Keeping little fingers busy at home

How does a typical day in Zech's life look like lately? Not sure if it's a sudden burst of energy in the final lap of my pregnancy. Or the fear of not doing more for Zech when the baby comes along in May. His day is now pretty packed with structured play and activities. Less mischief from him as well when we do more at home.Teaching Zech is not difficult but the challenging part is being able to engage him for an extended period of time. He sure needs lots of encouragement to complete a task.

Started teaching him the concept of size and order this week. Sometimes, he got it and sometimes he didn't. But he's enjoying this activity, a file folder borrowed from a friend. He loves arranging the cupcakes and tractors most.

He's learning shapes and colours too. A new file folder for him to learn recognition of colours. Downloaded the dino cutouts from http://www.filefolderfun.com/PreschoolColorMatch.html.

Other file folders he's been doing regularly are shapes matching and animals/flowers matching. He asks to do them every day without fail.

Thought it's time for Zech to learn how to colour though I don't think he's quite ready. Printed some basic shapes on paper and guided him to colour within the shape. Was rather surprised he could, most of the time, colour within the given shape.

Since Zech has been doing quite a few colouring sheets with different medium such as crayons and markers, I compiled all his work into a file and that is his very first portfolio. :)

Some other activities he enjoys doing...

Puzzles. Always the same 3 sets. The second set below is really easy but Zech likes fixing the animals so it's kind of like a warm-up exercise for him before he fixes the other sets.

Pulled out the Melissa and Doug shape sorter today. I love this cos it teaches many shapes like rhombus, hexagon etc. other than basic ones.

Took a pic of Zech at the end of the day. Doesn't he look contented? Haha! Makes me more motivated to spend time playing and learning with him tomorrow.

Easter activities pt 2

It's been a rather special Easter week for us. Zech was unwell most of the time. But we managed to complete the 4 Easter lessons I've planned for him.

Here's his very first lapbook. My first attempt too at making a lapbook.

For the last lesson, Zech decorated the Easter egg using do-a-dot markers.

Another activity he loves is pasting stickers so I got him to paste stickers onto dots on an Easter egg.

An important verse for Zech to learn and recite.

We made several Easter baskets or rather I made most of them. Zech only helped with 2 baskets as he has no patience I realised for craft like this.

Nevertheless, I think Zech likes the end products cos he insisted on taking pictures with the baskets.

Finally, before Easter Sunday, we decorated the eggs using finger paint. Zech's favourite cos he loves squishy stuff. Bought these cute egg wrap from Spotlight. :) Now we are all ready to distribute the eggs which are placed in the Easter baskets to his friends tomorrow in church. The only sad thing is, he won't be doing it. The PD advised us to keep Zech at home till at least Wed so that he can recover well.



Told Zech we are staying at home tomorrow and his papa will help to distribute the eggs to his friends. He seemed fine about it. Guess I have to do some planning tonight to help him spend a meaningful Easter Sunday at home.

A series of Easter activities pt 1

I started the first Easter lesson with the story of Adam and Eve, a story that's familiar to Zech. Got him to colour the heart black. Then I wrote the Bible verse on the heart for him. Forgotten to add the word 'For' in front and have since added in but didn't retake the pic below. Recited the verse to him and was pleasantly surprised that he attempted to read the verse a few times on his own. Was very encouraged by his enthusiasm.

The next day, I shared the Easter story using the resurrection eggs (preschool version). Idea from http://www.motherhoodonadime.com/kids/preschool-resurrection-eggs/.

Zech had a mighty good time opening the eggs though he had difficulty closing them.

Made a set of 'Jesus loves me' puzzle found on http://www.christianpreschoolprintables.com/Pages/BiblePuzzles/JesusLovesMe.html.

He seemed to enjoy fixing the puzzle as he wanted to do it again the next lesson.

Craft time! Made a cross using ice-cream sticks. Zech pasted his favourite star stickers on 1 stick and with my help, used do-a-dot markers to decorate the other stick. Thought it looks pretty cool!



Continued with the Easter story using the resurrection eggs on the third day. Introduced a new activity to Zech. Printed the colour matching crosses from confessionsofahomeschooler.com. A good way for him to learn and recognise colours. He loves any kind of matching games, it seems. We've been doing lots of matching these days.

An interesting Easter craft idea from http://www.freefuneaster.com/easter-crafts/he-is-risen-paper-plate-tomb-craft/.

Now it's sitting proudly on top of my new piano. :)

Going to continue with the last lesson on Wed. More on pt 2 then!

Post-cny activities at home

A blessed new year to one and all! It has been a tiring and busy CNY for us.

Now that things are slowing down, I decided to spend more time at home with Zech playing and learning. At 26 months, Zech is better in his attention span. He's also learning to be more observant. Coincidentally, I've made some learning resources for him. Was pleasantly surprised that he enjoyed playing with them and even wanted to try some of them out on his own.


A busy bag I've made using foam numbers and red packets. It teaches sorting by numbers and colours. Though Zech can't really identify the right colour, he can sort out the numbers by colours.

'Moses in the basket' file folder for shapes matching. All printed from a blog online. I kept this away for some time as I wasn't sure if Zech could do it. I should have taken it out earlier. I suspect it was not as challenging as I thought it was for him.

Comparatively, this 'Animal matching' file folder is more challenging.

New activity book with all the shapes downloaded from confessionsofahomeschooler.com. Modified the activity by adding more shapes and words for colour/shape recognition. I've yet to try this out with Zech.

