Any advice on starting a cuuriculum for my 3 year old. I'm a SAHM and our budget is slim, right now I can't afford to get him into half day preschool. The least expensive I've found is $95 a week. So I've been seriously thinking of homeschooling him. What advice, websites and curriculum can be beneficial and easy to teach. Thanks moms
I don't think you really need a curriculum for a 3 year old.
Play Doh, read to child, go to park. Play, Play, Play.
For a 3 yo: play, read, go to the park, get together with other moms and kids. Play! You don't need curriculum. Go to the library and load up on books. Reading books, arts and crafts books, games, outdoor play ideas. Talk to the librarian. Go to story time. Meet people. Socialize. Be active.
There is a time for academics but now is not the time. Believe me, I was an over achieving homeschool mom for many years and all that busywork was counter productive. Your child is 3. Go have fun.
Don't "homeschool" him. Play with him. Have a daily schedule that he can count on. It doesn't mean that you have to do the same thing every day, but it also means there is STRUCTURE. Kids need structure, and they have that at preschool. It prepares them for the structure in kindergarten.
Take him on nature hikes. Talk, talk, talk to him. Read, read, read to him. All the talking and reading amps up his vocabulary. Take him to the library in the morning after breakfast, before lunch. If they have circle time there, take him to that. What they learn in preschool is how to sit in a circle, moving from one activity to another.
Children this age learn by playing. You don't teach colors, numbers and alphabet by drilling. You teach by making it available in all that you do. Going to the grocery store? Point out the veggies, their colors, what they taste like, where they are grown. Talk about the farm and the farmer. Picking out milk? Talk about the cow. (And make sure he has had a nap before going to the store so he doesn't have a meltdown!)
No homeschooling a 3 year old - really and truly. Play, play, play. Read, read, read.
Dawn
Agreeing with everyone else. I'd contact the school to see what he should know by the time he starts kindergarten and work toward teaching him that stuff in a fun way.
The most important thing about preschool is learning how to get along with others and learning to listen and follow directions. Make sure you have your son out in different programs and social situations so he can learn those valuable skills too.
I'm a big teach them to enjoy life and love learning kind of person :p. Field trips...museums...books books books...libraries often have free activities...I try to get my little ones outside as often as possible and find teaching "moments"...write letters with a stick in the mud...point out a bee flying from flower to flower...talk about what the bee does...make a weather chart with pictures...observe animals and plants in an area and talk about how they interact...draw pictures...laminate small maps for place mats...include non-fiction books and poetry in your reading...even if you don't 'read' the non-fiction stuff...and just talk about pictures. Provide lots of oppurtunities for him to problem solve. Involve him when you cook and bake. Whatever you do...just make it fun...don't stress about it...he'll pick up on it. Unfortunately, we have far too many kids that are good at schoolwork, but lack imagination and the ability to really 'play'. Just my two cents! Have fun :)
At age three we didn't have any sort of educational structure. I took her with me when we went places and answered all the questions she had about things. Every day you can stumble upon many teachable moments. We decided not to do preschool and have no regrets. She's completely ready for kindergarten and is on par or surpassing kids who have been in preschool classes. The only structure in our lives was our regular routine of living and a stable 8:30 bedtime every night.
Read to him. Point out letters. Sound out words. Sing songs. Play.
Three is too early for structured education. Kindergarten teachers are prepared for kids who have been in daycare/preschool since they were born as well as only children who have never been to daycare/preschool. It's the great equalizer.
My so went to preschool at 3 years old, and they did have a "curriculum." But really, that wasn't what the focus was. Sure they talked about numbers and counting. They had a song about the days of the week, "Yesterday was Monday. Tomorrow is Wednesday. Tuesdays are fun! Tuesdays are fun!" (He's in kindergarten, and he's still learning the days of the week.)
For the most part, what he got out of that first year of preschool was to learn how to be away from Mommy (for 2 1/2 hours twice a week), to learn how to listen to an adult that isn't Mommy (or Daddy, Grandma, etc), to learn how to play with other kids and share and deal with disagreements and not just "parallel play."
