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Amazon Toucan Study Guide for Kids Who Love Animals

January 15, 2025 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I have an Amazon toucan study guide. Also, look at my pages Rain Forest – Animals of the Amazon, Rain Forest – Amazon, and Rainforest Activities for Kids for more ideas.

My study guides are the best bite size chunks of information for various topics.

You’ll want to use books alongside the guide to learn about birds and the Amazon toucans.

Amazon Toucan Study Guide for Kids Who Love Animals at Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

But one of the best things about my toucan study guide is that important information is highlighted.

Not all kids like the dense amount of information on topics found in books.

So use the study guides alone or as part of a deeper dive into the world of toucans.

BOOKS ABOUT TOUCANS FOR KIDS

First, look at some of these books about toucans.

8 Books about Toucans

Add some of these books about these fascinating birds to your home library.

Explore My World Rain Forests

Drip, drop. Rain falls softly on the forest canopy. You peer into the mist. What wild creatures emerge? In this charming picture book, curious kids will learn all about the majesty of the rain forest, from jungle predators to colorful treetop birds to plants that thrive in this lush landscape.

Toucans

This book introduces readers to the large-billed bird of the rain forest: the toucan. Readers learn about the life cycle, behavior, physical characteristics, and habitat of toucans. Vivid photographs and easy-to-read text aid comprehension for early readers. Features include a table of contents, an infographic, fun facts, Making Connections questions, a glossary, and an index. QR Codes in the book give readers access to book-specific resources to further their learning.

All the Birds in the World

What makes a bird a bird? All birds have feathers, wings, and beaks. But birds come in many varieties of colors, shapes, and sizes, with different habits and homes. Take a beautifully illustrated journey -- with an adorable kiwi bird as your guide -- through the vast and colorful world of birds, with its tapestry of textures, sounds, and sights. Even the kiwi chick -- who struggles to see at first how he fits in -- finds that he too belongs to this fascinating family of feathered friends.

Toucans (Elementary Explorers)

An interesting and informative look into the life and behavior of toucans for young readers.This book covers the physical characteristics, habitat, family life, behavior, and conservation of toucans.

Bird Feathers: A Guide to North American Species

Over 400 photos of representative feathers from 379 species

How to identify not only what bird a feather came from but also what kind of feather it is

Range maps and wing type given for each bird
This guide teaches birders to use the characteristics of wing types and feather morphology to identify feathers--not only by species but also by their place on the bird's body.

Toucans: A Comprehensive Guide to Toucans and Their Impact Throughout History

Have you ever paid attention to the Toucan? I hadn't until I was on vacation in Costa Rica and became captivated by this beautiful bird one morning as it was perched in a tree just a few feet away from me while drinking coffee. This experience would lead me to a much deeper curiosity that would later evolve into an obsession with learning everything I could about its history and impact on surrounding cultures. Upon returning home, I spent hours researching all the information I could find about this bird from its history to taxonomy to science. It is merged into one place to make it easy to see the beauty of the Toucan through the eyes of the early naturalists to now. The information will both educate and surprise you. The pictures will amaze you to the beauty that exists in our rainforests just a short plane ride to Central and South America.

Toucan Chicks

In Toucan Chicks, emergent readers learn how baby toucans grow up in the rain forest and use their large, colorful beaks to eat.

Mystery of the Troubled Toucan:

Nine-year-old Sofia Diaz’s world is coming apart. So is the rickety old boat that carries her far up the Rio Negro river in Brazil. Crocodiles swim in the dark waters. Spiders scurry up the twisted tree trunks. And a crazy toucan screeches a warning. It chases Sofia and Júlia, her new friend, deep into the steamy rainforest. There they stumble upon a shocking discovery.

Next look at these topical study guides.

MORE STUDY GUIDES FOR KIDS

Horse Study Guide For Kids Who Love Animals
Narwhal Study Guide
Penguin Study Guide
Flamingo Study Guide

And then look at these hands-on activities to include for studying about toucans.

Amazon Toucan Study Guide for Kids Who Love Animals

Then, look at what’s inside the toucan study guide.

