Is There Preschool Homeschool Material Out There?

J.,
Go on line and do a little research. there is a wealth of material. I am a preschool director and several of my student's parents go on to home school (including one of my staff members).
S.

Yes, J., there is good Christian homeschool curriculum out there. Try A Beka.com. I've found it to be the best. Also, your husband's advise is very good. Homeschool conventions are excellent sources of curriculum choices and encouragement. Homeschool support groups in many churches will give additional help. God bless you in your dedication to your family and to good Christian education for your children.
Bron

Yea!! I love your questions. Sonlight just came out with a wonderful easy to implement, literature based curriculum for preschool. We love it! Another resource is Slow and Steady Get Me Ready. I don't know if it's still in print but you might find one at a used curriculum sale. CHEACT usually has one in May, and the big book/convention is the last week in June in Austin for CHEACT Oakmeadow has a sweet kindergarten curriculum(Waldorf). We have used Singapore Math for preschool and there are also workbooks called Kumon for cutting and mazes, and learning time. I know, I know, there is sooo much to look at. Really you are at that sweet spot of no stress, so relax and enjoy your babies. If you'd like to meet with more home schoolers head to Circle C Park on Friday or contact Smoothing the Way. Remember you don't have to commit to one way of doing things, but you'll probably end up loving what you commit to. Have fun!
I just read some of the responses and one said to try public kindergarten. I would really not do this if you are planning on home schooling. The form of the two kinds of education are different and there is great benefit for the younger children to see what the older children are doing as they begin to learn at home. My oldest went to preschool and loved all the glitz of centers, yellow buses and teachers etc., but when the whole kitchen is yours for pretend play, and the sand box and park are your recess places and you socialize with neighbors and friends from church, you sit in mom's lap for story time, you nap in your bed (not on a mat on the floor) eating nutritious meals, again prepared by mom. Why would I want my child to do anything else?

I use the Early Beginnings Preschool program for my home daycare, but I also bought other curriculum books to supplement their learning. Here are the links you need, the last link is to free toddler lesson plans, they are very easy and age appropiate for your 19 month old.
http://earlybeginnings.com/overview.html
http://www.discountschoolsupply.com/Product/ProductList.a...
http://www.schoolsupplystore.com/100-Top-Picks-for-Homesc...
http://woodlandsmommy.com/essentials/lessonplans_toddler....

Hi J.!

I homeschool my children and my oldest son started reading when he was three and I am working with my youngest one now. I have not found any curriculum that specifically caters to very young children but for my youngest I am using YOUR BABY CAN READ. It is working very well and they say that children can start as young as 9 months (maybe even younger).

My oldest is now 8 and I use Sonlight Curriculum for homeschooling. It affords me the time to work my business after they have completed their work. For homeschooling conventions, you will want to check your local homeschooling directory.

I hope this is helpful!

Hi, J.! There is so many resources out there for homeschooling preschoolers! Abeka I know without looking it up has even an infant/toddler curriculum! I home school my 5 year old and will be homeschooling my 10 month old and future babies! SETHSA will be holding its annual homeschool convention in June! Message me and we can talk more in dept about these things! I am very passionate about homeschooling and would love to encourage you! :)

Hi J.,
Praise the Lord for you!
I would think that Barnes and Noble might have something for your little boy at this age- Just reading to him and talking to him all the time is in itself great education. You can teach your child his ABC's and his numbers without training materials-- I did with mine and when they started their formal education they were ahead of others.
good luck and blessings

some great websites are starfall.com and letteroftheweek.com. GOOD LUCK!

Hi J.,
I have a daycare and I use http://funshineexpress.com
hope this helps

J.~
First of all, I have to say I'm a bit jealous of you. I didn't really think I wanted to homeschool until my oldest was turning 5. I felt like I had to make a lot of overwhelming decisions really quickly and wish I'd had the time to really research what worked best for me and my kiddos. That said, I did wind up being able to find a great homeschooling approach (Charlotte Mason with AmblesideOnline.org) that's working beautifully for my Kindergartener and myself. And I'm even able to implement the same basic approach with my 2 and 4 yo. It's a very gentle, nature and literature based approach.

The best place I found to start researching which homeschooling approach would work best for me was here:
http://www.homeschool.com/Approaches/
There's great descriptions of all the different ways that you can go and you can use it as a starting off point to decide which things you might like to try out.

The main thing to remember is that little ones are constantly learning by default. You almost have to make efforts to STOP them from learning because it's so easy for them. My oldest learned her ABCs almost completely from playing with refrigerator magnets. :) So, take your time, take a deep breath, and plunge into the wonderful world of homeschooling!

