What does your accelerated preK day look like?

[Mommyof1]

Just curious.

[maize]

Read stories to child

Take child to park

Play with child

Feed child

Speak French to child

Practice violin with child

Take child to introductory Dance or Gymnastics class

 

At least, that is what I did with my oldest. These days my pre-k kids have to make do with a lot less direct Mommy attention.

[Mommyof1]

I understand that. I am amazed at the home school parent teaching multiple kids. I don't know how you all do it.

[Mommyof1]

Maize, why French?

[desertflower]

With my oldest, we went to museums, zoos, beaches, and parks.  I would give him a math workbook (horizons), or something from the critical thinking company while sister was in ballet class.  Did "science experiments". 

 

The other 2 just followed the oldest around, so their prek year was a little different. 

[wendyroo]

My third son just turned four.

 

During breakfast he listens as I read aloud from a novel and some poetry.

 

After breakfast he gets ready for the day and then "babysits" his younger sister for about 20 minutes while I get the big boys started on their school.  I set the 4 and almost 2 year olds up with activities like play dough, building a zoo with blocks and plastic animals, playing with Mr. Potato Head, building with tinker toys, "painting" with water on construction paper, playing in the sensory tub, etc.

 

When the "babysitting" starts to fall apart, then the toddler goes to play in her room and the 4 year old is welcome, but not required, to join the big boys at the table for school time.  On any given day he might:  listen to one of his brothers read aloud, work in a Kumon kindergarten workbook, do a phonemic awareness activity, work on a couple pages in Singapore Essentials B, do a puzzle, work on a sticker book, help with a science experiment, do some mazes or connect the dots, draw/color/paint, read a Bob or I See Sam book, listen to science or Story of the World with the big boys, play with busy bags, etc.

 

If he chooses not to "do school" then he plays...normally with lego or Imaginext or out in the backyard.

 

After school and snack, then we have an extracurricular most days of the week.  The 4 year old participates in speech therapy, two gym classes and a weekly Spanish Immersion preschool class.

 

After lunch, chores, and rest time I try to get everyone outside.  We might go for a nature walk, a bike ride, to the park, or set up an obstacle course in the backyard.  When the weather outside is frightful, then we tend to play board games or pull out art supplies during this time.  If we are all still alive and relatively sane come 4pm, then the kids can play on screens for 45 minutes until DH comes home and they have to clean up for dinner.  Then family time, bathes, books and bed.

 

Wendy

[4KookieKids]

My 3/4 year old (almost 4... bday is in a week) would do more with me if she had more of me. As it is, she has two two older sibs and one younger. So she gets about 20 minutes of focused time where we do however much math she wants to do (I usually end up cutting her off at 10 min), a short reading lesson (I cut her off at about half a lesson here, too), and then some cutting/pasting sheets, because she loves to cut and paste. Otherwise, she just tags along with read alongs with the other kids and play a lot with her 2 and 6 yo sisters. For my older kids, usually around the time they are 4.5 / 5, their desire for "real" work amps up, and we start doing more formal math, reading, and writing like Singapore and Spalding (but still < 1 hr a day total - maybe 30ish min?), and more audiobooks that they can listen to on their own with headphones, so that everyone can listen to something age and interest appropriate. 

Edited September 5, 2017 by 4kookiekids

[Cake and Pi]

In general, pre-k at my house involves lots of read-alouds, play with open-ended type toys and building toys, play outside, talking about things with parents and siblings, trips to the library and occasionally the zoo/museum/etc, and simple chores around the house.  Pre-k has changed as more children were added to our family, mostly because of the dynamics imposed by the needs of siblings.  DS#1 went to story time at the library every week and had "quiet time" (ala I-wish-you-still-napped time) daily.  DS#3, otoh, sat in the car while I drove DS#4 and DS#1 to doctor/specialist/therapy appointments and DS #2 two and from school.  

 

As far as pre-k academics, my DS#1 did 20-30ish minutes total of math and reading per lesson day for like 4 months before he started K.  DS#2 only did reading, maybe 10-15 minutes per day, starting at 3.5yo because he asked to learn, but didn't start any other academics until he was "supposed" to stark K (has an early fall b-day).  DS#3 tagged along in what the older two were doing for science, history, grammar, and whatever else he decided to pay attention to from about 3yo on, but didn't get any academics directed at him until shortly after he turned 4yo  He started with maybe 10-20 minutes per day at 4yo and by the end of summer "break" this year at 5.5 was up to probably around an hour per lesson day because that's what he likes and wants.  

[Crimson Wife]

I did phonics whenever the child was ready for it (3.5 for my oldest and 4.5 for my 2nd) and my 2nd did the What Your Preschooler Needs to Know activity book. We did "living math", hands-on science using Mudpies to Magnets, and lots of field trips to local museums/zoos/aquariums/farms/historical places/etc.

