Friday, July 15, 2011

Preschool

We have been doing preschool at the Arnold house for the past few months. Before I share what curriculum we are using, let me say that the debate between homeschooling, private, and public school can get pretty heated - so I want to share where we are in our decision making process. I think every parent, and especially Christians - wrestles with finding the balance of insulating our kids from the stuff that is going on in the world but not isolating them. It is a tough decision and every family is going to have a a different answer that is right for them

Forrest and I have chosen not to put Ephraim in preschool, and I am teaching him from home. One of the main reasons is that I know I can teach him the basics - colors, ABC's, numbers, etc. - so I don't really want to pay someone else to do it. If we were going to send him to a preschool, the best Christian preschool in the area is expensive. I also like having him at home. We are involved in several activities during the week (MOPS, MOTS, Bible study and a Mom's group in my neighborhood) so he is getting socialization with his peers. We are also committed to homeschooling him through kindergarten. While we live in a good school district, the elementary school by our house is the worst performing school in the district. The only choice is all day kindergarten - and I can't see sending our then 5 year old to six hours of school. After that we will take it on a year by year basis. Most likely he will be attending the school by our house as any private school is really too far and not really in the budget.

I am using the Letter of the Week program found at Confessions of a Homeschooler. It is all free, and I just print it off of my computer. I did buy a laminator so I can laminate some puzzle pieces and the practice writing sheets. I supplement with stuff from Homeschool Creations and 1+1+1=1. Both of those sites have great Preschool packs with different themes (including How to train your Dragon - one of E's favorite movies). For Bible we are using My ABC Bible Verses and 1+1+1=1's Raising Rock Star printouts that go with the verses. Ephraim LOVES school. I usually have to cut him off and tell him that he is done, or he would try to do most of the week's activities in one day. We probably do more activities in a day than would be suggested, but he loves it, so I am going to go with it.

Ephraim loves these Dot-to-Dot markers. They are fabulous.
Using clothespins to put the correct amount of legs on the caterpillars.
Coloring goats the correct color.
I would call out a letter and he would hammer it.
Trying to keep Selah occupied and out of trouble has been a bit of a challenge. She wants to be a part of school - loves being at the table with us - but can't be trusted with markers and is often destroying Ephraim's stuff. I am most likely going to purchase some things from Timberdoodle's Toddler Curriculum to help keep her occupied, and they will only come out during school time.

1 comment :

Joellen said...

Thanks so much for sharing - you're so right, that debate can get crazy!! Even before our kids are even school-age! Anyway, I like how you linked to all your resources... I'll definitely be benefiting from that :) Looks fun!