If finding a preschool or Mother's Day Out is not an option, I would just try to find a playgroup or two to be a part of. Colors, numbers, counting, letters, etc., are all good skills to be working on, but you might already be doing that. If you read, if you watch Nick Jr, or Disney Jr, or PBS, you're already getting so much of that. Really, it's the social skills and the structure that they need at that age.
You might have already tried this, but have you tried the YMCA (or YWCA), your local park district or churches near by? They often have much lower prices for preschool. Also, you could ask them (especially the churches) if they have any scholarships or financial aide. You might be surprised. I used to work for a church that had a preschool, and we would not have turned anyone down. We had money available, and any child could have attended for free if the parents asked.
I agree with the others read, play, work on colors, shapes, alphabet and maybe some easy sight words. At that age he does not need much more than that.
Why start a structured curriculum so early? He's just 3 and he;ll be 17 ready to graduate from high school before you know it. Slow down and cherish these times that absolutely fly by.
His little brain is a sponge right now and learning is fun. He learns with day to day activities with you.... working in the kitchen, doing chores, going shopping, etc. All of these practice colors, counting, and basics.
Get him involved in activities with other children as well. He needs that social activity with peers his own age. If you can't afford a group activity, have playdates with children from your neighborhood, church, or where ever you meet people.
Don't rush him. He's only 3 once.
You don't need a curriculum for 3 yrs old. Counting, alphabet (letter recognition and sounds), numbers, shapes, colors, days of the week, months of the year, learning how to spell his name, practice basic self-care skills (getting dressed, washing hands properly, etc).
I was in the same boat with my oldest, and formed a co-op group with a few other moms. We each took a week and had "preschool" at our homes. 3 days a week, 3 hrs each day. We all did the same schedule (opening/greeting time, circle time, learning activity, snack and playtime, learning activity, closing time/storytime) and circle time activities (letter of the day, calendar, mini lesson) for consistency, but we got to pick our own themes and activities.
For tv time, put on a learning show like PBS shows, Leap Frog, etc.
Websites: starfall, pbskids.
Aw, delightful 3! Right now, read to him in short bits, play with him, expose him to good music, let him sort shapes, colors, etc., learn puzzles (simple ones), play with games, etc.
At 3, do not fall into some curriculum trap. They don't need it. Time with you, learning naturally is the absolute best, especially for boys! Please, please, don't chain him to a desk or table at this age. I mean that figuratively, of course. Boys need to do more than they need to sit still. Hand-eye coordination is very important to work on. Spacial concepts might be fun for him. Playing with cars and trucks and blocks as he has interest. Building, destroying. Playing in sand. Getting dirty. I fear we have robbed boys of this time to be little boys. Could this be a factor into the need to drug them so much in school? (Ridalin) I don't know. Maybe. Please, I beg you, let him be a little boy. It is how you can best serve him in his development.
If you feel you want to do something to work with him I suggest you getting a pack of colored paper and a white board.
You can use the colored paper for making your own flash cards and the white board for practicing his letters and such!
Does he know all his colors and shapes and ABC's? That is where I would start and then progress from there with things he needs to know, like how to spell and write his own name...
I loved playing Teacher with my kids...so much fun! :)
Up to the age of at least 4, kids need play. It can include structured play, but they are in the stage of learning to understand how the world and relationships work, social expectations, imitating parents and older siblings (which is play for them), learning to use their bodies skillfully, and letting their imaginations soar. A planned curriculum has never been essential at such an early age for any of the littles I've known.
And in spite of the lack of "formal schooling," most kids learn, quite naturally through repetition and parental coaching, how to count, recognize shapes and colors, recite the alphabet and know the names and sounds of many letters. They often know (although not all kids, especially boys, have the fine motor skills for this) how to write their names or other simple words.
And most littles adore copying the tasks that Mom and Dad do cheerfully, and can become assistant cooks, table-setters/clearers, laundry "folders," even sweepers and moppers with child-sized tools. You can check out sites like http://www.forsmallhands.com for all sorts of "add-ins" that will make the most of your son's aptitudes. These life skills and attitudes will carry him far and last a lifetime.
By the time they enter K, children tend to be educated as thoroughly as they need to be. Those who still have no formal reading skills are generally all caught up by third grade If you plan to continue homeschooling your son, I hope you are doing it in part to play up his unique strengths and support his unique "weaknesses" without pushing too hard, since that's one of the main reasons younger children become bored with or anxious about schooling.
