TWINS TUESDAYS: First School

Two weeks ago, I posted about trying to fit in more activities with the twins, as well as trying to fit in some little bits of "homeschooling" (although we are not homeschoolers in the true sense, the toddlers are "home" with me right now!) into their lives. I truly believe that being a stay-at-home mom involves schooling your little ones and getting them ready for real school. And that means learning letters, numbers, colors, shapes, counting, coloring, etc. The twins will go to preschool eventually, but not just yet.

They turn 3 in December, and likely will not step foot in Kindergarten until they are officially 5-turning-6. So preschool will come the year prior to that, which is two years away. In the meantime, I want to make sure they have the same opportunity, however difficult it may be, as Big Girl. And that means this MoM has to get her act in gear and get some schoolin' and learnin' going for them!

I have made a strong effort in that recently, and it's going OK. We have been sitting down to work on things like colors and letters. They know most of their letters by sight, but can be stubborn in playing the "identify" game. I really want to keep pushing the letters thing since reading is very important to me. I already know they are pretty smart cookies, but I also know that working with them will give them a greater chance to shine brighter.

One website has been so helpful to me with them and I wanted to share it with you. It's called "First School," and it has really awesome little worksheets to print out. I have been trying to do things with random letters that go with something from this time of the year, like A for apple, P for pumpkin, B for bat, L for leaf, and -- coming soon! -- T for turkey. Just all that seasonal stuff that they can grasp. I hang up their little coloring pictures and letters, just like their older sister's artwork, and I prompt them to show visitors and grandparents their work so they are proud of what they have done. And several times a day, I might ask them what letter is for "apple" or "pumpkin" and give them a chance to remember and use their little brains.

It is definitely different taking on this toddler "homeschooling" thing with twins. When the crayons come out, it has to be a highly monitored and directed situation or else I will live in a Crayola world. Reading books is even a challenge, as they disagree over which one they want to hear. If I ask one a question, one is more likely to answer faster than the other.

And what I've also found out in my mothering years is that teaching kids happens when you are just in the moment (although having a few ideas up your sleeve definitely helps -- especially with more than one little one). Money Saving Mom had a two-part series titled "Teaching Your Tot Without Breaking the Bank" that I thought was really helpful: Part 1 is here and Part 2 is here. Be sure to read through the comments, which have some great ideas too.

I hope that, as I muddle through this twin toddler thing, that someone out there finds a kernel of inspiration somewhere in my posts! We are all in this together, right?