Creation, Day 2

Today, Reese was down for her morning nap when Evan and I did Bible Time.

Scripture: Genesis 1:1-8
Memory: "In the beginning, God created"
Song: "The B-I-B-L-E" and a made up song "God Made the World"
Prayer: "Thank you God for creating the world"
Craft: Cotton ball cloud
Activity: Bathtub or sink water play
Number: 2 (Day 2 of creation)

I had to read quickly to make it through eight verses with a toddler. Clearly, increasing Evan's attention span is a project for the upcoming days. When he started to get antsy, I used his finger to follow along with the words. Singing has not "clicked" with Evan yet, so mostly I sing and he shouts "Bible!" at the end.

Yesterday, Evan reminded me to pray. Today I forgot completely! So I will be intentionally adding it to my list from now on (as I should have been doing anyway).

For craft time, we made clouds (I know, original).

I had previously cut out the cloud shape (to represent the heavens) so it was all ready to go. Supplies: cloud shape, glue stick, and cotton balls. Very simple to put together.

I intended to let Evan play in the sink for a while; toddlers love water play. But baby sister woke up around then so we had to pause things. My plan B- since a 10 months old baby can't play in the sink very well- was to put both kids in the tub instead. I was about to get them ready for tub play when I saw this...

Do you remember the old saying "If it ain't broke, don't fix it"? When children are entertaining themselves and playing nicely, save the activity for a less peaceful time.

Creation, Day 1

I am finally beginning to home school my 2 year old, Evan. Well... home school might sound too structured or intense for a toddler. What I am really doing is giving both of us a taste of what is to come, while not neglecting my job to:

     "Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it,"  
     Proverbs 22:6

The heart of my husband and I is that we are the primary teachers in our childrens' lives. We realize that we are the greatest mentors, teachers, and caregivers given by God to our kids. And so we begin...

Scripture: Genesis 1:1-5
Memory verse: "In the beginning, God created"
Song: The B-I-B-L-E
Craft: Day/Night paper scraps
Activity: Flashlight to teach Light vs. Dark
Number: 1 (Day 1 of creation)

I figured the best place to begin is the beginning. So we read the passage directly from the NASB bible. I pointed to the words as I went along to keep Evan's attention better. Next, I told him that this is the word of God, and we sang "The B-I-B-L-E". Well, I sang and he hit the final "Bible!" with a strong fist pump (it's a boy thing).

Our craft was quick and easy:

Supplies: Glue Stick.  Previously, I prepared a cream colored paper with "In the beginning, God created" written at the top, with the Bible reference. Next I scribbled half with black marker and labeled it "Night/Dark" (you can just see the lines of my scribble between the black construction paper). The blank half is marked "Day/Light" at the top left. I also had half a page of plain white paper, and half a page of black construction paper ready.

I read the verse aloud from the top of the page, pointing at each word. Evan had a great time tearing the white and black papers into bits. We then glued them onto the appropriate sides of the paper. Toddlers love glue sticks!

Lastly, I wanted to take the opportunity to introduce the concepts of "light" and "dark" to my 2 year old. So we, and the 10 month old, traipsed into the bathroom (the darkest room of the house at the moment) and played with a flashlight.

We clicked it on and said "light". Then clicked it off and said "dark". And repeated, and repeated, and repeated. He never really understood the concept! But at least I laid the foundation. Plus, if your toddler is like mine, then they could be entertained for hours with a flashlight.

Throughout the day (and days to come) I will have him repeat the memory verse to me. I kept throwing in the number one as we did both projects and read the story. Every time "Day 1" came up we said "one" and held up one finger.

We had a lot of fun! The whole lesson took around 20 minutes, a perfectly acceptable time for a busy toddler boy.

I'd love to hear if you have studied Creation with your children? Please include a link to your website or activity details in a comment.