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How Can I Homeschool My Preschooler | Inexpensive Homeschooling

How Can I Homeschool My Preschooler?

 I hear this question quite a bit from homeschool moms and others. Even moms who are planning on sending their little ones to school some day, are still wondering what they can do to prepare their children for kindergarten. It is a fact that small children do learn from play, but the “play” that you allow them to do can vary. Some parents opt for “free play” in which their children just play with whichever of their toys they desire. Some parents are looking for something a little more structured. What I propose is a mixture between these two extremes.

 The first thing you need to do to “homeschool” your preschooler is to gather some items that you can use to store all of the materials you want to use with your child. I suggest several small plastic totes, with snap-on lids be your first purchase. The clear ones are the best, as you can easily see which totes hold which items. Then, start gathering some materials to use. Here is a list of items you may want to gather (PS: Most are low cost or free!!!):

-         Coloring Books (or free coloring sheets from the Internet)

-         Markers, Crayons, Colored Pencils, Watercolor Paints, and Paintbrushes

-         Scissors

-         Glue or Glue Sticks

-         Yarn or shoelaces

-         A Variety of Beads (plastic or foam) or Macaroni

-         Flash Cards (store bought or home-made – letters of the alphabet, numbers 0-10, colors, shapes, names of family members and pets – make sure there are pictures on them if possible)

-         Paper (Copy paper, Construction Paper, blank newspaper print, etc…)

-         Things to count (beads, beans, unifix cubes, buttons, blocks, etc…)

-         Stapler and staples

-         Gardening materials (seeds, soil, and cups)

-         Lots of books to read together

-         Materials for making musical instruments (beads, bells, elastic, bathroom tissue cardboard rolls, wax paper, rubber bands, paper plates, etc…)

 Okay, so now you have all your materials gathered and sorted into the plastic containers. Now, here is what you do next. Put the boxes somewhere where your child can see them, but cannot get into them all on her own. When she sees them, she is probably going to be REALLY interested. So, take a box down and sit down with your preschooler. Let your child choose something out of the box (this is where the “free play” comes in). Rather than saying, “we are going to color” or “we are going to lace beads today,” which is often not effective with a preschooler, you let the child choose the activity and then you guide him or her. For example, if your child chooses the shoelace and wants to play with it, let him explore it first. He may want to tie it in a knot, or wrap it around his finger – let him do it for a minute or so. Then, pull out the beads and say, “I wonder what we could do with that shoelace and these beads.” Then let your child explore the beads for a little while. If he figures out how to lace them onto the shoelace, wonderful!!! But, if not, then you take your own shoelace from the box and start beading one. If he is interested in it, let him go to town (well for as long as his attention span allows him to). Then, when he is done doing that, help him put those things away and see what he would like to do next. Let your preschooler take the lead on this and you will learn what he likes and does not like, what he can do and cannot do. By doing these things with your children, you are getting to know them as thinkers and learners, rather than just kids. Then, you may think of some other things that you might want to do with your child, so add them to the box and allow him to “discover” all the fun things mommy has in her boxes. It will be lots of fun for both of you and you both will enjoy the time together!

 To help you get started, here are some additional ideas of activities that you can do with your boxes of supplies and your preschooler. This list is by no means complete. It is meant just to get you and your child started on having fun learning together. As I mentioned earlier, if an idea hits you or you see something online that looks like fun to do with your preschooler, add it to the box. Soon, you both will be having a blast!!!!

 So, now it is time to get started, gather those materials, surprise your little one with them, and have a great time together. Before you know it, your child will be surprising you with all the new things he or she has learned. Have fun!!! I know you will, because learning is fun – and the best part is teaching your child all these new things, while he doesn’t even know he is learning. Learn to play with your child and play to learn!

 Starter ideas for “homeschooling” your preschooler:

 About the Author:

Alicia Tucker is a homeschool mom of 3 children, after having worked in public schools in NJ and SC for over 10 years. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and Sociology, as well as a Master’s degree in Education with a specialization in Curriculum and Technology.

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Inexpensive Homeschooling

I want to homeschool my elementary-aged child, but our budget is tight. Is there a way I can give my child an enriched education on a tiny budget?

 My elementary-aged child goes to a public or private school, but I want to help him keep learning over the summer so he can return to school next year without any loss of learning (or to help him in areas he is struggling in). Is it possible to do this and have fun at the same time?

 The answer to both of these questions is YES!!!! Isn’t that great to know?

