A bright five year old not ready for K...

[SandraDumas]

what program, if you could choose any would you use with her? She'll be five next November.

 

She's very bright, and already knows all her letter sounds and preschool "stuff" like counting, sorting, shapes, etc.

 

She does not write well, and needs work on that.

 

I want to spend time with her. I looked at HOD but LHTH was too babyish and LHFG was too serious. Calvert is too pricey for me. I want something more complete than Rod and Staff preschool. She's almost done book 2 of DEL already and did the first Rod and Staff book. We did the preschool riddles from Critical Thinking already. I just want to do crafts, have fun, make sure she's got some basics and spend time with her.

 

I do have Five in a Row, but since I have no car I'm having a really really hard time getting to the library. I can do five units with books I have on hand, but I know it'll be inconsistent, and I want her to have her preschool *every day* before I start in with my son.

 

Ideas?

[Alana in Canada]

I was going to suggest FIAR with lapbooks. I haven't looked at these in length, but maybe there's something there for you.

 

And no one says you have to do the books in order, do you? You could start with one from the library--and then keep the ones you have in reserve for those times you can't get there.

[Jami]

I would read story books. Draw on plain paper. Color in color books. Play with clay and playdough. Maybe watch some Leapfrog. Kumon books for mazes, numbers and letters. And Phonics Pathways or OPGTR if you want to work on teaching her to read.

 

Remember how your son was ready or so you thought for more schoolwork at a younger age, and you tried lots and lots of programs with him, and you and he got burned out and had to take a step back this year. :) I know it's tempting to use whole programs, but you really don't need them, you're doing fine with bits and pieces! I've been there with my now 5.5 year old. She was 4, very bright, and I thought I'd go ahead and do K with her. She wasn't ready to be taught though. So I gave her fun things to do, backed way off, and well before her 5th birthday she had taught herself to read and write by just being around her brother and me while we did school. And now I have a 3.5 year old who can write most of her letters, knows most of her sounds and is more than eager to do school. But other than giving her Walmart workbooks to color in, I'm holding off K with her. Maybe in the fall after she's 4. We'll see.

 

If your dd needs to work on fine motor skills then using tongs to pick up beans, coloring, drawing, Lego play, etc. are good uses of your time. November is still 9 months away, so she's a long ways from 5. You just can't know if she'll be K ready by then or not. I just wouldn't encourage planning that far ahead, other than general pre-school fun and play. :)

 

Jami

[rafiki]

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[Tonia]

I wouldn't spend money on a program for this age. Figure out your goals for her for this coming year and find materials that will meet those goals.

 

For example, with my dd - my major goals for her -

 

1. know some basic Bible doctrine and Bible stories

2. Phonics/reading instruction

3. Math - introduce number concepts (she could count already and knew her shapes, but beyond that, I wasn't really sure what to do)

4. crafts/fun stuff - she loves workbooks, crafts, and projects

5. lots of read-alouds - want to focus on lengthening her attention span

 

How I am accomplishing those goals

1. Everything a Child Should Know about God and Bible stories, daily at lunch with lots of review previous stories (by asking questions about them - good start on her narration skills)

2. OPG and ETC plus some phonics readers

3. Math - (this was a toughie for me because I am not a math person by nature) - math workbook (because she loves workbooks, otherwise I wouldn't bother) and lots of math games (I have a document with tons of games linked from my blog). We will probably start Right Start A soon as well.

4. Fun stuff - workbooks (rod and staff, kumon, never bored kid book), projects and craft - science - we are learning about animals using some evan-moor materials (schedule for this is also linked from my blog)

5. read-alouds - using various book lists for library books and also focusing on some longer books to expand on her listening skills

 

Sorry this got long, but I wanted to give some examples. The first thing I would figure out is what goals you want to accomplish with her this year and then figure out how you can accomplish those. HTH a little!

[SandraDumas]

This is for next year when she will be five most of the year. I do not want to teach her to read then, even though she's learning to read a little now on her own. I learned that lesson and won't make it again. I have HOP and will wait till she's going on 6 for that or any full K program.

 

But she wants time with me and she loves academics and she's smart. Though I don't want to force her into actual K work when she's five, I *do* think there must be something fun and interesting to do with her *every* day.

 

Thanks for the idea for MFW and Horizons. I'll consider those. I think the Horizons is more the ticket, but I'm not sure. It looks pretty academic.

[SandraDumas]

and hopefully she'll learn lots of things that interest her too.

[SandraDumas]

I'm sorry I didn't make it clear...this if for next year 08-09. My dd will be five that whole year. She turns five in November.