ABOUT THE AMAZON TOUCAN STUDY GUIDE

This printable is a 31 page pdf. Look at some of the topics

What are toucans
Toucan species
Anatomy of a toucan
Toucan life cycle
Habitat and environment
Diet and feeding habits
Communication and behavior
Role in the Rainforest ecosystem
Conservation and threats
Toucan food activity
Anatomy of a toucan activity
Life cycle activity
Name the toucan activity
Quiz time activity
Fill in the blanks activity
True or false activity

HOW TO GET THE TOUCAN PRINTABLE INFORMATION PACKET

You can get it now!

TOS
Important: READ THIS FIRST.
Before you email me asking where your download link is or tell me that it is not working, read this to ensure that you get your pretties timely and that you don’t pay for something and not get it.
• All my products are digital. You will not receive a physical product for anything in my store. A digital physical year calendar does not mean a physical product or calendar.
• Downloads are INSTANT. When you pay, you will receive an email with a download link INSTANTLY. Depending on your internet connection, the email could be just 30 seconds or so, or a bit longer. The point is it will be soon, not a week later,etc.
• The email with the download link will go to the email you used for paypal. If you used your husband’s paypal, your downloads will go to that email. Please check that email and your spam before emailing me telling me you can’t find it.
• Please put my email tina @ tinasdynamichomeschoolplus dot com (of course substitute the right symbol for dot) in your address/contact list so that your product does not go to spam.

Dynamic and Amazing Toucan Study Guide For Young Learners
$4.00 Add to cart

How to Make an Easy Build a Snowman Kid’s Game (free printable cube)

January 14, 2025 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I have a build a snowman free printable game. Also, look at my pages Winter Season Unit Study Free Lapbook & Hands-On Ideas.

Whether you’re looking for a fun activity to do indoors to keep ~~you~~ the kids from going stir crazy or looking for an easy activity to go with a winter unit study, you’ll love this build a snowman kid’s game.

How to Make an Easy Build a Snowman Kid's Game (free printable cube)

Also, reading aloud while your kids play is a great way to add in some facts about winter.

For example, we love living books.

When possible, we prefer to read them over how to books.

And for this theme of snowman, you’ll want to add a few story books.

BOOKS ABOUT WINTER FOR KIDS

13 Snow, Snowman, Animals, and Winter Books

Add one or more of these books to your learning day if you're learning about snow, snowflakes, winter or just for fun.

Winter Cottage

Immerse Yourself in This Story of Love and Companionship Amidst Deprivation

It is the fall of 1930, and America has plunged into the Great Depression. On a remote dirt road deep in the snowy woods of northern Wisconsin, misfortune forces the impoverished Sparkes family to take desperate measures.

A wayfaring quartet consisting of thirteen-year-old Araminta (nicknamed Minty), her recently unemployed father-a poetry-quoting widower called Pops-and her younger sister, Eglantine (known as Eggs-a dreamer like Pops), and their dog, Buster, are on their way to Minneapolis to live with the curmudgeonly Aunt Amy. When their car breaks down and they are unable to fix it, the homeless four stumble upon a vacant summer cottage by a lake. In desperate straits, they decide to settle in.

1. The Story of Snow: The Science of Winter's Wonder

How do snow crystals form? What shapes can they take? Are no two snow crystals alike? These questions and more are answered inside this exploration of the science of snow, featuring photos of real snow crystals in all their beautiful diversity. Perfect for reading on winter days, this book by a nature photographer and a snow scientist will inspire wonder and curiosity about the marvels of snow.

2. Sneezy the Snowman

B-R-R-R-R! AH-CHOO! Sneezy the Snowman is cold, cold, cold. To warm up, he drinks cocoa, sits in a hot tub, stands near a warm fire–and melts! But the children know just what to do to build him up again–and make him feel “just right”.

3. Snowmen at Night

Have you ever built a snowman and discovered the next day that his grin has gotten a little crooked, or his tree-branch arms have moved? And you've wondered . . . what do snowmen do at night? This delightful wintertime tale reveals all!

4. The Biggest Snowman Ever

When the mayor of Mouseville announces the town snowman contest, Clayton and Desmond claim that they will each make the biggest snowman ever. But building a huge snowman alone is hard! They work and work, but their snowmen just aren't big enough. Soon they have an idea. As the day of the contest approaches, Clayton and Desmond join forces to build the biggest snowman ever.

