StaceyinLA Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 Dgs is 3 1/2, LOVES numbers and counting, recognizes a good many letters and sounds, and likes puzzles, hidden picture books, etc. Dd and the kids are living with us while her husband is on a ship, and we'd love to start doing some "school" stuff with him. His speech isn't great (talks plenty, but had some hidden fluid behind his eardrum so some of his sounds are definitely off), so we don't know if we should address that first (although he hears and understands perfectly now), or if we can just move into some things he would learn from and enjoy. What would be some good programs, workbooks, etc. to get started with? We already read to him a lot, and do a lot of puzzles. We'd like to kick it up a bit because we think he'd enjoy it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runningmom80 Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 He sounds a lot like my younger son! (Even down to the ear business! My DS did speech therapy for about 6 months after getting tubes in his ears.) My ds does some cuisenaire stuff while watching education unboxed. He LOVES puzzles. I print out connect the dots and mazes for him, which seems to satiate his need to ponder things when he gets board of our puzzles. (You can only have so many!) Both of my 4 year olds love Kumon books. It's hilarious to me, because my older son hates anything having to do with a workbook. They go to a Montessori school and my DS loves the golden bead stuff. I think anything with math manipulatives would be a hit! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aiden Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 When my daughter was 3, we started 4 things with her: Mathematical Reasoning Beginning 1 workbook, from The Critical Thinking Co. This was a very good fit for her at that age, although it only covers the numbers 1-5 and she could count to 10 already. It reinforced the numbers, introduced patterns and pattern prediction, and was an overall good yet gentle introduction to math. Thinking Skills Beginning workbook, from The Critical Thinking Co. This book was similar to the math one, but it advanced more quickly. We took longer to finish this one, and when we did, she wasn't (and still isn't, at 4-1/2) quite mature enough for the second in the series, which is the Primer or kindergarten level. In retrospect, it probably would have been better for us to stick with math that year and possibly introduce this one the following year, shortly after she turned 4. Little Hands to Heaven preschool program by Heart of Dakota. This is a Christian program, so it may or may not fit your worldview (I can't tell from your siggie and haven't noticed in any other posts whether or not you're Christian). It contains a Bible component (around which the week's activities are structured) and also more traditional academic components--the best one being learning the letters of the alphabet. Each week focuses on one Bible story and one letter. So the first week is "A is for Adam," for example, and the second week focuses on Noah and the "b-b-boat." It has a good many hands-on activities, many of which we skipped because they just weren't up our alley, but it also has some good multisensory ways to learn letters, such as making the letter in masking tape on the floor and driving a toy car over it while saying its sound, or gluing cotton balls into the shape of the letter. It was a little basic for my daughter because she knew almost all the letters already (I thought she only knew a few and was surprised as we went at how many she knew!) However, she enjoyed it, and it's inexpensive. Depending on how many of the letters your grandson knows already, it may be a good review or a good way to teach him the rest. It's a gentle program that doesn't require much time every day. Sonlight P3/4. This really was just a bunch of good books and a list of a suggested order in which to read the stories. Some were easier than she needed, some were more advanced than she was ready for, and a few were right on target. Now, at age 4, one of the P3/4 anthologies is her favorite source for bedtime stories (which works out really well, because when we travel, we bring just that one book with us and she has all her favorite stories to choose from). If you already read to your grandson a lot, this isn't really necessary, though you may want to check it out for ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runningmom80 Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 Oh, I love MR! I forgot about those workbooks, I may get the first one for my twins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackie Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 We used RightStart Math beginning at 3yo. Level A has almost no writing and everything is taught with manipulatives and games, so DD thought it was all fun play. She also liked the Kumon fine motor skill workbooks. The First Steps series has titles like "Let's Sticker and Paste", "Let's Color", and "Let's Cut Paper". They're colorful and fun, you can buy them at Barnes and Noble or Amazon. Once those are mastered, My First Book of Tracing is the first in the series for kids a little older and the progression of that series is on the back cover of the book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ALB Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 I like the Explode the Code primers for that age, Handwriting Without Tear's Getting Ready for School, and Developing the Early Learner. We also did Elemental Science Exploring Science, which added a lot of fun hands on activities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 MEP's Reception year is great fun with little ones. :) (I just printed the teacher pages, and we viewed the full-color student pages