preschool curriculum

Preschool for Eve, age 3-4

Dear Sis,

I’m sure you noticed by now that I love homeschooling, from the time on the couch reading with my little humans, to the selection of the actual curriculum itself. This compilation for Evelyn is the best of what I’ve stumbled upon in the past three years! Many of these items are curated by the folks at Timberdoodle. We have purchased both their preschool and pre-k kits in recent years. You can see those reviews here: Timberdoodle Preschool Review & Timberdoodle Pre-K Review.

We focus on play-schooling and read-alouds, so this list is pretty light on workbook suggestions:) The workbooks that are suggested are very gentle and require very pencil work. Individual lessons take 5-15 minutes to complete! I’ve included printable checklists for a 36 week program that can spread out over the course of a full calendar year, if desired. I’m able to lend you many books and materials, all the items that are consumable… or my kids won’t part with, are linked so you have a shopping list of sorts. 

Curriculum by Subject

Art / Fine Motor

Any set of lacing cards will do, but if you haven’t invested in these yet, this Wooden Alphabet Double-Sided Lacing Cards by Melissa & Doug are a great pick!

Any set of geoboards will do, but we will be lending you this set by Guidecraft, which pairs well with the geoboard letter patterns provided in the Pre-K Curriculum Handbook, 2020-2021 Edition by Timberdoodle.

Please order this pair of cutting workbooks: Let’s Cut Paper! & Let’s Cut Pater! Amazing Animals by Kumon.

Please order this guided drawing book: Little Children’s Drawing Book by Usborne.

We purchased these as part of Eve’s birthday gift! Play and Learn ABC, 123, and Shapes and Under the Sea by Do-A-Dot Art! with this set of “dot” or “dauber” markers.

These Tri-Finger-Grip Writing Tools are a must! We are giving you our old set of crayon rocks (since yours were chewed up by little people) and a Write Size Pencil with a Tri-Hold Pencil Griper. You will need to purchase your own Kum 4-in-1 Pencil Sharpener, that can sharpen wide pencils, and a chunky eraser.

A play dough mat set by DJECO. They swap out the kits periodically, this list includes what is on Amazon at present. You can choose from the following depending on what skills you think need practice: Prints and Shapes Dough Craft Kit (practice flat rolling and cutting) and/or Dough Circles Shaping Kit (practice rolling balls). We had another one that focuses on rolling long skinny strips, if you’d like to borrow it!

Emotional Intelligence / Health

We have these illustrated Feeling Flashcards by Todd Parr you can borrow. For those who don’t already own a set, it might be better to choose a set with real human faces:)

My Very First Body Book by Usborne

Language

 

Any Alphabet Books! We are lending you three of our favorites A is for Apple, Montessori Letter Work, and The Usborne IllustratedAlphabet.

Any Alphabet Puzzles! We are lending you a pair of Upper Case and Lower Case puzzles with the writing strokes beneath each piece.

Please order this pair of alphabet workbooks: PlaySmart Alphabet, Ages 2+ & Ages 3+ by Gakken Workbooks. I’ve scheduled each one workbook for each semester.

Wimmelbooks, set of 4: we are lending you Animals Around the World, Cars and Things that Go, and On the Farm. You will have to purchase a fourth book because William is not giving up Dinosaurs! There are several others from which to choose.

Picture Book Activities: Fun and Games for Preschoolers Based on 50 Favorite Children’s Books by Trish Kuffner (Try to get through 20-25 books this year! That will save 25-30 books for your Pre-K year!)

Mathematics

Any counting/number games! We recommend Count Your Chickens and Snug as a Bug in a Rug by Peaceable Kingdom, Uno by Matel, and Dominos by Melissa and Doug. This domino set only goes from 1-6 and is color coded to help little ones. An adult set goes to 12 and is black and white. We put three games in your loan pile!

Any counting/number manipulatives! We are lending you our Montessori Bead Stair and Wooden Number Peg Boards.

Any counting/number puzzles! My kids are still using ours so you will have to source your own. We like these by Melissa and Doug: See-Inside 0-9 Wooden Peg Puzzle and Self-Correcting Wooden Number Puzzles, 1-20.

The Usborne Big Book of Things to Spot by Gillian Doherty

Please order: Mathematical Reasoning, Beginning 1 by Critical Thinking Co.

