorf Today
  • Hand Dominance Activities in 3 Simple Steps from The OT Toolbox
  • Crossing the Midline; An Important Handwriting Skill from Handwriting with Katherine 
  • Hand Dominance from The OTFC Group

Developing Fine Motor Skills:
  • Developing Fie Motor Skills from The Happy Brown House
  • Easy Tips for Correcting Pencil Grip in Kids from the Happy Brown House​
0 Comments

The Importance of Seasonal Celebrations

9/28/2021

0 Comments

 
“Celebrating festivals illuminates our life on earth with heavenly meaning and shows us the significance of our human existence in the universe. We human beings stand between the two worlds uniting them in ourselves. We are the crossing point where the upper circle representing the heavens flows into the lower one belonging to the earth.”
– Evelyn Frances Derry, Festivals and Seasons

Throughout the year, we can celebrate festivals to connect us with the cycle of nature, establish a yearly rhythm for our children, and strengthen our community.

Autumn is a time to reflect on our inner selves, to find the inner light that will carry us through this time of darkness. It can be an opportunity to know ourselves more profoundly. We can mark this season of inner searching with fall festivals to help guide us on this path of introspection. Our ancestors must have spent many transitions from summer to fall worrying and doubting whether the sun would ever return to its full brightness. This time of year triggers feelings of doubt, fear, and anxiety, possibly stemming from our ancestors' times around fires in the darkness of the year.  Seeking comfort, our ancestors would have shared stories and songs as nourishing soul food. The flickering light of the fire would have been a beacon of hope. It's helpful to honour the shared human experience of the seasons when heading into Fall.  It is very healing to acknowledge feelings of darkness by bringing them into the light.  As nature begins to go to sleep around us, we also feel this downward pull to sleep.  It's fair to say that this is also when seasonal depression is common.  Instead of unconsciously emanating what's happening outside of us, this is a call to create a strong inner light.  Everything that we joyfully soaked up during the summertime, from the beauty of the flowers and trees to the long hours of sunlight, can be harvested now as inner light. When we celebrate this call to kindle our inner light, it is most beneficial to participate in rituals with others. Celebrating together brings depth and meaning to the experience. 

There are as many ritual and celebrations to choose from as there are communities in the world.  It is a beautiful process to choose the ritual that works best for your family based on laocation, values and beliefs, and community.  Here are some things you may want to include in your seasonal celebrations;
  • Seasonal/traditional stories and verses
  • Music
  • Food
  • Nature table (display of seasonal nature items)
  • Time spent in nature
  • Candlelight

We'd love to hear about how your family honours the light.  Be sure to share with us in the comments below.
Picture
0 Comments

Teaching Cursive Writing

9/24/2021

0 Comments

 
Teaching cursive is fun, easy, and has great pay-off. Cursive can be especially supportive to those that struggle with forming print, reversing letters, eye-tracking, or reading. Not convinced it’s worth it? Check out these articles that explain some of the benefits of teaching cursive.

Literacy Benefits: Scholastic.com
Biological and Psychological Benefits: PsychologyToday.com

Daily Wonder recommends teaching cursive as soon as grade two, when your child knows all the letters, knows their sounds, and is beginning to understand the rules for encoding (spelling). We recommend that the archetypal forms are brought in order of difficulty rather than letter by letter. Below is a step-by-step guide to bringing the forms that are the basis for the letters. Remember, any new skill needs daily practice to become a capacity. We recommend that once you have brought all the forms/letters that cursive then becomes your expectation for all written work. It can take a whole year to become a natural at cursive but just think of all the brain pathways you will create and strengthen in your child, what a gift!

Lesson 1: loops

You’ll teach your child all the letters/forms in lower case first, they can print the capital letters until they have mastered all the forms, then you’ll bring the upper case. The looping letters are the first lesson in cursive. Have your child practice creating the loops, big for l, small for e, across several lines of a lined book. You don’t need to tell your child that these are the letters, just have them practice the form of the loops. Remember to show the areas for placing letters on the page as in the example. You can have your child join the tall and short loops all together to practice the size of them on the lines for today. They can try eeeelllllll or elelelelelelele across the page in cursive.
Picture
Lesson 2:  points
 
Make sure you have practiced the looping forms for a couple of days before you move on to this second form.  The second form is the pointing form as in the letters i and t without the dot or cross.  They’ll be practicing the motion and size of coming to a point, unlike the loop.  They can try iiiiiiiiittttttttt or itititititititit across a couple of lines.   Be sure to indicate the height of each line or loop using the imaginative image of the sky, earth, and sea.
Picture
Lesson 3:  bringing letters
 