 

 

[Crimson Wife]

One thing that my 2nd used in K that could totally be done in pre-k is Song School Latin. Classical Academic Press also has other languages in their Song School series.

 

My "twice exceptional" youngest child picked up Latin phrases from listening in to her brother's Song School Latin CD. She was saying "[Name] prenomen est" before she could say "My name is [Name]" :lol:

[Jackie]

When DD was 4yo, she went to preschool two days a week because I still worked part time. Thank heavens, because she was exhausting!

 

Otherwise, we did lots of reading. That was the year I fell in love with nonfiction for her because the books kept her occupied longer than fiction books. (She was an early reader, so she read independently as well as having books read aloud.)

 

I also started using some curriculum that year. A lot of her behavior that I found challenging settled down after we started having regular school time. It's like her brain needed to know she would have that in order to calm itself. RightStart Math and BFSU were the main things I used, plus I put together a booklist for prehistory. We read lots of mathy picture books. We read Story of the Orchestra and went to as many child-friendly live music performances as I could find. We watched Salsa Spanish videos and practiced speaking Spanish. I stocked her art desk and let her create as much as she wanted.

Edited September 5, 2017 by Jackie

[8filltheheart]

Playing.

[maize]

Maize, why French?

I wanted to raise my kids at least partially bilingual, and French is my most fluent second language. Frankly I have never gotten very far with that goal.

 

I do still try on an exposure level, I was telling my 4 month old about my day today--in French.

[maize]

Mommyof1, how old is your child? (I'm guessing from your user name that you have an only)

 

8FillTheHeart's succinct reply sums up the most crucial work of young children: play. Imaginative/pretend play in particular seems to be critical for brain development. If you are able to join in imaginative play with your child and help them extend their scenarios that is great. If not (some of us really struggle to get into the play mode as adults) one place you might focus your mommy attention is on finding one or two playmates that your child can get together with regularly. Some can also be quite content to play alone, but some researchers believe that important skills are developed during play with other children.

 

Beyond that, the things I have looked to provide for my young children have been based on personal experience and priorities combined with my gut instincts and whatever research on child development I could find. There's not much evidence out there for benefit to early academic instruction for children. There is some for music instruction, foreign language exposure, physical activities such as dance, and that all critical play. 

 

Also, many children benefit from having a regular schedule of sorts. Also from an environment mostly free from emotional stressors (such as adults arguing). 

 

Now, the other aspect to creating a schedule is the parent's needs. I jumped into more formal schooling with my oldest when she was 4 because I badly needed to be doing something intellectually stimulating.

[regentrude]

Playing, being read to, going on nature walks, singing together, baking and cooking, being read to some more, coloring, and lots and lots of talking

[Runningmom80]

Playing.

 

 

Yep.  He played legos all day.  Or we went outside or to the play ground.  My twins did Montessori preschool and when they were 3 and 4 they mostly did art work there. 

[Mommyof1]

My DD is almost 5 but due to her birthday she doesn't qualify for kindergarten this year.

 

She has playmates. We play at parks and all the usual little kid things. She rides her bike, scooter and roller skates.

 

She loves to paint and modify her toys. She loves YouTube kids and the shows on creating and modifying things.

 

She LOVES science and nature. We go on nature walks and Daddy teaches her about the environment around us. They made binoculars this weekend. She loves watching Scishow Kids and Dr. Binocs on YouTube Kids, her choice, she found the shows herself.

 

We do a lot of read alouds and audio books daily. Bedtime alone read alouds are usual around an hour. She gets 4 books at night the length of time depends on what she picks.

 

She is learning sign language and has since she was a baby. Mostly to tell me what she wanted back when she wasn't verbal. She really likes it and still uses it daily with me. Daddy is teaching her conversational Spanish when situation arises.

 

She has different instruments she plays with, the little kids ones. She bangs on pots and pans plus uses the lids as symbols. She loves music and dance.

 

She is social and will talk to anyone.

 

She is very imaginative and wants to be treated like whatever animal or superhero she is pretending to be. She makes up stories. Dresses up as whatever she's in the mood for.

 

She is a very bright child that needs intellectual stimulation and receives it. Her phonics and math combined take less then 5 minutes (if that) and it's all verbal for her right now. If she doesn't want to she doesn't have too.

 

I created this topic in the accelerated place because I wanted to know what others do when the typical prek stuff isn't enough.

[8filltheheart]

My DD is almost 5 but due to her birthday she doesn't qualify for kindergarten this year.

 

She has playmates. We play at parks and all the usual little kid things. She rides her bike, scooter and roller skates.

 

She loves to paint and modify her toys. She loves YouTube kids and the shows on creating and modifying things.

