Early Childhood Guides Set
Program Release to begin on June 15, 2023
As a developmentally focused approach, Enki begins at the beginning! Therefore, the Foundation and Early Childhood Guides are relevant all the way along and, because many Enki parents recommend getting them as soon as you have recovered from childbirth and neonatal sleeplessness – at least enough to want to read, we are offering this stand alone set.
However, this does not mean that it is time to start on a “schooling program,” yet. The young child absorbs the world around him so totally that we feel it is best that he be in a home environment (his own or another’s) doing the business of being home and in the natural world around – and nothing else. That might include being in someone else’s home in a small group a few times a week or even full time if needed, but the activities would still be primarily the things of home (cooking, cleaning, gardening, play, “pots and pans music,” “furniture architecture” and so on).
These are the years to establish healthy rhythms and build the neurological base for effective learning in the later years, and all this happens best through “home activities.” In this set of Guides, we go into great detail on how to make the most of the priceless opportunity early childhood presents.
Since we feel the young child is best served by the ordinary routines of home life, we do not offer resource materials (stories, songs, activities) for children under 4 1/2 years old. We recommend starting with this Foundation and Early Childhood Guides Set; with the understanding offered there, you will see when it is time to move into the kindergarten world.
The young child is firmly anchored in the sensory motor world and has not yet moved into the time of “picture thinking” needed to effectively make mental images. Therefore, simple picture books that are imaginative retellings of daily life are the best support for the young children. These – along with active and imaginative play – provide the building blocks for the all important ability to make internal, mental images. To that end, we include a list of the suggested picture books as a springboard to help you choose what will best fit your child, from the many wonderful books on the market.
Play and participation in ordinary life are the things that will strengthen the young child’s capacity to do use the great gift of this stage – what what the poet William Blake describes as the ability to “see the world in a grain of sand and heaven in a wildflower.” Nothing is more important and premature focus on academics or accomplishments undermines the stabilization of this inborn gift. The Early Childhood Guides offer written guidance on supporting the child’s inborn ability to sink deeply into the natural world and into imaginative play. This set of books also includes four guidance calls spread over the course of the year. These provide a chance to talk with senior Enki faculty and other parents about the joys and challenges, the insights and questions, doubts and inspirations that are all an inevitable part of raising a young child.
The Foundation and Early Childhood Guides will provide you with an understanding of the growing child and the many elements of daily life that impact him, and will give you an overview of what lies ahead in the up-coming, growth-filled years as your child(ren) moves through the metamorphosis of growing from a “wiggly leaf-crawler” into a fully winged butterfly.
I waited until my oldest child was five before I got the Foundation and Early Childhood Guides, and for every page I read, I kicked myself for not having gotten them sooner. At least I have a littler one, not yet toddling, so I got to make use of them one time through!
Actually, even with my oldest, it really helped to have a deep understanding of where she had been and where there might be gaps that needed attention. So I went out and told everyone I knew with young children that these are a must! The ones with newborns did look at me like I was crazy – they’ll find out!
Guides Detailed
Enki Foundation Guides Book I
In this book the underlying worldview and outlook that lie at the core of Enki Education are explored. The overview offered here provides the foundation for all that will come throughout Enki, including descriptions of how this manifests in the day to day experience of the children.
Book I Sample Pages:
Table of Contents (pdf)
Form and Freedom - two parts of a whole (pdf)
Enki Foundation Guides Books II and III
In this book we delve into the underlying worldview and outlook that were introduced in Book I. Each topic is taken up at deeper and deeper levels so that readers can explore at whatever level serves their needs. The deepening understanding offered here gives the teachers – whether at home or in the classroom – a keel to steady their course and keep focused on serving the child(ren)’s wellbeing as they adapt plans and materials to best meet their unique situation.
Books II & III Sample Pages:
Table of Contents (pdf)
Mirroring Child Development (pdf)
Neuro-sensory Integration (pdf)
Enki Teacher’s Workbook
This is a short, printable pdf for you to work with to find how best to apply the insights and materials Enki offers to serve YOUR unique situation. Because Enki works deeply with the patterns natural to living and learning, it can - and must be - be applied different ways in different situations. In this booklet, we guide you through the process of adapting the materials methods so that you have a program that will serve your world and yet still draws on the wisdom of and coherence of Enki.
The Enki Early Childhood Guides
This book offers an detailed look at how we apply the outlook described in the Foundation Guides to the life and education of the young child. Specific attention is given to helping the child build a strong kinesthetic and neuro-sensory base for life long learning. This happens through healthy rhythms, environment, and activities of each day.
This Guide covers the earliest years all the way through kindergarten. These years go by so quickly that having a sense of both where the child has been and where he is going can be a big support so this Guide covers birth through Kindergarten.
Early Childhood Guide Sample Pages
Table of Contents (pdf)
Integrated Speech with the Young Child (pdf)
Developmental Immersion-Mastery: the Enki Approach
is a video tour of the Enki program at work in homeschools and classrooms. You will hear about the underlying outlook from Beth Sutton, Developer and Director of Enki Education, and about the Enki experience from parents, teachers, and the students themselves.
Enki Guidance Calls
This is a chance to meet with a senior faculty member and others working with Enki to explore the philosophy and pedagogy and, most importantly to receive and give support for the lively process of adapting Enki methods to meet your child(ren) and the realities of your life. Included are:
- 4 LIVE Q and A calls over the course of the year. These are for you to discuss you particular questions and challenges with others working with Enki and with a senior faculty member, and for you to share your insights and creativity with others. Details on Membership page.
* If your child has a need that is not readily met by the program and materials, you may need program contents adjusted or expanded. If so, we encourage you to begin by reading the website section on our approach to meeting special needs and then, if that view is in alignment with your outlook, please make an appointment to see what is possible within the Enki program.