Planning for Kindergarten... need advice!

[kaitneel]

Okay I might sound crazy, but I'm having a lot of anxiety as I try to decide what to do for Kindergarten. My daughter just turned 5 this month and she's very bright. She reads around a 3rd grade level and could do Singapore 1B right now. I've been using some five in a row (which I love), Singapore with manipulatives, and we were using AAR but it is just so tedious since she knows how to read so I just give her time to read every day now and ask her about the books in a fun way. (is that good?? lol) 

 

We don't do any real science except maybe from five in a row but we go to the science center a lot and she loves to talk about science and read books about animals and space. Sometimes I think I need a formal program for everything (science, geography, spelling....) and other times I feel she is doing amazing and I just need to let her enjoy this time! But this year we'll have to start documenting more for a portfolio for the state so I'm putting more thought into it. What do you use for an accelerated 5 year old?

 

Math- I'm thinking of adding Life of Fred

Reading- Do I keep going?

Spelling- should I work on this instead of reading?

Writing- Her writing is probably her most age appropriate skill, we don't do much writing, handwriting or creative writing

History- Songlight or story of the world?

Geography- songlight/SOTW or what about a geogra;phy workbook? Is that a waste?

Science- I've been looking at sonlight, elemental science, and real science for kids

 

I've been thinking about switching from five in a row to Sonlight but I don't know.... I hear so many negative things here about sonlight! Someone please come give me all of their veteran homeschool experience.. I will gladly take it!  Thank you! 

[SeaConquest]

What you're doing sounds great. I'd drop AAR if she's already reading well, follow her lead with Singapore, and throw in Story of the World on audio and Handwriting Without Tears. I'd leave science casual and fun -- read, go to the museum, watch documentaries, if she likes them, and play with science kits.

[ReadingMama1214]

What about spelling? My 5yo is a little behind your daughter in reading level (about a mid second grade) and we are finishing up Ordinary Parents Guide to Reading really soon. It goes to a 4th grade level.

 

Next, we plan to start All About Spelling. I plan to buy the first two levels and get through at least level 2 by the end of K. We'll start level 1 this spring. If your daughter is reading well, I see no problem with starting a spelling program. That way she will reinforce the phonics without doing a formal reading program.

 

We're also using HWOT K this year. My dd will go to school next year and I believe they also use HWOT in the classroom.

[kaitneel]

What about spelling? My 5yo is a little behind your daughter in reading level (about a mid second grade) and we are finishing up Ordinary Parents Guide to Reading really soon. It goes to a 4th grade level.

 

Next, we plan to start All About Spelling. I plan to buy the first two levels and get through at least level 2 by the end of K. We'll start level 1 this spring. If your daughter is reading well, I see no problem with starting a spelling program. That way she will reinforce the phonics without doing a formal reading program.

 

We're also using HWOT K this year. My dd will go to school next year and I believe they also use HWOT in the classroom.

 

I think spelling would be perfect. I have been going back and forth on ditching AAR and I think that would be the best thing to do and just focus on phonics through spelling since she has obviously already learned to sight read. I think I will do that!

 

I also have HWOT and we have started K we just almost never do it. That could definitely be a focus for us... I'd love to get through lowercase letters with her.

 

Now...... sonlight or five in a row... and SCIENCE? Uhhhhhhh. When I don't have something formal I feel like what I do is never good enough or right. I feel like it has to follow some pattern and logical order but it doesn't! 

[ReadingMama1214]

I think spelling would be perfect. I have been going back and forth on ditching AAR and I think that would be the best thing to do and just focus on phonics through spelling since she has obviously already learned to sight read. I think I will do that!

 

I also have HWOT and we have started K we just almost never do it. That could definitely be a focus for us... I'd love to get through lowercase letters with her.

 

Now...... sonlight or five in a row... and SCIENCE? Uhhhhhhh. When I don't have something formal I feel like what I do is never good enough or right. I feel like it has to follow some pattern and logical order but it doesn't!

I think it's fine to ditch AAR if it isn't needed. What level are you using?

 

I would have her read aloud to you regularly (if you're not already) so that you can catch any common errors she may be making.

 

We don't do a formal science this year. It's been more interest Led around here. My dd is big into science so she's normally exploring some aspect of it and asking to do experiments.

 

We're not disciplined with HWOT either. It trying to be more regular with it though.

[8filltheheart]

You don't need a formal program for kindergarten. Unless $$ is not even a second thought, I would not buy Sonlight for any primary grades (k-2). Just read lots of good books across a broad range of subjects.

 

My kids don't any formal science until high school level science. Starting in 3rd grade, they read whole books on whatever science subject they are interested I . Over the yrs of reading book after book on various subjects, they have had a broad range exposure to science. At the high school level they jump right in without a problem. (To give you an idea of how successful of an approach this can be, my current college student his first formal science class in 8th grade, physics, but he graduated from high school with 5 college level physics classes completed. He never studied physics formally before 8th grade.)

 

The only textbooks or formal programs my kids ever use are math textbooks, science in high school, Latin textbooks, and some foreign language textbooks. Pretty much everything else is not easily quantified bc it isn't pre-fab.

 

Use 5 as the time to explore any rabbit trail you and your kids want to journey down. There is absolutely nothing directing what you have to study when. Keep school short and sweet (k here is under an hr) and leave days wide open for playing, exploring, making messes, trips, etc. There is so much to cognitive development outside of academics that only play will develop. Enjoy it!

