Practical Life at Home

In the last post, I gave an overview of the practical life curriculum, breaking it down into four main areas: care of self, care of environment, control of movement and food preparation. Today, I want to give some ideas for activities in each area that can be set up at home.

First let me say this: your home should never aim to look like a classroom! In fact, the opposite is true. The classroom should mirror a school whenever possible. You do not need activities set up on trays. You do not need to re-create every activity you see on Pinterest. The simpler, the better.

Care of Environment: sweep, window washing, folding (napkins and washcloths are a great place to start!), wiping counters and tables, vacuuming, polishing wood, washing dishes, loading the washing machine, unloading the dryer, weeding in the flower beds or garden, arranging flowers, dusting, moping, feeding pets, watering plants. The opportunities really are endless and can be based on routines you already have in place.

Care of Self: clipping and scrubbing fingernails, dressing, tying, lacing, buttoning, cleaning glasses, bathing, brushing teeth, brushing hair. So many activities can be added in based on specific needs!

Food Preparation: carrot peeling, banana slicing, strawberry slicing with an egg slicing, hard boiled egg peeling, cucumber peeling and slicing, cheese grating, avocado mashing, herb grinding, spreading (butter, jam, nut butters), clipping herbs. Again, endless possibilities!

Control of movement: (note: I am not a big advocate for activities on trays at home. Always observe before adding in control of movement activities at home. Do they need a specific skill in isolation? Do not feel the need to add in activities just because they are cute) Tweezing herbs, pouring water from a pitcher, stringing beads, cutting paper, using tongs, spooning, using a sponge, using clothespins, using safety pins.