BFIAR : prayer for a child

the garrels homeschool is now in session!  we'd planned on starting this fall, but since it wasn't already a part of our daily routine, we were delayed by the move to a new house & the birth of peregrin.  per is three months old now, & we as a family are finally ready for some structure.  

this is preschool, so i don't feel alot of curriculum pressure yet.  school in these early years should be about playing & building memories together as a family--much learning will just happen informally in the process of intentional togetherness.  i've been using a manual from Before Five in a Row ("BFIAR") to provide the basis for our week's learning, & we love it!  the BFIAR curriculum is based around 23 children's classics.  each week we row through one book, reading it at the beginning of each school day that week (we are doing school three mornings a week), doing activities, projects, worksheets, outings, & learning bible verses that relate to that story.  heron and i are also working through this book several days a week for reading lessons.  

the first book we rowed through was prayer for a child by rachel field.  this is a simple book of prayers for the people and things in a child's daily life.  it opened up many surprising conversations with heron and shepherd, such as persecution and poverty!  

DAY ONE : we focused on the simple theme of daily bread, literal and figurative (the Word of God).  to learn about prayer we read ephesians 4:6 & 7 and matthew 6:9-13 where jesus teaches us to pray (the Lord's prayer).

^{ephesians 4:6} Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.      

: breadbaking :

DAY TWO : we focused on the children of the world.  "bless other children, far and near, and keep them safe and free from fear," was their favorite page in the whole book.  each time we turned to that page and the accompanying illustrations, they would stop and ask lots of questions.

we read acts 10:34-38

³⁴ Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism ³⁵ but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. ³⁶ You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all... 

and revelation 7:9-10

⁹ After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb... 

we looked at my pictures from peru, of the children i worked with, the homes they lived in, the joy on their faces though they had so little.  i realized i had never shared these pictures or stories with my kids (though i have shared stories of my own childhood in peru with them).  they learned about street kids for the first time, and about the daily lives of kids living in poverty.  it occurred to me that i was heron's age when God first called me to work among the poor.  from seeing the children living in the garbage dump for the first ten years of my life whenever we'd drive into the town of pucallpa, and committing at the age of four to do something about it someday, i went on to study sustainable development, then returned to the jungle after college to work with children in shanty towns & on the streets.  it was so meaningful to share these pictures and stories with them, & to remember how God can whisper giftings, callings, & purpose to His children even at the tender age of four!  heron is already so sensitive to God's Spirit.  what a privilege as a parent to begin encouraging her to listen & follow those promptings, even now!    

: their favorite page :

: they loved this graphing game / rolling the dice :

: we made a ball from things in our recycle bin :

DAY THREE : we talked about the great commission and learned about mama & papa's friends (who have children heron, shepherd, & per's age) living in other countries amid danger, persecution, & poverty--the rosens in israel (with kids shai, ezra, sidney, & gefen); the dillers in southeast asia (with kids jonas, liya, serafina, & lucien); the talstras in cambodia (with kids cedar & ezra sparrow).  we located them on the map, & heron & shepherd committed to pray for them!  we made praying hands to remind us.  heron also worked on writing some of the key words from prayer for a child, and we sorted through our toys to give away to other kids who could benefit from them.

activity + resource summary for prayer for a child:

  

bible verses : ephesians 4:6,7; matthew 6:9-13; acts 10:34; revelation 7:9,10; matthew 28:16-20

supplementary reading : the little red hen (about wheat/breadmaking)

activities + practical applications : baked bread, made ball from found materials (inspired by this site), sorted through toys to donate to kids in need

worksheets : printables + read! build! write! mats from homeschool creations
coloring pages : activity village

blog inspiration : our cultivated life

other resources : kumon cutting & pasting books, sandpaper letters