Best Homeschooling Curriculum for Preschool | Top Picks, Early Math, Early Literacy and All-in-One

Hi, everyone. Today I'm going to take you through some of my favorite curriculum for one of my favorite age groups, preschool. And before we get started, I just want to talk about something that you might want to consider when homeschooling preschoolers, that is that they don't have to learn academic skills when they're in preschool. It's totally normal and fine just to play. It's. If you post to some homeschooling groups about homeschooling your preschoolers, you might encounter some people who have pretty strong opinions on this subject. A lot of people think that preschoolers really only need to play and shouldn't be taught academic subjects at all when they're in preschool. And it is true that preschoolers learn so much by playing. In fact, they learn cognitive skills, they learn problem solving, they learn creativity. So if you want your preschooler to simply play, that's perfectly fine. There's no advantage to learning skills like reading and math earlier. If a preschooler learns math when they're five or when they're seven, they're still going to learn math really well. So in this case, the assumption that earlier is better is not necessarily true. Now, that said, I always defer to parental intuition. So if you find that your kid is excited about learning, they're ready to read, they're recognizing sounds and numbers, then by all means you can start teaching them. It's only if they seem kind of resistant that I would just say there's no reason to push it on them until they're ready. If you learn to read at 5, you're going to be just as great a reader at 40 as you are as someone who learned how to read at age 2. So without further ado, I would like to talk you through some of my favorite preschool programs. Now, when you're starting out, you can go to the Modulo website. We have an awesome section here on everything preschool ranging from foreign language to math to to all in one curriculum. And today I'm just going to talk you through a few of my favorites. So the first thing I have here is Bob Books. Some parents just decide they're going to teach their kids a little bit about how to read and how to do early math and not worry about any of the other subjects right now, which perfectly fine. And it's good to keep in mind that a preschooler's brain is not as developed as an older child. So there are certain concepts that they just don't understand and they're not going to be able to understand at this age. And there's no point in pushing them. Most research today has shown that explicit sequential phonics instruction is the way to go when it comes to reading. And Bob Books is just a wonderful program. Their pre reading skills is a way to introduce your child to shapes, to patterns, to certain sounds, and letter recognition as they start their process of learning how to read. We love it. We've used it with many, many kids. If you want something that's not online, this is a good choice. They do actually have online books as well, though. Another super fun way to start reading is Alpha blocks. It's just my favorite channel. We watched it with preschoolers fore hours on end during the pandemic. If you do use alpha blocks, I'd recommend choosing some of their playlists. They have some really great options. You can choose for different grade levels, level two, level three, level one. And I would recommend going through those with your child and then pausing as you go and asking questions. If it's just entertainment, they might not be really picking up the reading principles. So it's good to kind of do this in an engaged way. Just play a little bit, ask a question, see what they understand. Don't push them too much. I think that leaving really long pauses for preschoolers after you ask them questions is so vital to their learning. We have a tendency in our modern culture to rush. And so sometimes I see parents ask a question like, what sound does B make? And then the child gets five seconds to think and the parent immediately jumps in and says, you know, you know what sound B makes? It makes the bus sound. But when, when you say that, you're actually sending a subtle message to the child that they can't figure it out themselves. And what you might be shocked to know is that when you ask that question, even if they don't respond, their cognitive wheels are turning and turning and turning. So they may get back to you in a minute, they might get back to you the next day, they might get back to you in a week. But by letting them go through that process and pausing, you're allowing them to develop their own tools for learning, which is fantastic. Now, Beast Academy is one of our favorite, favorite math programs that we usually recommend to a little bit older students, especially those who are gifted. And Beast Academy has developed a super fun Beast Academy playground for early math. And as you're teaching math, remember that there are abstract concepts that children are not able to grasp or when their brain is still developing. So, you know, a child might not be able to understand the differences between quantities or complex reasoning like algebra or even addition or subtraction. And so there's no specific age when a child starts to develop this abstract reasoning skill. But it's, it's kind of important that you don't push it because it might just be something that their brain is not capable of. But this is just a really wonderful resource. It's free, it has lots of really cool activities and games you can do with your child to just start problem solving and understanding basic math concepts. And it's all physical. So if you don't want your child to do screens right now, this can be a great option. Another really terrific screen free option is Right Start Math. It's hands on and you can take a placement test. Although if you're in preschool, you probably would just start with the preschool level. And if you do feel like your child is ready to kind of dig into learning math skills, this is just a phenomenal program. We recommend it to so many parents and everybody loves it. Now if your child is kind of maybe a little more serious, loves workbooks, you kind of sense that they are perhaps a bit gifted