"T" is for Trees.

We love homeschooling around these parts!

I love how much my kids love it. I love how much they engage in learning. And I love that we, my husband and myself as their parents, have the opportunity to guide their education and learn right alongside them.

But still, some homeschooling days are just way more fun than others!

Some days, you can just tell the lesson really hits. Little eyeballs stay wide with excitement and little hands and feet are moving and grooving, dancing all around, as hands and legs and faces get dirtied with chalk and paint and markers and mud.

Today was one of those days.

This week, we are learning about the letter "T"

Today's lesson was a mini-unit about TREES.

We began our study time as we usually do: By revisiting our letter of the week ("T"), reminding ourselves of the sound it makes, and practicing writing the letter.

My older son (Malachi, 7) does his work in his specialized "stander" -- a piece of equipment designed for those with leg paralysis to get into a supported "stand" for the benefit of their bone health. His stander has a tray attachment that we use for schoolwork. In this way, we knock out two daily goals (physical therapy in his stander + our planned curriculum lesson) at once. My younger son (Deeks, 21 months) has a small chair, also with a tray attachment, that he uses during "school." For him, this time is primarily for morning snack, but he enjoys participating in his big bro's learning.

After reviewing the basics of the letter "T," we read our book of the day: Maisy Loves Trees: A Maisy's Planet Book, by author Lucy Cousins.

I actually love this book! It is very simple -- a board book, actually -- and written with the youngest learners in mind.

But rather than simply telling a story, the book introduces the science of trees to young readers. The book covers tree types, leaves, seeds, growing seasons, and life cycles.

And these topics are introduced in a cutesy way: with a mouse who loves trees!

My seven-year-old AAC-user said "like" to the book using his device. I agree.

As with any book, I used the opportunity to practice modeling language use and specific "core words" for my older son with his AAC device. These included words like "love" "up" and "down." Similar to any early language learner, high frequency word use and repetition is key.

After our book, we turned to YouTube for a video about tree rings from one of my favorite science-based learning channels for kids: SciShow Kids

I had a small tree stump medallion for each of the boys that I had saved from a previous project. (I knew they would come in handy when I tucked them away!) We talked about using our observational skills to study the slice of the tree. We looked at the tree rings on each medallion and talked about what those rings meant for the tree.

Then, I handed the boys some paint and left them to it!

Projects that include a sensory play component are really crucial to our day. The boys love learning, and they do well with both books and videos. Still, they are young, and really quite active; plus, my oldest is definitely a sensory-seeker. These kids LOVE getting their hands dirty! So, what I have found is that our "learning" easily extends for longer periods of time if I incorporate hands-on, sensory projects and activities to break up the more (traditionally) academic parts.

Next, we used paper plates and brown markers to create our own "tree stump."

Our number of the week is SEVEN, so I had the boys each make a tree stump with seven rings. (Using writing tools to make marks on paper is an important educational skill and has long been one of my older son's goals for occupational therapy.)

I helped each of the boys draw seven circles around their paper plate, progressively growing larger and extending outward with each ring. Then, they used other markers to add color to their "tree stump."

Switching gears: We cleaned up the paint from our work trays and packed away the markers before I turned on another video -- this one about tree bark.

This was a longer video but really engaging. I liked that Ranger Zak focuses on skills and terminology using the scientific method.

The video also provided an opportunity for an unplanned moment of learning when Ranger Zak briefly shared about the fact that cinnamon comes from tree bark. I quickly paused the video, jumped to our spice cabinet, and let the boys taste-test cinnamon along with the kids in the video.

Following the video, I pulled out a small box of chunks of tree bark that I had collected from a nearby park. I had specifically selected each piece based on its unique characteristics. One piece had obviously been sawed and treated in a manufacturing process of some sort. One had a distinctive line of holes drilled into the bark by a woodpecker. Another had trails bored through the side of it by insects.

We spent some time observing the individual pieces of bark. We felt them, looked very closely at them, and described them using both verbal words and the AAC device.

Then, we used black charcoal sticks to rub impressions of them onto paper. It was another really great sensory activity.

Definitely a WIN for the day!