5. Over and Under the Snow

Over the snow, the world is hushed and white. But under the snow lies a secret world of squirrels and snow hares, bears and bullfrogs, and many other animals making their winter home under the snow. This beloved nonfiction picture book exploring the subnivean zone reveals the tunnels and caves formed beneath the snow but over the ground, where many kinds of animals live through the winter, safe and warm, awake and busy, but hidden beneath the snow.

A Hat for Minerva Louise

"Stoeke's second book about that intrepid screwball, Minerva Louise, is a rare find."—The Horn Book, starred review. The other chickens hate snowy mornings. But not Minerva Louise! To her a snowy day—like everything else—is an adventure. But this chilly, chipper hen needs something to keep her warm. What she finds—and how she finds it—will keep young readers cackling.

6. How to Catch a Snowman

Our heroes' entry for the snowman contest has magically come to life―and ran away! Can YOU help catch it? Get ready for snow much fun as you travel through a winter wonderland with running, skating, and bouncing through trap after trap to catch the snowman and claim the winning prize. Will the snowman teach our heroes a lesson they'll never forget?

The Big Snow

When the geese begin to fly south, the leaves flutter down from the trees and the cold winds begin to blow from the north, the animals of the woods and meadows, big and small, prepare for the long, cold winter ahead when the countryside is hidden under a deep blanket of snow. They gather food and look for warm, snug places in the ground, trees, caves or thickets, where they can find protection against the icy winds.It might have been hard for the birds and animals of the hillside to survive when the Big Snow came if their good friends, who lived in the little stone house, had not remembered to put food out for them.Here, in many beautiful pictures, the Haders show how winter comes to the woodland as the busy animals make their preparations.

7. Curious About Snow (Smithsonian)

The Smithsonian does things right and this Curious About Snow book is a
great introduction for curious kiddos with real images and simple explanations.

8. Animals in Winter

This is a clear and appealing book for early elementary age kids, both at home and in the classroom. Introduce kids to basic science ideas as part of discussions about the seasons and animals.

9. Arctic Figurines, Including A Harp Seal, Husky, Caribou, Arctic Rabbit, Killer Whale, Walrus, Arctic Fox, Beluga Whale, Igloo, And Polar Bear

SET OF 10 FUN AND FRIGID FIGURES – It’s hard to stay warm at the North Pole, but you can discover its wonders in your home with these frigid friends. This TOOB includes a Harp Seal, Husky, Caribou, Arctic Rabbit, Killer Whale, Walrus, Arctic Fox, Beluga Whale, Igloo, and Polar Bear.

10. Nature Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of the Natural World

See the world in a whole new way! Acclaimed illustrator Julia Rothman combines art and science in this exciting and educational guide to the structure, function, and personality of the natural world. Explore the anatomy of a jellyfish, the inside of a volcano, monarch butterfly migration, how sunsets work, and much more. Rothman’s whimsical illustrations are paired with interactive activities that encourage curiosity and inspire you to look more closely at the world all around you.

Next, look at ways to play the snowman game.

BUILD A SNOWMAN GAME PLAYING IDEAS

This game can actually be done many different ways depending on the ages of your kids.

Look at these suggestions below on how to do this latest fun activity I have for you.

Roll the cube, and have an older child cut out cardboard and draw, color or paint each piece as he builds the snowman.
Roll the cube, and have a younger child cut out card stock and draw, color or paint each piece as he builds the snowman.
Print two pictures of the cube or die on card stock. Have your child cut out the pictures on one cube and glue the pictures on cardboard or paper. Use another cube for game playing.
To teach a preschooler shapes, make the snowman parts different shapes. Octagon for the body, circles for the buttons and cone for the nose will have him practicing geometry skills.
Of course, you can just have the child color the picture as he rolls that part of the snowman on the cube.
Another easy tip is to cut out the snowman on the download below and put him back together as your child rolls the cube.

Grab this FUN and FREE How to Make an Easy Build a Snowman Kid's Game (with free printable cube). It’s a great activity for a winter unit study to keep the kids busy.