Another activity worth mentioning, though I didn't make it, is Zech's lego set. Other than honing creativity, I realise playing with lego teaches many other skills such as sorting of colours, which was done by Zech spontaneously without any help or prompting from me. The tall model you see in the pic below teaches the concept of building with a solid foundation. There were many times when the model threatens to break apart. Zech knows now he needs a support below to withstand the tall structure.

These are times I really treasure. Nothing can be more precious than playing and bonding with your child. Zech's current fav sentence at home now, 'Mummy, play with Zech' still sounds sweet to my ears.

Never a dull day...

In my 2nd trimester now, my energy level is much much better. So I try to do as many activities with Zech as possible before I pop. With CNY just around the corner, it's time to get ready with Zech. First and foremost, decorate the fireplace!

I've created a series of mini lessons on CNY and started the very first lesson with Zech last week. He is so into the CNY books and asks me to read them every day. Zech's CNY sensory box

Red packet (done with mummy's help)

Recently, I'm also on a 'making resources' mood. Thanks to a friend who suggested the idea of busy bags, Zech had a mighty great time fishing at home! Now almost every night, I'd take out my cutter and laminator and start making resources for Zech. Great stress reliever for me!

Zech's into these sticker books as well. He has completed the glue and paste sticker book. He probably enjoys the novelty of using glue.

Another inspiration I got from a friend was making playdough. After struggling so much with the moondough which was super messy and hard to clean up, I decided to make some playdough one night. Though the texture wasn't ideal and the colours not as bright, Zech enjoys pressing, kneading and making shapes out of cookie cutters. The homemade playdough is less of a mess and yes, I guess Zech's hooked!

Zech at this stage in life learns a lot from play and interaction. No need for intentional teaching. We are so amazed at the way he picks up language or skills from us adults. There is never a dull day with Zech. Even if I have nothing for him to do, he will ask for his puzzles or get a book for me to read to him. Or he will do his own pretend play which, so far, never fails to surprise me because his play is usually an imitation of what we adults do. For eg, his recent obsession with cleaning the shoe cabinet and windows. And sometimes, I feel his zest and desire to be engaged shows a miniature me and his particularity for cleanliness and neatness, a reflection of his papa. This reminds me, once again, of how influential parents are as role models in this young life.

A day out in the garden!

Finally a day out for some fresh air and sunshine! We decided to head down to Jacob Ballas Garden. Truly a great place for active kids! One of Zech's fav was the slide at the treehouse!

Another playground where kids can play with sand. Zech simply enjoys the modern see-saw and merry-go-round.

A new experience for Zech was walking across the suspension bridge. At first, he was rather wary. But when he saw how much fun the other kids were having jumping up and down on the bridge, he happily joined them. He sure needs role models!

Kids can also learn about photosynthesis here. Very interactive. Zech loves turning the lever. We came up with a simple explanation of how plants make food as he went around turning the lever at each booth.

The only fun Zech missed was the water play. Brought his swimsuit and swimmers diaper but forgot his towel. Mummy's fault. :( Poor Zech could only stare wistfully at the water play area. Tried to get him interested in the flora and fauna. However, he got bored after a while. Never mind. To Bollywood veggies the next time! We will try again! We ended the day at 'Food for thot' at the Botanic Gardens. Oh, the raspberry scone with fresh cream is simply heavenly! Can't get enough of it. Though Zech didn't really enjoy his pasta (he probably prefers my homemade creamy pasta), he had another round of fun at the cafe playground which kind of made up for his lousy lunch. Zech can't wait to go back to Jacob Ballas Garden. Neither can I.

Reflections 2012 & new beginnings 2013

2012 was an eventful year for our family. Getting ready for the new house, reno, moving, adapting to the new home, new addition to the family, a stressful 1st trimester, disruption to Zech's daily routine due to my pregnancy, my grandpa's sudden demise and finally a breather in mid Dec when life resumed back to normal. I'm glad we went through this journey all with God's grace. It opened the eyes of my heart and helped me refocus on my priorities in life, on what is of eternal value.

Zech has grown too. Instead of babbling nonsense most of the time, he is finally communicating with us in real language. This happened at the most unexpected time, a few weeks before he turned two. After that, there was no turning back. Initially, it was merely production of many single words. Next, he started stringing words together. I feel like I'm reminded of the language acquisition course I've taken in NIE. He can now string 2 and 3 words to make a sentence. His consonants are clearer and 'please' no longer sounds like 'peas'. He's also beginning to socialise and to play with his peers. Seems like a natural progression of a child's development but it's something I will not take for granted.

Last Dec, the main lesson I focused on was the story of Christmas, using 'Truth in the tinsel'. Zech loves the craft time and he enjoys looking at the display. This marks a good closure for 2012.

Inspired by Zech's enthusiasm and 'Truth in the tinsel', I decided to create a series of mini lessons on Chinese New Year. I've done 4 lessons and still very motivated to do more. Seems like my lost energy is returning. :) Thank God! I know too I have to decide on a homeschool curriculum for Zech very soon within these few months. May the good Lord guide me!

In 2013 this Jan, I've also started picking up books bought some time ago. Yes finally! I'm getting around to reading them. Guess I need to work more to equip myself as a stay-at-home mum. A very lonely 'job' sometimes that gives me no pay and bonus but lots of satisfaction for being there to witness Zech's milestones and plenty of time to bond with him and to teach him what I feel is of great importance. Precious moments I will never trade in for a career outside or money. 2012 was a year of testing ground for me. New home, new role, new job at home. 2013 is the year I'll grow and develop as a mother. It's the year I'm embracing motherhood wholeheartedly!