Please order: My First Sticker by Numbers Book by Price Stern Sloan.

Preschool Math at Home: Simple Activities to Build the Best Possible Foundation for Your Child by Kate Snow

Science & Engineering

“Koala Crate” monthly subscription from Kiwi Co.

My Very First Our World Book by Usborne

Nature’s Wonders by Alejandro Algeria and Gustavo Mazali

Primary Science Set by Learning Resources

Plus-Plus Big building set with weekly model patterns in the Preschool Curriculum Handbook, 2019-2020 edition by Timberdoodle.

ThinkPlay Preschool building set by Morphun

Social Studies

A Street Through Time by DK (Second Semester History)

Any Globe and World Wall Map! Yes, the inflatable Globe from Dollar Tree and the quilted map of the world wall quilt I made for Grant’s room count!

Any U.S.A. and World Floor Puzzles! Simple puzzles, without a bunch of graphics crammed on each landform are best, but harder to find!

Great Buildings by Mack van Gageldonk (Second Semester Geography)

Me on the Map by Joan Sweeney (First Semester Geography)

Montessori Map Work by Bobby and June Goerge (First Semester Geography)

My First Atlas of the World by National Geographic Kids (Second Semester Geography)

Now and Then by Peter Firmin (First Semester History) I purchased this out-of-print Osburne book on Bookshark.

Preschool Tips & Clips: Neighborhoods: Community Patterns and Activities by Marilynn G. Barr

What Do People Do All Day? by Richard Scarry

Thinking Skills

Please purchase Building Thinking Skills: Beginning 1 Workbook by Critical Thinking Co.

Bunny Peek-a-Boo puzzle game by Smart Games

Day and Night puzzle game by Smart Games

Please purchase this pair of workbooks: Play Smart Brain Boosters, Ages 2+ & Ages 3+ by Gakken Workbooks (One for each semester)

Please purchase this pair of workbooks: Play Smart Skill Builders, Ages 2+ & Ages 3+ by Gakken Workbooks (One for each semester)

Now that you have rounded up all your curriculum and materials, its time to pace everything. I like to work with 36 checklists. Sometimes the checklist is done is done in a week or so. Sometimes it takes a month. I don’t care as long as we finish within a calendar year!

Printable PDF Weekly Check Lists

These checklists are by 9 weeks, because that is the shortest book cycle. Print a new list each week and circle the week number to stay on track.

Printable PDF Book Cycles

This printable includes book cycles as follows: What Do People Do All Day? 2 (18 week cycles), My First Atlas of the World 2 (9 week cycles), Then and Now 2 (9 week cycles), Great Buildings 1 (18 week cycle), and Out World Book 3 (12 week cycles).

I cut these lists out and tape them inside the respective books so I always have quick access to our weekly reading portions.

Happy Homeschooling!

Love,

b

P.S. New This Year from Timberdoodle

Each year Timberdoodle updates their curriculum kits in April. I just received the new catalogue and placed our kindergarten order for this coming school year. In any case, I thought I’d add the updates below incase any look like something you and Eve might enjoy:)

LANGUAGE

A-Z Magnatab, also available in lower case. This learning tool replaced the alphabet puzzles, of recent years.

MATH

“Farmland Math” has been updated to “Town and Farm Math” by Timberdoodle in a new edition. 

Bata-waf card game by Djeco

THINKING SKILLS

Little Match card game, also by Djeco

I Can Do That! Sticker Superstar by Gakken

Animal Playground game by Djeco

SOCIAL STUDIES

Jumbo Puzzle Map of the World by Mudpuppy

The ART kits are new too, but they often are from year to year!

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Teaching Reading at Home

Dear Sis,

There are numerous wonderful reading/language arts curriculum available to purchase. We already own Language A by ShillerLearning and Foundations A by Logic of English.

A friend recently asked me if I felt a big boxed curriculum set was necessary for teaching reading at home. I quickly told her, “NO!” This post is for her, but hopefully it will help other too:) 

As the core of an at home reading program, I suggest one of two books shown below. Both options hang around the $20 price point. Use the “Look Inside” option on Amazon. Read and or watch YouTube reviews to get an idea which book would be the best fit for you (the teacher), and your child (the learner.)