Next look at more snowman fun.

MORE SNOWMAN ACTIVITIES

Snowman Kid’s Game

Although a game like this is fun, it also teaches many skills.

Preschoolers strengthen fine motor skills by both coloring and cutting.

In addition, you can expand this game by writing down words that correspond to the pictures on the cube.

And children learn to take turns as they play together.

Another way to make this game fun for your artsy kids is to have them roll the cube and draw their own parts for the snowman and build it as they go along.

Designing their own snowman builds creativity and strengthens the imagination.

A game like building a snowman is also a fun activity to do with a group of kids in a homeschool co-op.

Each kid can design their own snowman and learn to play together.

One more idea is to have your children work together to build a giant snowman on butcher block paper.

Collaboration is a skill that a child uses on to high school.

HOW TO GET THE FREE SNOWMAN PRINTABLE PAGE AND CUBE

Now, how to grab the freebie. It’s a subscriber freebie.

That means when you sign up to follow me, you get my emails in your inbox and you get this freebie.

1) CLICK HERE ON THIS LINK TO SIGN UP ON MY EMAIL LIST & TO GET THIS FREEBIE.

2) Grab the freebie now.

3) Last, look for all my emails in your inbox. Glad to have you following me!

What ideas do you have for building a snowman?

Horse Study Guide For Kids Who Love Animals

December 19, 2024 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Today I have a horse study guide for your kids who love animals. Also, look at my page Free Horse Unit Study for Your Horse Loving Kids.

If you want a fun place to start with introducing horses, you’ll love this fun horse study guide.

My horse study guides give your children a way to learn independently.

Horse Study Guide For Kids Who Love Animals

Besides covering various horse topics, there are a few activities included.

For example, my study guide covers topics, from the anatomy of a horse to how to care for them.

Besides, this allows your child to be as hands-on or hands-off as he wants to be when learning.

Also, I’ve included more hands-on horse activities at the bottom.

First, here are some books to add to your child’s reading day.

BOOKS ABOUT HORSES FOR KIDS

We prefer living books.

So, when I find them, I add them to our reading list.

9 Books and Resources for Horse Loving Kids

Whether you add a book or two to use as a spine for your study or just for fun, your horse loving kids will enjoy them.

Homeschooling With Horses

A Homeschooling Journal for Horse Lovers! 365 Lessons and Activities. This Journal has a special focus on learning through logic and creativity!! It also covers every required subject! Perfect for 2nd to 4th grade, but fun for all ages.

This is the perfect Fun-Schooling Journal for students who love horses!

There are 365 activities in this book, and you can require your student to use 1, 5 or 10 pages per day, along with 6 library books, and your favorite math, history and science curriculum. You are free to use it any way you wish. That is the joy of fun-schooling with Thinking Tree Books.

Knowing Horses: Q&As to Boost Your Equine IQ

Did you know that a miniature horse weighs just a few pounds, while a giant draft horse can weigh well over a ton? Or that from a standstill a mule can jump, kangaroo-like, more than five feet high? With answers to hundreds of questions about behavior, physiology, training, and special breed characteristics, Knowing Horses has all your horse quandaries covered.

Horses: The Clearest Recognition Guide Available

This book is designed for all those who love horses. Tracing the evolution of equines, this guide also explains the difference between horses and ponies, looks at how different breeds evolved or were selectively developed, and examines equine anatomy and behavior. Packed with 250 vivid full-color photographs of more than 100 horse-breeds, it uses a systematic approach from Dorling Kindersley and the Smithsonian Institution to train readers of all experience levels to identify and appreciate the wide variety of horses in the world.

Farm Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of Country Life

Learn the difference between a farrow and a barrow, and what distinguishes a weanling from a yearling. Country and city mice alike will delight in Julia Rothman’s charming illustrated guide to the curious parts and pieces of rural living. Dissecting everything from the shapes of squash varieties to how a barn is constructed and what makes up a beehive to crop rotation patterns, Rothman gives a richly entertaining tour of the quirky details of country life.

