The importance of starting each morning with family read-alouds has been discussed by many authors and educators, but my first introduction to the concept of “morning time”, or a “morning basket” was via Pam Barnhill.

What is a morning basket?

A morning basket, as defined by Barnhill is, “a time in the day when everyone in the family can come together and learn together about specific subjects.”

For me and my littles, a morning basket really is just a time to read, sing and play together! We sing a hymn, say a prayer, and then dive right into some of our favorite stories. After read-aloud, we sing a silly song, another hymn, and pray.

What’s in my morning basket?

The kids are welcome to play or color during read-aloud, and we follow our readings with dedicated art/school time. I keep a large plastic mat, paints, crayons, clipboards, paper and stickers in our basket for easy access, and give our oldest child a choice between art time or The Good and the Beautiful’s preschool curriculum. Because she’s so little, the curriculum is just for fun still!

I hope to add in scripture and poetry memorization soon.

Starting the day right

No matter what the rest of the day holds, beginning the morning with quality family time really helps us stay grounded as a family. I love the sense of peace and order that our morning basket brings. Millie looks forward to enjoying her favorite books and songs, too!