Good luck!
K.
PS There's more to my story here, if you're interested: http://www.homeschool.me/2008/08/homeschooling-for-me.php

Hi J.!

I sent my oldest to preschool at age 4 and decided to homeschool for Kinder this year. I'm using the Abeka curriculum. It is very user friendly and its emphasis is on phonics. My child is learning to read right now but what I like about homeschool is the flexibility to do it on my time (I work part-time) and he loves the fact that he can be a kid and just play most of the day. Don't stress too much. In the preschool years, it really is about play and hands on experiences. My 2 year old has picked up a ton just being around his brother as I don't have a scheduled "school" time for him. Good luck and God bless. Enjoy em, they do grow up sooooo fast. ~S.

well, here's a little grain of hope if it helps any (:
I had "accidentally" come across that store Mardel looking for religious decor and as it turns out they also have some teaching supplies! When you get a chance, go check it out. My little man just turned 19 months also and i've been working with him for a little while with flash cards and coloring (even though he still wants to eat crayons heehee)I don't really let him watch too much tv I usually take him out for walks or just "lookie shopping" lol. I point things out to him like colors, clothes, shoes,foods, things like that. I make him choose things and am like " which one do you like better this one or that one?" and he smiles and makes his choice. I've also noticed that he and other toddlers and infants passing by wave and "talk" to each other. I think that it's good since he gets to learn and socialize and learn how to say hello and shake hands and be respectful to the elderly who come up and say hi.)I also try to take him outside to play (weather permitting) for at least 30 minutes (perfect timing especially when Daddy is coming home I love seeing both of thier faces light up!) (This is all just me, all mommies are different with there little ones but this is just a little seed here)
Your little one might still be a little young but it doesn't hurt to try! I have also heard of the headstart program, I know they have it in San Antonio as my half-sister was in head start as a toddler and she loves school now. Good luck with whatever you choose!

A friend of mine uses a preschool program for homeschoolers that starts at age 2. Here is a link:

http://www.heartofdakota.com/

Some of the preschools in our area of town use the Wee Learn system. (Just type it into google and it will come up.) It is a christian based learning system for preschool children. I was thinking of ordering it and using it for my kids, but I haven't yet. I was reading about it and it sounds pretty good. I like that it is christian based too. Hope this information helps.

I bougt the Sonlight preschool curriculum which is a christian literature based curriculum. I used it when my daughter was 4 and was happy with it. You could certainly use it with a 3 year old but just playing, reading, listening to music, etc. is enough usually. I bet you could find it online by looking up Sonlight homeschool curriculum.

P.

hi J.,

have you checked out the homeschool store? it is north of the loop, off ella, and then hang a left on judiway. google it, you will find it. the people in that store are very helpful, and there are many options of how to go about it. they can also help you find homeschool groups depending on what you want- big or small, neighborhood oriented, religious afiliation, etc. if you are wanting a little time off, a mothers day out program, there is a great one in that area too. very flexible schedule-wise, and affordable! write me if you are interested in that. even one morning a week can be all you need.....

Try Lake Shore Learning. They have stores in the Houston area.

Hi J., I am a homeschool mom of 4 so I could talk (or write) your ear off. There is a wealth of information out there and it looks like you received some great responses already!

I would agree with those who say learning, especially for little ones, is a "natural thing" simply taking place at home with everyday things: grocery shopping, gardening, cooking, etc.

And of course READ READ and READ some more! The library is your best friend!

There are so many different philosophies and personality types. Mine in particular is "literature based." (Again, I think reading is a key ingredient.) So my advice will lean towards "books."

You have received some great responses but I don't think I have seen anyone mention "Five in a Row" ~ Great tool for little ones. It is a literature based curriculum that is excellent for the young ages.

I live on the South side of Houston and there is a store off of Fuqua & I-45 called "Home Education Partnership" (HEP) that would also have lots of good books, ideas, curriculum, etc.

I want to reiterate the SETHSA conference that takes place the first week in June. TONS of great info there! I highly recommend going! www.sethsa.org This is probably the best place to see various ideas, philosophies, and curriculum. There will many vendors in addition to several workshops all centered around homeschooling.

Hi there J.,

My pre-schooler likes more hands on interactive learning. PBS, the disney channel, enchantedlearning.com, and many others have excellent resources! I have started using one vendor for handwriting, handwriting without tears, and we absolutely love the program! Also, there's a ton of material at educational stores; but online offers very similar activities for free. Just depends on what you're looking for.