I've been connected to education for most of my adult life, and am so pleased that the home-schooling movement has become one of the primary alternatives to public school. Most schools do well, considering the social and financial constrains the modern teacher must labor under, but they are not the best choice for every child.
So I hope you'll google "homeschooling styles" and review all the approaches that work for different families and different students. If you haven't done this yet, you'll be amazed at the options available. Most of the families I know use a mix of different approaches, often tailored to each student, and I'm generally impressed with how wonderfully the kids respond to this individualized approach.
Wishing you and your son the best.
I homeschool my 3 year old. Go to the dollar store and buy a bunch of preschool flashcards. I started with alphabet flash cards. We go over each sounds and letter recognition. I also use number recognition cards and picture cards. I use multi color construction paper and cut squares out of each color. I then put the colored squares on the floor and we over each color one by one. I also 'quiz' him by putting the alphabet and color squares on the floor and ask him to give me one... 'can you give me the blue square?' 'can you give me the letter 'B'? My 3 year old learns very well this way. He mastered all of his letter sounds in one month and is now starting to string them together to learn to read. My son also learns great with movies. I highly recommend Leapfrogs Letter factory http://www.amazon.com/LeapFrog-Letter-Factory-Ginny-Westcott/dp/B001TKUXUC/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1333397820&sr=1-1
My son loves this!
Formal curriculum should not start until at least 4, if not 5! Kids need play. All the research shows that if you provide kids with a rich play environment, they get everything they need, plus more!
Kids learn. End of story. You do not need a curriculum. Go find some play friends!
wait until he's at least 4 or 5.
at 3 he is still learning by play. they learn A LOT by plat at this age.
Even the most academically superior curriculums don't have formal teaching until kindergarten. However, I homeschool my kindergartener as per The Well Trained Mind Guide to Classical Education method (Get the book and start reading now to prepare, it takes a while to decipher and understand-even if you dont' choose that method, it awesome advice on the best way for kids to learn), and her younger brother, who is now 4 has learned a lot over the past 2 years by being there while she learns. Also, she began piano lessons at age four. She's now six, plays piano and violin well, and they have a French tutor twice per week. So technically, he's had quite a bit of "exposure" to learning and tons of reading since age 2-ish. I'm now starting to teach him the piano and violin a bit. I recommend getting the book "What your Kindergartner Should Know", which gives a great overview of kindergarten stories, poems, songs, geography, and history stuff, and start reading him those things (lots of kids books pertaining to the subjects to be had) so he has a familiarity when he gets a bit older. Also, soon he can learn an instrument if he's well behaved enough to sit through lessons.
At three, I focused on reading tons of books to them, talking together about things a lot, playing a lot and discipline to be prepared for real lessons and learning at ages 4 and five and it has worked wonderfully. I can't believe how far ahead my daughter is at age six. Her reading and math are at second grade levels and she has memorized lots of classic poems, Bible stories, Presidents, Geography, Greek Myths, etc, and her little brother has learned a lot also. They both memorized the entire Night Before Christmas (18 verses or so) when he was still three.
A great tip is to get kids books of all subjects from library-a math one, a science one, a biography one, etc instead of always only fun ones. This is great early exposure to learning. Whatever you do though, don't tie him down to any workbooks yet. You can make him burn out on things before it's even time to learn them. Focus on play and reading with substance.
And don't worry about budget. All my 4 yo son has learned has come form the library and the local parks and life itself!
At 3,4 and 5 the curriculum should be "play nice with friends at the park" ... in other words, your focus with him should be on social skills, cooperative play, figuring out how to get along, and ahem, manners.... because the world doesn't need any additional asocial or anti-social brainiacs LOL
Look into unschooling and enjoy his childhood with him :)
Just enjoy him! Read to him a lot. Do art stuff with him and talk about colors. Go outside and point out trees, grass, flowers. Read books about shapes and talk about "how many" different things there are -introduce him to numbers. Other than that, just have fun. Make sure he has playdates and gets around some other kids regularly, but you don't need a curriculum for this age.