allaboutwomen

This article is about including Montessori, Reggio and Waldorf inspired parenting into a weekly rhythm to get the most out of your week and the most from your play based learning

There are so many things I want for my children.

I want them to play, real play where they can be free to explore and imagine.

I want them to be awed and inspired by nature.

I want them to feel completely at home in the branches of a big old tree.

I want them to laugh wholeheartedly.

I want them to have the freedom to be themselves and be respected for who they truly are.

I want them to have the freedom to fall and pick themselves back up again.

Mostly, I want them to be happy, fulfilled and complete.

My husband and I knew that if we truly wanted to give our children these things we would have to make the time. Our family needed a rhythm. A comforting order to our days. This rhythm would tie our days together and make them purposeful. It would allow us time to explore outside freely, time for creative expression and time to read peacefully.

In order to create our family rhythm we needed to look at our own lives and decide what was truly important to us. It’s so easy to want to fill your days with every wonderful idea you see – and there is so much inspiration to be had. But if it doesn’t fit naturally into your life then it will never be apart of your rhythm.

Our family rhythm brings a predictable flow to our days. As a teacher, I know that children thrive on, if not crave, consistency and predictability. Our days are not rigidly structured, however, just every part flows predictably into the next. My son, J, becomes noticeably anxious and restless when our days change.

I feel more productive and positive having a daily rhythm. I know which day is cleaning day and also have time to myself to just breathe.

Our Weekly Rhythm

Every morning starts out the same. We eat breakfast together and get ready for the day. J plays freely while I tidy the house. After this I offer J some Montessori-inspired activities. He chooses which ones he wants to work with while I quietly observe and then prepare some morning tea.

The rest of our week looks like this:

Monday
….
Library
Quiet Time
Lunch
Outdoors
Collaborative
Free Play
Dinner
Bedtime
Wednesday
….
Creative Play –
Quiet Time
Lunch
Outdoors
Collaborative
Free Play
Dinner
Bedtime
Tuesday
….
Gym-kids
Quiet Time
Lunch
Discovery Play
Errands
Free Play
Dinner
Bedtime
Thursday
….
Swimming
Quiet Time
Lunch
Sensory Play
Collaborative
Free Play
Dinner
Bedtime
Weekend
….
Family time
Friday
….
Playgroup
Quiet Time
Lunch
Field Trip
Collaborative
Free Play
Dinner
Bedtime

N.B Collaborative is something J and I do together. It is usually an activity inspired by his current interests and can really take any form: art, sensory, block play, just something we do together.

Discovery play is usually a science-based activity that allows J to discover something through trial and error.

Grab practical advice about the topic of just pink – make sure to read the page. The time has come when proper info is truly within your reach, use this opportunity.