The Reading Lesson: Teach your child to read in 20 easy lessons

Each lesson is broken into a phonetic grouping and will take more than one sitting to complete. For example, lesson one covers letter sounds c, o, s, a, and t in 20 plus reading/workbook pages. 

Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons

This one really looks like 100 lessons that can be completed and/or reviewed, if your student hasn’t fully grasped the concept, in a single sitting. Before starting, there is a section for the parent  to study so they can understand exactly how to present the information to the child.

You can absolutely stop here and use the public library system and pre-reading toys you likely already have at home!

This is a list of some of our favorite pre-reading and reading supplements. Many of these suggestions are actually toys, games, or music. I think most parents would agree that learning through play is a great option for young children. 

Any Alphabet Book(s)

Don’t forget to check the local library! Here are some we recommend!

We happened upon A is for Apple trace and flip board book published by Tiger Tales at a yard sale. Since then, it has become our most used alphabet book!

Our second favorite book is Montessori: letter work by Bobby & June Gorge. It is sequence by pre-writing stroke instead of alphabetically. It would probably be our absolute favorite if the texture or the sand letter was a courser and it had flaps…lol.

Early Readers

Our public library has some early readers titles form these two series. Check yours!

These Bob Books: Set 1, Beginning Readers published by Scholastic in our shopping cart for next school year because they come so highly recommended by so many parents. It appears that the original series is sold in 5 books sets, in 5 levels. There are many supplementary sets and even a workbook series available.

These First Little Readers, Level A are also published by Scholastic. I don’t plan on ordering these right away, but these sets come with 25 readers per level, in levels A-D! More advanced levels are sold in 16 book sets in level pairings: E&F, G&H, I&J. 

Any Alphabet Game

My kids really enjoy Alphabet BINGO! by Peaceable Kingdom. There are countless other brands and printable versions of this learning material.

A good set of uppercase and lowercase letter flash cards can be used to play games like memory and go fish. 

We also use these free printable Beginning Sound Game Boards by 123 Homeschool 4 Me along with our plastic magnetic alphabet letters to create a game of alphabet soup. To keep the printout dry, place it in plastic page covers or laminate them. We fill a mixing bowl with a bit of water, drop in all the letters for that game board, and use a slotted spoon to scoop them out. We use a piece of candy as a place keeper and William enjoys eating it when the game is complete. 

We have made letter pairing sensory bins with Bananagram tiles and rice or lentils. Pinterest is a rabbit hole of wonderful ideas and free printable!!!!

Perhaps our most used, and most understated learning game/tool is an alphabet poster that hangs low on the wall and the Dollar Tree pointer that hangs above it. We use it in a variety of ways. Sometime I say a letter name or sound and William identifies it with the pointer. Sometimes we run around the house pointing to things that start with a specific sound. The options are only limited by the size of human creativity.

Any Alphabet Puzzle(s)

If you don’t have alphabet puzzles yet, here are some we really like and recommend!

This Wooden See-Inside Alphabet Peg Puzzle by Melissa & Doug is a great first puzzle that will grown with your toddler/preschooler.

These ABC Double-Sided Picture Boards by Melissa & Doug are particularly great when a learner is working to pair lower and upper case letters.

These Self-Correcting Wooden Alphabet Puzzles (52 pieces) by Melissa & Doug can be presented in small groups, so a child how is just learning to match a letter to a sound isn’t overwhelmed.

Yes, I’m partial to Melissa & Doug. Wooden puzzles last longer then cardboard ones that dissolve when your baby/toddler puts them in their mouth! I also like the sturdy storage wooden trays that don’t collapse when a kid stand or sits in them. Learning Resources and Educational Insights make high quality materials too! Also, if you frequent thrift stores, they are a great place to look for low cost learning materials!!!

Alphabet Songs

For auditory learning and FUN!

We really love this isolated portion of the Logic of English program. It can be purchased separately and used independently form the rest of the curriculum. These beginning letter sound, phonogram songs with an optional corresponding picture books are wonderful! You can try these listening samples on their official YouTube playlist.

