Developing the Love of Learning

Most of my life I have been treated like "Oh your JUST a preschool teacher. You teach ABC's and 123, how hard can that be???"  UNLESS you were a client, then you saw someone passionate about  opening up this amazing world to their young child's mind. I chose preschool over primary because I loved that I could TEACH, and not worry about standards. Standards drained the fun out of learning. Infant, toddler and preschool children have the most amazing minds, it is the time they will be learning faster than any other time in their life. The world is full of amazing things and a few loving people want to take their little hands and introduce them to all the beauty, to answer their precious questions and invite them to explore the world all around them. I want to encourage creativity and through love and active learning introduce them the all the math and science around them in their natural enviroment, and to prepare them to read. I love that preschool is a time for the simple "love of learning" And then they enter school... yeah! Sit still, get it done, read this book! Science and exploration, what is that , we have a test to prepare for!

I entered into education almost 30 years ago and my passion for it has grown, and my ECE background has helped me perfectly with my love of homeschooling.  I try to allow my son to explore and create.  When he finds something that he is absolutely passionate about I am relaxed enough to facilitate him, by offering him plenty of materials for him to learn with.  I do still lead him in his learning, but I try to take guidance from him as to what he needs.  Ever is it so apparent in his dislike in forced education than in his reaction to grammar and his work books.  I have to fight my son, set timers and get mad at him for waisting his time away with daydreaming.  Education becomes a real battle.  Yet when we study things that he is passionate about, it is easy, he practically teaches himself.  When he loves something, he wants to read it, talk about it, write about it and he even internalizes it so much that he acts it out and I can see it in his play.  I just know that it is working, because we have many many interesting and stimulating conversations.  Please, do not ever get me wrong.  I am NOT a hippy type of mom, a slacker. Anyone who knows me knows that I have extremely high expectations of my children.  But I am more passionate about the "love of learning" , than passing a bunch of test and I know that there will come a time, where he will have to narrow down his pursuits and focus heavily and with mastery his future career goals.