 Homeschooling does not have to be expensive and helping your child grow as a learner is always possible, no matter what. All it takes is a little time, a few trips to the library, and access to the Internet and a printer (or your local discount, dollar, or retail store.

 When we first started homeschooling, we had NO money budgeted to do so. Our homeschooling venture began very suddenly, because we felt it was urgently necessary. I had no knowledge of homeschool curricula and I had no idea where to even begin, so we decided to try something different.

 When I was a classroom teacher, I used thematic units from time to time with my students and they were always fun. So, with a little help from the Internet and some resourcefulness (and a couple of late nights), I put together several units that would work for us.

 Here are the materials we needed:

-       Local library
-       Art supplies (glue, a variety of different types of papers, scrap materials, scissors, pencils, crayons, colored pencils, markers, water color paints, and paintbrushes)
-       Stapler & Staples
-       Computer with Internet access and a printer
-       Prayer, patience, understanding, and a willingness to adapt and change

 Here is a sample schedule detailing the activities that we used:

9:00 – 9:15          Story Time
9:15 – 9:30          Writing Time
9:30 – 10:30        Units
11:30 – 12:30      Break and Lunch
12:30 – 1:00        Workbooks/Worksheets

 Now, taking the materials list and sample schedule, I will explain what to do during each segment of your homeschooling day.

 Story Time: This is the time of day that we spend together and start our day. We started with prayer and then read stories. This was always my favorite time of our day. Some days we read things that went with our favorite units; some days we had free reading, where we each read our own things (with me helping the little ones of course); some days we did finger plays and poems; some days we read fairy tales. No matter what we read, we did it together and tried to make it as fun as possible, often with mommy using funny voices to read stories out loud.

 Writing Time: Reading and writing are connected. Good readers are often good writers and good writers are often good readers as well. So, we made time for writing each day along with our reading. Each child had their own journal to write in. My preschooler drew pictures (sometimes with my help) and then told me a story and I wrote it down word for word. My first grader wrote one sentence at first with a picture, but eventually worked up to 3 sentences. My second grader wrote 1-2 paragraph stories, sometimes with a picture, sometimes without. It did not really matter how much they wrote or what they wrote, but THAT they wrote. These are some of the things we wrote about:

-       My favorite part of the story (that we read together) is _____________ because…

-       If I was a ________________ I would…

-       If I lived on a _______________ I would…

-       My favorite poem we read was _______________ because…

 We also sometimes wrote our own poems and stories and made books together, rather than writing in the journal. Sometimes we wrote letters to family members, sometimes on paper, sometimes via e-mail. There are so many things to write about and so much fun to be had with writing.

 Units: This is the time of day that we devoted to whatever unit we were studying. Thematic Unit time is a great way to work in Science, Social Studies, and Health into your curriculum. Also, you can add additional Math, Reading, and Language Arts into these units as well. Some of our first units that we learned about were: Thanksgiving, Outer Space, Quilts, Christmas Around the World, Plants and Gardening. There are so many units out there, so it is best to pick things that interest your children. If your child is really into arts and crafts, find a unit about quilts. If your child likes a certain character from television, you might be able to find a unit on that character. Or, if you have several children and they do not agree on one unit, you might have to put a bunch of unit ideas in a hat and each time you are ready to start a new unit, let a different child pick one.

 Workbooks/Worksheets: If you have completed these other areas, but still feel you want something more “school-like” for your child, workbooks and worksheets are a good option. There are numerous free worksheet sites out there or you can also buy “skills” workbooks at most dollar, discount, and retail stores. I got most of my workbooks at a salvage grocery store (the kind that sold all the foods with dented cans). They had TONS of great resources. You might also be fortunate enough to find workbooks at yard sales and flea markets. You never know what you can find, but when you are searching for inexpensive curriculum, the trick is to keep your eyes open.

 So, if you are looking for ways to homeschool your children, reinforce what they have already learned, or keep their brains working over the summer, you can do it and it does not have to cost you a lot. There are lots of resources out there for free or little cost to you and many of these resources let you hide learning in with the fun you will have together. Be on the lookout for fun learning adventures you can have with your children. The opportunities and resources are all around, but start with what your kids love and guide your journey from there.

 About the Author:

Alicia Tucker is a homeschool mom of 3 children, after having worked in public schools in NJ and SC for over 10 years. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and Sociology, as well as a Master’s degree in Education with a specialization in Curriculum and Technology.

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