Unschooling

10 Simple Things We Keep Available for Learning in Our Homeschool

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Every day is a new day in our homeschool.

One of the things I’ve learned through our homeschooling journey is that I don’t have to plan every learning opportunity for my children. Instead, I can create an environment that invites them to explore, create, experiment, and follow their own curiosity.

I love introducing new games, activities, books, and materials to see what sparks their interest. But I’ve also noticed that some of the simplest things are the ones my children return to again and again.

These are some of the materials we like to keep accessible in our home—not because I expect my children to use them for a particular lesson, but because they create opportunities for learning whenever the interest strikes.

1. Play Money

Play money, along with a kid’s cash register, has become one of our favorite ways to explore money and math.

My children have developed a much stronger interest in math through playing with money than they ever did through simply being told to practice math.

They’ll play store, make purchases, count money, figure out how much something costs, and pretend to run businesses.

We’ve also been able to take those skills into real life through making purchases and participating in our homeschool entrepreneur market.

When math has a purpose, it suddenly becomes much more interesting.

2. Recyclables

Never underestimate the power of an empty cardboard box.

I keep a basket of cardboard scraps and other recyclables near our art supplies, and my children turn them into all kinds of inventions.

Boxes become houses, signs, machines, stores, vehicles, and things I couldn’t possibly identify.

I love watching what happens when I give them simple materials without telling them what they’re supposed to make.

There is so much problem-solving, creativity, planning, engineering, and imagination happening with something that was headed for the recycling bin.

Sometimes the best learning materials are the things we were about to throw away.

3. Loose Parts & Craft Supplies

Loose parts are another favorite in our home because they can become almost anything.

We keep things like:

• Buttons
• Pom-poms
• Pipe cleaners
• String
• Popsicle sticks
• Bottle caps
• Paper clips
• Washi tape
• Erasers
• Craft scraps

I also save leftover pieces from craft kits rather than throwing them away.

My children might glue them onto cardboard one day, string them together the next, or incorporate them into an entirely different project.

The possibilities are open-ended, which is exactly what I love about them.

4. Nonfiction Picture Books

My children have always been drawn to books with real photographs.

A book about animals can lead to questions about habitats. A book about space can turn into a conversation about planets. A book about the human body can send us searching for answers to questions we didn’t even know we had.

Some of our favorites are Smithsonian and DK books.

I love having nonfiction books around because they allow my children to discover something interesting without needing me to introduce it as a lesson.

Sometimes they’ll pick up a book simply because a photograph catches their attention—and that’s enough to get the learning started.

5. Dry-Erase Markers & Boards

There is something about being able to write something down and immediately erase it that makes my kids want to use it.

We keep dry-erase markers and dry-erase boards accessible so they can draw, write, practice letters and numbers, make lists, or simply doodle.

There’s no requirement to use them.

They’re just there.

And sometimes having something available is all it takes to inspire a child to pick it up.

6. Chalk

Chalk is one of those simple, inexpensive materials that seems to invite creativity every time.

We use it inside and outside, and when we have a fresh box of chalk, suddenly the driveway becomes a giant canvas.

My children have:

• Drawn pictures
• Written notes
• Designed houses
• Created maps
• Made roads
• Practiced letters and numbers
• Invented games

There’s something about changing the medium that makes familiar skills feel new again.

Writing with chalk doesn’t feel like handwriting practice.

It feels like play.

7. Play-Doh

I know Play-Doh can be a little controversial for parents who don’t love the mess, but we’ve gotten so much out of it.

Play-Doh provides plenty of opportunities for squeezing, rolling, pinching, shaping, and manipulating—activities that help children develop hand strength and fine-motor skills.

We’ve also used it to make shapes and letters when my children were beginning to write.

Sometimes I’ll make a letter and they’ll copy it. Other times they create their own designs.

And sometimes they simply make something completely unrelated to learning letters—which is perfectly fine too.

Not everything has to have an academic purpose to be valuable.

8. Kid-Friendly Cookbooks

Children love to imitate the people around them, and the kitchen is one of my favorite places for them to do that.

We keep kid-friendly cookbooks available so my children can look through the pictures, choose something they’d like to make, and help prepare it.

Cooking naturally brings so many different kinds of learning into our day.

There’s:

• Measuring
• Fractions
• Counting
• Reading
• Timing
• Following directions
• Science
• Problem-solving
• Trying new foods

But more importantly, cooking gives children the opportunity to do something meaningful and useful.

There’s a big difference between pretending to be independent and actually contributing to the family.

9. A Calendar

We keep a calendar where my children can interact with the days themselves.

They can draw on it, add stickers, mark special events, and cross off the days as they pass.

Over time, they’ve naturally become familiar with the days of the week, months, dates, birthdays, holidays, and upcoming events.

We don’t sit down every morning for a formal calendar lesson.

The calendar is simply part of our environment.

They learn because they have a reason to use it.

10. Magnetic Letters

Magnetic letters are another material I love having available, especially for children who are beginning to explore reading and writing.

Once children begin recognizing letter sounds, they can use the letters to build words before they’re necessarily ready to write those words with a pencil.

We might look at an object or picture and try to spell its name using the magnets.

Sometimes we’ll make short sentences.

Sometimes my children play with the letters in completely different ways.

Again, I don’t force it.

The goal isn’t to turn every material in our home into a lesson. It’s to make learning tools available when they’re interested.

A Few More Favorites

There are plenty of other things we keep around that didn’t make the top ten.

Some of our runners-up include magnetic building blocks, Legos, computers and iPads, coloring books, and play grocery toys.

And honestly, some of our best learning happens with things that aren’t traditionally considered “learning toys” at all.

A cardboard box.

A cookbook.

A pile of craft scraps.

A handful of coins.

A stack of books.

A piece of chalk.

Creating an Environment for Learning

One of the biggest changes in my homeschooling mindset has been moving away from the idea that I need to constantly create learning for my children.

Instead, I try to create an environment where learning is easy to stumble upon.

I want my children to see books they can explore, materials they can create with, tools they can use, and things that connect to their real lives.

Then I step back and watch.

What are they drawn to?

What questions are they asking?

What are they trying to figure out?

What do they keep coming back to?

Sometimes I’ll introduce something new.

Sometimes I’ll join them.

Sometimes I’ll offer a resource or help them find an answer.

And sometimes I simply leave the materials out and let them take it from there.

That, to me, is one of the beautiful things about unschooling.

We don’t have to make every day look like school for meaningful learning to happen.

We can create a home filled with interesting possibilities—and then trust our children to explore them.

What are your favorite learning materials?

I’d love to hear what your children keep coming back to!

What toys, books, tools, or everyday materials have become unexpected favorites in your homeschool?