 

She LOVES science and nature. We go on nature walks and Daddy teaches her about the environment around us. They made binoculars this weekend. She loves watching Scishow Kids and Dr. Binocs on YouTube Kids, her choice, she found the shows herself.

 

We do a lot of read alouds and audio books daily. Bedtime alone read alouds are usual around an hour. She gets 4 books at night the length of time depends on what she picks.

 

She is learning sign language and has since she was a baby. Mostly to tell me what she wanted back when she wasn't verbal. She really likes it and still uses it daily with me. Daddy is teaching her conversational Spanish when situation arises.

 

She has different instruments she plays with, the little kids ones. She bangs on pots and pans plus uses the lids as symbols. She loves music and dance.

 

She is social and will talk to anyone.

 

She is very imaginative and wants to be treated like whatever animal or superhero she is pretending to be. She makes up stories. Dresses up as whatever she's in the mood for.

 

She is a very bright child that needs intellectual stimulation and receives it. Her phonics and math combined take less then 5 minutes (if that) and it's all verbal for her right now. If she doesn't want to she doesn't have too.

 

I created this topic in the accelerated place because I wanted to know what others do when the typical prek stuff isn't enough.

And the answers you have received are by parents of accelerated kids. I am sure some parents who accelerated academics will jump in and offer their suggestions, especially since you are dismissive of the responses you have received.

 

My response remains the same. Playing. I don't do pre-K with my kids. It hasn't negatively impacted my kids at all. My kids have started K without knowing how to write their numbers or how to read, but they have still managed to start alg at 10 or read Paradise Lost in 8th grade or graduate from high school fluent in 1 foreign language and at advanced levels in 2 others.

 

IOW, deliberately making the choice to focus on imaginative play and self-entertainment before K was my actual goal r cognitive development. I took that approach 8 times and I would follow that path again if we had more kids. :)

 

It works for us. You need to find your path that meets your parental goals.

[Lawyer&Mom]

Audio books. Dd4 needs a lot of verbal stimulation, and I wasn't finding enough time to read to her. We now listen to audio books in the car. The Blue Fairy Book has been a big hit lately. It's 14 hours of fairy tales for like $4 on audible!

[regentrude]

My response remains the same. Playing. I don't do pre-K with my kids. It hasn't negatively impacted my kids at all. My kids have started K without knowing how to write their numbers or how to read, but they have still managed to start alg at 10 or read Paradise Lost in 8th grade or graduate from high school fluent in 1 foreign language and at advanced levels in 2 others.

 

Same here. My DD started K without knowing the letters (in my home country, formal academics do not start until age 6 or 7). She was the first in her K class to read fluently by October and has been an academic overachiever ever since. I do not consider formal academics in pre-K necessary. Kids learn by playing and by being shown the world.

[Mommyof1]

8filltheheart, sorry that you feel I am being dismissive, I'm not.

 

I am getting annoyed, though.

 

Whatever you choose/chose for your kids is your choice, your the parent. I'm not judging you on what you do or dont. You know what's best for your kids.

 

My response was to acknowledge that my kid does those things that others mentioned including yours which was "play".

 

The ones that mentioned curriculum. I acknowledged them with that check mark thing, I assume it's a like feature?

 

I have found on this board that prek is a very touchy subject.

[regentrude]

I have found on this board that prek is a very touchy subject.

 

It's not touchy - some of us just consider it unnecessary.

 

But that does not mean you have to listen to that.

[Arcadia]

She loves watching Scishow Kids and Dr. Binocs on YouTube Kids, her choice, she found the shows herself.

...

She has different instruments she plays with, the little kids ones. She bangs on pots and pans plus uses the lids as symbols. She loves music and dance.

...

I created this topic in the accelerated place because I wanted to know what others do when the typical prek stuff isn't enough.

My kids have different personalities and needs. Both of mine are early readers but DS11 reads at a slower speed. We watched all the Nova ScienceNow, Cyberchase, Wild Kratts.

 

DS11 loves to move and he enjoyed imitating the Riverdance male lead as a under 5 years old.

 

DS12 loves to figure out stuff while staying sedentary, and was dismantling his 1/4 student violin as a 3 year old. Luckily it wasn't a high end violin. He was also trying to figure out how the grand piano at Nordstrom works because the lid is open so he could see the inside of the grand piano. We go to Nordstrom for the piano, plush chairs to rest while shopping, lovely restrooms and my mom would get a coffee from the cafe there. DS12 has been a people watcher since he was born. Malls are entertaining places to him as he observes people.

 

Academics took very little time. DS12 started cursive around 2/3 because he thinks it is pretty and asked me for cursive worksheets to imitate. He also went for Chinese class to play. Chinese is our heritage language. Math books (not textbooks) and printouts are at his level and whatever he wants to learn. He like exponents and binomials, different number systems and basically covered what was "taught" in The Number Devil before he read that book. His idea of playtime was reading, Lego Technics to build machines, and drawing floor plans. He is my sedentary kid.

