Mama's Musings

Most kids love painting and drawing! Children are naturally curious, creative, and imaginative, and these traits are often expressed through their artwork. Painting and drawing allows children to express their emotions in a fun and engaging way. Art can help children develop important cognitive and motor skills that are critical to their overall development.

When it comes to art & craft, one of the most popular subjects among children is rainbows. Rainbows are vibrant, colourful, and full of energy, and they hold a special fascination for people of all ages. 

_{Photo credit: Taylor Heery (Unsplash)}

One reason why children enjoy painting rainbows is that they are visually stunning. By attempting to paint a rainbow, children are able to explore different colour combinations and learn about the colour spectrum in a fun and engaging way.

Another reason why children like to paint rainbows is that they represent hope and positivity. Rainbows are often associated with...

For many children, playing in mud is a natural and instinctual activity that brings joy and excitement. Unfortunately, in today's world, children are often discouraged from playing in the mud due to concerns about hygiene and cleanliness. However, research has shown that playing in mud can have numerous benefits for children, both in terms of their physical and mental health. Below are some of the reasons why children should be encouraged to play in mud.

_{Photo credit: Ellie Storms (Unsplash)}

Physical Benefits
Playing in mud is a great way for children to get some exercise and develop their gross motor skills. Mud is an unstable surface, which means that children have to use their muscles to balance and move around. This can help to develop their coordination, strength, and overall physical fitness. Additionally, playing in mud can help to improve their sensory skills, as they learn to use their senses to navigate the environment.

Mental Health Benefits
Playing in mud can also...

For those who follow us on social media, you'll have heard a bit about my consult services.  Over the past few months I've increased my availability and I've been seeing more families face-to-face as well as over the phone and via video calls.  You can book sessions here.

Before these sessions I like to know a little about your family, homeschool, and challenges and I'll usually collate some info and resources to bring to face to face sessions or email to online clients.  Each session normally lasts around an hour and I'll email most clients some follow up information or resources, or answer further questions afterwards.

I've had great feedback on this process and receive a lot of satisfaction through helping home educators feel more confident about the journey ahead.  Some families I meet with are at the very beginning - either with little ones or just leaving the school system, and some are in transition into the teen years, preparing for university, or...

We're finishing a human body unit study that has lasted many months and included lots of STEM activities from both My Creative Box and Kiwico, the 1998 BBC documentary series The Human Body, Magic School Bus episodes, lots of books, puzzles, games, and of course imaginative play as various health professionals who mostly use bandages and a stethoscope!  Mum gets a few minutes to lay on the couch as a patient of course! 

These activities were complimented by some Twinkl resources such as their My Body Activity Pack for Kids.  There are so many printable resources online to teach most themes, and we choose those which appeal to Zeah.  Mazes used to be the favourite, but wordsearches are becoming her most frequently requested activity sheets.

Zeah enjoyed some anatomy classes through Outschool where they built body parts such as the inner ear with playdough while learning facts about that body system.  Including hands-on activities...

Our almost-7 year old doesn't need any special reason or day to express love to her family and friends, so she's always excited when I suggest some crafts and activities for Valentine's Day.

Here are some we'll try this year:

Clay Nature Weaving Hearts by Mud and Bloom

Valentine's Day Pudding by Twinkl Parents on TikTok

Valentine's Heart Paper Garland on Twinkl

Yarn Wrapped Hearts by Design Your Life
(or another heart weaving/wrapping activity)

These simple heart cards by Messy Little Monster
(because... tie-dye!)

Love Bugs - I mean Lady Bugs by Housing a Forest

ALL the things on this page because nature craft is our favourite!  Thanks mothernatured.com.

Happy Lovers Day to you all, and those you love, and those who love you.

Five of our six older children did not attend highschool at all, and one attended for her final two years of formal learning at age 15.  By the time they were 15, all of our children were working part-time and enrolled in a certificate course, so we didn't really actively homeschool for the senior years.  It was a valuable time, however, to share life skills and learn how to become adults.  I am grateful (now) for the many, many hours spent driving and talking, and undertaking daily tasks with each of my six adult children throughout their teen and young adult years.  For the child who attended school, and also had various sport and work commitments, I feel like we missed some valuable connection and learning time that I enjoyed with the other children.

Some of our teens did study some traditional highschool subjects using textbooks and workbooks supplemented by online research, but mostly they were on their own paths by their mid-teen years and involved with...

In 2022 Zeah enjoyed some themed learning activities about Space!  We got loads of great ideas from a purchased lesson plan booklet from Preschool Unit Lesson Plans. Their thematic units are literature-based, easy to prepare, and fun to implement.  This saved me some time searching the internet for activity ideas! 

I also found so many activities on Twinkl, as usual, and Zeah chose several to download and print.  She  had fun with My Creative Box space-themed crafts and activities, especially the box that became a jet pack to zoom around the house!

We gathered, borrowed and purchased a number of games, puzzles, and books, and watched our old favourite Magic School Bus DVDs several times!  Zeah joined an Outschool Space-themed escape room class, in which both the teacher and students shared their knowledge of space to solve problems and reach a goal.  Escape rooms are Zeah's favourite style of Outschool class!

We intended to...

I'm a little behind with this series of posts sharing unit studies we've done.  Early last year Zeah's learning theme was Insects.  It followed Australia, which was a very broad theme to study.  Insects was a fun unit with an abundance of resources available for a six year old, and despite studying insects with the kids for over two decades, I still learned a lot too!

Twinkl was our go-to for printables again - with a variety of activities for Zeah to choose from.  My Creative Box provided our craft items, most of which Zeah did with her Nanny while I was at work.  

We collected books from our own shelves and the library, and the most popular were those with close-up photographs of various minibeasts.  We also gathered some toys and games - some we already had, and a few new items.

When preparing resources for themed learning, first I gather what we already own, then I search online for ideas.  We use the library, borrowed items,...

When we had a bunch of children close in age, the school holidays were a welcome chance to drop everything and just play!  If we weren't going away anywhere, fun was had at home with friends or family visiting, and we avoided going out as a welcome relief from our daily driving commitments.  As a large, rural-living family, there was something on almost every day during school terms!

Now I have only one young child at home, so when we're not going away during the holidays I often look for opportunities to keep her entertained.  Sometimes we have playdates with local friends, but other ideas I use include:

the library - our local libraries offer a wide variety of activities during each school holidays.  We have six libraries within 30 minutes of our home, so there are different days and times to choose from.  The activities are free, and booking online is simple.  Of course the library is great for books, story CDs, DVDs and other...