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For the past few months I’ve been testing out a new school routine a few times a week with the older kiddos during Flash’s morning nap. While I loved our calendar board I wanted something…cozier. So we’ve been trying out a morning basket.

Our calendar board was awesome and I think it served it’s purpose well. Plus the kids loved it and it was fun to watch them gather around it pointing out all the fun posters. As we walk farther along our homeschool path though I’m finding that school doesn’t have to look so school-like.

This is why I love the idea of a morning basket so much. We can carry our little basket to the couch, cuddle up together (usually still in our pjs), read together, sing together, and pray together. It’s just so cozy! It’s a really nice way to start our day and gets the job done just as well as our calendar board did.

Of course there were still aspects of our calendar board that I wanted to keep so I invented our calendar binder. I pretty much took the kid’s favorite posters off the board, three-hole-punched them, and put them into a binder along with some other fun Pinterest finds. (I wrote a post on just this binder. Check it out!)

Along with our binder, our basket also has a variety of other fun books. One of my favorite new additions is a book of hymns. Singing hymns brings back such sweet memories of my grandma playing classics like Old Rugged Cross on her organ.

The kids and I have been learning my all time favorite hymn, It Is Well With My Soul. Hymns are just so packed full of solid biblical truth. I’d eventually like to add a devotional like this one.

I got my current book of hymns during my years as a Bible Study Fellowship leader, but you can literally use any hymnal, or find them on Pinterest or Google and just print them out.

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When Squeaks was still in Awanas (out for Summer now) we also took this time to read over her lesson for the week. Our Jesus Storybook Bible is also included in our morning basket so we can read a story to go along with her lesson. It’s absolutely the best children’s Bible I’ve come across. We own at least six other children’s Bibles and this one is by far my favorite. The illustrations are beautiful and it’s very easy for the kids to follow.

I’ve also included a variety of themed books. I wanted our morning time to be filled with reading so I’ve included a few book with a common element. Pictured are the books I chose for a letter A theme, but I don’t always stick to letters. I might do a Spring or Summer theme, animal theme, or color theme. Whatever catches our eye at the library or from our own collection goes into the basket.

Pictured above: Ten Apples Up On Top, Berenstain’s A Book, I Want To Be An Astronaut, and Alphie And Bet’s ABC Pop-Up Book. (Just FYI, I’m not making a cent from the Usborne links on this page. I just love the books!)

Lastly, I’ve set a goal to learn Latin with the kids. I’m fully aware this is a pretty lofty goal for a four and two year old but I can dream. So I’ve also included Usborne’s First Thousand Words In Latin. It’s a start, and even if we just enjoy looking at the pictures for now, that’s fine with me. Baby steps!

Overall, I’m enjoying our morning basket and I think the kids are too. It’s a more simple and peaceful start to our homeschool day. We have fun searching for new books to include, learning hymns to sing together, and with our binder included, we still cover all the daily activities we were use to. It’s a win!

So what do you think? Is a morning basket something you have tried or would like to try with your preschooler?