Horse Life: The Ultimate Guide to Caring for and Riding Horses for Kids

The complete beginner’s guide to horses and riding for kids 8 to 12

This ultimate guide to horses for kids teaches you all about the basics of equine care―from anatomy to housing to bathing and feeding. Whether you’re just starting out or already have a horse of your own, you’ll learn how to ride, how to stay safe around horses, and how to develop a healthy and friendly relationship with them.

Black Beauty

Black Beauty by Anna Sewell. Black Beauty is a perennial children's favourite, one which has never been out of print since its publication in 1877. It is a moralistic tale of the life of the horse related in the form of an autobiography, describing the world through the eyes of the creature. In taking this anthropomorphic approach, the author Anna Sewell broke new literary ground and her effective storytelling ability makes it very easy for the reader to accept the premise that a horse is recounting the exploits in the narrative. The gentle thoroughbred, Black Beauty, is raised with care and is treated well until a vicious groom injures him. The damaged horse is then sold to various masters at whose hands he experiences cruelty and neglect. After many unpleasant episodes, including one where he becomes a painfully overworked cab horse in London, Black Beauty finally canters towards a happy ending

Misty of Chincoteague

Marguerite Henry’s beloved story of a wild horse’s gentle colt—winner of a Newbery Honor!On the island of Chincoteague, off the coasts of Virginia and Maryland, lives a centuries-old band of wild ponies. Among them is the most mysterious of all, Phantom, a rarely-seen mare that eludes all efforts to capture her—that is, until a young boy and girl lay eyes on her and determine that they can’t live without her.

Breyer Freedom Series National Velvet Horse and Book Set

Horse and book set: National velvet is Enid Bagnold's unforgettable tale of a horse-loving girl with aspirations of jumping Glory. A story about perusing dreams and taking chances, National velvet follows the adventures of 14-year-old velvet Brown.

The Complete Horse Anatomy Colouring Workbook- Master Equine Anatomy By Colouring and Labeling

Whether you are a veterinary nurse or student preparing for an exam or just an ordinary horse lover seeking to learn more about this amazing domestic animal called ‘horse’ this colouring workbook is for YOU!

This book has been designed and structured to make you learn horse A&P easily and effortlessly. By colouring the images contained in this book, you will easily make visual associations with key terminologies and concepts.

Also, look at some hands-on activities.

MORE HORSE ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS

Look at adding these activities to this fun study guide.

Additionally, look at more information about this study guide.

ABOUT THE HORSE STUDY GUIDE

This printable packet is a 102 page printable pdf download.

Here are some of the topics included.

What is a horse
Horse Life Cycle
Caring for a horse
Equipment for horses
Parts of a saddle
Horses in history
Horses on the farm
Hooves
Wild horses
Pony vs horse
Donkey vs horse
Zebra vs horse
Arabian, Mustangs, Thoroughbreds, American Quarter, Appaloosa, American Paint, Clydesdale, Friesian, Morgan, Tennessee Walking, Shire, Percheron, Gypsy Vanner, Andalusian, and Shetland Pony
Breed matching, sorting and matching activities
Horse quiz activity
Bingo activity
Name the horse activity
Anatomy of a horse hoof activity
Horse life cycle activity
Horse care matching
Parts of a saddle activity
Equipment I Spy activity

HOW TO GET THE HORSE PRINTABLE INFORMATION PACKET

You can get it now!

• All my products are digital. You will not receive a physical product for anything in my store. A digital physical year calendar does not mean a physical product or calendar.
• Downloads are INSTANT. When you pay, you will receive an email with a download link INSTANTLY. Depending on your internet connection, the email could be just 30 seconds or so, or a bit longer. The point is it will be soon, not a week later,etc.
• The email with the download link will go to the email you used for paypal. If you used your husband’s paypal, your downloads will go to that email. Please check that email and your spam before emailing me telling me you can’t find it.
• Please put my email tina @ tinasdynamichomeschoolplus dot com (of course substitute the right symbol for dot) in your address/contact list so that your product does not go to spam.

Dynamic and Amazing Horse Study Guide For Young Learners
$5.95 Add to cart

Free Printable Kindergarten Worksheets | Awesome Winter-Themed Alphabet Scavenger Hunt

December 1, 2024 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Today, I’m sharing free printable kindergarten worksheets and a fun winter alphabet scavenger hunt. Also, look at my page Kindergarten Homeschool Curriculum for more fun ideas and activities.

