Book Display

In our house we have a book case in the school room that changes every couple of weeks. Each child takes a turn creating a display on a topic of their choice. Often they choose from something they are learning about in science or history. Other times, they choose something they just have an interest in.

This simple tradition allows each child a chance to learn how to set up a display, showcase some of their writing and artwork, find books and information on a topic, and can spark an interest in others.

Here Mimi displays her handwritten book about penguins along with her origami after studying penguins for an entire month. She also displays some books for others to look at or read. She gave our family a short presentation on penguins and then took questions and let everyone enjoy her talents for a couple of weeks.

Children love to share their knowledge with others, especially if it is in a fun way! If I have children grow up to design window displays for large corporations, I'll know their simple beginnings began here!

Each Teach

How do you keep your kids occupied during the summer months? One of our favorite activities of the summer is called "Each Teach!" It has also had different titles such as "The Dirt Road Kids Club," "Cousin Exchange," "The Wednesday Club", and The Queen Street Kids Club". We've used this idea for neighborhoods, reunions, even our church youth group!

The basic idea is gather a couple of families together once a week and have everyone share how to do something. It's easy to organize and a blast for kids! (Easy on Mom - fun for kids, does it get better then that?)

Here's the nitty-gritty:
Invite 3-4 families (6-10 kids works great).
Decide on when to hold your club meetings and name your club.
Make a calendar of where meetings will be held (at one house, a park, or rotate homes).
Assign who will teach each time—3-4 kids per meeting (more on this below).
Make copies of your calendar and assignments for everyone and prepare for a great summer!

For each class, each child is responsible for teaching something. No, this is not Mom's turn to choose a craft or activity, or to organize everything for junior. This is a lesson in responsibility!
Kids should choose an activity that they know well, or want to share with the group. I've been surprised at the variety of things kids have chosen: how to draw cats, pizza-box doll houses, dancing to a hit song, Tae Kwon Do, Lego architecture, and cookie making to name just a few. Mom can make suggestions but ultimately, it is up to the child.

The child is responsible for getting supplies, or at least telling Mom what supplies are needed. The age limit doesn't really matter, we just tell the kids that they need to be respectful to each teacher regardless of age, because they too will someday be the teacher.

This is a great opportunity for kids to learn public speaking, organization, and preparation skills as each child teaches his or her activity.

It works best to have 3-4 kids teach each time and spend about 2 to 2-1/2 hours a week. We usually had our club meeting weekly with a field trip once a month. At the end of the summer we always had a big family party and Barbecue to celebrate all the wonderful things we learned and shared.

You Teach What You Are

You cannot teach what you are not,
and you cannot help but teach what you are.

-Michael R. McCleve and Brent Barclay,
"A Summary of Divine Centered Leadership"