 

I think I said in my OP...but must have not made myself clear, that I don't want to do a full K program with her...until she's six. So this is for a preschool program for next year, that's something fun.

 

But it can't be LHTH because she is bright and that would not interest or stimulate her at all. It can't be FIAR because I am having a really hard time getting library books and she wants to do school every day, before I do it with my older son.

 

Okay...more ideas always appreciated.

 

Right now I'm leaning towards Horizons Pre-K or maybe Hewitt Preschool Plus. I just don't know. I want something fun and balanced but good for bright kids ...she needs to learn something new here and there to keep it interesting for both of us.

 

Thanks!! If I had been looking for a full program for her then your exhortation would have been spot-on. Friends in the real world or the cyberworld that will come out and remind us of the lessons we need to remember, are rare. Thank you!

[susie in tx]

My youngest is 4 and will turn 5 in November as well. I originally balked at teaching her anything, but have since been forced to change my tune. I balked because she's my baby ANd because it feels like I don't have time with a 12 yo, 9 yo, and 6 yo ahead of her.

 

However, I spend a few minutes every day teaching her phonograms. She loves this. She cannot do the writing. She does not have the fine motor skills to write. So she holds the pencil and I help her to write. She loves this.

 

I have RightStart Level A and we've been doing the first couple of lessons in it forever. Now, she usually plays with an abacus while I teach her older sister.

 

We also use the Kumon workbooks. They are expensive, IMHO, but she loves them. We'll continue with those until we run out.

 

Oh, and she is learning most of FLL with her older sister. She has most of the first poem memorized. I am trying to allow her to do as she pleases, while helping her to learn at the same time. I take extra time with her that I might not otherwise, because she seems to ready.

 

But, they really are so very young at 4...

[Karen in CO]

My future plans for my youngest include seat work if she wants to do it while the middle is doing her seat work, inclusion in science and history projects as she wants, and plenty of art and read alouds.

 

I am planning to do handwriting, ETC, and RS A with her for her own level material and include her when she wants on other topics. Perhaps something like that might work for you. The RS A includes lots mathematical thinking which will keep her interest. The ETC and handwriting will help work on fine motor skills and giver a feeling like she is doing school, when she wants to sit for seat work. I have tons of books for read alouds, many from the younger years of Sonlight and from the AO year 0 list.

 

 

hth

[Mama Bear]

I'm sorry I'm not recalling how things went with your son, but it sounds as though your experience with your daughter will be very different. I have b-7th, g-5th, g-2nd, g-K/1 and special needs toddler.

 

That #4 child of mine is tough to keep up with. We're doing OPGTTR and she's taken to it so thoroughly that she's decoding better than her 2nd gr sis, and is fearless in all things. She needs stuff to keep her busy and has already gone through enough busy type workbooks that I felt I couldn't put off "real" school any longer. She's working in Saxon 1, Z-B HW 1 (needs reminding about her shape and size), SWO A, and doing FLL (part 2) with her sis. She will turn 6 in April. This was supposed to be a relaxed K year (wah!) because I wanted to make sure she had the space in which to just play and be. Next year she'll probably slow down a little (I hope!) and I'll take her through FLL 1 on her own, plus letting her work at whatever pace she needs to, at least until 3rd grade.

 

All this to say that she's very much her own little person, different from her sibs, and yours is too. She's probably ready to learn to read (in a very gentle, not "pushy" way - just noticing the world around her and how language works into it). Being a girl makes her statistically a little more likely to be ready for the language stuff at this age.

 

In your shoes, I think I'd just go pick up some workbooks at Costco, take her to the library as much as you can, keep a stash of craft supplies and let her lead you where she wants to go. My mom always said that one of the best things about our homeschooling experience was that the littles picked up so much from the biggers. I find it to be true here as well. So she might be the kid who's really ready to take off. Or not.

 

I hope this helps a little. I love this age/stage, but it sure can be nerve-wracking trying to keep things balanced, huh? ;)

 

Blessings.

[Malenki]

Just thinking out loud here a bit...

 

Could you use FIAR but actually buy the books instead of the library? I know some are OOP and wouldn't be practical (unless you could get to the library for that one), but many are such classics that they have them in paperback form all over the place. I've seen a number at garage sales, thrift shops, etc. and definitely see them listed all the time used.

 

Oh, another thought... What about having your husband swing by the library on his way to or from work or on his lunch break? Not sure if your library is like this, but ours lets you put books "on hold" even if they are available somewhere in the system. They just grab a copy and send it to my designated branch and put it on the "holds" shelf. You could have 3 or 4 "on hold" from the FIAR list at any time and use the ones that come in first that way. (You could even have them sent to a branch near where your husband works instead of the one closer to home if that makes it easier for him... obviously I'm in a city with more than one branch library!)

