I wish every week were kindergarten week! We had so much fun. Take a look at the projects we did and listen to how I scheduled our week. While I only allotted one week for our activities, we needed two weeks plus one day. Either we’ll always break for two weeks for our kindergarten schedule or as we find our rhythm, we’ll get used to just taking one week every 4-6 weeks.
We departed from our regular schedule (except my 9th grader) and focused on Waldorf inspired kindergarten activities. My 5th grader participated in ‘Kindergarten Week’, too. He still likes these activities and would otherwise be distracted if I had encouraged him to continue with his daily work.
When scheduling a week like this I was quickly reminded the tremendous amount of prep and clean-up time. No sooner had we finished an activity, my five-year old was asking what was next. I admit there were moments I was a little exasperated. ‘Hang on child!” I would say. But then I realized how much she had been missing out and how much she was soaking up the attention and activities. There was a fair amount of playing while I set up and tidied up each project. I was needed to be present for every activity, so this was a very hand-on week for all involved.
Of course, there are still meals to cook and chores to be done. We also had some unexpected guests visit on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, plus our KG co-op is on Wednesday, so it’s no surprise that our scheduled activities took two weeks. We also added an outing to the library on Thursday that was spontaneous, but on our way to the fabric store where we needed to go to buy fabric for our crayon case project.
I was so pleased with our two-week KG adventure, I can’t wait to do another one. Though our next KG week will undoubtedly reflect the changing season.
To see the complete list of activities, check them out on my website at the blog post that accompanies this video. The blog post includes pictures as well as links to all the video tutorials we shot during our KG week.
Check out what we’re up to in our homeschool by finding me on Instagram.
https://youtu.be/EuSdisqsKyI
Your blog is a treasure!
Thank you from my heart
God bless you and your family
Allah yjzaky kel khair ya rab w ykteb ajrek
Oh Hana … how I wish you could post more about Kinder. I have a 5 years old, a 3 years old and an 11 months old Alhamdulelah. I remember watching this video years ago … it felt comforting watching it again.
ASA Hana- Thanks so much for your helpful posts. I’m looking at a K level Waldorf Summer curriculum sample and it is about having kids leave things out for the “fairies”. That’s a bit much for me and I don’t want to trick my kids into believing in something that doesn’t exist (similar concept as santa and the tooth fairy). Is the majority of the material in the Waldorf curriculum for Kinder level filled with fantasy? If so, I don’t want to invest $400 + into purchasing it. Thank you for your advice! Below is an example:
Fairy Gifts
On Midsummer night, children can put little cakes or hand made gifts out for the fairies. Help them chose a lovely spot in the garden or woods where they feel the fairies especially like to come. The children wake in the morning to find their gifts are gone and in their place is a special treasure for them from the fairies such as a crystal or tiny fairy doll.
Hi Zuhra, I am no expert in Waldorf education. And I can understand when you say the fairies bit. But trust me if you read more about it and just try it once, you will understand that it is immensely comforting to the kids. And trust me when they turn 7 , they will automatically move on from the fairy world. Its not tricking the children. Its what makes sense to them. Logic and information is not for kindergarten children. I also laughed at this idea initially. But when I kept my bias aside and tried it, I was amazed how beautifully it works! No, it doesn’t rob the kids off their logic and make them any less scientific.