Pre-Writing Letter Formation Activities

ABC Playdough Mats by All About Reading are one of many free downloadable resources for activities and games for teaching pre-reading and reading! We printed them on card stock and laminated them for weekly use. William enjoys using them with homemade play dough and Crazy Aaron’s Thinking Putty. 

In the same vein of thought, Wikki Stix offers an Alphabet Card Set to use with their wax cover bendable yarn strips. These are a fun deviation form routine for use.

A dry erase letter tracing tablet. We have the Trace with Me Pre-Handwriting Tablet by Carson Dellosa Education. I like this book in particular because it sequences letters my stroke instead of alphabetical order.

Printable DIY versions are available all over the web. You can slip them into plastic page covers or laminate them to make them dry erase ready.

A Montessori sand tray is a great DIY projects. Ours is made with a lidded container and green sand from Dollar Tree. Alternately, you can use quinoa or rice.

Check Pinterest for more ideas. I’ve seen variations with flour, sprinkles, shaving cream, etc. Some parents switch it up on the regular so their learners stay interested.

Inexpensive Workbooks

Can be found anywhere!!! dollar stores, Target, Staples, Walmart, etc. My son really likes the ones that incorporate the use of stickers like those published by Gakken Workbooks and Kumon. That being said, we’ve used countless other workbooks too. Just flip through to make sure the workbook looks like a good fit for your learner’s level and preferences to avoid frustration.

That completes my list of suggestions for teaching pre-reading and reading without an expensive program. These also make great supplements for those who are using a curriculum bundle or reading program. If I missed any of your tried and true favorites, please add them in the comment section!

Happy Homeschooling!

b




Preschool End of Year Curriculum Review

Links updated April 2022

Dear Sis,

We started our school year in March of 2020, just after we completed potty training, when my son was three and a half. We purchased Timberdoodle’s customizable preschool 2019 curriculum kit. We did a review after using it for six weeks. You can read that review here.

This review encompasses all the items we used for preschool, many of which were not part of the curriculum kit. I hope you get some inspiration! It can be tricky finding just the right materials for each of your little students. 

Scheduling

Our family fits into a category known as unschoolers. We school all year round, so that we can be less committed to a dedicated schooling schedule. That’s the beauty of homeschool! It can be tailored to your unique family desires and needs!!!

Timberdoodle includes the use of their online scheduling tool with your curriculum purchase. I played around with it, but in the end decided a spread sheet was best for us. Each spread sheet contains one of 36 weeks of school work. We don’t necessarily finish a week of work, in a week. We use the checklist and moved on when we finish. Sometimes in three day… sometimes three weeks…

Art/Fine Motor

  1. Let’s Cut Paper! & Let’s Cut Paper! Amazing Animals & Let’s Fold! by Kumon
  2. Little Children’s Drawing Book by Usborne
  3. Crayon Rocks, 16 colors, Write Size Pencils & Kum 4-in-1 Pencil Sharpener
  4. Washable Tempera Paint Sticks, 24 colors

Cutting & Folding Workbooks: My son really enjoys the cutting and folding books by Kumon! We did have to start on strips of paper, just opening and closing the scissors for a few weeks before we had success with the first cutting worksheets. 

Drawing Book: My son is very discouraged by crafts and art, if he feels that his results are inadequate. This book sets him up for success!!!

Writing Tools: These particular tools helps encourage a tripod grip, while catering to the current level of dexterity your 2-4 year-old has.

Paint Sticks: We paint at least once a week, but sometimes my son wants to paint when I’m too busy to help him. That’s when we use paint sticks. Timberdoodle includes Kwik Sticks in the kit. I opted for an off brand that was a bit cheaper. 

Emotional Intelligence/Health

  1. Feeling Flashcards by Todd Parr
  2. My Very First Body Book by Usborne
  3. Erwin the Little Patient Doll by Sigikid
  4. Cosmic Kids Yoga & Kids Yoga Mat by Gaiam

Flashcards: Although, flashcards of any kind are usually not my go-to teaching tool, these ones are enjoyable and make discussion of feelings more relatable and approachable between parent and child. We’ve found that making emotional intelligence part of our schooling has really helped us get better at talking about and managing emotions in more appropriate ways.

Body Book: All young children are curious about their bodies! Reading books like this one with your kiddos helps you figure out what questions they have. This book was actually our second attempt. It is part of Timberdoodle’s PreK curriculum kit, but we found it was a perfect fit for my son’s level of interest this year. 

