Olivesprouts Mama

Hi! Homeschool mom here, I’ve done homeschool kindergarten 4 times. 😊 I love it. Here are some thoughts on how to do kindergarten at home!  So for kindergarten you want to have one hour or less of sit down, formal lessons each week day. I fill that hour with the basics: reading, writing, and math. 20 minutes of a reading lesson, 20 minutes of math, 10-15 minutes on handwriting. All About Reading is a great reading curriculum. You can buy it used and skip the readers to save money. I like Zaner Bloser handwriting. I order my homeschool supplies from Rainbow Resources website.  In addition, I definitely recommend you do a daily read aloud time. During breakfast or lunch or afternoon art time, sit down and read out loud for 20 minutes or as long as they will listen! Children’s poems, nursery rhymes, picture books, even a chapter book that they can understand. This is also a great spot to add a gentle history curriculum (I like Story of the World), books about famous people or events, etc

Sometimes in our modern culture it gets forgotten that preschool children really learn best through play. If you have found yourself unexpectedly homeschooling preschool (or, you’ve been planning to anyway!) here are my best tips. First, I  would invest in some imaginative toys - play food and pans are usually a big hit (Ikea has good ones) dolls, a toy phone that doesn’t do anything (requires more imagination!). A sand box is great if possible. Play dough. Crayons and paper. Music toys! Play silks! Less is more but having good imagination building toys will really help your child learn to play and discover. Next, create an environment for learning. Have a gentle, flexible routine that includes read aloud time (with picture books), outside time, rest/nap time, and “helping” with house chores (life skills!) Play music around the house and keep the tv off as much as you can. Go for walks. Point out flowers and birds. Collect pine cones and paint them or turn them into bird feeders. F