sixglides Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 We've been homeschooling for just a few years, and have never done kindergarten before. I'll have a 10th & 8th who are more self-sufficient, a 4th who requires LOTS of assistance. Any suggestions for a curriculum that would give me confidence & not be ultra time consuming? DD who will be in kindergarten was adopted, just brought her home last May. To date, I'm not her favorite person & I'd like to minimize conflict. Hopefully that makes sense! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.... Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 We did My Father's World K and really, really liked it. My daughter's reading very well, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 Five in a Row (unit study based on picture books) Bear Necessities (phonics) with Leapfrog DVDs (Talking Letter Factory and Talking Word Factory) Handwriting Without Tears K or Zaner-Bloser K workbook Kitchen Table Math, MEP Reception or Professor B Math. You can also use the MathTacular DVD from Sonlight as a supplement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momto3innc Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 My Father's World K is very sweet and gentle. My kids have loved Sonlight P4/5 as well. We have also done Hooked on Phonics K and HWOT K. Singapore Earlybird is a gentle intro to math. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinF Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 We use a lot of Peace Hill Press products for kindy. OPG has been a great reading program. We supplement with ETC books. Then we use either HWT or Italic for handwriting. MUS for math. We use read alouds from what the olders are doing. Another thing my boys have loved (even the middle ones) are the tot school books. We made one for Brown Bear, Brown Bear and they love playing with the parts of it. You can see the links for them on my blog in my siggy. I plan to make some more next year to use with ds#4 with Kindy. I pick books that I know he will love and then make the fun tot school materials to go with them. I also like the resources at http://www.makinglearningfun.com to use with different books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyLittleBears Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 Ruth Beechick philosophy in the 3Rs has a lot of helpfuls ideas. Very gentle. Congrats on your adoption!:grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 I second FIAR. I did it with my eldest, and it is the only thing we did in K that we will also do for my next one. I incorporate geography, vocabulary and copywork into it, as well. I will also do SWR with my next one. I like it, because it is for both reading and spelling, so I don't have to worry about when to switch. But if you are looking for something easy on mama, I wouldn't recommend it. Add memorization to that, and you have my total plan for K. I am not even going to do math, since my 3yo can already count to 30. We will just play math games and include him in dd's math lessons to the extent that we can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom28kds Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 I'm far from being as knowledgeable as alot of mom's on this board. I have taught a few K's. I would really keep it simple this first year. If it were me I'd really just work on a phonics program and include the Leap Frog DVD's as well as learning numbers and a begin writing. All other subjects can wait until later. I would include just some story time where you just sit and read a book or 2. You probably need some good quality bonding time alot more that History. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3lilreds in NC Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 I really, really loved MFW K. It was such a fun program, and it told me what to do every day. My dd loved it too; it made teaching her SO much easier. I loved that everything was integrated; there was no "now we will pull out the phonics primer," etc. She cried when I brought out Phonics Pathways. :) There was a definite routine; some don't like the repetition. It worked very well for us. I have to say that MFW K definitely minimized conflict in our homeschool! I don't know if it would work in your situation, but it's worth a look. It really doesn't take that long, and I bet your 4th grader would enjoy some of the science things too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjgrubbs Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 Check out IEW's new PAL program. If you order directly from them they offer a 100% money back guarantee (including shipping!) for any reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terabith Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 If you just brought her home and don't have a great relationship, I think I would make kindergarten pretty non-academic. I would consider Oak Meadow. I might do FIAR, but without many activities. I'm wondering about her language? Is English her first language? I would definitely not focus on academics. I'd do lots of oral language and read alouds, field trips and experiences, and practical life projects and play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ritsumei Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 I'd do some kind of phonic program: we use Happy Phonics with OPGTR for me, to add structure and order. Monkey never sees OPG, and we don't do the script at all. He just plays HP games and reads Bob Books. Some kind of math. I love Math Expressions, we're working in their K-1 book right now. I blog regularly about our math stuff we do, if you wanted to check out the program. Fool around with Mudpies to Magnets and some of the other "preschool" recommendations in TWTM. Go on nature walks. Fingerpaint. Do play-doh. Play with legos and blocks and dress-ups. Visit farms and zoos. Cook. Make cookies, cheesecake, and homemade strawberry jam. Visit an old folks' home. Plant a garden. Then, when reading starts to come, you can start transitioning to the "1st grade" recommendations from TWTM. Really, K isn't compulsory in most states. I think it ought to be fun, not stressful. Get the reading happening, start introducing number concepts. Then, when that's getting solid, add some more. Honestly, the line between preschool, K, and even 1st is pretty fuzzy in my mind. The biggest difference I see is the amount of time we spend "doing school." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalphs Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 Emmanuel Books www.emmanuelbooks.com sells a curriculum called "Little Saints: A Catholic Preschool Program With Classical Disciplines" which we enjoyed using. It is labeled preschool, but fits more into the category of a kindergarten program. If you would like can you can read my review at www.amazon.com :) Congratulations on your adoption! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixglides Posted April 1, 2011 Author Share Posted April 1, 2011 On paper, she's just 5, but in reality, a solid 6...so she's definately wanting to learn. She wants to learn to read...I just want it to be laid back. Thanks so much for all your input!! We live on a small farm, sheep, llamas & alpacas (oh my!) so thankfully, some definate field trips right in the back yard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted April 1, 2011 Share Posted April 1, 2011 (edited) I agree with Terabith. Look at Oak Meadow and keep academics on the easy side. Building that relationship is WAY more important than learning to read at 5. Let her play at http://www.starfall.com and watch LeapFrog DVDs. Do some real life counting. PLAY. Look at Oak Meadow 1st grade. Bear Neccessities is a great program. Very low stress. I will be honest, OPGTR is going to cause battles. Even using a whiteboard is not helping here. Edited April 1, 2011 by Guest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted April 1, 2011 Share Posted April 1, 2011 My little ones used Phonics Pathways for learning to read, a writing tablet, blocks for counting with, and liberal use of a library card. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted April 1, 2011 Share Posted April 1, 2011 We did My Father's World K and really, really liked it. My daughter's reading very well, too. :iagree:That was my suggestion also! My ds does MFW and we also do Phonics Pathways, Explode the Code, Horizons Math, MEP math and will be adding Singapore math soon. The supplements are not needed with MFW, but ds get VERY bored after a while so we need to change things up. (He has special needs so that is another reason for all the supplement, he needs to see things differently). MFW is a VERY good thorough curriculum and it has a bunch of read aloud suggestions- that will give you time to snuggle up and spend time together :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MelissaMinNC Posted April 1, 2011 Share Posted April 1, 2011 Another vote for My Father's World K - I'm doing it for the 2nd time now, and it's just wonderful. Not time consuming, easy to teach (granted, the tm does have a bit of a learning curve, as it's not a straight weekly grid - it's really not difficult once you get into a groove), everything is integrated, activities are pretty easy and fun, and now MFW has a new literature package they are selling, with 26 picture books and a booklet that has activities listed for those books, plus a list of about 400 more titles for your book basket. Mostly - have fun! Kindergarten should be fun! :) Melissa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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