DS11 wasn't interested in book work and isn't as interested in languages as DS12. So we watch documentaries on whatever he likes and did whatever math he wanted to learn with pencil and paper. No curriculum needed.

 

So much math can be taught with pencil and paper if a parent has time and is confident. There is also plenty of living math books. My older taught my younger math. Languages are taught verbally too at that age. My oldest pick up spoken Chinese by listening to so many people in my area speaking Chinese even though he prefers not to talk at all regardless of language. For music, my kids are welcome to bang on my upright piano or torture their violins or try my chromatic harmonica. My husband's clarinet is too delicate and expensive for our kids to torture.

 

My kids were December babies and cutoff used to be December 2nd so my oldest went to public school for kindergarten at 4yrs 8 months and enjoyed people watching more than a thousand students. After schooling took at most 30mins for him.

 

Curriculum was just too costly at the speed my oldest goes through them. One of my library system has full sets of k-8 public school textbooks as well as most of the high school textbooks. My oldest found them too slow moving. Foreign languages he thankfully does at a slower pace but that is partially because he spends time comparing languages rather than learning one language.

[8filltheheart]

8filltheheart, sorry that you feel I am being dismissive, I'm not.

 

I am getting annoyed, though.

 

Whatever you choose/chose for your kids is your choice, your the parent. I'm not judging you on what you do or dont. You know what's best for your kids.

 

My response was to acknowledge that my kid does those things that others mentioned including yours which was "play".

 

The ones that mentioned curriculum. I acknowledged them with that check mark thing, I assume it's a like feature?

 

I have found on this board that prek is a very touchy subject.

Actually, it isn't a touchy subject. The vast majority of people on this forum (and the non-accelerated forums) do pre-k academics.

 

Fwiw, my response was to your wording of your post. Your response (the last sentence of your 2nd post) implied that the responses you were getting were not from parents of accelerated children and who could not relate to your dd's level.

 

Another fwiw, when you post on a forum, stipulating what you want in responses will help eliminate the posts that annoy you. Your initial post was "what does your accelerated pre-k day look like? Just curious." Those were the responses you got. If you had stipulated you wanted responses on pre-K activities that focus on standard academics, then your responses would more likely have been geared in that direction.

Edited September 5, 2017 by 8FillTheHeart

[maize]

My DD is almost 5 but due to her birthday she doesn't qualify for kindergarten this year.

 

She has playmates. We play at parks and all the usual little kid things. She rides her bike, scooter and roller skates.

 

She loves to paint and modify her toys. She loves YouTube kids and the shows on creating and modifying things.

 

She LOVES science and nature. We go on nature walks and Daddy teaches her about the environment around us. They made binoculars this weekend. She loves watching Scishow Kids and Dr. Binocs on YouTube Kids, her choice, she found the shows herself.

 

We do a lot of read alouds and audio books daily. Bedtime alone read alouds are usual around an hour. She gets 4 books at night the length of time depends on what she picks.

 

She is learning sign language and has since she was a baby. Mostly to tell me what she wanted back when she wasn't verbal. She really likes it and still uses it daily with me. Daddy is teaching her conversational Spanish when situation arises.

 

She has different instruments she plays with, the little kids ones. She bangs on pots and pans plus uses the lids as symbols. She loves music and dance.

 

She is social and will talk to anyone.

 

She is very imaginative and wants to be treated like whatever animal or superhero she is pretending to be. She makes up stories. Dresses up as whatever she's in the mood for.

 

She is a very bright child that needs intellectual stimulation and receives it. Her phonics and math combined take less then 5 minutes (if that) and it's all verbal for her right now. If she doesn't want to she doesn't have too.

 

I created this topic in the accelerated place because I wanted to know what others do when the typical prek stuff isn't enough.

Can you elaborate on the ways in which typical pre-k stuff isn't enough?

 

I think it is totally fine to do 5 minutes a day of math and phonics with a 4 year old. Not a necessary thing but not likely harmful either. It sounds like you are following her lead and that is great.

 

Do you want to add more than you are doing?

 

What I aim for (which is not always what happens) is to limit electronics and maximize real world experiences and learning. Doing stuff with their minds (imaginative play) and bodies (dance, music, active play) is how young children develop.

[Mommyof1]

Regenteude, I understand that.

 

When I was growing up there was no preschool.

 

In kindergarten they taught us our numbers to 10 and the alphabet. (She know that at 2, not by me) We played and they read to us and made sure we understood some safety thing, like our phone # or crossing the street.

 

I don't think they taught us to read till 1st grade.

 

My daughter had never been to preschool because I don't believe in it, personally.