Although I’m a huge advocate of hands-on but beginning penmanship skills need to be reinforced too.

So a worksheet or two should be another tool we have to boost alphabet and phonics recognition.

Free Printable Kindergarten Worksheets | Awesome Winter-Themed Alphabet Scavenger Hunt

One way of doing that is by themed worksheets.

By focusing on a theme or unit study children are engaged with a topic while learning about the alphabet.

Then, another way to nurture penmanship skills is to play a game.

For example, with my printable winter themed alphabet scavenger hunt kids are doing both.

They’re enlarging their vocabulary with winter themed words and practice writing skills by noting things they find in the scavenger hunt.

BEST PHONICS FOR KINDERGARTEN

Next, along with learning the alphabet it’s important first to teach kids sounds that letters represent.

Through games and books, it makes teaching phonics easy.

11 Best Phonics for Homeschool Kindergarten

Teaching kids how to read doesn't have to be hard, you just have to have the right tools.

You'll love these phonics resources.

Photo Credit: www.allaboutlearningpress.com

All About Reading Level 1

Package includes: one Teacher's Manual, one Student Packet, and three readers

Evan-Moor Daily Phonics, Grade 2, Homeschooling, Phonemic Awareness, Decoding, Word-Study, Teaching Editions, Reproducible Worksheets

Provide explicit, systematic phonics instruction and practice in just 15 to 20 minutes a day!

Daily Phonics, Grade 2 helps students in second gradeincluding students learning Englishdevelop the phonics skills necessary to become proficient, on-grade-level readers.

The 32 weekly units in grade 2 cover:

Photo Credit: www.starfall.com

Welcome to Starfall PreK & Kindergarten

Starfall.com® opened in September 2002 as a free public service to teach children to read.

Since then it has expanded to include language arts and mathematics for preschool, kindergarten, first grade, second grade, and third grade.

Starfall’s emphasis on phonemic awareness, systematic sequential phonics, and common sight words in conjunction with audiovisual interactivity has proven effective in teaching emergent readers

Explode the Code 4 Books

Explode the Code is a research-based, multisensory program geared to improving literacy with direct, systematic, phonics instruction.

Photo Credit: www.progressivephonics.com

Progressive Phonics

Progressive Phonics all-in-one reading program that is easy, fun, and totally FREE---that's right, totally and completely free.

And with Progressive Phonics, ANYONE can teach a child to read and write in just a few minutes a day, which makes it ideal for parents, teachers, tutors, volunteers and home-schoolers.

Photo Credit: www.opensourcephonics.org

Open Source Phonics

Free Phonics Materials for Teachers, Tutors, and Families Literacy is a civil right. The research supporting phonics is too strong to ignore. All families deserve access to high-quality phonics materials.

Foundations by Logic of English

Help you child learn to read and spell - while having fun. Teachers and parents are raving about it! This first step in the Logic of English Foundations series opens the door to reading with phonemic
awareness activities, fun lessons that practice the sounds of a-z, and creative blending games

Horizons K Phonics and Reading

Prepare your child for a lifetime of reading and successful learning with the Horizons Kindergarten Phonics & Reading Student Book 1 from Alpha Omega Publications.

Photo Credit: winterpromise.com

Early Language Arts Overview - WinterPromise

Adventures in Pine Hollow is designed to engage students so thoroughly that whether they can’t wait to read or would rather wait forever, they are pulled into a forest world, where they join critter adventures and forget there’s learning going on!

First Start Reading, Book A

First Start Reading covers consonants, short and long vowels, 45 common words, and manuscript
printing, accompanied by artist-drawn coloring pictures and drawing pages for every letter.

Alpha-Phonics Primer

Mr. Blumenfeld created Alpha-Phonics (spiral-bound) to provide parents, teachers and tutors with a sensible, logical, easy-to-use system for teaching reading. It is an intensive phonics instruction
program based on the author's many years of research and experience in the reading instruction field

Additionally, you need a variety of ways to teach the alphabet not just worksheets.

I’ve uses games, songs, art and even dance.

