Let's Chat Homeschool Curriculum
Let’s talk about homeschool curriculum. When I started homeschooling my son last year I didn’t know what to do or where to begin in terms of curriculum. I didn’t know anyone who homeschooled their child(ren) to ask them for guidance. So I went to the first place I knew that would give me all of the information I needed to know…good ole’ YouTube. I thought finding a homeschool curriculum for a Pre-K 4 student would be easy, but after getting caught up in watching nearly every YouTube video on this topic I was even more confused than when I began.
There are tons and tons of homeschool curriculum and homeschool style options out there to choose from that one could quickly get overwhelmed. I know I did. With all of the options to choose from, one must also consider price too. This stuff is not cheap!
So what did I decide? Well, last year I decided not to purchase any type of formal homeschool curriculum because I was just getting into homeschooling and I really didn’t know how long I would be homeschooling my son. I did however, purchase one book from Amazon and the K4 bundle from Confessions of a Homeschooler. In my opinion, starting out with those two resources was all that I needed. I did create some of my own worksheets along the way too.
This year, I really wanted to have a few more options with my homeschool curriculum so I went back to YouTube and began my search again. This time, with a plan. I watched hundreds of videos on Kindergarten homeschool curriculum and jotted down the curriculum options that I liked the most as well as, some of the other tools parents were using to teach their children. After my research and analysis was done, I found that only one of the curriculum options that I initially liked fit my needs. This still left me in a bind because this option only focused on one subject, Math. What was I going to do for all of the other subjects?
I went back to Amazon and purchased some of the ancillary resources that I jotted down that some of the other homeschool parents were using. As of the day that I wrote this blog post, we’ve completed twenty-one days of homeschool this year and I really like the materials that I’ve purchased and my son is enjoying them too.
I’ve learned that for a Pre-K to Kindergarten aged child, a structured homeschool curriculum is not necessary (that’s just my opinion). As long as you have resources that are tailored around what you want to teach your child and those resources are at and slightly above your child’s understanding (slightly above, to challenge them) you will be alright. You must also create a plan on how you’re going to teach your child. Whether that means making a lesson plan or deciding day to day what you want to teach. I personally don’t like to make a lesson plan, I feel like they are too structured. I like to decided day to day what I want to teach according to what I see my son needs that day or what he tells me he wants to learn about that day. Some may say that this approach is crazy but so far it has worked for us and my son is soaring!
Find the curriculum or “non curriculum” that works best for you and your child(ren) and run with it. After all, that’s one of the beauties of homeschooling. Even if you are not homeschooling your child(red) these resourced would be great for you to supplement their in school learning.
See you in the next post.
A.M. Green
Here are links to some of the Pre-K & Kindergarten resources that I use in my homeschool (and by the way, they all are affordable too).
Math
Dimensions Math (I use KA & KB): https://www.singaporemath.com/
Purchased these from Amazon
Kindergarten Big Fun Workbook here: https://amzn.to/3lJxNxg
200 Must Know Sight Words: https://amzn.to/3Ar5J8f
Handwriting Without Tears: https://amzn.to/3lH5FuH
Usborne First Illustrated Grammar and Puncutation: https://amzn.to/3nOuZS6
Mind Benders Level 1: https://amzn.to/3nOuZS6
TinkerActive Science Pre-K Workbook (Ages 4-5): https://amzn.to/2XIqcqH
TinkerActive Science Kindergarten Workbook (Ages 5-6): https://amzn.to/3CuTqbr
Bob Books Collection 6 First Stories and Rhyming Words: https://amzn.to/3zpiUoS
Disclosure: Amazon links contain affiliates. When you buy through one of my links I will receive a commission. This is at no cost to you. Thank you for supporting Oh Yeah, Blessed! and allowing me to continue to bring you valuable content.
Picked these up from Costco
Ready To Learn Kindergarten Write & Wipe Workbook
Scholastic Animals Wipe-Clean Workbook (Ages 4-6)
Bob Books Set 3 Word Families
Check out Confessions of a Homeschooler here
https://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/
**Bonus**
Are you looking for ways to incorporate Spanish into your homeschool? Well, September is Hispanic Heritage Month and now is the perfect time to begin. Here are some great Spanish resournces that I love. Check them out!
Spanish Mama https://spanishmama.com/
(Check out the free downloads!)
Sarah's Spanish School https://www.sarahsspanishschool.com/
(She's offering free membership for the month of September! Here's the link to the FREE September sign up page) https://www.sarahsspanish.com/freeseptembersm?affiliate_id=3036938&aff_sub=&aff_sub2=&nopopup=false&noautoplay=false&cookiepreview=false