 

I honestly don't feel kindergarten is necessary. IMHO.

 

I do believe in meeting the needs of my child. That includes early academic's if she needs it. It's not every day, it's not always every other day. It takes only minutes. It done orally only. I don't do writing with her because she isn't ready. She is only doing things she is ready for.

[regentrude]

Regenteude, I understand that.

 

When I was growing up there was no preschool.

 

In kindergarten they taught us our numbers to 10 and the alphabet. (She know that at 2, not by me) We played and they read to us and made sure we understood some safety thing, like our phone # or crossing the street.

 

I don't think they taught us to read till 1st grade.

 

My daughter had never been to preschool because I don't believe in it, personally.

 

I honestly don't feel kindergarten is necessary. IMHO.

 

I do believe in meeting the needs of my child. That includes early academic's if she needs it. It's not every day, it's not always every other day. It takes only minutes. It done orally only. I don't do writing with her because she isn't ready. She is only doing things she is ready for.

 

Then it's all good. You do what works for your family. Other families do what works for theirs.

I do not understand why you were getting annoyed, because your post title says "What does your... day look like?" So people have described their days. 

[JenneinCA]

My oldest read a ton of books the year she was five. Mostly Redwall. I think we did Horizons K that year because I thought she needed math. Other than that a ton of building with legos and writing stories of her own choosing.

 

My middle child played roller coaster tycoon for hours and hours a day. He loved it. We did a little bit of reading and a little bit of math. Then he went back to what he really wanted to do. Build roller coasters...

 

My youngest played legos all the time. He reluctantly did reading and math. And then went back to building things and creating stories with his buildings.

 

As far as academic stuff goes at that age... nothing fit. If it was designed for the correct age group my kids were bored. If it was designed for their ability level it was inappropriate. So mostly I kept library books in the house and open ended play stuff around and stayed out of their way.

[Mommyof1]

Regentrude, your right, I asked you guys what you do in the OP.

[Jackie]

One of the reasons this board is an online home for me is that it was the one place that I wasn't judged when I was desperate for what to do with my super-intense, academically-oriented 3-4 year old. Some of the suggestions here eventually led me to figuring out that she settled down with planned, directed academics on a regular basis. It would be easier for me to unschool her now at age 7 than it was at age 4, and I suspect that will be even more the case as she gets older and more able to find resources independently.

 

Regardless of where I'm posting, I receive the most helpful (to me) responses when I asked for something more specific, along the lines of "she's into everything science, asking piles of questions I can't answer, what are some good science materials for an obsessed X year old?" or "she can read at about an __ grade level, but she's __ years old. She's already read this, this, and this, what next?" Or when I just ask for sympathy because I'm overwhelmed. 

 

Is there something in particular you are looking for advice on?

[Black-eyed Suzan]

One thing we did that you didn't mention was play board games. Typical pre-K board games, yes, but I also taught him how to play Monopoly, Ticket to Ride, and other board games for older children/adults. He couldn't read at the time, so I read everything in Monopoly, and eventually he memorized all the cards and could "read" them.

[rebbyribs]

If you're looking for suggestions of other good activities at this age, I'd add puzzles, both jigsaw and more spatial like the games Castle Logix and Blokus.  

[Mommyof1]

Black-eyed Susan,

 

I forgot that one. We have a lot of board games and I love to play them. She doesn't. She hates to lose and gets really upset. We explain that sometimes you win and sometimes you lose. It's a hard lesson for her to learn.

 

We have family game times but it doesn't last long. It fine till she loses.

 

Rebbyribs, we do have puzzles and when she was 2 she would put 24 piece ones together. Once I started babysitting other kids she lost all interest.

 

This past year she asked for puzzles but quickly lost interest again.

[Cake and Pi]

So, what, exactly, are you looking to learn more about?  Do you want a list of curricula that may be appropriate?  It sounds like you've got structured play and developmentally appropriate activities down.

 

I think preschool academics is a very individual thing.  It depends on the kid and the family.  There are plenty of examples of kids who start formal academics late and excel, just as there are many preschoolers who demand "school" from an early age.  Some families just prefer to start structured learning earlier or later than others.  It's all good as long as the needs of the child are being met (and of course, different children may have somewhat different needs).

[Xahm]

As far as academics, when my daughter turned four I started making her earn screen time by doing some academics. We did MEP year one (free program we printed off) and Progressive Phonics (also free, but these we read off the screen) until she could read very well. Then we switched to reading together. The math was largely done by me scribing the answers four her or me putting the questions on a white board.

