Now that Nora is two, I’ve begun to realize that she is need of some more structured activities and intentional learning time. As a previous teacher, I know how important these early years can be in helping our children grow and learn more about the world around them, but I’m also a big proponent of letting kids be kids and not trying to force things too soon. It’s why I loved teaching at a school that used the Charlotte Mason Method, and wanted to find something similar to use with Nora at home.
As I began to search for something that would meet my criteria of adding structure and providing a challenge but not being too intensive or complicated, I stumbled upon the Flowering Baby curriculum. Flowering Baby uses “a whole child developmental approach” for children from birth to the age of five. This program was designed by a mother/daughter team to help parents and teachers nurture the development of the children in their care. The curriculum is broken down into five levels:
After receiving my curriculum (the two to three years) I was immediately impressed with what I saw. I found myself agreeing with all that I read in the introduction including this line that stuck out to me…
Children are very busy learning all the time and it only takes a few minutes a day to increase that
learning even more. Your child is naturally inquisitive and very active, so use that energy to
help him learn about his environment.
They give you a list of books, music, and supplies that you will need for the year, but also make sure to give you the freedom to replace any of these materials with ones you already own or you are more comfortable with. Since each child develops at different rates and has different needs, the author also encourages you to “scale back or push ahead as needed.”
The lessons are then broken down by month. Each month has 20 days of lessons for you to fit into your schedule as you can, and the focus is on repetition as it is the key way that children learn at this age. I loved that the activities they suggested were simple with things that are easily found around the house. Oh how this mommas loves and needs simple, especially with a newborn on the way! Here is an example of a typical day in the curriculum (this was taken from the very beginning of the two year old curriculum):
Day 20:
Language: Eat an F: fruit, Fig Newton or figs.
Math concepts: Count from 1 to 3. Play a board game.
Song/Rhyme of the day: “Itsy Bitsy Spider”
Music of the day: “Wee Sing” CD
Story of the day: Big Red Barn.
Color of the day: Red. Get a bag for today’s activity. Ask your child to take the bag and gather small red items from around the house and place them into the bag.
Shape of the day: Square. Play “I Spy” something square around the house or outside.
Other: Sensory box. If you don’t have a sensory box or sand box outside then you can make a small one for inside play. Use a shallow plastic bowl with a lid and pour sensory item inside (rice, dried beans or oatmeal) and let your child play. It is fun to use a few toys to see how the sensory item moves and changes. Note: always monitor your child when he is playing with sensory.
We have completed the first month and Nora has loved it! She is truly growing by leaps and bounds right before my eyes and it is so fun to have the opportunity to take part in this learning process with her!
Want to win your very own copy of the Flowering Baby Curriculum? Your in luck, because Martha and Carolyn are offering a copy (of your desired age group) to one lucky reader! Enter the giveaway below for a chance to win!
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*Burlington VT Moms Blog received compensation for this post, but the opinions expressed are entirely our own.
What an awesome learning tool. I would love to check this out with my sons!!
Very interesting.
This is such a wonderful idea. I love to read and sing to my two month old, so it would be great to learn other ways to teach her things.
Age two-three as my “baby” turns two today! 🙂
Always looking for new activities…nice to have ideas!
Looks interesting!