Enhancing Early Learning Through Creativity & Curiosity In Your Homeschool
- bringingitbacktoba
- May 26, 2024
- 5 min read
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In the world of homeschooling, incorporating versatile and engaging tools can make a significant difference in your child's development. If you’re looking for a fun and educational way to keep your little ones engaged, you’ll likely love the various tools and kits put out by KiwiCo! While KiwiCo itself does sell individual sets and subscription sets through their direct website, a number of these items are also available here, right on Amazon (hello, Prime shipping)!
One that has been a huge hit in our home is the Marble Run & Art Easel (available here). This clever and engaging combo isn’t just a toy—it’s a powerhouse of creativity and developmental learning all in one easy to store package, which also fosters critical early learning skills—talk about win-win! Let’s dive into some of the reasons why this could be the next big hit in your homeschooling toolkit.
1. Spark Creativity and Promote Self-Expression with the Art Easel
First up, let’s talk about the art easel. The board attaches to the easel with 4 large knobbed, bolt type, screws, making them easy to grab and easy to use—some older kids will likely be able to do this part themselves—but the design makes it so quick and simple to swap the chalk board for the dry-erase board and back again.
Imagine your child with a blank canvas, ready to unleash their inner artist. The KiwiCo convertible easel has a chalkboard on one side and a dry-erase board on the other, giving kids plenty of room to express themselves and harness their creativity. Whether they’re doodling, drawing, or practicing their ABCs, this easel makes it fun and super accessible with the added bonus of supporting the strengthening of fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination, which are so important for their development. And let’s be honest—seeing your child’s art on display is pretty heartwarming!
Another thing I personally love about this easel, is the way it is set up with the corner screws to attach the board to the frame, it is easy to make your own additional boards to attach, using ¼”plywood or something similar, you can drill the corner holes in the appropriate spot and just like that, you’ve got an additional canvas to add a clip or tape for paper for things like painting/watercolor or drawing upright with crayons or standard markers as well. Pair it with a fun, water resistant art smock/bapron like the ones available here, and you’re set for hours of artistic fun!
2. Enhancing Cognitive Development
The marble run pegboard aspect of the KiwiCo set is a fantastic tool for cognitive development and allows children of all ages an opportunity to explore the foundations of engineering in a fun and engaging way. Kids love figuring out how to build the perfect path for the marbles to roll down. One of our favorite ways to incorporate this into our homeschool is to build tracks and then use what we know of how the marbles should travel down the track to predict which basket the marbles will drop in. Then we can see what happens if we change one piece, or two pieces, and so on, making new predictions about how the marbles will behave each time. It’s like a mini engineering project right in your living room and your homeschool!
As they plan, test, and tweak their marble runs, they’re learning about cause and effect, spatial awareness, and basic physics. It’s hands-on learning at its best, and it keeps them busy and thinking creatively.
The marble run comes with 35 large, rubbery, track pieces, making the perfect for little hands and easy to use and manipulate. Parents, of course, are always responsible to follow recommended age use guidelines and use discretion for safe marble play based on the ages of your own children (and pets).
3. Encouraging Patience and Perseverance
Both the easel and the marble run are great for teaching patience and perseverance. Let’s face it—creating art and building marble runs doesn’t always go perfectly on the first try—there’s often a lot of trial and error to get the results you’re hoping for. But that’s the beauty of it! With the helps of parents, kids learn that making mistakes is okay and that trying again is part of the process. These activities help them develop resilience and a growth mindset, which are critically important traits for tackling challenges in life and lifelong learning.
4. Fostering Independent Play and Learning
One of my favorite parts about the KiwiCo Marble Run & Art Easel is how it encourages independent play and learning. Your kids can spend hours exploring and creating on their own, which is fantastic for building their confidence and independence. They get to make decisions, solve problems, and discover new things all by themselves. And let’s be real—this gives you a little break to catch up on other things, too!
Having two sides, it also makes the easel a perfect learning/activity center for more than one child, especially if your kids are anything like mine and each have their own preferences for learning style. In my case, this is perfect because one child is much more artistic and loves to constantly draw and paint, while the other is very analytical and loves to design, create, and build anything and everything. This pairing makes the KiwiCo easel perfect for cooperative play and learning. One can be working or playing on either side at any given time—another huge bonus for homeschooling! Anything with multiple purposes or uses, or that multiple kids can use independent of each other at the same time is a total win in my book!
5. Strengthening Parent-Child Bonding
Parents, don’t think you’re left out of the fun! This set also offers awesome opportunities for bonding time. You can join your child in building marble runs or creating art together, especially if you choose to use this easel as an education tool within your homeschool. It’s a great way to foster communication, support and encourage each other, and make lasting memories. Plus, seeing their face light up with excitement and pride when they show you their masterpiece or their successful marble run is truly priceless.
A couple parting notes:
The easel is quick to build, and the instructions are very easy (and visual) to follow. I put the whole thing together in probably 30 minutes, including the unwrapping of all the parts and pieces.
The whole thing also folds down nearly flat (minus the tray and the cloth baskets) with the simple loosening of two side screws.
I was skeptical before purchase because there were a number of reviews that indicated dissatisfaction with the cloth baskets that store marble run pieces and catch the marbles. This has not been my experience. I am not sure if we got lucky or if KiwiCo has amended the issue over time, but we’ve had a good fit and my kids use the baskets for storage and play and we have yet to experience the baskets just falling off as some reviews mentioned.
So there you have it! The KiwiCo Marble Run & Art Easel is not just a toy—it’s a tool for creativity, learning, and bonding. It’s a fantastic addition to any homeschooling setup, providing endless opportunities for your child(ren) to learn and grow. Give it a try, and watch your little one’s creativity and curiosity soar!
Have you tried the KiwiCo Marble Run and Art Easel? Tell me what you think of it!
If you're looking for more ideas for developmental toys for kids you can easily incorporate into your homeschool, be sure to also check out my post about 8 types of developmental toys to build you Montessori homeschool or playroom.
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