 

Just some random thoughts to make FIAR work for you. It's a wonderful program!

[EKS]

If she knows letter sounds I would informally progress to the next step with reading. Find some very easy phonics readers and go from there (or if you have a reading program left over from your son you could use that). I would do this slowly and casually.

 

If she isn't ready for much writing yet, I would strengthen her hands with clay, play doh, and coloring. If you want to start with handwriting, the HWT books for the preschool/kindergarten years are great.

 

I would do some preschool math. Singapore Earlybird is good and cheap!

 

And then I would read read read aloud! Lots of stories, and also nonfiction if she likes it. Fables and fairy tales and, of course, Bible stories. Try to increase her attention span for listening to read alouds (if that is a problem). It will be very helpful in years to come!

 

Also, if she likes "school" stuff, Kumon workbooks are great.

[chiguirre]

If you need a schedule to get you moving, I'd look at Winterpromise's Ready to Learn. It's very crafty while covering basic math, reading and science. If you pick up the Williams Press and Bible books used, it shouldn't cost more than $100. I'd also buy a bunch of books from Sonlight Core A and B used to have on hand for storytime.

[Chris in VA]

I'd try Saxon K to give her the "school" component. It has a little meeting time where you do a calendar and some graphing every day (I think you make a weather chart). It starts very simply, and progresses incrementally. There isn't much writing, and it's very friendly. You can find a used version for about $20. Don't bother with the meeting book--just get a poster-sized calendar from the teacher store, and use a couple of post-it note pads to write the date on, then stick it on the calendar. Eventually, she can write it. Keep track of every day by writing the number of the day (1st day of school = 1, second day= 2, etc) on a 3x5 notecard and make a row of them around your ceiling (or, cut out circles and make a catepillar! lol) to keep track of your school days and introduce the number line. Make a little weather chart with some suns, clouds, and rain clouds and graph the weather all month.

 

Memorize a poem (short) or bible verses. Say the pledge if you are so inclined.

 

Then, the academics are over, and you can read to her tons, give her magnets and magnifying glasses and binoculars and clay, have her take walks with you and notice birds (make a feeder and learn their names), string beads and make cake. Set aside an hour for preschool (math, reading aloud, and some sort of fine motor thingy like art), then set her up with some fun choices while you work with ds--she'll think it's still "school," but it will be unstructured and terribly appropriate for four year olds.

 

If she wants to read, let her. Phonics Pathways may seem dull, but it's much less serious than a full reading program, and if you just do a page a week, she'll be able to read a first grade book in 9 months (but if she's ready for more, you won't be able to stop her! lol). Give her some sight words by labeling her room--heck, we even labeled the dog. We also took post its and wrote out words like "the" about 15 times and put them all over the house (one word at a time). By the end of the day dd knew what t-h-e spelled.

 

Have fun, get messy, and know you can do it!

[SnowWhite]

If you're at all interested in buying a program, WinterPromise has 2-3 possibilities. I'll be using I'm Ready To Learn with my 4 yo, but you might be more interested in Journeys in Imagination and/or their Basic K Phonics Language Arts program.

[kalanamak]

I would read story books. Draw on plain paper. Color in color books. Play with clay and playdough. Maybe watch some Leapfrog. Kumon books for mazes, numbers and letters. And Phonics Pathways or OPGTR if you want to work on teaching her to read.

 

Jami

 

A TRUNKFUL.

[LisaKinVA]

Based upon what you've said, most of the Pre-K programs (especially math and reading-wise) will probably be way too easy (and boring) for what your dd already knows.

 

My 4yo is using Abeka K letters & sounds and Abeka K Math, and we're going through the K reading plan. We take it easy -- read aloud together, and he's making steady progress. He does art, music, history and science with his older sister (in K).

 

He has lots of coloring. He does some penmanship -- but all told, not more than 1hr of formal school total a day (and that not all at once).

 

For us, this provided the best academic balance -- without wearing the child out. I followed this same guideline for my K daughter in Pre-K, she's now breezing through the 1st grade materials (minus spelling, grammar, etc.) and having a good time.

[Emmy]

My 3rd will be 5 in December and I plan to do winterpromise ready to learn with him and books from Sonlight core a, b, or whatever. Not going to buy a whole core, just going to read a lot I would think.

 

Right now he is doing OPG, singapore earlybird math, and I just got Before Five a Row to start with him.

[Guest]

You might want to look at the Oak Meadow Kinder. program. It isn't a traditional academic Kinder, more like a pre-k with lots of hands on things. They do cover the letters of the alphabet and their sounds, nothing heavy hitter, though. Just a thought.