8 WAYS TO TEACH PHONICS OF THE ALPHABET

Look at this list of easy ways to teach the alphabet for your kindergarten size kids.

Play a is for apple and d is for dog as you spend time throughout the day.
Kids love sensory trays. It promotes tactile learning. So use a sensory tray to dig for the letters of the alphabet or to find items to match a letter. Even place items for 2 different letters in the tray. Have your child match the item to the correct letter sound.
Scavenger hunts encourage moving which is a natural part of learning at this age. Don’t fight the need to wiggle. Use the need to move while locating things around the house or better yet outside to fit the letter sound you’re focused on.
Along with the printable kindergarten worksheets, read story books like Chicka Chicka Boom and Dr. Seuss’s ABC.
Songs and dance also allows kids to move and learn.
Some kids love to color letter worksheets.
Too tracing letters is another way to engage senses. Kids can do this with their finger.
Use edible peanut butter dough to form letter. Doesn’t hurt if your kids take a taste or two as long as they have no allergies.

Also, look at these free printable kindergarten worksheets.

FREE PRINTABLE KINDERGARTEN WORKSHEETS

Finally, look at how to grab the free winter themed scavenger hunt for kindergarten.

HOW TO GET THE FREE WINTER THEMED SCAVENGER HUNT

Now, how to grab the freebie. It’s a subscriber freebie.

That means when you sign up to follow me, you get my emails in your inbox and you get this freebie.

1) CLICK HERE ON THIS LINK TO SIGN UP ON MY EMAIL LIST & TO GET THIS FREEBIE.

2) Grab the freebie now.

3) Last, look for all my emails in your inbox. Glad to have you following me!

Transitioning from Public School to Homeschool For a Relaxed Lifestyle

November 10, 2024 | 2 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

It’s not easy transitioning from public school to homeschool. Also, look at my page The Dynamics of How to Homeschool Easily and Smarter for more tips and resources.

Afraid of messing up their child for life, new homeschoolers feel that having a strict schedule and having school from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. is the road to homeschooling success.

Transitioning from Public School to Homeschool For a Relaxed Lifestyle

New homeschoolers transitioning from a public school mindset to a relaxed homeschooling lifestyle have a hard time wrapping their minds around the concept of relaxed homeschooling.

I admit I was one of those homeschoolers. Relaxed was one shade off from lazy. I was quite judgmental. It was ugly and I admit it!

Unless I kept my boys busy with a schedule every part of their learning day, we would not be meeting my standards for success so I thought.

From Relaxed to Rejuvenated Homeschooling

First, look at some of these books about homeschooling.

5 BEST How to Homeschool Books

I've rounded up some of the best books to help you get started homeschooling.

Homeschooling for New Homeschoolers: When You Don't Know Where to Begin

Homeschooling 31 Day Boot Camp for New Homeschoolers is a real eye-opener on homeschooling. It will alleviate a lot of the anxieties about getting started homeschooling. Reading each chapter’s highlights will give you encouragement, knowledge, guidance, and peace of mind to homeschool with confidence. The best part is that you’ll be educating the person who loves your kids the most in this world--YOU! Armed with the knowledge to make better choices in curriculum will empower you to continue the path of home education. Unlike many books based on one family’s experience, Homeschooling 31 Day Boot Camp for New Homeschoolers is also based on Tina’s many years of mentoring hundreds and hundreds of new homeschoolers at live workshops. When you don’t know where to begin Homeschooling 31 Day Boot Camp for New Homeschoolers equips you to successfully homeschool your children.

The Unhurried Homeschooler

Homeschooling is a wonderful, worthwhile pursuit, but many homeschool parents struggle with feelings of burnout and frustration. If you have ever felt this way, you’re not alone! Most of us need to be reminded of the “why” of homeschooling from time to time—but "The Unhurried homeschooler" takes parents a step further and lifts the unnecessary burdens that many parents place on themselves.

Teaching from Rest: A Homeschooler's Guide to Unshakable Peace

Those who have made the decision to homeschool their children have done so out of great love for their children and a desire to provide them an excellent education in the context of a warm, enriching home.

