Tell me what to do with my 4 year old...

[YarnAddict]

OK, so... you can't really make me do it, but please tell me what you would do... :lol:

 

We are bringing DD #1 home for 3rd grade in the fall. We homeschooled her for K and 1st. I have MFW K and MFW 1st here, all items except student sheets. I also have R & S preschool books, some used by her, but lots still blank that I could use for my little one.

 

I have gone back and forth about preschool/no preschool for the little one in the fall. I have a spot for her at a church preschool that is 3 mornings/week but I would need to pay, and we're doing the Dave Ramsey class and I'm feeling bad about paying out for it when we have debt we're paying down. She is in public school pre-k now, but it is 5 mornings a week and it will keep us from being able to do some things with the homeschool group, like field trips. I'm 99% sure I'll just have the little one here full time in the fall, so I'm trying to decide what to do with her.

 

She knows all of her letters. She knows a few letter sounds, thanks Leap Frog! :lol: She can write her name (doesn't form letters correct of course, but she's 4yo as of 2/14). I thought of doing several things...

 

1. MFW K, slowly, and just when I have time... maybe not even a letter a week, nice slow pace...

 

2. R&S workbooks I have left from DD#1--the preschool stuff...

 

3. OPGTR, did not use with DD#1, but I do have it on hand and could use that. I would keep showing her the Letter Factory to get the sounds down really well.

 

4. Just have her sit with DD#1 for science/history, do color pages and wait until K for more "real" school.

 

5. Use Lauri toys I have on hand bought from MFW. I have pretty much all of them. She could just play for this year and I know she'd pick things up.

 

6. Maybe watch Letter Factory and play about half a year then start MFW K mid year if she's really wanting more?

 

She WANTS to be read to constantly, so it's a given that we'll read a lot. She loves writing her name, and writes notes (scribbles, but says "here mom, it's a letter!" :)). She very much so wants to be included in on any big girl things her sis does.

 

I hesitate to do any K program because then what do I do in the actual K year--MFW K is REALLY easy imo, but 1st is a lot more complex. My older DD is young for her grade (July bday) but she would have melted down with MFW 1st in her year. My oldest could be different. I'd love to use stuff I have on hand for her because I'm watching the budget... but good items at a decent cost are welcomed as suggestions. I have what I'm doing with DD#1 in my signature, if you'd want to look at that and see how my DD#2 who's 4 could fit in.

 

Whew, that was a massive brain dump!

[blondeviolin]

How about FIAR? Since she loves to be read to, it could work beautifully. It would also be fairly cheap (find the manual used and then utilize the library). It's what we're working on currently and it is even do-able with my 3yo (4 at the end on October).

[musicianmom]

If I were you, I think I would do MFW K. You could plan on taking 1 1/2 or 2 years with it, depending on how much time you have and how easy or difficult it is for her. By the time she's finished, you'll have a better idea of whether she's ready for MFW 1.

[NanceXToo]

If you have any interest whatsoever, here are a couple of articles I did on thoughts about school in the pre-K and K years:

 

Preschool Or Not?

 

http://nancextoo.livejournal.com/120794.html

 

 

A Kindergarten Dropout

 

http://nancextoo.livejournal.com/190076.html

 

 

:)

[Karen in CO]

When my youngest was 4, her year was called not-preschool. I tried to not have her do "me-too" schooling and just let her enjoy being 4.

 

I setup imaginative and creative toys for her near where we were working. I helped her learn to respect our learning environment. I read to her, played hide-n-seek, enjoyed her being four. Whe she came to the learning table (of her own choice), she was expected to play quietly with coloring, puzzles, and small toys. I tried hard to be efficient with the basics for the older so we weren't requiring the younger to sit alone all day. I included nature walks, art, wonderful stories, and science exploration at every opportunity so that both girls could share some of the teaching attention.

 

I think the habit training in the young years and the freedom to just play and be young are much more beneficial long-term than any amount of me-too schooling you could accomplish.

[YarnAddict]

Thanks everyone... Would love more ideas. :) I am totally fine with a play based approach for next year. I am really in no hurry for her to grow up.