As for homeschooling conventions, most will be coming up soon. If you're interested in homeschooling past pre-school age I would do a search for homeschooling groups through yahoo groups. There's a ton of homeschooling support groups in your area. Just pick one to join and start asking questions. We did this when I was on the fence about homeschooling. All the families we met made us feel very welcome and was more than willing to share their knowledge with us newcomers. Houston has a great homeschooling community with many group activities. Also, check into the museums, zoos, etc. for homeschooling classes. Your child may not be old enough just yet; but it will give you an idea of what's out there.

Best of luck!
A. W.

Check out this website. I friend of mine said it was very helpful to her when deciding to home school her kids.

http://www.main.org/aah/

Alot of private schools use abeka. Abeka also has curriculum for home schooling. My ex mil used Abeka and tryed Bob Jones but she went back to Abeka. I believe they have a good phonics program. The curriculum starts for preschool but I'm thinking maybe 3. If you can't find what your looking for online, the teacher supplies stores carry curriculum and you can also order through their catalogs, since online is so circular now you should be able to get what you want online. Staying at home with him and just teaching him throughout his surroundings is sufficient at this age though. Get the wooden puzzles witht the big pieces things like that.

Have a look at biblepreschool.com. It is a curriculum I wrote for my preschoolers to teach mainly Bible but also throws in some other subjects. There are some sample lessons on the site you can try out. Your son may be a bit too young for the activities now, buy in the next 6-8 months you can probably begin modifying them for him.

Blessings,
www.biblepreschool.com

Honey, I would first try putting him in kindergarten in the public school. There are so many exciting things for the little guy to learn and enable him to make school friends. If for some reason, he does not do well, then you can consider homeschooling or private school. Plus, you get a much needed 3 hour break to prepare for him when he comes home. Then you can also teach him in the afternoon with the things you want him to learn.

I have three children the oldest is now 25 and I have homeschooled them all. My youngest just turned 13. I started when my oldest was in kindergarten, so I've been doing this by God's grace for 21 years. I remember how I worried so with my first and tried to make sure I didn't miss anything. It is so different with my last!!

I would recommend just using the library for preschool and Kindergarten. Reading to your child is so important and by reading you can introduce all different kinds of topics and types of literature. Learning at that age needs to be fun especially with a boy!!

Serious learning with curriculum shouldn't come till later like second grade. If you introduce too much structure too early, you and he will be stressed out and he will be burned out and hating school by 5th grade. Just focus on reading to him a lot, doing some very basic letter recogintion, and very early math skills. Do all these with hands on activities...not workbooks.

My son wasn't ready to read until he was 7. I started trying to work with him on a phonics based program at 5 (that was when my middle daughter learned to read), but he was frustrated very easily. So I put it away! I pulled it out from time to time doing very short sessions...about 15 minutes, but still there was lots of frustration. At 7 our family went on a trip and we all started playing the alphabet game in the car...Nathan couldn't play because he didn't know his letters. By the time we got home he wanted to learn his letters and he was motivated to learn to read. Yes, he was behind for a couple of years, but now he reads great and more importantly he LOVES to read!

That is so awesome that you husband recommended attending a homeschool convention. Sometimes its hard to get husbands on board with homeschooling and believe me you want his input and support!! My husband was acutally the one that wanted to homeschool first. A convention that I would highly recommend is the Texas Home School Coalition State Convention. It comes to The Woodlands every August. We have attended many conferences over the years and this is one of the best! We now actually help with their Teen Staff Program. This is the only truely family Convention that I am aware of. They have speakers and activities for the entire family and it always has some great input for the men. Their website is www.thsc.org . The convention dates for this year are August 6-8th. Now would be a great time to begin attending just to learn and gather information.

Blessings, A. C.

I don't know about homeschool materials, although I am looking into it myself for my 3 year old. But, I wanted to echo someone else's post about learning through play. My daughter knew all of her uppercase letters and her colors by the time she was 18 months old and I never used a single flash card. We just played with blocks that had letters and colors on them and every chance I got, I would ask her what color toy she had, counted things, etc. She just turned 3 a couple of weeks ago and is reading 3 letter words, adds and subtracts numbers up to 10 and is beginning to write letters, can draw circles, squares and triangles, etc. Because of the fact that she is so advanced already, I worry about putting her in public school because she would be so bored! She also has a late birthday, so she has 2 more years of preschool before she could even start public kindergarten. I'm certain she will be reading by then. Anyway, at his age, just spend lots of time playing with him and asking him questions. Make him attempt an answer as this will help with his verbal skills as well. If I come across any curriculum, I will share it with you. I'm going to be talking to someone from my church who homeschools her kids, so I'm hoping to get some good info from her. Good luck and have fun teaching your little man!

http://www.abeka.com/OurHomeSchoolOptions.html

this one was great for my child