on the computer. Sometimes I'd cut and paste the image over to Paint so they could draw on it with the mouse.) Leapfrog Letter Factory DVD is a great way to get those letter sounds and recognition down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DhanyaCali Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 He may enjoy one of the Rod and Staff workbooks for younger kids. They are quite varied in content even in a single book :) and super affordable! Kumon books are amazing! When my son was that age we loves this one best. http://smile.amazon.com/First-Book-Tracing-Kumon-Workbooks/dp/4774307076/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1425944104&sr=8-1&keywords=kumon+tracing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gil Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 (edited) **snip** Edited March 24, 2016 by Gil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StaceyinLA Posted March 28, 2015 Author Share Posted March 28, 2015 I know this reply is a bit late, but thanks for all the input! Just a couple of questions... Would you do something like the Kumon tracing if you were also doing the HWT? Is it overkill? Also, the Explode the Code - what does is cover in the pre-k levels? The Heart of Dakota sounds really neat - going to check that out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah0000 Posted March 28, 2015 Share Posted March 28, 2015 I personally wouldn't do the Kumon tracing book alongside a handwriting program if he'll be using pencil and paper for handwriting. I've not used HWT...I know there are lots of other activities in the program like sand paper letters, rolling clay, etc. If he'll be doing those things for a good while before using a pencil on paper then the Kumon tracing book would be a good way to practice pencil work in the meantime. Otherwise perhaps a Kumon maze or dot to dot book would be something a little different while still developing pencil skills. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackie Posted March 28, 2015 Share Posted March 28, 2015 I know this reply is a bit late, but thanks for all the input! Just a couple of questions... Would you do something like the Kumon tracing if you were also doing the HWT? Is it overkill? Also, the Explode the Code - what does is cover in the pre-k levels? The Heart of Dakota sounds really neat - going to check that out! I use the Kumon books and a handwriting program. The handwriting is part of our "school". Every morning I put out one fun worksheet (Kumon, Mad Libs, riddles) and one brain teaser game (Mighty Mind, Hoppers, Castle Logix, etc) just as a way to start the day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tm919 Posted March 28, 2015 Share Posted March 28, 2015 I know this reply is a bit late, but thanks for all the input! Just a couple of questions... Would you do something like the Kumon tracing if you were also doing the HWT? Is it overkill? Also, the Explode the Code - what does is cover in the pre-k levels? The Heart of Dakota sounds really neat - going to check that out! My 3.5 year old has both the Kumon "My first book of tracing" and the "get ready for school" HWT book, and we treat the Kumon book more as something for her to do when I'm at the table but focused on her older sister. The HWT book requires you to pretty much stand over them. In addition to the workbook, we do the chalkboard and the wood pieces, but not the other elements (songs, etc.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aiden Posted March 28, 2015 Share Posted March 28, 2015 I know this reply is a bit late, but thanks for all the input! Just a couple of questions... Would you do something like the Kumon tracing if you were also doing the HWT? Is it overkill? Also, the Explode the Code - what does is cover in the pre-k levels? The Heart of Dakota sounds really neat - going to check that out! Once we started HWOT when my daughter was 4, my daughter flat refused to do any other tracing books. She loved HWOT--I think because she loved the wood pieces. She could use the large and small curves to make Mickey faces :) ETC preK levels (which we also did at age 4) cover the consonants, but not the vowels. It doesn't teach their names, though it would be easy to add that in. It teaches their sounds, letter recognition, and writing lowercase letters. (HWOT does capital letters for preK, so it is different.) We didn't do the writing portion since we were doing HWOT. My daughter tolerated these workbooks but didn't really like them. They were almost completely review for her. I wasn't fond of them, either--they were boring and repetitive, which may be ok for new material but is just rotten for review. Some people use HOD all the way through high school. It wasn't a great fit for us, but I can see why people use it long term. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StaceyinLA Posted March 29, 2015 Author Share Posted March 29, 2015 So what do I need to purchase for the HWOT? What are the wood pieces? Is there a set to buy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ad astra Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 So what do I need to purchase for the HWOT? What are the wood pieces? Is there a set to buy? Start with just workbooks and see how it goes. HWOT workbooks are pretty gentle and you can find them at rainbowresource.com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StaceyinLA Posted March 29, 2015 Author Share Posted March 29, 2015 So do you think the teacher's guide is necessary? And do we just do the Get Ready for School? I think dgs would love doing the wooden letters, but I'm thinking we could make our own or even just do construction paper ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tm919 Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 So do you think the teacher's guide is necessary? And do we just do the Get Ready for School? I think dgs would love doing the wooden letters, but I'm thinking we could make our own or even just do construction paper ones. I bought the pre-k teacher's guide for "readiness and writing" (HWT) and regretted the purchase. I only have "My first school book," the wood pieces, the chalkboard, & the flip crayons. Because I don't have the CDs, roll a dough letters, stamp and see, etc., there were many pieces of the pre-k book I can't use. And most of what I can use can be figured out by looking at the sample--You can see the sample here: http://www.hwtears.com/files/TGRW_Sample.pdf I didn't realize before I bought it that much of it doesn't really focus on the "My first school book" workbook. