Hey friends. How are you all doing? We’re into week 7 of the official lockdown here in London and I am finally making a little space to post something here.
Not counting the easter break this is our fifth week of ‘homeschool’. I say ‘homeschool’ but for us this is neither traditional school nor some form of Montessori test run. I’m just doing my best, doing what I can, trying to be as relaxed about learning/teaching as possible and giving myself loads of grace for the less than successful moments. And there have been plenty.
The truth is, my children are very different learners with incredibly different personalities to each other as well as being two school years apart. Add into the mix a child that has specific education needs, who isn’t able to keep up with the level of work they are supposed to be ploughing through as indicated by the volume and complexity of what is being set by the school, and you could have yourself a sticky situation.
I’ve learnt there isn’t a one size fits all approach for this and to use my intuition as my guide-stick. My daily goal is that the kids go to bed content not stressed or overwhelmed and if that means parking the endless worksheets of comprehension and focusing instead on creative ways for the children to learn, then so be it.
We’ve done lots of interesting and fun things together – a lot of which has been outdoor or nature based because that is something my children seem to lean into. We’ve also done a lot of creative activities because we are a creative family and I find art is generally healing for pretty much anyone.
I’ve been thinking about ways to practise basic English without resorting to convention and I wrote down a list of ideas. Lots of these have been really successful – my kids are learning without realising it – and that for me is a win! Today I decided we’d read a recipe, write it out in our own handwriting and then make it. Boiled down this exercise equates to reading, writing, spelling, cooking and comprehension as well as being creative and fun.
So here, by way of sharing some cookie love, I’m posting our morning English lesson in case it inspires you to try something different. I’ll share some more of the unconventional ideas I’ve tried out soon but for now – enjoy these irresistible cookies and have fun with your little ones.
Gooey Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 100 grams soft brown sugar
- 115 grams caster sugar
- 125 grams soft butter
- 1 free range egg
- 225 grams self raising flour
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 200 grams chocolate chips
Instructions
- pre-heat the oven to 180°c
- in a food mix (or by hand) cream the sugars and butter together until fluffy
- add the egg
- sieve in the flour and vanilla essence
- stir in the chocolate chips and mix together with a wooden spoon
- roll the mixture into 12-16 balls
- place on a baking tray lined with greeseproof paper
- bake for 10-12 minutes
- allow to rest for 5 minutes before loosening the bottoms and transferring to a cooling rack. The cookies will be very soft and gooey at first but will set once cooled
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