Curriculum "learning through play for under 6 year olds"

[Homeschooler in Dubai]

Hi everyone,

 

I am looking for a Curriculum or practical advice on how to teach small children through play (all kinds of subjects).

 

My almost five year old son wants to only play games. I can only get him to sit down and do reading, writing or maths for about 30 minutes a day. We are following the British Curriculum but I would also look into American Curriculum if it offers good ideas of how to teach through play.

 

Ideally with little preparation work. :001_smile:

 

 

[Kiara.I]

I'm very impressed that your 4 year old will do 30 minutes of seat work! That's not necessarily expected.

 

What else are you wanting to cover? You've already got math, writing and reading.

 

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

[8filltheheart]

Expecting them entertain themselves via their imaginations is an ideal way for them to build higher order thinking skills.  They learn all sorts of things when left alone to play on their own.  

[thegirlwhopaintedtrees]

Have you seen this? http://www.thehomegrownpreschooler.com/product/a-year-of-playing-skillfully-printed-version/

[bookbard]

Check out "30 ways to transform your play" from An Everyday Story. She homeschools in Australia.  www.aneverydaystory.com

[displace]

Maybe timber doodle press.com? They have a ton of great, interactive things. You can get a curriculum or just get things piecemeal that would work for you.

 

I think 30 min (if broken up), sounds about normal. You may do more interactive teaching than you were thinking about at first.

 

You can put numbers on the floor on paper and gave him jump to answers, skip count. You can build letters with playdoh or Legos. You can write words on cups he knocks down after reading. There's a ton of fun activities that may be better suited while you're not at the table.

 

Idk if there's any curriculum. There should be!

[fralala]

Expecting them entertain themselves via their imaginations is an ideal way for them to build higher order thinking skills.  They learn all sorts of things when left alone to play on their own.  

 

Yes, I think at this age it's more about setting up their environment (and providing subtle learning opportunities throughout the day) than directly teaching.

 

What games is your son playing now? Most young kids I've observed seem to play games based upon the stories they've heard (whether books or tv) and what they've picked up of the adult world. When I wanted my young kids to, say, practice piano, it was much more valuable for me to sit at the piano and practice for 30 minutes a day than to say a word to them. If I wanted them to memorize a poem or learn a story, I could just read it every night at bedtime for a week and I'd hear them saying it or acting it out later, no prompting required. They're delightful little sponges at this age, aren't they? I think that's sometimes what drives us to try to do more seatwork,

 

This is a convenient philosophy that allows one to sit on the couch and read a nice portion of the day, by the way, but it also works.

 

You could pick up a book of math games, too, if you're not accustomed to bringing counting, estimation, and math tino your daily life.

[Guest]

No curriculum :)

 

Literally, just let them play. However they want.

 

If you are dead-set on setting something up for your kid/s to move through, it sounds like you want Montessori. Which is not, strictly speaking, play.

[Homeschooler in Dubai]

Thanks for all the beneficial tips. The year of playing book looks very interesting. I thought it might be easier and less time consuming to have something like a curriculum rather then collecting single ideas here and there.