mhaddon Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 I am starting out with DS1, he will be 5 in May. He is currently in a preschool program that I do like, but am not a fan of our school system. I am close to finishing a degree myself in elementary education, but again not a fan of teaching in a public school :( I am having a difficult time b/c I feel like I want to try everything out. I see so many books, workbooks, curriculums that look fun and like a great fit for DS. How do you narrow it down and choose? How much do you end up with when you are starting out? Right now I have HWOT on the way b/c this is the area he struggles in the most, we have done a ton of fine motor skills work and he still has trouble. I have also borrowed 100 lessons from the library and he enjoys it, but I didn't know if anything else works w/ this to reinforce what he is learning? Math I am thinking rightstart eventually, but thought about going ahead w/ Singapore- he is already starting to add and subtract on his own and is well beyond most preschool basics, minus not recognizing all his numbers yet :confused: Sorry for the tons of questions and such, thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FO4UR Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 Start with the basics. Start by scheduling in the basics, and then add the materials that will fit with your goals. HWT- handwriting - check If he struggles with writing, you might cross workbooks off of your list of phonics/reading instruction for the time being. If he still has trouble recognizing some numbers, maybe try Miquon. He can answer in rods...and then go back and practice writing the numbers to match. My ds6 still reverses numbers...seperating the writing/visual problem from the math skills has proven very beneficial for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mhaddon Posted December 31, 2009 Author Share Posted December 31, 2009 Thanks! I already have the rods so maybe that will help. So should I skip phonics altogether for now? The problem is he loves doing workbooks. I also have a DS that will turn 3 in a few days and was wondering how behind he would be and if I could start him out as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happyhomemaker25 Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 That the Explode the Code books work to help reinforce phonics and fine motor skills. They are inexpensive and you can start with the Before The Code series geared toward younger kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lulubelle Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 It tends to take longer than you may think. Just keep doing the skills with him and it will click. It may just be on his time. It is frustrating I know! Just be patient and persistent in working with him daily and giving him tons of variety and making it fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in MN Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 For a 4 year old, he can do "handwriting" in sand, pudding, and such. It's much more difficult than it seems to us at that age. If he likes workbooks, I like having little ones practice lines in dot-to-dot type books or copying shapes or just free pencil use such as the anti-coloring books. I think having them write letters and numbers that early sometimes causes them to develop bad habits & look at it as a memorization task rather than understanding the meaning of the symbols. But I'm an old fogey of the better-late camp. Julie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robsiew Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 I think less is more when you first start out... especially with K... find a solid program you like for reading, handwriting and math and go from there. (I have a 6 y/o who struggles with fine motor and HWT has been a life saver for us!) As you go along you'll learn a lot about how your ds learns. Check out lots of library books and explore interests he has... Also, it helped me to use Cathy Duffy's book 100 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum. She has a survey you can take in there to help determine how your child learns.. then suggests curriculum that lines up with how your child learns. She also helps you determine your style of homeschooling. This saved me much money when first starting out as I was able to do research ahead of time. I still ended up changing a few things as we went... but now in only my 2nd year I am confident in most of my choices, the kids and I are all happy and doing well. I'd also suggest buying TWTM newest edition. I found that this helped me to focus in on the important things and weed out what isn't. Lots of practical suggestions for how to implement a classical education as well as the "big picture" of where you're heading. This has been an invaluable resource for me. Enjoy the beginning of your adventure! I have a K this year and a PK and it's so much fun to start from the beginning! We pulled my olders home after K and 1st grade so I didn't get to start from the beginning with them.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mhaddon Posted December 31, 2009 Author Share Posted December 31, 2009 Thanks everyone :) I will have to check out Cathy Duffy's book, I had looked at getting it, but found her website and wasn't sure of the difference. DH also agree to go to our Homeschool convention in Feb. even though he isn't thrilled with the idea, so I know this will help some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen in NS Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 I'd also suggest buying TWTM newest edition. I found that this helped me to focus in on the important things and weed out what isn't. Lots of practical suggestions for how to implement a classical education as well as the "big picture" of where you're heading. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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