You got a three year old toddler, a blank white wall, a bunch of writing materials like color pencils, color pens, crayons, pencils, and markers. What could be the possible outcome? Before we left our previous apartment, the landlord had only one request. That I clean up the walls that my daughter had artistically designed. I learned my lesson.
A curious little Toddler
At this point in a toddler's learning stage, she is highly curious about how things work. She asks a lot of questions, she tells a lot of stories, she touches a lot of surfaces, and when the gets hold of a marker, or a crayon, the first thing she will do is to write on a surface. Any surface will do. A white wall is like a blank canvass to her.
Testing limits
She literally tests limits. Hers and mine. She likes to know how much she can get away with. And in doing so, I feel like she's pushing me to the edge. I cannot really be angry with her because well, I just can't. I do sometimes, but that's just when she's done too much. And besides, I don't want her to feel scared to try new things. But sometimes enough is enough. Especially after experiencing having to clean walls filled with crayons and markers.
Bring your Mother with a Plastic Cover
We have an inside joke in gradeschool whenever we get in trouble at school. If we are asked to bring our guardian to school the following day, our classmates will start chanting after class, "Bring your mother, with a plastic cover". And then everyone in the class would start laughing. With my white wall dilemma, I used plastic cover as a solution. And while I was working on the wall, I kept chanting that over and over. LOL
I covered the entire wall with plastic covers so I could easily erase her graffiti/art/doodles. Well, not really the entire wall, but the entire parts she can reach. I'm also using it as our board for our daily lessons
Hitting two birds with one stone
These plastic covers now serve as a protective layer, making it easier for me to clean. It also serves as our activity area. This is where she can play while learning. Since she's a tactile learner, she learns more when she is actively participating in the lesson. So while I'm teaching her, she draws what I teach. Which I think is really good because she gets to practice her handwriting and artisticity.
I chanced upon a youtube video, Circle time with Miss Monica. I adapted her teaching style where we have a letter of the week, number of the week, and shape of the week. I understood that my daughter also needs the singing and dancing time, the art time, and playtime. I can say, we are winging this homeschooling thing so far. This is by far the best style I have ever tried. And I am so happy.
Big thanks to @bearone for my Hive PH badge.