S

This generally added up to 20-30 minutes a day, and she could skip it whenever she wanted; she just also skipped screen time then. Most days she did the basic amount, but there were a few weeks where she asked to do lesson after lesson of math. During that time, if she skipped reading I let that slide. I let my kids have a lot of screen time but am somewhat choosy about what I allow. We do lots of read alouds, singing, and discussing all sorts of things. My kids can play together for hours and alone for about an hour. What we did for my daughter worked well and I plan to do the same (or similar) with my sons. Currently with my three year old we do some math as it comes up in life and some Progressive Phonics maybe 4 out of 7 days.

My personality is such that I really bond with my kids when I'm teaching them, which was one reason for doing early academics. Plus I want them to learn some explicit phonics, and if I hold of teaching reason until five or later, I suspect they will just learn it themselves implicitly.

In response to your post about games, learning how to lose nicely is an explicit lesson around here. We gave scripts: when you make a bad move, you may say, "oh man! I messed that up!" and we will all laugh together because we all know how that feels. When you have a bad roll of the dice, you may say "rats!" but then we move on because that's part of the game. When you lose you say "good game, I'll get you next time!" When you win you say "good game, thanks for playing with me." Of course we didn't stick exactly to those words, but we carefully modeled appropriate responses and helped her form them. We started low stakes: playing the card game War that is entirely chance and has opportunity after opportunity to win or be defeated. She does remarkably well now, and when she's playing with friends I see her empathize and be gracious in victory and defeat, though occasionally she blinks back a couple of tears for a split second. Little brother is more emotional in personality, but with her as a role model, he's ahead of where she was at this age.

I hope you can find something of use in this ramble.

[Mommyof1]

Xahm,

 

I really like the ideas you have when she loses. That's really great thank you.

[Mommyof1]

Lace,

 

I would like to know curriculum that you use or would be appropriate especially for one who isn't ready to write.

[maize]

Lace,

 

I would like to know curriculum that you use or would be appropriate especially for one who isn't ready to write.

You can use most programs orally or with mom as scribe.

[Xahm]

The book Kitchen Table Math has a lot of good ways to teach math in games and other hands-on methods. I was put off at first by the title, thinking it was along the lines of "count the scoops of flour that go into the cake" stuff, but it is actually full of great ideas.

[Tumbatoo]

I have a almost 4 year old. He always gets up asking for TV, so I have him do a little "school" work first. He reads to me, does some math (Singapore Essentials K), and I read to him. We're working our way slowly through Sonlight P4/5. Sometimes he practices writing a letter if he wants or some mazes. He really loves mazes! That's pretty much it. He plays with his older siblings and will paint when they do art, join them with legos, etc. He is very "on" all the time and it's always doing something. If I didn't have older kids, we'd spend a lot of time at museums, playgrounds, libraries, exploring the woods and things like that. I feel bad that it takes so much out of our day to get the older kids (7, 10 and 13) school completed.

[Jackie]

I would like to know curriculum that you use or would be appropriate especially for one who isn't ready to write.

RightStart Math worked for this. In level A, we simply skipped the worksheets altogether and it worked well. In level B, we did the worksheets, but there aren't that many of them, and they don't have a lot of writing.

 

Brave Writer's first level of their writing projects curriculum is called Jot it Down. It's focuses on learning the fundamentals of storytelling such as ordering information and organizing thoughts, with the parent taking dictation for the child and the child doing only the illustrating or whatever writing they are ready for.

 

The Private Eye is an interesting mashup of science, art, and language. The basic premise involves using jeweler's loupes to examine natural objects, sketching what you see, and then coming up with analogies to describe it. It works well for developing close observation skills.

 

Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding doesn't need any writing and the first level is meant to cover grades K-2.

 

Art is great, both because it's fun and can fill endless hours, and because it develops fine motor skills without requiring pencil-and-paper. I think DD was 5 when she became obsessed with finger knitting. She's always loved drawing and painting. And making stuff with whatever she drags out of the recycling bin.

[Crimson Wife]

I am not at home but I really like the "Family Math" series by Jean Kerr Stenmark that the Lawrence Hall of Science publishes. It is a great way to introduce math through hands-on activities that are developmentally appropriate in a way that worksheets are not in preschool.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Edited September 6, 2017 by Crimson Wife

[Cake and Pi]

I started all three of my older boys with Right Start level A for math.  DS#1 and DS#2 both started about 2 months before their 5th birthdays.  DS#3 started ~2 months after he turned 4.  1st edition A is very developmentally appropriate for a bright 4yo or average 5yo.  Each of the 70ish lessons is meant to be split over multiple days, there are no assessments, and there are very, very few worksheets.  2nd edition A is more academic with assessments, more worksheets, and it moves away from the "math way" of naming numbers a bit earlier.  DS#1 did levels A-C without writing much of anything because I scribed for him when necessary.  Dragonbox Numbers is an excellent app for reinforcing number sense.