The Brave Learner: Finding Everyday Magic in Homeschool, Learning, and Life

Parents who are deeply invested in their children's education can be hard on themselves and their kids. When exhausted parents are living the day-to-day grind, it can seem impossible to muster enough energy to make learning fun or interesting. How do parents nurture a love of learning amid childhood chaos, parental self-doubt, the flu, and state academic standards?

Unschooled: Raising Curious, Well-Educated Children Outside the Conventional Classroom

Education has become synonymous with schooling, but it doesn’t have to be. As schooling becomes increasingly standardized and test driven, occupying more of childhood than ever before, parents and educators are questioning the role of schooling in society. Many are now exploring and creating alternatives.

It can take years to embody the definition of relaxed homeschooling.

Some homeschoolers even confuse relaxed with unschooling. Because they may want to follow more structure, they’re hesitant about adopting relaxed homeschooling.

Don’t wait years and miss out on adding the vital element of relaxation to your day.

Take a look at some of these points that will help to hone the definition of relaxed homeschooling.

Relaxed homeschooling works with every approach.

Relaxed homeschooling is not an approach, but it is a lifestyle.

This means that you don’t have to give up your homeschooling approach, but it does mean that whatever homeschool approach you follow, it needs to be examined.

For example, determine how you can make your approach more relaxed and less rigid.

Transitioning from a Public School Mindset

If you follow a unit study approach, can you make it more relaxed by doing math all together one day?

Normally, math is not a subject that can be done with multiple ages, but you want to find a way to step back. Relaxed means to rejuvenate your day. Choose one day and read a living math book to all your children.

Instead of focusing on the math worksheet you missed for the day, focus on the feeling that math becomes a subject that a child can love instead of dread.

If you follow the classical method of homeschooling, can your language arts one day be about each child narrating back a story he loves?

Transitioning from a Public School Mind-Set to a Relaxed Homeschooling Lifestyle @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Forget the physical act of writing one day and encourage your children to use their vocabulary building skills by using new vocabulary in an oral story telling setting.

If you follow the Charlotte Mason method of homeschooling, can music involvement for the day be a physical act of interpretation like dancing?

Some of this will obviously depend on the ages of your children. Anytime kids can act out something to be learned, it was more memorable and captivating.

Define what is education for your family.

One of the first things you want to do when starting is to define what is education for your family. Does it include art, living books, textbooks, hands-on learning, life skills or all of them?

Beyond thinking about worksheets, most new homeschoolers don’t give pause for even a moment to look clearly beyond the present to the future.

The importance of this cannot be stressed enough.

Learning should not be just about filling a child’s head with knowledge, but it should be a part of living that is delightful and pursued lifelong. It’s about equipping a child for adulthood.

How will your family do that in a relaxed atmosphere?

Look beyond how things are presently done either in public school or in your present homeschooling journey to see what YOU want to change to make it better for your children.

Jump headfirst into understanding your child’s learning style.

No matter how much I talked to one homeschool mom whose present homeschooling approach was not working with her son, she was not going to change.

She was just sure there was something wrong with her child.

There was — he didn’t learn how she thought he should. Really, the problem was her.

Tears and fighting followed and she made her homeschooling journey one miserable day after the other because she refused to change her teaching style.

When our child’s learning style doesn’t mesh with our predetermined way of teaching, are we willing to change our teaching style?

How to Kill Boring Homeschooling Days

Relaxed homeschooling means to change the way we think homeschooling should be and make it fit our child.

I had one son who loved textbooks and workbooks because some subjects he preferred to learn that way.

I have another son who cried in agony when he glanced at a textbook.

Should I think that I had less rigorous standards with my second son because I added in living books and more hands-on? Was that just fun or was it relaxed for him?

Brow beating our children to make them accept our teaching style instead of accepting them as they come, pre-wired to learn in a certain way, never worked.

Finding what is best for your child is relaxed homeschooling.

Relaxed homeschooling means that we accept when changes have to be made in our homeschooling.

Changing our homeschool approach and giving up curriculum when it’s not obviously working for our family while not stressing out over the price we paid for it are signs that we have softened in our homeschool journey.

Can you think of other ways where you can introduce a more relaxed attitude into your every day?