The UnThemed Theme

Hello! As I am working countless hours on a massive preschool activity site, full of themed activities, I am also actively giving advice to moms and daycare providers that you DON'T need themes, that you DON'T need planned activities, and that you DON'T need much more than some water, dirt, rocks, and sticks. So what's the deal? What is right? All the bells and whistles, the pintrest-perfect-picture set up? The wild child caked in mud. hair blowing in the wind? Montesorri toys? Waldorf dolls? Reggio atelier? Cutesy letter printouts? Comic sans?.. Comic sans!?!

I'm here to say: None of it. And all of it. So here's the deal: Some of us are working full or part time from home, while our children are fighting (probably literally) for our attention. This may lead to chaos and destruction (again, probably literally), very little work done, a stressed out momma, and a stressed out, under-stimulated (and then, consequently, over-stimulated), underly and overly tired, whiny, attention seeking, unhappy child. Whew that's a lot. And I KNOW that's how it feels when you're in that situation- a lot. And then- some of us are not working, home with our children one on one, or one on many, all day er'ryday (is that how you spell it? I don't know, I haven't been "cool" in about 5 - never years). When you are always with your kids, and now can not go to the park, or to playdates, or have the babysitter come last minute.. all those missed moments to let out a sigh and relax, really add up quick. It's hard to be on ALL the time, and it's also hard to get any housework done when you have become your child's only playmate all. day. long. And then there are those of us who no longer have the daycare/preschool experience and we are fearful of the impact. How will they learn? Will they be behind before school even starts? Somehow- I am all three of these situations. Prior to freaking 'Rona (that b*tch), I was working from home, with my child, but in a daycare/preschool environment. So I was home all the time, all too aware of all the housework not getting done, but also working with my child wanting my attention, but also having him in a daycare/preschool. And now, I'm working, but not really as it's just something I've created and don't really have to do, but feel like I need to do, while being home one on one with my child. He needs engaging, constructive things to do, and I have a feeling, whatever situation you are in, your child needs that too.

Searching online for activities for your child brings up more themed and perfect looking activities than you can sort through. Unfortunately, a lot of these are very time consuming, require ordering of supplies, and might not actually be beneficial for your child. There are a ton of great ones (plug-mine included!), but, again, it may seem overwhelming to set up activities everyday, monitor your child, clean up, spend money, etc etc. But- you want to give your child something to do for their benefit, and yours. Maybe your child was at a nature based school, or perhaps you'd like to give them a child-led, exploration-led setting like you'd find at a Forest School, Montesorri, Waldorf, or Reggio inspired facility. These places spend a lot to get the right set-up, which, even with a hefty budget, you might not be able to create due to limited space or no real backyard. But- again, you want to give your child something to do for their benefit and yours.

Fear not! You don't need a lot to accomplish the main goal here. You do NOT need to spend a lot of money. You do NOT need a large space. And you do NOT need to do any of the pintresty activities. What you should do, is think about what your child WANTS to do and what you CAN feasibly, sustainably do. Can you do an elaborate art or science project everyday? Can you read 100 books/week? Maybe! If you are home with your child needing something to do, have a good budget, and these projects and activities bring you joy.. go for it! That's when a pre-set schedule of activities is for you! That's when your child is interested in mermaids, you do a month chocked full of ocean themed educational and creative activities. Can you let your child build a mud pit in the backyard and create a makeshift mud-kitchen? Maybe! If you want your child outside getting their energy out, don't want to spend a lot of money, time, or effort, then go for it! You can make a mud-kitchen set up pretty easily and fairly inexpensively. Can you make a small open ended set up, where your child has autonomy and can immerse in independent play while you get work done next to them? Maybe! If you need them immersed in play so you can immerse in work, you can pretty easily set up an area just for them, on a budget, in a small space. You can set up small play, dramatic play, blocks, and/or open ended art that you can switch out as their interest fades. All three of these situations gives them equally incredible learning possibilities. Child-led learning means you notice what your child is interested in, and let them explore that. This, however, does not mean you can't plan ahead. This does not mean you have to spend a lot or set up a lot each week, changing elaborate set ups constantly. You can do this as simply as realizing your child is interested in scissors, and setting them up with various types of paper (or just a piece) and safety scissors to cut, even while you work next to them. You could add glue, markers, and containers to collect cut pieces for other projects. You could help them cut shapes to make a craft. Or not. You also can let them do this for a few minutes, then clean up and have them play with their regular toys while you work. Going by their interests does not mean the entire day needs to be catered to your child, and certainly is not worth the effort if you can not keep your sanity doing so.

Which brings me to the UnThemed Theme. The UnThemed Theme, which I just made up, is about making your life work. Can you do one larger activity a month, a couple smaller ones here and there, but mainly just go for walks and let your child play with their toys? Totally! There's your Theme. Can you follow a calendar where you have something set to do each day? Totally! There's your theme. Can you just take each day at a time? Totally! There is your theme! Does this need to be another thing to stress over? NO! Do small children learn math from blocks? YES. Do small children build the essential muscle strength needed before they can write, through digging in the dirt? YES. Do small children learn about socializing and our world through dramatic play? YES. Is a happy, loving, patient mother more important than what they learn? Yes yes yes. Small children learn through play. This is playing outside in the dirt, this is playing with their toys, this is doing fun, simple or elaborate activities. Which means that however they spend their day, just letting them play will be the best way to help them learn.

Now here is where I try to sell you something! Sort of, not really. Hear me out! In the first part of this incredibly long blog post, I mentioned the work not-work I currently have, perhaps unnecessarily, created for myself. Which is just so typical of me, but also potentially very beneficial for you. That is the goal here. This here webbysite, is meant to bring my in-home daycare to your home, and more. Here you can search for awesome, developmental and educational activities to do, by subject or theme. You can have the whole school year planned out with an activity a day. You can look at open ended set ups for art, writing, math, and science, as to create the perfect child-led environment for your situation and budget. You can find tips and tricks, recipes, and DIYs to make your own materials! You can follow a preset calendar from me, do your own planning as needed, or just learn ways to engage your child for a happy, healthy, simple, and creative at home preschool experience. For example, you can find different ways to make play dough, ways to incorporate letters, numbers, and shapes into play dough play, or how to tie it into a theme your child is interested in. You can find awesome science and engineering projects to answer your child's questions as to how the world works. You can cater weeks and weeks of well rounded activities (reading, writing, math, science, art, music) to specific interests of your child by following set calendars I make. You can print out activity binders to go with these themes to further your child's learning, and give them focused time while you work. OR you can randomly pick an activity based off what you already have at home, inside or out. I wanted to create something that was a versatile resource for whatever situation you and your child are in, while encouraging creativity, nature, and reusable, simple materials. This site will be expanding every week! So keep checking back, and if this is helpful, let me know! Share, comment, post pictures! I hope everyone who finds this can benefit. Thanks for getting through this incredibly long post! We're in strange times, but I know we will all get through it, and our kids will be more than fine <3