Preschool curriculum

Finally some "normalcy" so I can finally open the box of preschool curriculum and materials and start "Preschool" with my girls.

Here's the "curriculum" that I'm using, at least for the next few weeks:

For Bible we are reading 365 Bible Stories for Young Hearts (see my review here) combined with coloring pages that I have found for free online. Since the girls' Sunday School class is working it's way through Creation, I decided to start in the New Testament.

For Phonics I am basing a lot of my method on Mommy Teach Me To Read (Montessori method review here). The homeschool teacher project that I mentioned in my last post that is waiting for me to finish it, is sandpaper letter flashcards. I have the sandpaper, I have the templates, I have the glue, I have the flashcards (although not the colored ones that the Montessori method uses), I just have to put everything together. So in the mean time we are using the magnetic letters that I bought at Toys R Us and the 3 period lesson (definition and how to here)

For Math I have a variety of things planned. One that I am excited about are the Funtastic Frogs and a couple sets of the activity cards. (I'll have to do a review on these later, but until then you can find them on amazon or www.rainbowresource.com). My mom has also given the girls sets from the creators of Hooked on Phonics called Hooked on Numbers and Hooked on Shapes. (again, I'll have to review these later)

One of the goals we have as a family is to learn Spanish. We feel that it will give our kids a greater advantage in life as well as ministry opportunities. So for Spanish we are using a workbook program called Flip Flop Spanish, especially for 3-5 year olds.

For "Getting to know my world" (science) I have purchased the book Bubbles, Rainbows, and Worms.

I'm also planning on teaching my kids piano. I love music and playing the piano. It's my goal to instill in my children a love for music as well. RaeRae has been having fun playing her own songs so I decided that it's time to start. Besides learning to play the piano early on has so many advantages in other areas of life (higher math scores for example). So I will be using the Music for Little Mozarts series.

I also have many other workbooks bought from the Dollar Tree (can't go wrong for $1), activities from Discovery Toys, and many other Montessori type hands on learning activities that I plan on going into in more detail soon.

Laugh if you will at my conglomeration of materials. I seem to be rather an eclectic homeschooler! :-) There are things I love about Classical, Charlotte Mason, and Montessori methods; and so, I mix and match like a crazy patchwork quilt.