Plush Anatomy Doll: This was a gift we got about halfway through the school year. My kids love dissecting Erwin and putting him back together! It’s a great way to make learning the names and functions or different parts of the body a tactile experience.

Yoga: Young children run around much of the day, so formal exercise, although not necessary in childhood, is a healthy habit we hope will follow our children into adulthood. My son really enjoys this children’s yoga show available through AmazonPrime.

Language Arts

  1. Alphabet Activities & Read Alouds
  2. The Reading Challenge in the Timberdoodle curriculum handbook
  3. My Big Wimmelbooks
  4. Osborne Picture Puzzle Books

Alphabet Activities & Read Alouds: We do four activities or read aloud each week to practice letter sounds and names. Some of our favorites include: 

The Reading Challenge:

“This challenge is detailed in the handbook. It has several levels of intensity: The Light Reader (13 books), The Avid Reader (26 books), The Committed Reader (52 books), and The Obsessed Reader (104 books). We love to read, so we went all in and obsessive:) I love how it is diversifying our book choices! There is another section in the handbook that has 637 title suggestions, a list for each challenge, if you get stuck and can’t find something that fits the parameters of the challenge on your own.”

This quote is from my start of the year review. As the year progressed, it ended up feeling like a record keeping chore for mom. We sign out 50 books from the library every two weeks, so we hardly need reading motivation. I’ll probably skip the reading challenge until William is reading independently. Then he can set his own goal each year, and work to achieve it. That being said, if you, as a parent, need motivation to read to your child, this may be a great fit for you!

Wimmelbooks: Timberdoodle includes a set of three in the curriculum kit, we went a bit off script and replaced At the Construction Site. We own Animals Around the World, Cars and Things that Go, and On the Farm. It might be fun to let your student pick the three books that interest them most! It’s nice when kids can feel part of their curriculum selection.

We went through each book once, by scene, narrating a bit as we found each character. Each book takes 6 weeks to complete. The second time through, we went by character, narrating as we found that character in each scene. Each book has more than 6 characters, so you’ll have to pace yourself accordingly to finish in the remaining 18 weeks. We’ve finished up a bit early, and now my son just flips through them independently.

Picture Puzzle Books: Timberdoodle’s kit used to include Under the Sea & Zoo. Both are out of print, so the kit now includes Jungle. We finished these early and dropped them from our weekly checklist. Honestly, between the Wimmelbooks in Language Arts and the Big Book of Things to Spot in Mathematics, these books can probably be omitted entirely.

Mathematics

  1. Number Activities
  2. Farmland Math bundle by Timberdoodle
  3. Mathematical Reasoning: Beginning 1 workbook by Critical Thinking Co. 
  4. Big Book of Things to Spot by Usborne

Number Activities: We do four activities or games each week to practice numbers and the quantities they represent. Some of our favorites include: 

Farmland Math: 

“This active math storybook is actually written by the folks at Timberdoodle. It was a slow start, but William has come to enjoy it very much! There is one lesson for each of the 36 weeks. Some weeks we do the lesson twice because we need more practice or because we want too:)”

At some point, we started calling “Farmer Brown” (inspired by Doreen Cronin’s farm books, staring a very ornery duck) on our toy phone each week, to see how we could help around the farm. Our lesson is our farm chores. This personal touch adds continuity between lessons and also helps my son know what to expect. 

Mathematical Reasoning Workbook: Spiral in approach, with very little writing, especially in the beginning of the book, it is great for young children. We photo copy the few pages that do require markings, so we can reuse the book for my daughter in a few years.

Things to Spot:

“This book can be a bit overwhelming, so we usually do half a scene at a time. We also use ten glass counters to use as place markers. We count the correct number of counters before we begin looking for the animal or item, so that it is self correcting. My son knows he has found seven when all the counters are gone. We struggle to get our two scenes in each week.”

As the year comes to a close, my son is able to work without the glass markers and we can work through one or even two scenes in a sitting. We had to grow into it! 

Science/STEM

  1. Primary Science Set by Learning Resources
  2. Plus-Plus Big building set with weekly models in the Timberdoodle handbook
  3. ThinkPlay Preschool building set by Morphun
  4. Koala Crate monthly subscription by Kiwi Co.

