Homeschooling is a challenge. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t. It takes a lot of patience and juggling of priorities. However, for parents new to homeschooling, having some homeschooling tips on hand can make this experience much more enjoyable.

Before we dive into the fun part, I want to tell you just one secret to successful homeschooling. You need to resist the temptation to make your home exactly like school. Teaching from your living room or playroom will be a different experience for your child(ren)! 

Incorporate learning time into your already established home routines. For example, swap out early morning cartoons with an informative documentary. Or switch up their household chores to include a math or spelling activity.

Doing this will help make homeschooling activities feel less about learning and more about family time. Which will help your kids want to participate and engage.

Butwhat if your kids were having so much fun with their toys, they don't even realize they're learning?

That's where we come in! Today, I’m sharing four fun homeschooling activities that you can do with Smiling Tree’s wooden educational toys!

Homeschooling Activity #1: Word Play for Letter Recognition and Spelling

Words, grammar, and spelling are the basis for nearly every school subject you can think of, so activities involving the alphabet are a must with homeschooling.

Encourage your little one to sort the letters in order of the alphabet, speak out basic words for them to spell or work on pronunciation, and use the letters for syllables and sentence structure.

Hand-in-hand with structure, you can ask your child to write the words they spell out to work on penmanship!

Our Uppercase and Lowercase Letters encourage hands-on letter recognition, spelling, and reading with these timeless, all natural wooden alphabet letters.

Another fun activity involving letters could include matching our wooden Animal Alphabet Blocks to our Animal Alphabet Coloring Book!

Homeschooling Activity #2: Promote Short-Term Memory Skills

Memory games can be both educational and fun, and it’s an activity you can play right along with your child(ren). It’s a win-win for parents who are trying homeschooling and want to be more involved in the teaching rather thanonly lecturing.

Get your hands on our Wooden Memory Matching Tile Game to promoteshort-term memory skills for young and old alike.

Let’s face it, all lectures and no play is boring for everyone.

So, spice it up!

The above memory matching homeschooling activity is great for toddlers, preschoolers, and elementary-aged children.

Homeschooling Activity #3: Hey Kids! Counting is Fun!

Math is a topic everyone wants to make entertaining, right?

What better way to do that than with hands-on wooden numbers? Smiling Tree’s 10-Piece Numbers Set is an ideal learning tool for counting and number recognition.

If you snag TWO sets of the numbers 0-9, you will have countless combinations to teach your child(ren) how to count. You’ll even be able to quiz them with easy-level addition and subtraction or for older kids multiplication and division.

Your child can sequence numbers from lowest to highest, or highest to lowest, count and learn what each number looks like, and see similarities in equations like 2+2 = 4 and 2x2 = 4.

Homeschooling Activity #4: Learning Shapes and Time

Smiling Tree’s Lacing and Tracing Toy is designed to help your child identify shapes and numbers by stringing them together.

Plus, arts and crafts are always a fan favorite in my house! Your child(ren) can easily trace the shapes onto construction paper as they are learning to draw and use their fine motor skills.

You can also use the base of this marvelous toy to teach time-telling as well!

This is THE multi-functional toy for homeschool learning! What’s not to love about that?

I know there will be a learning curve for you, mama. But begin your homeschooling journey knowing that the possibilities of what and how you teach are endless. Seriously. You could even take your lessons outside for some nature-based play! 

We are firm believers that learning doesn’t have to be boring. It can be fun. 😉

Happy homeschooling!