Kindergarten Homeschool Curriculum

Oh. My. Goodness.

Our very first homeschool year is upon us! 4 weeks away now! I’m excited and nervous and all the while our curriculum for the year has been rolling in despite my worry about what I’m getting in to. It’s going to be a great year though and I can do this. I can totally do this. This is what I keep telling myself … all about that positive talk! 

When I first shared our plans to homeschool I dangled the carrot of sharing all about the curriculum I landed on, so, here it is! I made it as interesting as possible, so, enjoy! Or at least pin it to browse later :) Feel free to ask questions and chime in with your own favorites! 

Language Arts

Bob Books — Jem and I have completed 4 different sets of Bob books already and she’s a thorough reader now. I’m listing this as part of our curriculum because we have it, love it, and highly recommend it for the kindergarten age group. I’ll be using Bob Books again with Max for sure!

Reading Comprehension — The Target Dollar Spot had these great little reading comprehension pamphlet type books, I grabbed a few to give a try.

Handwriting Without Tears Letters and Numbers For Me — Laura recommended this and the reviews were great! I’m considering ordering the Pre-K version for Max if he shows interest.

Mavis Beacon Keyboarding Kidz — Handwriting is important, but so is typing!

Novels — I truly believe that reading is one of the greatest gifts we can give our children. One by one we’re planning to read through the Word Cloud Classics. So far we’ve purchased two – Peter Pan and Alice In Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. I ordered Secret Garden to give Jemma for her birthday. I love the flexibound style!

Story Paper — A must!

History + Geography

The Story of the World — We got the corresponding activity book too.

The 50 States — I’ve always been obsessed with state facts and although this doesn’t fall in line with our history curriculum the beauty of this book forced me to buy it. We may really study it or we may just browse it for fun, I don’t care, I genuinely needed this for our home library. And for an extra $5 who could say no to this?

Mathematics

I say “mathematics” instead of math because I feel like that’s what Anne Shirley would want me to do :)

Teaching Textbooks Math 3 Kit — Ok, ok, so Jemma is starting kindergarten and I bought 3rd grade curriculum, I know, maybe crazy. Buuuuuut, I talked to quite a few homeschool mamas who said this starts out very basic and has great review. Then I found it second hand for half price and decided that it was a sign to give it a go. If it doesn’t work, I can always save it and try something else.

Sylvan Super Workbooks — Since Teaching Textbooks is all on the computer, I got a workbook to practice more hands on type math.

Manipulatives — Unifix cubes, Cuisenaire rods, and a clock will hopefully amplify our mathematics studies as well.

Science

50 Science Things To Make and Do — My sister is a science teacher and she’s actually going to spearhead most of Jemma’s science activities! Yay! I did purchase this book to give her a starting point :)

Bible

Bible Belles — As soon as I heard about Bible Belles I knew it was exactly what I wanted to kick off our school year with. I mean, the reason they exist is spot on, “Parents struggle with what the world tells their girls about beauty. The world is wrong, but it is loud. We tell the stories of real heroes so parents can empower their girls to make a different kind of noise.” LOVE! So, we’ll be jumping into the world of Esther and Hannah and holding our breath for new releases!

The Jesus Storybook Bible — When we wrap up Bible Belles, we’ll begin reading through The Jesus Storybook Bible. For each story we read, Jemma will draw a picture and write a sentence about what she learned. Growing up we called this “responding to scripture” and it’s still one of my favorite things to do when reading the Bible.

Family Memory Verse — Each month we’ll be memorizing a verse together as a family. Simple, but important for us all!

Co-op + Unit Studies

To bolster our homeschool days we’ll be attending a once a week co-op and focus on some specific unit studies at home. Our co-op just released the Fall schedule and I’m so excited for Jemma to get a taste of poetry, architecture, states, and etiquette with new friends her age! I’m hesitant to share the unit studies I chose because honestly, this whole homeschooling thing still feels overwhelming, but in the vein of being transparent here’s what I have planned …

• September – Harvest
• October – Presidents and Government
• November – Space
• December – Event Planning
• January – Community Helpers
• February – Flight
• March – Budgeting
• April – China and Terracotta Warriors (The real ones are coming to our science center!)
• May – Glacier National Park

Some of those may change or flip flop, but generally we’re going to try and do some extra reading, craft projects, and field trips related to each topic.

Extracurricular

Jemma is in swim currently and we plan to continue. Max is going to give soccer a try with a friend. Both kids will return to Awanas. For now, I think that will keep our school schedule pretty full. I don’t want to lose sight of how important play is too! We need down time to just imagine, explore, ask questions, and do daily life together!

Whew! That’s a lot! But all good and fun! Last, but not least, I wanted to mention that I’m hosting an Usborne Books & More Party next week. You can order through this link until Wednesday! I’m normally a go to the library kind of girl, but Usborne books are something special. They’re educational, sturdy, pretty, and kids gravitate to them like moths to light. Speaking of light, you have to check out the Shine-A-Light books! If you’re homeschooling and want to add some fun books to your home library or if you’re planning ahead for birthdays or Christmas, I highly recommend browsing Usborne and ordering a few! We have a handful already and love them and hope to add a few more through my host benefits! Here’s a glimpse at my wish list …

• 1,000 Animals
• The Secret Mermaid
• Cinderella Picture Book
• Famous Composers
• Timelines Of World History
• Raccoon On the Moon
• Olga Da Polga
• Little Women

If you’re homeschooling, especially in the early elementary age range I’d love for you to share what you’re using this year! I’m so new to all of this and I’m eager to learn more about what all is out there. I’m planning to chronicle our homeschool lessons, crafts, and field trips on a special Instagram account too. Follow along here if you like!

A big thank you to Bible Belles for sending Jemma copies of Esther and Hannah. It has taken all our patience to not read them until school officially begins!

Some affiliate links are included above. When you shop through these links I earn a small commission (to buy curriculum, of course!), but your price doesn’t change one bit so shop away!