Monday, January 16, 2017

Mother Goose Time Celebration of Peace Kit and Why It's So Powerful for Children to be Active Listerners

I love the sweet holiday kits that are included with every Mother Goose Time box. The Celebration of Peace kit was one that I was particularly interested in because I am starting to teach Tiny B about racism, equality, kindness, and being part of spreading love and not hate. On Friday evening I took out the kit because I knew that Martin Luther King Jr. day was coming up three days later, and I wanted her to truly understand why we celebrate this man. I want her to be a part of the change that began taking place so many years ago but still is nowhere where we need to be.

I explained that MLK day was on Monday and I pulled out the bag.



Tiny B's charter homeschool kindergarten had given me reading material to read to her but I truly felt that it was above her head. I was thrilled to see that MGT had a participation story and that it was text that they could understand. I still had to stop to explain some concepts and new vocabulary words but I know that reading text to children a little above their level is an excellent way to grow their comprehension skills. Jim Trelease was big on this practice and I have always subscribed to it.

This particular Participation Story had me reading about the life of Martin Luther Kind Jr. and having one child hold up the happy face during the happy parts and having the other child hold up the sad face during the sad parts. I have to say that they did such an amazing job with this. They would help each other when a child who was supposed to raise their card, didn't.

These participation stories are so amazing because my children truly listen to the words that they are hearing because they are invested in it. It reminds me of when I used to give each of my students a quote from a read aloud chapter book and when a child's quote came up and they heard it and raised their hand, they would get a piece of candy. You better believe that I had every student's attention for the month in which I read that particular chapter book. They would take their individual quote and tape it to their name card on their desk and hang onto every word that I read, waiting for me to read their quote. At the end of the story, they had earned a piece of candy as well as practiced their reading comprehension and learned new vocabulary from a book with a higher reading level then theirs. (Homeschooling moms: Try this at home. I can't wait to do it with the kids!) It is the same reason that I have a Dr. Seuss headband and wand for my kids to wear whenever we read a Dr. Seuss book. When they take part in the story, they take part in so much learning.



We did this on a Friday night. I love homeschooling on Friday nights. It makes for a lovely and productive evening and it just feels special for them and for me. 




*I receive Mother Goose Time curriculum in exchange for my honest sharing of experiences, resulting from our personal use. All opinions/thoughts are my own and are in no way influenced by others.

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