[TracyP]

2. R&S workbooks I have left from DD#1--the preschool stuff...

 

3. OPGTR, did not use with DD#1, but I do have it on hand and could use that. I would keep showing her the Letter Factory to get the sounds down really well.

 

4. Just have her sit with DD#1 for science/history, do color pages and wait until K for more "real" school.

 

5. Use Lauri toys I have on hand bought from MFW. I have pretty much all of them. She could just play for this year and I know she'd pick things up.

 

 

 

I would do these things from your original post:

 

2. if she asks for "school"

3. save for whenever she seems ready (may or may not be next year)and then start slowly but consistently

4. Yes

5. Yes

[Alice]

With my 4 yr old I do "Hudson school". This is mostly because he is a middle child and despartely needs some special attention each day. :) Primarily we read books. I have the Five in a Row manuals and used them with my first so we somewhat do FIAR but I mostly just use the book of the week as a loose theme. Rarely do we really "row" a book in the way the manual intends. We read books and maybe sometime during the week we'll do a craft or cook something together or do a simple science project related to his book. I look at all of this as icing on the cake and really it's more about providing him with some special time than because I think it's necessary.

 

I have a handful of workbooks that I pull out occasionally. This is mostly for times when he is sitting at the table wanting some attention and I need to work with my oldest. Or if wants to do them. The workbooks are HWT, Before the Code and a Singapore Math book. We use these at the most something like 10-15 minutes at a time once or twice a week.

 

Pretty much the rest of his day is free play. He's welcome to sit in for science with the oldest and we do a lot of read-alouds and history at tea-time or lunch so he hears a lot more. But it's all optional.

 

I think my biggest advice is to do only do anything formal or planned if helps you. I plan out the FIAR just becuase otherwise I feel like I wouldn't do a lot of the extra fun things with him. But if I was good about just sitting down and doing crafts and playing games, I woudln't need to plan it.

[HollyM25]

I am in the same boat, my dd turned 4 on 2/27. She knows her letters, most sounds, and slowly working on writing. I dont know if I want to do a "formal" preschool year with her next year (I was looking at Horizons pre-k), send her to a local preschool (this is what she wants to do, like her big bro did), or just keep her home and let her play and sit in on some of her brothers 1st grade lessons.

 

We are already working with her R&S workbooks, but only when she asks to do school. Today she did half a page, yesterday nothing, some days 3 pages.

 

I dont really have any advice but your not alone!

[3lilreds in NC]

Have you ever looked at Confessions of a Homeschooler? She has a Letter of the Week preschool curriculum that looks like a lot of fun. At the very least, you might find some activities there that you could put together to go along with your MFW K stuff.

 

I *loved* MFW K. I'm debating doing it with Schmooey for various reasons, but both my girls did really well with it.

[pbt1294]

MFW K is awsome if you have the time. I don't! Not with homeschooling 4 others and an infant. But, my dd 3 wants to do school ssssooooo badly!

 

So..... I have a steralite box just for her with preK workbooks that I just let her "have at it". She cuts them, colors them...whatever.

 

I do have a seperate PreK program for her. It is hooked on phonics and it is suuuper light. Just enough that she feels like she is doing something. I do have some issues with how they teach some of the letter sounds. Like B says "buuuuh" and C says "cuuuh". That irks me, but she likes the dvd, soooo????

 

She also LOVES starfall.com

[pbt1294]

I am in the same boat, my dd turned 4 on 2/27. She knows her letters, most sounds, and slowly working on writing. I dont know if I want to do a "formal" preschool year with her next year (I was looking at Horizons pre-k), send her to a local preschool (this is what she wants to do, like her big bro did), or just keep her home and let her play and sit in on some of her brothers 1st grade lessons.

 

We are already working with her R&S workbooks, but only when she asks to do school. Today she did half a page, yesterday nothing, some days 3 pages.

 

I dont really have any advice but your not alone!

 

Very interested in Horizons preK. We LOVE horizons math!!!!

[YarnAddict]

It is a great idea to have a bin of the workbooks available to her to "do school" with. I think I'll get the R&S workbooks out and put them in a bin for her in the fall. She can choose one from the bin to do when she wants to "do school". I really don't think she's ready for a structured program next year. She has loved preschool this year and they are doing a letter a week, and it's very much so play based. She does write her name every day on a laminated card (traces her name with a dry erase marker) so we'll have to make one for her that she can trace next year. She LOVES that.

