Homeschoolers talk a lot about what age is best for beginning homeschooling. Is it four? Five years old? Six? My opinion is start school when your child is around six, but if he or she shows an interest earlier than six then follow their lead. My kids have all read early. That’s not because I pushed them, but because they wanted to learn how to read. My problem I have encountered with early readers (I mean kids that are three and four years old), is that they aren’t ready for workbooks. Instead, I like homeschooling preschoolers without a curriculum.
After teaching for a number of years, I learned that I don’t really care a whole lot about workbooks or worksheets. No, I am not an unschooler. I am an eclectic homeschooler that mostly gravitates toward Charlotte Mason. For my older kids, I use curricula. I use workbooks for subjects like math, handwriting, and Spanish. Otherwise, I like notebooking, and so do my kids (most days). When I was young, I always liked to make my own flash cards and maps of places in my own notebooks. It makes sense that notebooking would be something I’m drawn to.
A few weeks ago, my four-year-old daughter was trying to write letters in church. She has tried to spell her name. She kept asking me, “What letter is that?” To me, those are all signs to start teaching her the alphabet. She’s not six, but I can go at her speed. If all we learn this year are her letters and some numbers, then yippee! If she learns to read, then wow! It’s freeing to not have to wait for a certain age to start homeschooling, but rather start when the child is ready, even if it’s early to some people.
Teaching ABCs Without a Curriculum
Homeschooling preschoolers without a curriculum is more work, and it’s less work. It’s more work because I make the materials I need. It’s less work because I don’t have to spend time looking over a large curriculum. Using ChatGPT, I made coloring pages of the alphabet and numbers 1-20. I place them in a plastic pocket. Each day we review the names of letters (upper and lower case) and their sound. Then my daughter traces the letters with her finger. I make the experience tactile by placing small objects in the letters to help her recognize their shape. Here are some things we place on the letters in plastic pockets:
- Playdough
- Counting bears or dinosaurs
- wikkiStix
- cars
Here are some things we place on the letters without plastic pockets:
- watercolors
- dot art
- markers
- stickers
Rice Box
I think this is technically called a sensory activity. Remember those Melissa and Doug toys that come in those nice wooden boxes? I kept a few boxes and used them for school. I place magnetic letters in the box and pour rice on top. Then let my daughter use a magnetic fishing pole from another game to “fish” for the letters. Sometimes she fishes for one letter (uppercase and lowercase). Sometimes I toss in two letters. She has to distinguish between the two. I would only do this if your baby is sleeping. My daughter loves this activity!
Phonemic Awareness
Having phonemic awareness is being able to hear the individual sounds in words. Something I do each day with my daughter is help her blend sounds to make words. For example, I say the individual sounds in cat (C-A-T). Then I ask, what word did I say? I use All About Spelling for my kids when they are older, which includes segmenting (breaking a word apart by its sounds) and blending. Right now, it’s a slow introduction.
Picture Books
Homeschooling a third child is different than homeschooling a first or even second child. With my first, I read so many good books aloud. We memorized nursery rhymes together. It’s harder to do all of that with a third child because I am so busy. She hears her brothers’ read alouds, which is great. However, it seems wrong to not work hard to make sure these classic picture books are included in her day. She only picks picture books with princesses in them, so I had to find a way to sneak in new books.
Every week we do one letter and one number. I found picture books that include the letter she’s learning in the title. For example, for the letter B, we read Blueberries for Sal, A Visitor for Bear, and We’re Going on a Bear Hunt. While it’s good to point out the target letter in the book, I really just want to make sure she’s being exposed to good literature. I keep the books in her basket. Each day after working on her letters and numbers (10-15 minutes), she picks out a book and I read it after lunch. It’s my way of getting her to pick books that do not have princesses in them. There’s nothing wrong with princesses, but variety is always a good thing.
Nursery Rhymes
Another thing that’s easy to forget is teaching nursery rhymes. I sing them regularly with my kids, but there are some I just forgot all about. I choose one nursery rhyme from The Complete Book of Rhymes, Songs, Poems, Fingerplays, and Chants by Jackie Silberg and Pam Schiller. Mem Fox, the author of Reading Magic, is well-known for this quote:
“Experts in literacy and child development have discovered that if children know eight nursery rhymes by heart by the time they’re four years old, they’re usually among the best readers by the time they’re eight.”
All the more reason to be making it a habit to memorize nursery rhymes with preschoolers.
Final Thoughts
Homeschooling preschoolers without a curriculum is a relaxed way to introduce learning. Other things that are important to me for homeschooling a preschooler are giving them time to play outside and letting them help around the house with simple chores. Folding laundry, drying dishes, and places dishes in the dishwasher are great for preschoolers. Taking time to teach basic skills, such as picking up something they accidentally knock over or saying I’m sorry is important. Preschoolers are busy little people filled with so much curiosity. It’s fun to be the person to see their understanding of the world slowly widen and grow.
Carly from DesertHomeschoolDays.com