Take this day to practice cursive that you’ve brought so far.  Show your child how the e loop is an /e/ the l loop is an /l/ the i point only needs a dot to be an /i/ and the t point only needs a cross to be a /t/.  Support them to cursive write all the words they can think of with these letters:  let, lit, tell, till, little, lilt.  Give feedback about the size of the letters in comparison to each other and their form and starting place.    
Lesson 4:  wave
 
Today you’ll bring a new form, the wave.  Guide your child to practice the wave letter form like for ‘c’.  This curving line makes up the base for ‘a’, ‘c’, ‘d’, ‘g’, ‘o’, and ‘q’. Have them try just cccccccc, then switch to cececlclcl and cicicictctctct.  
Picture
Lesson 5:  wave, point, loop
 
Today guide your child to practice the wave and point together that form the a in cursive.  They can do a line of ‘a’ and ‘d’ and then combine other practice letters such as ‘cat’, ‘tall’, etc.  Take your time.  If the ‘a’ isn’t making sense, don’t go ahead to adding other letters.
Picture
Lesson 6:  down and loop
 
Before beginning, make sure that your child has had plenty of practice with previous forms.  The next lesson is to guide your child to practice the down and loop line, as in j.  Remind your child the difference between: sky, where letters reach way up; earth, where letters always begin; and sea, where some letters reach way down.  Show them the ‘j’ without the dot and notice how your child crosses the line to loop, this can be tricky.  Practice as much as is needed, combining other practiced letters as is appropriate.  
Picture
Lesson 7:  point and hump
 
For this lesson, you will guide your child to practice the point and hump as in the h, m, and n.  They can combine skills now to try words such as ‘line’, ‘men’, ‘hen’, etc.  The point of the ‘h’ can transform to a loop if that is the style you choose, either a point or loop is acceptable.
Picture
Lesson 8: wave, point, and down loop
 
Remember to ensure you give lots of time for practice before moving on to the next form.  This lesson will have you guide your child to practice the ‘d’, ‘g’ and the ‘y’.  They can create words once they master these two that are a combination of the ‘a t j’ lines.  
Picture
Lesson 9:  point
 
Time for practice, then guide your child to try the ‘u’, ‘v’ and ‘w’ lines that are point lines.  Again, they can take some time to practice any words they can spell with letters they know
Picture
Lesson 10:  loop and backwards wave
 
Today you will guide your child to practice the ‘b’.  This is a tricky one that is a loop followed by a backwards wave.  Provide some time to practice any words they can spell with letters they know.  
Picture
Lesson 11: point and curve
 
Today you will guide your child to practice the ‘o’ and ‘p’ which include point and curve lines.  As always, once they have practiced and feel confident, they can take some time to practice any words they can spell with letters they know.  
Picture
Lesson 12:  double loop
 
Today’s form is another tricky one, the double loop.  The letter ‘f’ can be formed with a double right side loop or with a reverse at the center.  In our experience the double right is a bit easier for some children.  You choose what is right for your child.  Once they have the hang of it they can take some time to practice any words they can spell with letters they know. 
Picture
Lesson 13: wave, point, loop
 
This one is my favourite!  The full wave followed by a point on the earth, followed by a waving loop!  The letter ‘z’. When they feel confident, take some time to practice any words they can spell with letters they know. 
Picture
Lesson 14: point table, point curve
 
Your next forms make the letters ‘r’ and ‘s’.  Again, they can take some time to practice any words they can spell with letters they know.  
Picture
Lesson 15: final forms
 
There is no easy combo for the remaining letters x, q, and k so we’ll practice them as the final and most challenging letters.  The x requires a lift of the pencil, the k requires a switch in direction, and the q also requires a switch in direction.  Take it slow, follow your child’s lead.  If you need to do one each day to avoid confusion, take that time.  After these final letters, they should be able to form all the lower case letters and will need lots of support to keep practicing.  You can bring the upper case letters as needed when your child is writing.  If you embrace cursive as the way to write, they will too:)
Picture
Picture
0 Comments

National Day for Truth & Reconciliation

9/22/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture
Image credit: Andy Everson
Content warning.  This post, which addresses the painful history of residential schools, may be distressing to some readers.