[HomeAgain]

 

Use 5 as the time to explore any rabbit trail you and your kids want to journey down. There is absolutely nothing directing what you have to study when. Keep school short and sweet (k here is under an hr) and leave days wide open for playing, exploring, making messes, trips, etc. There is so much to cognitive development outside of academics that only play will develop. Enjoy it!

 

This.

 

We did math and learning how to write in K.  For writing he mostly used copywork, moving toward dictation at the end.  He learned nursery rhymes, did a LOT of art, took rabbit trails and set the backbone for history by doing a bit of basic geography and map reading.  We used Wee Folk Art to bring together books and crafts, and Mystery Science because he liked it.  We played a LOT of games.  Went on a lot of field trips.  I read good books to him.

 

Could we have done more?  Probably.  Did I need to organize more?  No.  SOTW is really best held off until 1st, imo, so that you can do more with it and the child has more maturity by the time you get to book 4.  Plus I want the flexibility for later years.  At 5 this was just right for him.

[Creekside5]

I agree with all of the above. Enjoy your days learning and discovering together. I would definitely include a spelling program; one that includes a strong phonics component and the spelling rules. (Spell to Read and Write?)  Also, a handwriting/copywork program.  For reading- just read books at her level. I would read with her, so that you can catch any errors and discuss the stories. All kids need to read aloud for fluency. For science- plant a garden, learn about flowers and trees, draw observations.  Does she know some geography?  My kid loved learning about the continents and what animals are on each continent at that age. I would put off SOTW until 1st.  I would follow her interests and leads.  With a gifted kid, go deep.

 

[Cake and Pi]

We're using BookShark, which is the "secular" (but not really) version of Sonlight this year for history and lit.  We're doing level 2 (= Sonlight C), with DS#3 reading the readers and DS#1 and I taking turns with the read-alouds.  I like the structure a LOT; it's been very helpful for me.  I like the book lists.  I love cuddling up on the couch with my boys.  We're reading books none of us would have voluntarily picked and enjoying them!  We have the complete program, but the LA wasn't a good fit and we just prefer Mystery Science to BkSk science.  So we're only using the history/lit.  (Disclaimer:  we get almost all of our curricula free through our HSing charter, including BkSk.)

 

My DS#3, who turned 5yo just about 2 months ago, is at around a 4th+ grade reading level right now, so the readers are very, very easy for him, but he loves the stories and they're perfectly interest/age appropriate.  He burns through the assigned reading in 1-2 days instead of the 5-6 they're scheduled for.  I've been supplying extra other books, mostly picture books with higher level yet age appropriate text, to keep him busy between BkSk readers and staying approximately on schedule.

 

I agree with a lot of what the others said too.  K should be fun and short.  Deeper and broader is generally better than faster.  My older two ALs did only the 3Rs for K and it was plenty.  DS#3 does more, but it's driven by him.  He demands more.  Still, he only does "school"  at home about 4 days per week spending 30 minutes max on some combination of math, science, LA, geography, and philosophy.  BkSk history/lit is really just cuddle-up-on-the-couch-and-enjoy-books-together time, so we do that in addition to "school" time, plus more reading together at bedtime, lots of building with legos/magnatiles/cogs/wood blocks/other, playing outside, digging in kinetic sand or water beads, etc.  He also goes to play-based public pre-k for 3 hours 4x/wk.  

[kaitneel]

Okay so I think I'm going to stick with Five in a row for history/geography/science. It provides a good science topic that we can roll with and learn about.... or not! Between that and going to our local science center and maybe doing a few experiments, I think you all convinced me that that is enough. Oh and some nature study! I want to focus more on nature study so if anyone has good ideas there I'd love to hear about it. I'll hold off on sonlight (I already have most of the books anyway) and SOTW.

 

Singapore and Life of Fred for math. I also have miquon and we play with that sometimes too and always use our cuisnaire rods with singapore. 

 

LA: lots to consider here. I think I'm ready to walk away from AAR. I'm going to start AAS level 1 and 2. I didn't say it in the OP but she does read aloud to me several times a week she just also reads for about an hour every nap time and then again at bed time and I just casually ask her about those books. I'm going to read through Sonlights level 2 readers with her and all the picture books on the mensa excellence in reading list and then maybe re-evaluate. She can read at a higher level but I'm not at all wanting her to read chapter books so we'll stick with that. HWOT K, a creative writing journal, and copy work from scripture. 

 

I haven't even thought about the art, gym, music I'm supposed to show for the portfolio, haha. 

[Sarah0000]

I'm not a veteran.

 

This year for TK my son enjoyed Royal Fireworks Press Aesop Book of Reading, Writing, and Thinking. The student reads the fable, writes a sentence about the picture, then there are a couple pages of extension activities that are usually grammar related. No prep for me, no tedium for him.

 

Next year for K I'm thinking of using Spelling You See. Its also a no prep workbook with stories and pictures, but more handwriting. So far I've found for my AL that phonics and spelling (spelling outside the context of writing sentences) after already reading well has been unnecessary with K-2 level materials.

 

We like LoF!

 

Nature study we're still at more of a PreK level since now we're doing things with my two year old. We mostly read nature books and then go out and look for those things outside. Sometimes DS draws a picture. Books like "Are you a Snail?" and Let's Read and Find Out Science have a few activities you can do at home like how to identify between a slug and snail slime trail or using a sheet of paper to show how different types of mountains are formed.

 

Have you been looking at anything in particular for nature study?