Science Kit: My son loves science! He thinks all the tools in this kit and the experiments are great. I love it for his sake, but really it’s just okay by mom’s standards.

Plus-Plus Building Set:

“These blocks have such a simple design. They go together with just enough resistance to challenge children without frustrating them. The building template cards are actual size, so children can build directly on top of the instructions. There is a great extension for this building set in the handbook with a weekly template and a second building idea.”

Schooling aside, every kid that comes over to play loves these… no matter their age!

ThinkPlay Building Set: 

“This building set is compatible with LEGO DUPLO, but contains a larger variety of unique blocks. It comes with a very good building manual.”

At times these were agonizingly frustrating for my son, because he wanted to work independently, but had trouble following the steps in sequence or noticing subtle differences in block faces. He is getting much better at building with and without instructions as the year comes to a close and is very excited about the ThinkPlay set that is coming in his PreK kit. 

Kola Crate: We actually began the year with a Little Passports subscription as our geography curriculum. After the first three months, we realized it wasn’t quite what we wanted. Kiwi Co. crates have great internet review, so we gave them a try. We’re hooked! We even purchased their summer camp program and enjoyed working through it for the better part of a month. 

Social Studies/Geography

  1. What Do People Do All Day? by Richard Scarry
  2. Then and Now an Usborne Talk About Book by Peter Firman
  3. Montessori: Map Work
  4. Globe

What Do People Do All Day? is easily one of my kids favorite books! It explains how different jobs are done and their place in society. It’s a bit dated, but that somehow adds to its charm. A classic for any children’s library!

Then and Now: This book is out of print, but somehow BookShark still sells it. It compares a street, store, or room in the home. On the left, there is a scene from the Victorian era, and the right, has a scene with its modern counterpart. It’s a great way to introduce the concept of history to young minds!

Map Work: This board book is a great way to help young children learn about continents. Globe: The globe reenforces what is learned in map work and shows how it applies in 3dimensions. 

Thinking Skills

  1. Building Thinking Skills: Beginning 1 workbook by Critical Thinking Co.
  2. Bugzzle puzzle game by Fat Brain Toys
  3. Bunny Peek-a-Boo puzzle game by Smart Games
  4. Day and Night puzzle game by Smart Games
  5. Play Smart series by Gakken Workbooks

Thinking Skills Workbook: is very similar to Mathematical Reasoning: Beginning 1 workbook and we use it the same way.

Bugzzle: Once we completed the other two logic puzzles included in Timberdoodle’s kit, we found this to fill the void on our checklist each week. Each challenge is a new shell design for a beetle. There are three rings in each design with pieces of various sizes and colors. The challenge card shows you where each color should be, but not which pieces create the pattern. 

Bunny Peek-a-Boo:

“The challenge card is a 2-D image that must be created with 3-D pieces. As I talk my son through the puzzles, we also use a lot of placement language… over, under, behind, inside, left, right, etc.”

Day and Night: This logic puzzle shows an image on a card that has to be recreated. In the beginning, you stack the pieces as they appear. The second half of the card, repeat the patterns of the first, but as a black and white silhouette. 

Gakken Play Smart Workbooks: Timberdoodle’s curriculum kit comes with a set of three of these workbooks. The set includes: Play Smart Skill Builders Age 2+, Brain Boosters Age 2+, and Brain Boosters Age 3+. 

My son sailed through these books! In hindsight the age 2+ books were a bit too easy! We leveled up once with: Play Smart Animal Picture Puzzlers Age 3+ and Play Smart Skill Builders Age 3+. William also finished those in a hurry and we leveled up a second time to: Play Smart Brain Boosters Age 4+ and Play Smart Skill Builders Age 4+.

We also enrolled William is a biweekly, 2.5 hour, preschool program at our local YMCA, which started in September and ends in May. Pandemic standards removed most of our opportunities for social interaction, this was our solution, along with starting our own monthly book club. We post each month sharing our book club experience, in hopes that other families can benefit, and save themselves some planning hours. You can check out our archives in our home school corner.

Homeschooling has become very second nature in our home. We wish your family all the best in its home school journey!

Love,

b