Primary Language Materials: Photo Journey

In no particular order, language-related photos I have - some with materials we've made - some with materials we've purchased or borrowed or were gifted:

Zoology and Botany classification cards
with definitions
A few samples of these are nice to have in the classroom or homeschool
focus on keys, then add an interest or two
Thereafter, find outline pictures online and invite the child to
"do research" to find the names of the parts
(so books on the subject would be great!)

small movable alphabet -
punctuation marks are missing from these boxes
the backsides of each letter should have the capital as well
perhaps if I'd made them with the capitals,
Legoboy wouldn't have struggled with them as much ;)
****This material carries over into elementary -
have blue, red, and black on hand for sure*****

wooden grammar symbols - genius!
****Carries over to elementary!*****

Our original handmade metal insets
Not so metal - they are foamboard
do it again? I would either buy them or cut from wood
or from mat board (picture frame backing)
***ALTERNATIVE: just get the geometry cabinet and use
the shapes from those drawers!****

Now, we also had beautiful living books, focused on reality - with a variety of beautiful artwork (nothing cartoon-like).

We read from the Bible - not from Bible storybooks.

We did a lot of artwork, which helps with handwriting and strengthening those muscles, thus the fraction insets (circles, squares and triangles) were utilized in various setting (we did not have these at home at the time, but I wish we had!). The circle fractions begin in primary and continue into elementary mathematics, with the squares and triangles presented in elementary geography.

We spoke whole-language - real words, full sentences. Yes, we played silly word games at times, but our usual conversations were imbued with respect for the child's intelligence - something hard to fight against in our culture that uses the wrong verb tense and pronouns for the youngest children. Mother-ese is WONDERFUL - but it shouldn't be used on a 2 year old except briefly in silly-snuggle time for just a moment. ;) "Him so beautifuls" being not quite right for a child over a few months old who is absorbing the rules of language. hehe.


These things (pretend stories, awful artwork, poor language) won't destroy a child, but they sure won't build him up and they could certainly slow him down. Everyone who asks my advice because they have been doing these things and have older children - just adjust now. Slowly purge the old books by adding in or emphasizing the good ones; remove the least loved of the others first, and faze out the usual favorites. But save the good literature for elementary! (Beatrix Potter, Wind in the Willows, Fairy Tales --- these are all moral tales and have a profound place in elementary!) Speak in whole, rich language, with a large vocabulary - provide very simple and short explanations only when obviously needed (child asks). If the child says the wrong thing, such as "pretty kitty" instead of cat or kitten, you say, "Yes, this is a lovely cat (or kitten depending on the age of the cat!). So you are giving another name for pretty, teaching its meaning in context without needing a definition, AND providing the accurate word for the age of the creature. No correction necessary :)