Emmie’s daycare shares a toddler home school schedule every week. I’ve been modifying them to fit our lifestyle. It’s tough to find this ‘at home’ routine especially because the end date is a moving target.
Scheduling
First things first, it’s been immensely helpful to set a schedule between Matt & I in terms of who’s on parenting duty. You can find my schedule here. We set blocks of time where we can work, rest, etc. When it comes to teaching and playing with Emmie, I’ve found that a checklist (instead of a set schedule) works really well for us.
Teaching goals while she’s home
I’m a goal kinda gal if you haven’t noticed… I set a few goals for myself while Emmie’s be home. I want to be overtly clear here – these goals are for me, not Emmie. Emmie will learn at her own pace. If she grasps all concepts, awesome. But it’s truly about exposure vs. being a know it all. My goals are:
- Count to 3
- Learn 4 colors, expose her to the rainbow
- Recognize 4 animals
- Talk about where her grandparents live
When I think about it as just those 4 buckets, it’s not too overwhelming. Plus, her daycare has been super helpful in making realistic lesson plans.
This Week: Colors!
Each day we’re focused on a different color. Throughout the day, I’m mindfully looking for the color and casually mentioning it to Emmie so it’s not a constant lesson. Also, her daycare classroom gets together every day in the morning to talk about one color.
- Monday: Red
- Tuesday: Yellow
- Wednesday: Blue
- Thursday: Green
- Friday: Purple
Each day, here’s what we follow:
- Read 3 books (total)
- Search for colors
- Go on a walk and talk about the color of the day
- Free play (occasionally talk about a color)
- Screen time (and mention colors)
From a true scheduling perspective, here’s what we tend to follow:
- 6:00 am: Quiet Seasame Street time
- 7:00 am: Breakfast and free play
- 8:30 am: Read a book/play a game
- 9:30 am: Hang out with Emmie’s daycare class
- 10:00 am: Outside walk/indoor free play
- 11:30 am: Lunch & play
- 12:30 pm: Nap
- 3:00 pm: Snack time
- 3:30 pm: Color activity with balloons
- 4:00 pm: Family walk
- 5:00 pm: Facetime grandparents
- 6:00 pm: Dinner
- 7:00 pm: Screen time
- 7:30 pm: Bedtime
I hope that helps, and would love any feedback on the schedule! Feel free to comment below!
Affectionately known to her friends as Millennial Martha for her love of DIY and decorating, Jen can’t help but pour her heart + soul into everything she touches. She’s loved to entertain since acquiring a table and chairs, and giving gifts is one of her favorite hobbies. Jen is the creator of Girl Meets Party. Her dream is to share her passions with the world in hopes to inspire others by making the seemingly unattainable attainable.