 

For science, BFSU is ideal if you can pull it off.  I'm finally getting it to work on my 3rd attempt over the last 2 years.  Evan-Moor Daily Science is what I offered my DS#3 for handwriting practice.  It was motivating enough for him to want to write, unlike Handwriting Without Tears, but it is just a workbook.  Mystery Science is online and video based, requiring no writing to maybe circling a word in the Mysteries rated for younger ages.  They just released a bunch of new Mysteries for ages 5+ that would probably be fun for a bright 4yo -- lots of movement and some read-along type stuff.

 

I didn't see in your earlier posts where your kiddo is in regards to reading ability?  My older two learned with Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.  I just set a timer for 10-15 minutes and we stopped, picking up the next day where we left off.  Whatever you do, work for time, not lesson completion in 100 EZ Lessons!  I also have The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading.  It's different and also quite good.  Both titles are available at my local library.  There's also online stuff like Reading Eggs, Starfall, and Progressive Phonics.  Once reading we've just picked up interesting books from the library and buddy read.

 

DS#1 has a fine motor delay.  He couldn't write at all when he turned 5yo.  We did OT-type activities at home, using various tongs and tweezers to pick up and sort colored cereals (because he still put everything in his mouth) into muffin tins, played with whipped cream, traced letters in a rice tray, did those little shoe-lace "mazes" around the perimeter of some friendly looking animal, squeezed a ball, etc.  He used HWOT too, but didn't really pick up on that until closer to 6.  

 

Levels 1 and 2 of First Language Lessons (grammar) is almost entirely verbal and the few written assignments are easy to skip.  My DS#3 did FLL 1 and 2 at 3.5 to newly 4yo without issue.  I'd guess that a bright nearly-5-yo could enjoy the short 5ish minute lessons.  It's more an exercise in memorization than anything.  My kids learned definitions, but couldn't really apply any of the grammar they learned in FLL 1 and 2.

 

You could use read-alouds to teach history BookShark/Sonlight/Build Your Library-style.  Story of the World can also be a fun read-aloud around 5-7 and there are pages to color in the AG.

 

All that said, my DS#1 only did math, reading, and fine motor/handwriting exercises for pre-K, K, and 1st grade.  He was neither interested nor ready for any more academics (science, history, grammar, writing, spelling, etc) until 2nd grade.  He just had too much energy and needed to be moving most of his wakeful hours.  DS#3 did a semester of 3-hour/day play-based public pre-k and then at home did just about every main subject besides composition writing in pre-k -- because that's what he wanted and what would keep him from using our windows to determine if any of our back yard rocks contained diamond by attempting to scratch them or using our dry erase markers to doodle designs on the entire kitchen floor (among other things he'd do to entertain himself).  Every kid is different.  Adjust your expectations to meet the kid in front of you.

[SKL]

My youngest went to pre-K full-time and then we homeschooled K in the evenings when she was 4.5.

 

The pre-K she went to was relatively academic, teaching the numbers & letters, doing arts/crafts, and they also did Spanish, French, geography, and science as part of their regular curriculum.  She was also in half-hour weekly classes for piano, guitar, dance, gymnastics, soccer, karate, multi-sports, and swim (most of these provided during the day at the pre-K).

 

My daughter was already reading well before pre-k, so at home, she would read (mostly nonfiction to cover science and social studies; also fairy tales) and do a little math and very little writing, plus daily music practice.  On Wednesdays we'd drive to the natural history museum and learn about many topics in science, social studies, and math.  We also visited the art museum, live theater, and other artsy offerings.  While driving to the museum, I would pose mental math questions and spelling words.  Of course we had read-alouds and the usual hands-on toys and puzzles, crafts, outdoor play, etc.

 

My other, less accelerated daughter was also doing work in the evenings.  She was a young KG (turned 5 in October) and was just starting to read, so she would work through some easy readers / sight words and then listen as the younger kid read the nonfiction etc.  The total schooling time each evening was about 2 hours.

[Loesje22000]

In the morning we did 60-90 minutes first grade stuff,

In the afternoon we did (for our background) typical pre-K stuff

[Mommyof1]

Thank you all for your help.

 

Lace, for reading we tried different programs but Blend Phonics PrePrimer (taught her 242 cvc words) by Don Potter help start her off when she was 3 along with his Alphabet Fluency and phonogram chart. The other programs started with the two letter blends and to her that wasn't reading and she would get really upset. BP started with sounding out "b-a-t". That made her happy. We are currently going though Blend Phonics for 1st Grade. Practicing fluency with Bob Books and other books from library. We also work with the McGuffey Primer on occasion.

Edited September 6, 2017 by Mommyof1

[michelle16]

I've been lurking for a while, but thought I'd add something because I'm in the same boat.  My kids do the usual kid stuff but demand more.

