teachmama.com top 10 blog posts of 2013

The year’s anew so there’s no better time to wrap up 2013 and start 2014.

But as I move ahead, looking at my blog calendar and trying to carve out a schedule for the next few months, I thought it would be wise to reflect a bit.

It’s become difficult for me to figure out the fine balance between supporting what my kids are learning at school and still providing them a lifestyle of learning at home. I will always continue to do fun things with them, helping them learn in the every day and grow to be curious about the world around them, but I don’t want to overdo it.

I don’t want to burn them out.

Or make them not want to spend time with me.

There. I said it.

So often time with my kiddos is spent just hanging out.

Reading. Playing games.  Helping them to be decent, God-fearing digital citizens. Driving them to and from practices. Breaking up arguments, doing homework, walking Brady, or preparing meals.

So without further ado,  here’s a quick look back at the year, highlighting the posts that seem to have yielded the most interest to my awesome, incredible, rockstar readers.  I found it interesting that the topics ranged from learning to crafts to parenting—with a lot of emphasis on everyone’s favorite: the Rainbow Loom.

Click on each photo to find the original post.

• teachmama.com top 10 blog posts of 2013:

• How to Make Rainbow Loom Bracelets Without the Loom:

This post has blown up in the past month, I think since so many kids have received those loom bands in stockings or under the tree. (Or maybe it’s the parents who want to learn how to make these crazy bracelets?)

• Learning During Read-Alouds– 5 Things Never to Say to Emerging Readers: 

Over and over folks tend to click this and over and over I receive emails, tweets, comments, and reshares about this. I am so glad it’s helping folks know better how to interact with their emerging readers.

• New Year’s Interview: Fun Family Tradition

I think because the New Year’s Interview has been sitting on my site for so long, this has been a biggie for us.  The super-cool thing? You can start this fun family tradition at any time of the year. Don’t think it only has to be in January; your new year can begin at any time!

• Fun Ways to Learn Spelling Words

A saving grace for us when spelling word lists were a weekly challenge, this post is also big for searches, pins, and shares.

• How to Prepare Your Child for Kindergarten

Hundreds of thousands have read and shared this post, and tons of folks have taken the time to print resources, share their own expertise, and let me know that this post was helpful in that last year before kindergarten.

• Help for Classroom Parents– Halloween Party Ideas & Valentine’s Day Party Ideas:

I am so, so grateful to see so many people reading and sharing this post because really? The Classroom Parent gig has been done so many millions and trillions of times before, that there’s no reason that folks should reinvent the wheel when they take the reigns of this heavy job.  I look forward to a Classroom Parents 2.0 post this spring.

• Rainbow Loom: 5 Reasons Kids Need It and Parents Love It

Perhaps a boatload of folks found this or bookmarked it when the Rainbow Loom purchase was ‘looming’ over their heads (I had to!) but this was a biggie in 2013 as well. If you have another reason to love the Rainbow Loom, please let me know–I’d love to add to the list!

• How to Teach Kids to Tie Their Shoes:

Though I’m sure Owen and Cora could still use a ‘how to tie your shoes’ refresher, this post continues to be a favorite among readers and searches.  I’m so glad it’s been helpful because learning how to tie shoes is no easy feat for small hands.

• 150 Fun Things to do With Kids:

One post that I truly believe has been one of our favorites in this house as well as thousands and thousands of others, the ‘150 Fun Things to do With Kids’ is huge. We still use our Fun Sticks and we still add to the list of things to do. Perhaps there will need to be a 150 Fun Things 2.0 this spring. . .

• 3 All-Time Best Games to Play With Sight Words

I think this post was not only popular because it’s packed with three really helpful games to play with sight words, spelling words, or vocabulary words, but it’s also a vlog–and YouTube is a pretty big way people are searching now.

If you’re not over there and haven’t subscribed to teachmama.com channel, please do! 2014 is the year of the vlog for me–you don’t want to miss a beat!

And really, that’s 2013 for you.

It’s a wrap.

My two biggest traffic sources were Pinterest and Google, with our Facebook page growing daily.

I’d love to continue to connect with you, so please let’s get together on the following platforms (come on–we all need another time suck, don’t we?!)

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Let me know you followed me, and I’ll be sure to follow back! Here’s to a happy, healthy 2014, friends!