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aiden Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 I bought the pre-k teacher's guide for "readiness and writing" (HWT) and regretted the purchase. I only have "My first school book," the wood pieces, the chalkboard, & the flip crayons. Because I don't have the CDs, roll a dough letters, stamp and see, etc., there were many pieces of the pre-k book I can't use. And most of what I can use can be figured out by looking at the sample--You can see the sample here: http://www.hwtears.com/files/TGRW_Sample.pdf I didn't realize before I bought it that much of it doesn't really focus on the "My first school book" workbook. I agree with tm919 that much of the preK instructor's guide isn't relevant if you only have the workbook (or only the workbook and wood pieces, like we bought). However, the first time I looked at the workbook, I was thoroughly confused! On the letter pages, it's pretty obvious what to do. However, there are several pages at the beginning of the book that I didn't know what to do with until I looked at the IG. And for me, the IG also had helpful hints about how to teach proper pencil grip. I'm not sure if I'll buy the IG for future levels, now that I've gotten the hang of the program, but I really needed it for the first one. Be warned, though, that the IG is a bit confusing, too--it took me a while alone with it in a quiet room to figure out its organization and how to pull the bits I needed from all the bits I didn't need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StaceyinLA Posted April 6, 2015 Author Share Posted April 6, 2015 Well we wound up getting Kumon workbooks for now, and he LOVES them! I'm gonna keep researching for more things. I think he is ready for some sort of math program where he can really do some hands on stuff. He loves counting and matching and things like that. Any particular program y'all would recommend for that? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackie Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 We went ahead and started RightStart Math early for DD. I was pretty sure I wanted a Singapore-style math program for her when she got older and RightStart does the teaching and practice with manipulatives and games, so we used level A at age 3. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tm919 Posted April 8, 2015 Share Posted April 8, 2015 With my older daughter, we did Saxon K at 3.5. Much of it was already too easy, but she loved it (mostly the teddy bears and "trains"/"towers" of multilink cubes). I'm going to use it again with my younger daughter, because I have it -- but, in retrospect, I wish I'd spent my money on cuisinaire rods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StaceyinLA Posted April 11, 2015 Author Share Posted April 11, 2015 What would you do, specifically, with the rods? Any particular program? I wasn't ever in love with Miquon back when my kiddos were little, but not sure if there is something out now that may be better/different. I'll have to take a look at RightStart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 MEP Reception is very sweet for little ones, very storyish and cuddle up together. It also has a lot of counting and matching. It was too easy for my second son at the beginning of this year when he was five, almost six, but it might be right for my current three and a half year old. Re: his speech. Our speech therapist said that they should be about 75% intelligible to non family by age four. She was already working with DS1, so I took DS2 to her right after he turned four because he wasn't quite at that point. He ended up working with her for about ten months, and it made a big difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renai Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 What would you do, specifically, with the rods? Any particular program? I wasn't ever in love with Miquon back when my kiddos were little, but not sure if there is something out now that may be better/different. I'll have to take a look at RightStart. For using the rods, have you seen the free booklet and cards download? The cards are available in color and b/w versions. The links are in this post by Nurture by Love: http://nurturedbylove.blogspot.com/2008/12/cuisenaire-discovery-book.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tm919 Posted April 12, 2015 Share Posted April 12, 2015 What would you do, specifically, with the rods? Any particular program? I wasn't ever in love with Miquon back when my kiddos were little, but not sure if there is something out now that may be better/different. I'll have to take a look at RightStart. I would have liked to have done the activities at http://www.educationunboxed.com/ The manipulatives I got were fine, I just think I would have gotten more mileage out of the cusinaire rods for the money! (My 5 year old hasn't touched those teddy bears in over a year). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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