 

DS5 went to 4K and we are homeschooling for K.  He was so excited that he insisted we start the day after 4K finished.  DS3 also wants to do school.  I pick a couple of things and only schedule 30 min a day (maybe) and the rest is projects/play.  I'd say the only thing that they think is a drag is phonics, but that takes all of 10 minutes.  Here is what they've been working on:

 

Math: Khan Academy.  I also got a copy of Life of Fred Apples for DS3, and ordered BA2 for DS5.  Board and card games.  Miquon as a supplement, it moves too slow for DS5 but he'll do a page here and there for extra review.  They consider math to be a game.  It's not unusual for them to spend an hour on it.

Reading: Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading and lots of read-alouds.  DS5 has finished the Bob books.  DS3 loves his alphabet flashcards.  He has requested that I teach him to read.  Starting out, this was the only thing I actually planned on doing but they asked for more and school snowballed from there.

History:  DS5 asked for history and we tried SOTW, instead we're just using the Usborne History Encyclopedia because it has pictures.  And dinosaurs.  We role-play a lot of it, ex. we built forts and turned our house into nomad camps and went foraging in the garden.

Geography:  DS5 loves maps, we're working through Maps from Intellego.  We have maps up around the house that he looks at all of the time, and he draws maps of everything he sees.  After that, I'll have him pick a country/region and we'll learn as much about it as he wants. 

Science: We spend most of our time here.  DS5 asks so many questions that I've started writing them down and we work through them one by one.  For some (like atoms, sound waves, structure of the earth, etc.) I'll put together little units with experiments/demonstrations, videos, art projects, crafts, etc.  Janice VanCleave for simple projects if they're begging for something.  We went through her entire Dinosaur book which was a big hit, Ecology and Human Body are in the wings.  MESS units (free from the Florida Museum of Natural History site). DS5 is using an Intellego unit study on the solar system, his request.  

Art: ArtTango

They both love Cosmic Kids Yoga on YouTube.

I'm a cellist, we listen to lots of music and I'm teaching them Suzuki piano (10-15 min lesson a week).  

DS5 has asked to learn French, no idea how I'm going to go about that.  My French is mediocre at best.

 

I have some of the Intellego units which I like using, and I have also downloaded BFSU to fill in some of the science blanks.

 

We're also at the library and children's museum once a week each and at least one park a week, and they spend as much time outside as possible.  They're endlessly drawing, building legos, playing with Brio, Tinkertoys, making restaurants/drive-thrus/library/store/school/construction sites/colossal messes.  DS5 loves Minecraft, DS3 likes Mario.  Overall I suppose most of what they do is "play" (or at least they consider it to be playing), but I just direct it when I need to.  Some days they do their own thing all day.

 

[lewelma]

I made sure my boys did mazes and dot-to-dots to build small muscle skill. They loved them. 😀

[Shoes+Ships+SealingWax]

At 2.5 DS asked point-blank to be taught how to read, so at that point we added 5-10min a day of phonemic awareness / blending / reading practice. He started to figure out addition / subtraction around the same age, so we'd play little games with that as well - just using things around the house, making patterns with toys, etc. We started basic tabletop games around this age, too. Sum Swamp & UNO were favorites.

 

After 6-8mo of that, he got to a level where I personally felt more comfortable having some curricula for guidance. I ordered RightStart A & Logic of English, which we began shortly before 3.5yrs old. He LOVED it! Absolutely devoured it.

 

It was around this point that I discovered his incredibly high energy & tendency to get into mischief when under-stimulated were largely sated by a short period of focused academic work in the morning. He's now 4.5yrs old. I have happily continued to provide "school time" in the mornings & it has made our day-to-day experience far more pleasant. He also enjoys playing soccer, gymnastics, & get-togethers with friends at least a couple times a week.

Edited September 7, 2017 by Expat_Mama_Shelli

[Rush]

I've got two completely different kids, while one is learning a lot through play and toys, another one loves to absorb all kind of info through enormous amount of books, educational channel, curriculum, fun classes.

In the preschool days they had Montessory 5 mornings a week(3 hrs daily) from age of 2 to 5 and in the afternoons my playful guy had 2-3 times sport session a week and the rest of the time was filled with playtime. He had to spend 30min daily for independent reading and reading with parents before sleep. Maths and science we were mostly doing outside while waiting for his eldest brother to finish his after school activities. 

The sporty one had plenty of activities form a very young age , which were diluted with heavy independent reading (books, textbooks, he would read anything he had access to) and watching educational programs instead of cartoons. His curriculum was based on his personal preferences and made from a variety of different programs, exception was maths (we did sm, miquon, mep). The rest was chosen by the topic and tackled from all different points of view and programs, so it was very normal for 3-6 months to learn only about marine life, space or music history. He is 9 now and still we are afterschooling him in the same way, but this kid has school and 17 hours (3 different sports) weekly including summer :)

Edited September 7, 2017 by rushhush08