[mom2GRLC]

Are there any really good pre-school programs you can do at home for kids 19months to 4 years? What do you reccomend?

[StorkWatcher]

Can't wait to see replies! I'm interested too. Thanks for posting.

[mom2GRLC]

I just went to a teachers supply store and also a christian book/education store and couldn't find ANYTHING that really caught my eye. They had some awesome homeschooling kits for kindergarten and other grades, but not much in the way of teaching really young kids or even 4year olds.

Then again I had my hands full with two rambunctious toddlers that were trying to grab everything off the shelves, So maybe I should give it another look (without) the little ones in tow. lol

[mallory4]

You might check out the Oak Meadow curriculum, we enjoyed that with our little ones. It is based in Waldorf theories of education, so if you like nature studies, fairy tales, handcrafts, etc., it is great.

We also have been very happy with the Spectrum series of books (Spectrum Reading Readiness, Math, Phonics, etc.), which start with Pre-K and go to grade 6 I think, and they are available lots of places like Borders, Barnes and Noble, maybe even Target and Walmart, as well as at most teacher supply stores. I taught all 3 of my older kids to read using phonics in 1st grade and Spectrum's 1st grade reading book in 2nd grade (we like to teach reading late), and it worked like a charm every time.

In general, I would't worry about having a whole curriculum with kids that young. Regular trips to the library to check out story books and age-appropriate non-fiction books about animals, trucks, or whatever they like, etc., are free and will accomplish the goal of producing well-educated kids.

(From the perspective of a homeschooling mother of 4, in grades 6,4,2 and pre-K)

[lakin11]

I am a former Head Start teacher, have a BS degree in Early Childhood....am now staying home and having "school" at home w/ my 3 fkids and daycare kids. Most of what I do is not really any particular program. I do a lot of stuff from High Scope....which is basically about letting kids explore the world around them. PM me and I can send you some links to get good idea of things to do. We don't do much in the way of ditto sheets....although my 5 yr old loooooves doing them, so when he gets bored, I have some for him to do. We read ALLLLLL the time and discuss the books...in terms that they understand. We play grocery story and dr and post office, etc w/ the toys we have at home. We take a big box and make it a house or a station or whatever. We cook together....each having to "measure" their ingredients and mixing them together. We talk about what happens if we forget something. We planted a garden and look at how different plants/flowers are different (as seeds and now as they are growing). They draw pics of them. We measure how tall they are getting, we make predictions on what this or that plant is going to look like. We talk about what happens if we didn't water the plant or it didn't get sun. A LOT of hands on stuff. Just allowing kids to be creative. You don't have to have fancy materials....give the kids packing peanuts and watch them have a blast! Paint w/ your fingers, feet, etc. Put rice/beans/sand/water in a plastic container w/ cups/sifters, etc and they will have a blast!

Hope some of these help......its such a fun age to work with. They aren't jaded by homework, and are sooooooo excited to learn! They are sponges!
Shannon

[ourdreamcametru]

Check out Hooked on Kindergarten, we bought it a few weeks ago and LOVE IT!! Castle begs me daily to do "school"