Learn! Learn! Everywhere!

Not everyone can be a stay at home parent. I don't expect you to be. I am blessed to have a husband that works hard and makes enough money where I can stay at home during this time without causing financial struggles. I didn't plan on it, it just seemed right for me. Once I got pregnant, I knew without a doubt that what I needed to do. It was like a calling. I will admit I did feel shame. Shame that I had a college degree and a teaching certification that I would put aside to stay home. Shame knowing that there is a huge teacher shortage out there, especially in science, and yet I chose to stay home.

I truly believe that shame is what motivated me to give it my all in teaching my boys. You shouldn't feel what I felt. No one should. I turned it into fuel. Now my fuel has brought me to help others, both working parents, stay at home parents, or whatever you do.

Everywhere you go, you can teach your children. Grocery stores, shopping centers, library, gas station, park, etc. You may think there is some place you can't, but I will tell you that you are wrong. If you can see colors, letters, numbers, shapes, animals, food, plants, bugs, if you're there, or anything along those lines. You can teach. See? Impossible.

When you are shopping for clothes or groceries, or waiting in line somewhere, use your environment to teach. A menu is full of letters in a restaurant. Most provide a child menu with crayons. Use that! Ask them questions, engage your child in activities that would normally cause them to fuss or easily get bored doing. You'll notice you can go more places and do more things with your child when you make it a game.

Remember I SPY? Call out letters you see, colors, pictures of things, textures (soft, shiny, or rough), animals, vehicles, etc. Push the cart closer if they can't find it, wave your hand in the general direction, even find it yourself and act suprised when you find it. Praise them even if the find it after you show it. They will feel encouraged and want to do it over and over again. As they advance, or if they are already ahead of that, you can always make it to the level your child is. Call out words you see, "I spy the word room," or "I see something that rhymes with toys." "I see the number 4," or I see two numbers that add up to "25."

My four year old just started PreK and has been reading since he was two. Just to start at what he knows, he already reads at a second and third grade level and does addition problems. Everywhere we go, he still asks to play those games and he and his brother love it. To be honest, I have gotten so used to it that even whenever I am without them, I catch myself looking around to find things to spy to quiz my kids.

Try it out with your kids, and don't be afraid to reward them. High praise is always good, but incentives of a favorite snack or special activity due to participation and/or good effort will encourage their joy of learning.