Canada has declared that September 30th will be a National Day for Truth & Reconciliation fulfilling the Truth & Reconciliation Commission's call to action #80. This call to action means that the federal government in collaboration with aboriginal peoples, established this statutory holiday to honour Survivors, their families and communities and ensure that the history and legacy of residential schools is never forgotten.

This has created another opportunity to find meaningful ways to connect to this important part of Canada's history.  Below we share some ideas for how you can honour this day.

Appropriate for Grades 1 and up:
Phyllis (Jack) Webstad, a residential school survivor, shares her personal story which inspired Orange Shirt Day. 

After you share this story, here are three simple craft ideas for the young child, to build meaning and connection with the story:
  • Garland of Goodness: Create orange hearts from whatever material you have on hand.  Ask your child to come up with kind words for Phyllis and write each word on a heart.  String the hearts together to form a garland that can be hung in a tree or in your window.
  • Rocks of Reconcili-Action: Gather rocks from outside.  Paint them orange then add words of positive action to promote reconciliation and leave them in your community for others to find.  Some examples could be; Be Honest, Show Compassion, Love your Neighbour etc...
  • Creative Colouring: Have your child colour this 'Every Child Matters' colouring page.'  If you enjoyed this activity, there are lots more colouring pages here.

Appropriate for Grades 3 and up:
This video is a gentle reminder of what residential schools were and why it's important to learn about them.

After watching the video you could have your child do the following activity:
  • Compassion Collage: Have your child consider the question; what is reconciliation?  Watch this short video if needed, then have them create a collage that answers; "what is my commitment to reconciliation?"
  • A Poem for Phyllis: Have your child create a concrete poem in the shape of a meaningful indigenous artifact from your area. 

At Daily Wonder, our goal is to connect parents with heart-felt, age appropriate activities to bring meaning to being human in our world.  We hope to inspire you to build community and take a moment to reflect and connect on this new national holiday in Canada.  We'd love to see your ideas.  Be sure to share with us how you built connection on this day.
0 Comments

The Importance of Rhythm & Routine

8/26/2021

0 Comments

 
Whether you welcome routine, or resist it, we're here to tell you why you should embrace it.

At Daily Wonder we talk a lot about rhythm and routine.  That’s because we know that young children feel a sense of good health when they are held by boundaries, including the lay-out of the day, week, month…. Children are meant to learn through play and doing until they reach high school.  This means we need to provide them with lots of activities that spark their creativity and provide space for wonder.  When they know what is expected of them children are freed up to be in the moment.  It is up to the adults to create the boundaries to free the children.
 
A friend recently told us that she was not expecting the freedom that came with building a fence around her property.  It sounds kind of backwards, that a fence creates freedom, but think about it…she has a dog that had to be tied up or managed all the time.  Once the fence went up, the dog knew how far it could go and the people trusted that the dog would just do dog things. We aren’t comparing children and dogs, but we are comparing the freedom fence to boundaries.
 
Rhythm – this is your wide level organization such as your year, when you start school, what holidays or celebrations you participate in, what time you get up each day, what time you start and end your morning lesson…
 
Routine – these are the details within your rhythm such as singing a song to begin the morning lesson, lighting a candle before story, and how you end the day.  Routines are kind of like the rules for ‘how we do things’. 
Picture
Any solid new rhythm and routine will take about six weeks to take hold. This means that once you've decided on the appropriate, realistic routine for your family, you need to harness all your forces to hold your new routine in place while you're settling in.

The temptation will be to let it go and give in because it's exhausting and feels like it's not working. But, what's actually happening during this time, is that you are genuinely exhausted because you are using your energy and life forces to hold a routine for your family. The good news is that around the 6-week mark, the routine will hold the family, and you can take a step back.

You will notice that our daily lesson plans have repeating daily steps. This is to support you in holding that routine for your family. We can't stress enough how important it is to open and close your homeschool day at the same time and in the same way.

Also, because you will feel exhausted during this return to routine, make sure to schedule your self-care into this routine. This might look like making yourself a cup of tea at 11:30 every morning and zenning out on the couch while your child plays lego on the floor. Your body will welcome this set time to relax each day within this structured routine.

Remember to hold an abundance of love and compassion for yourself while on this rewarding journey. 

