I never got tired of seeing each of our five children go through their beginning stages. Each baby was unique and had their own individual way of doing things. It was amazing seeing them crawl when they were ready, pulling up on furniture when they were ready and finally taking those first steps when they were ready.

So how did did they learn to do these things when they were babies and how do they learn to do things now? In the exact same way, it hasn’t changed...

By Seeing & Mimicking

Do we really teach our babies how to crawl and walk? No. We may encourage them and cheer them on when they start but they learned how to walk by seeing and mimicking. Eventually after seeing mommy and daddy, sister and brother walking for so long they start to think:

Hey, there is something to those leg things that make my family taller and get around faster. Let me figure out how it’s done.

They learn by watching others and trying it out for themselves. Of course they don’t always get it on the first try but these are the first problem solving and thinking skills that babies develop. They see an end goal and they keep working to get there and one day it just happens. They didn’t have to go to baby school because it is a natural process already embedded in them. They just have to take those steps when they are ready.

The same holds for today. If you want your kids doing and creating amazing things lead by example because they are watching you. My kids have watched my husband put his tools together many times and one day they started playing with them and figured out how to do it. These little human beings mimic what they see and figure out some of the in betweens on their own.

By Playing

When my kids play with the toys they love they are learning. Constantly they are figuring out how these figures work and how to make them even more fun. In the midst of playing they end up building amazing architectural designs that they didn’t even know they could achieve.

It’s quite amazing watching them develop knowledge and skills just from having fun during play time.

By Getting Their Hands Dirty

I remember being so fixated on keeping everything clean when I was a first time mom. I didn’t let my daughter explore with things that got her dirty because I wanted a clean baby and a clean house. 😁 Now, four kids later, I understand that allowing them to experiment with their hands and getting dirty is all apart of learning how the world works around them. They get the opportunity to use their senses of feeling and touch and being able to manipulate different materials to expand their knowledge.

My children love being outside in the dirt, investigating and studying insects and in the kitchen cooking with me. They actually like seeing how dirty they can get their hands. 😄

By Allowing Them to Explore Their Interests

One of the perks of homeschooling is being able to set up an environment that fosters learning according to my children’s interests. We are able to get the resources and supplies we need to encourage learning based off of what our kids actually want to learn.

When we allow our kids to explore their interests, we are amazed at the sparks that fly out from their hearts and brains. They light up and get so excited about what they’re doing and the best part is...they actually enjoy it! Learning becomes a joy and not a chore.

By Feeding Their Curiosity

We are all born with curiosity, it’s in our nature to wonder. Asking questions and observation is a natural process of how we learn. When we feed this curiosity and go out to find answers it encourages more learning.

We take our kids to places that answer some of the questions they ask us. Sometimes it’s better to show them rather than just talking about it.

There is nothing better than learning about something up close and personal...being able to see it and interact with it.

By Switching Up Their Environment

When we expose our kids to different cultures and ways of life they take in new insights. Being able to choose our field trips and the environments we enter allows us to customize their experiences.

It’s a fresh breathe of air when we get to escape our normality and enter new worlds filled with exploration and discovery!

These are the ways my children learn. Setting an environment that fosters their learning and curiosity, allowing them to explore and get their hands dirty and letting them be free to be who they are is what we strive on doing. We want them to be the best they can be.

We live by example because we know they are watching us closely and will mimic our every move. Learning is a natural process and will happen as long as you allow it to :)

Thanks so much for stopping in! 💛

This post is a response to How Do Your Children Learn? by @homeedders.

All photos are my own.

Logo/Banner created by @rigaronib!