Where to find inspiration: Handmade Beginnings

When I was 3 years old I visited a handicraft store with my family. My older brother and I loved looking at all the handmade toys on the shelves, every one so unique. I will never forget the day that the store owner gave me a handmade doll and my brother a handmade bear as a gift. I still have that doll almost 20 years later, and I marvel at its handiwork- something I could never mimic. That was one of my earliest memories and I think it has forever had an impact on my life. It has always been my dream to have my own handmade craft store, just like the one I went to when I was a child. I think that desire has manifested in everything you see on my blog.

I try to do a variety of activities with my daughter (yet you may notice a lot of art activities since I already have so many art materials!) and I am constantly introducing new open-ended experiences to see what sparks her interest. If something interests her, I try to take advantage of that window of learning and prepare related activities that are fun and engaging.

In addition to planning various activities, I also believe in the importance of setting up a stimulating learning environment for young children. I try to provide a variety of materials for my daughter to independently explore since I know that when children play, they build brain connections. Currently I am also trying to take advantage of her sharp memory and abilities to learn quickly and articulate many sounds by teaching her different languages.

In the future I think I will most likely homeschool my daughter. I was homeschooled myself in the 7th grade and thoroughly enjoyed the one-on-one time and being able to study the provincial curriculum at my own pace, while at the same time implementing a religious curriculum.

Where do you get your ideas?

I get most of my ideas from books, websites and blogs. During my college years I also built up a collection of activity ideas from teachers, peers and colleagues. I'm not a very good planner so I like to keep a stack of library books and my binder of activity ideas on my coffee table so that each morning I can flip through the indexes to find an activity that would expand on my daughter's interests. We do it on the spot!

What advice or tips can you give parents and educators?

Be patient. This is advice for others, and also for myself. Children are like seeds planted into a garden, watered and loved by the patient hand of the gardener, one day blossoming into beautiful flowers, each flower blossoming in its own time.

Other articles in this series:

Where to find inspiration: Mom and Kiddo