Setting Up Our School Room
Thursday, August 27, 2026 | Day 2
Our second day homeschooling, Thursday, August 27, 2026, Waldorf-inspired kindergarten and TK was filled with painting, planting, food, storytelling, and once again, far more activities than we could possibly fit into the time we had.
I am homeschooling my triplet nephews who are four years old, along with their 11-year-old brother, and I have to say that this has been so much fun. I definitely tend to overplan, and this day was no exception.
Before the children arrived, I headed up to the schoolroom to gather supplies for wet-on-wet watercolor painting. I pulled out watercolor paper, painting boards, brushes, sponges, jars, and our primary colors, although we are planning to begin with just one color. We did not actually get to the watercolor painting that day, but everything is now ready for when we finally do.
I also brought down supplies for several other projects, including wooden mushrooms, a rainbow arch, wool for carding and wet felting, and some beautiful new play silks. I already had quite a few silks from homeschooling my own children, but I have been having quite a bit of fun adding a few things that I never had the opportunity to use the first time around.
I also baked apple pie before the children arrived. The last time we made apple pie together, it was not ready until after they had gone home, so this time I wanted them to be able to smell it baking and actually enjoy it during our lesson. I changed the recipe slightly and used maple crystals instead of sugar. I made the pies in little individual dishes, and I definitely should have made more because they ate every bit of them.
We began our day by lighting a candle, with my 11-year-old nephew doing the honors. I also brought out a few fall decorations. Even though we are in Southern California and still experiencing very hot weather, I enjoy bringing the feeling of the season indoors through our food, stories, and activities.
One of our projects was painting little wooden mushrooms. I have a beautiful deck of cards showing different varieties of mushrooms, which gave us some inspiration. Most of the children were immediately drawn to the classic red mushroom with white dots, but by the end we had a lovely assortment.
The children have been such a joy to teach. They are patient, attentive, and have wonderful fine and gross motor skills. It has been so enjoyable watching how carefully they approach each project.
We also enjoyed the cold brew coffee we had prepared earlier in the week. It is organic and decaf, and the children enjoyed a little with their apple pie and maple syrup. Including food in every lesson has become something I really love, and I hope to continue that throughout the year.
Another project was painting a plain wooden rainbow arch in beautiful desert colors. Rather than painting it ahead of time myself, I decided to turn it into something we could all work on together.
Our kindergarten room is still very much a work in progress, and that is intentional. Throughout the year, my 11-year-old nephew and I are planning to do some carpentry together, including building a bookcase where we can store the materials we are making, buying secondhand, and bringing down from my schoolroom.
We also returned to our gardening work. Earlier in the week, the children had removed seeds from tomatoes, and now we planted those seeds in self-watering mason jars. Each jar has a small upper section filled with soil, compost, and coffee grounds, with a string reaching down into the water below. We planted about three seeds in each jar, and nearly all of them eventually sprouted.
One thing I am quickly realizing is that the children love taking something home after each lesson. They ask to take home pieces of nearly every project we do, so I think I am going to start intentionally including something they can bring home as part of our rhythm.
We ended our day with our continuing story, The Hedgehog Leaves Home. We read just a few pages during each lesson, and this time the children were able to include the wooden mushrooms they had painted as part of the storytelling. We also brought out a felted owl we had made previously, which has now become part of the story as well.
I love this aspect of teaching young children. They are so curious, engaged, and excited to participate. Even the smallest details become meaningful to them.
Before they left, the children chose washcloths to take home and also decided they wanted their little mats. The mats were simply made from paper bags, so my sister-in-law and I made a few more after they left.
Our second day was full, joyful, and once again a reminder that I probably do not need to plan quite so much. Still, there is something wonderful about having so many possibilities available and allowing the day to unfold according to what the children are enjoying most.