Do you have a routine that works well for you and your family?  We'd love to hear about it in the comments below.
0 Comments

Upcoming Zoom Information Session

7/15/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture
0 Comments

How to Talk to Your Kids About Residential Schools

5/31/2021

0 Comments

 
*Content Warning: This post mentions abuse suffered at residential schools.
Picture
The recent discovery of the mass graves at the Kamloops Indian Residential School site has spurred us to want to engage in conversation about how we can support truth & reconciliation. To that end, we share some thoughts on how to talk to your children about Residential schools. The below excerpt is from our Grade 4 Wonder of Local Geography unit.​
Geography demonstrates the interconnectedness of our world: the people, animals, plants, climate and geographical locality and how each aspect supports and influences the others. It is a time of experiencing the wholeness of life and how we all belong together on the earth. It isn't easy to separate Geography from the history of an area, so it makes sense for us to combine them. Your child will have opportunities to take their developing critical eye and apply it to form opinions and judgements around the historically unfair treatment of Indigenous populations in the province/state where you live. As your child is still young and immersed in the feeling realm, we must bring this history in delicate and age-appropriate ways. Stories with perspectives of Indigenous youth are helpful when wanting to relay more adult facts. It is also necessary to remember that there are many years for your child to learn some of the more difficult and disturbing facts around Residential Schools and Reservation life. From our experience as teachers of elementary school-aged children, when choosing what topics to address about the mistreatment of Indigenous people, it is very impactful for your child to hear that many children were separated from their parents, or had their hair cut, and were forced to stop speaking their language and had cultural traditions stripped away. Depending on your child's age and family history, you can decide when it is the right time to address sexual abuse and violence. ​

HOW WE HEAL FROM THE PAST

Whether one individual has been hurt by another or an entire culture was hurt by another culture, the process of healing is the same. First, the painful action has to be acknowledged. That means that the person/group that made the mistake must acknowledge or admit that a mistake was made. They must admit that they did something that hurt another. This is the first step. It helps the person who was wronged feel better. After the acknowledgment, there is the truth about the situation, the truth of what the action was that was hurtful, and the truth of how it made the person/group feel. From this point, there can be a heartfelt apology. This can make the person who was wronged feel heard. This is an important step. After the apology, the hurt person must find a place to forgive the other. If we hang on to the hurt for too long, it is not healthy. We need resilience to heal. Do you know what resilience means? It's a quality that helps you bounce back from bad experiences. We all face bad experiences from time to time, and we all need the ability to return to our peaceful and happy place. This takes resilience. With all these parts in place, healing can begin. 

Share with your child about the steps that your province is taking in the process of healing from this cultural trauma. Explain what stage the province is at regarding fair treatment now and apologizing for the past decisions. What are the challenges, hopes and dreams for the future of your province?
It can feel paralyzing when we don't know what to do to help or to heal.  Here are some helpful websites to learn how to be part of positive change.
  • ​Truth & Reconciliation Commission of Canada
  • Settlers Take Action
  • 11 Books to Teach Kids About Residential Schools
0 Comments

What's Going Right, Focus On That...

2/20/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture

Nurtured Heart Tip #8

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?
0 Comments

Recognizing Our Own Greatness

2/16/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture

Nurtured Heart Tip #7

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. 
0 Comments
<<Previous

    Blog

    Explore schedules, rhythms & routines, songs, music, festivals, free play, meals, projects & more to support your homeschooling program.

    Author

    The Wonder Squad

    Categories

    All
    About Daily Wonder
    Activities
    Calendar Of The Soul
    Curriculum
    Festivals
    Holidays & Celebrations
    Instructional Videos
    Nurtured Heart
    Parent Education
    Pentatonic Flute
    Songs & Poetry

    Archives

    April 2022
    March 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020

    RSS Feed

You might be wondering...

About
FAQ
Donate
Contact
​Home
PURCHASE

Visit us on Teachers Pay Teachers

© COPYRIGHT 2020. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Serving your worldwide educational needs from Comox Valley, BC, Canada.
  • Home
  • ABOUT
    • ABOUT US >
      • THE CREATORS
      • WALDORF
    • SAMPLES >
      • LESSON PLAN SAMPLES
      • LEARNING PORTFOLIO EXAMPLES
    • FAQ
    • HOMESCHOOL PLANNING
    • PARENT EDUCATION
    • TESTIMONIALS
    • PRESS
    • NEWSLETTERS
  • PRODUCTS
    • Lesson Plans >
      • Parents
      • Teachers
  • SERVICES
    • Tutoring
    • Homeschool Coaching
    • Learning Pod Support
  • CONTACT
  • Blog