 

I can have the Lauri stuff available during school time for my older DD and that should help keep younger DD busy and help her feel more included in school time.

 

Thanks for the ideas everyone and feel free to keep em coming!!

[Ritsumei]

She knows all of her letters. She knows a few letter sounds, thanks Leap Frog! :lol: She can write her name (doesn't form letters correct of course, but she's 4yo as of 2/14). I thought of doing several things...

 

To me this sounds like an expression of readiness - of interest in the learning process, and I feel like it's best to strike while the iron is hot, so to speak, so I'd go ahead & do something with her. And I think she'll get a whole lot more from doing it at home than she would from being sent away to do it. If only because you are her mother & the person she needs more than anyone else in the world. I also saw a study, granted it was on daycares, not preschools, but it said that a child at home asks something like 20 questions to every on asked in the institutional setting.

 

 

 

1. MFW K, slowly, and just when I have time... maybe not even a letter a week, nice slow pace...

 

2. R&S workbooks I have left from DD#1--the preschool stuff...

 

3. OPGTR, did not use with DD#1, but I do have it on hand and could use that. I would keep showing her the Letter Factory to get the sounds down really well.

 

4. Just have her sit with DD#1 for science/history, do color pages and wait until K for more "real" school.

...

 

I hesitate to do any K program because then what do I do in the actual K year--MFW K is REALLY easy imo, but 1st is a lot more complex.

 

1. Not familiar w/ MFW but lean strongly toward Go For It.

 

2. If she likes 'em, let her play at it. Certainly can't hurt!

 

3. I use Happy Phonics, which is entirely games-based and reasonably priced. I do use OPG as a reference for me, and sometimes make up little books of the stories, but it's soooo dry, I don't consider it age-appropriate. Heck, I can hardly stand to read it myself! But, as a reference to back up HP, I absolutely love it.

 

4. Yeah!

 

If she needs a little slower pace when you get to MFW1, then you'll have ample time to give it to her.

 

I'd absolutely let her do some school. We started fooling around with preschool type activities when Monkey was 3ish, and he's thriving on it. Just take your cues from her. At that age you can do what she likes & skip the rest with no guilt whatsoever: it's all gravy anyway!

[RoundAbout]

I use a workbox system with my son who turned 4 in December. It's a 5 drawer rolling cart and I put a different activity in each drawer - maybe a Kumon page or a puzzle or a fun game. I don't require him to do workboxes but its something to go to when we are bored.

 

I also do a fair amount of 'directed play' that builds skills - playdoh for fine motor development, some Miquon, phonics when I can sneak it in, things like that. Otherwise we just spend a lot of time outside doing hiking, gardening, riding bikes, going to the park for playdates, etc., etc. Oh and tons and tons of read alouds.

 

Following our state cutoff date means he won't start K until September 2012 at almost 6 years-old so I'm not in a rush.

[Tracy]

How about FIAR? Since she loves to be read to, it could work beautifully. It would also be fairly cheap (find the manual used and then utilize the library).

 

:iagree:We did FIAR at 4yo, and it was a big hit. One of the best things about it is that you can make it as simple as you want or dig deeper and add as many more activities as you want. It is very flexible.

[funwith7]

I wouldn't hesitate to do MFW K since you already own it. Taking it slow and easy and possibly checking out or buying the K literature pack books they now recommend 1 per week. Also a PP'er had an excellent suggestion in that you could also add in FIAR. It is inexpensive to purchase, the books are readily available used or at the library, and you could major on a letter say ever 2 weeks instead of one and easily spread the program out over the course of a year. Neither is very time intensive.

 

I wouldn't sweat if you don't "do school" a few days a week either at that age. Children learn so much by doing! If she is giving so many signs of readiness though :) I'd move forward with teaching her.

 

Best wishes!

Mary

[YarnAddict]

Just when I think I have decided, someone else replies and I rethink it all. :lol: Seriously though, it's great to get the feedback. I definitely want her to used up the R&S stuff, so maybe I'll start with that if she wants to do school... and we could always move to MFW K after seeing how interested she really is... :001_smile: