Homeschooling Notes: At Her Own Pace

Our little one seems to know a lot about animals (naming, sounds, mama-and baby), colors, shapes, answering basic questions, spontaneously saying (polite) common phrases, etc.  But she just doesn't say the alphabet or count like her peers do. So we started homeschooling to make sure our little one is ready for traditional school when the need arises. Everything was doing well for a couple of weeks. However, I get disappointed when she seems not interested or not learning anything at all. (and I ran out of ideas how to creatively teach her in our homeschool classroom) I decided to cease this scheduled sessions and just go about playing and horsing around after the 3rd week. I'll just "teach" her when the opportunity comes. Maybe 2 years old is just not ready for school yet. Or maybe the "traditional-school-in- a-home-setting -set-up" is just not for us (yet).

After a few months of totally no scheduled homeschooling, our little one started saying and doing these:

"Mama, look, other M." -03102014
(as of press time, she said, "M and double U.")

"Mama, same letter B" -03122014

"Mama, I make same letter H." -03232014

Hallelujah!

I thought she is not learning anything. She is actually really learning it, not just memorized but learn and understand even if you put these letters in different directions. 

I am, more than ever, convinced that:

1) Play is an important part of learning for little kids. Read more on Why Play-based Learning and Play Based Learning

2) Learning is not confined to four walls of a classroom (or flashcards, pen, paper and books). Read more on Education Outside the Classroom

3) Children (and adults) learn at their own pace and style. Read more on Your Child's Learning Style

 We just have to keep on providing her with a stimulating environment for her learning, growth and development.