when it comes to math. You might try Singapore Math. Some people do find this a little bit dry, but if your kid loves workbooks, I would say this is a really great one to start with. Make sure you get the parent guide because this will give you every instruction you need to deliver the curriculum. And even a caregiver can do this curriculum with their child. It's all about learning with the child. Asking questions as you go. You don't have to be a math genius. And the more you give your child the opportunity to figure things out on their own and learn at their own pace, the better. So don't be worried if you don't consider yourself someone who's good at math or teaching math. This program has everything that you need to support your child with homeschooling. Another fun one for early math is number blocks. It's like alpha blocks. It's just a really great channel for learning numbers, learning multiplication, learning addition, really fun characters, catchy music, and again, you know, kind of pausing the these playlists as you go, asking questions. That's really the way that you're going to be supporting your child with their learning. I would just start with season one full episodes. Pause as you go. All the better. If your child wants to watch an episode over and over and over again. And if you don't feel like they understand what's going on right now, do not worry about it for a second. You'd really be surprised in three months, all of a sudd, all of their knowledge is there or all of their ability to apply their knowledge is there. So there's no point. You know, for instance, if you're saying two plus three equals what, you don't have to say, oh, you know this, you know this. Come on, let's count on our fingers. Just trust your kid is going to get there. Now, let's talk a little bit more about reading. So this is basically the gold standard when it comes to teaching your child to read. Again, I would not push your child to learn how to read. There's no reason for them to learn in preschool. I have a really good friend who designed a very popular literacy curriculum who says, don't teach your child to read until they're five under any conditions. I'm not really fully on board with that. I think that if a child is interested in sounds, if they do express an interest in learning how to read, go for it. If reading is painful for them, if it's a chore, if they're just not really recognizing sounds yet, there is zero reason to rush. They are going to read and write just as well when they get to high school and college, no matter what age you start teaching them. So teach your child to learn to read in 100 easy lessons. If your kid is ready, if they're willing to kind of sit for 20 minutes at time and do a lesson that's a little bit on the dry side, then this is a great choice. I wouldn't say it's the most fun and engaging, but it gets the job done. Another more fun app is teach your monster how to read totally free. All you do is have to play games and you learn how to read. If your kid tends to like YouTube videos and video games and things like that, this could be a really good choice for them. Again, I don't recommend just handing them a tablet and having them go through it. This if you really want your child to develop a healthy relationship with screens, it's good to sit with them, to engage, to ask questions, not to tell them how to do things really, to encourage them to figure it out on their own. But it's just better than kind of handing it to them for entertainment. Even though I know sometimes you need that when you're driving or just overwhelmed. And don't feel bad. Number one rule, you shouldn't feel bad. Okay, now moving along to all in one curriculum. Khan Academy Kids. It's free, it has every subject, it's aligned with school standards. I wouldn't start it until your child is around 4. I think that younger kids have a little bit more difficulty with this app. They're not as engaged, but you can always give it a try if you think your 2 or 3 year old is ready for it. Super fun characters, really well designed, highly engaging. Another fantastic choice is Brain Pop Jr. And I think it's a little bit stronger on social studies and math and science. This is just a few phenomenal adaptive learning app. It includes every single subject. If your kid loves YouTube, if they're into screens, it's really, really a good one and they just have a huge variety of subjects and I can't, I can't speak highly enough of Brain Pop junior. And then of course as your child ages they can do Brain Pop. And one of the great features I really commend Brain Pop junior. They are available in Spanish, French and also English as a second language. Another great app, especially for early math and early reading is Homer. And this is one of the few apps that I have seen late to 3 year olds engage with. Well, you need to make your own decision about whether you want to expose your child to interactive apps and videos at that age. You might just want them to do nature based activities. That's totally fine. I say just try to assess what is their general energy after using screens? Do they seem tired, worn out or does their energy level stay pretty much the same? Do you tend to get in more fights after they use the screens and just assess, you know, how is your child doing cognitively with screens? Again, try not to use this as pure entertainment. Children this age really need time with you, so the more you can just sit with them quietly, even in silence, or occasionally ask a question while they're using the app, the better. Engaged relational screen time is the way to go. Now, if your child is gifted and they're showing a real interest in learning, they love workbooks, they just love any kind of activities like this. Critical thinking is fantastic. It's a workbook based curriculum that's designed to foster critical thinking skills in children. As the name, you know, means critical thinking, it's one of the oldest homeschooling curriculum. It's just fantastic. I particularly like the language arts, I think the math. Typically with these all in one curricula, math tends to be a little weaker. And so I would just suggest that you use a math supplement, especially when they start getting into first grade. Now if your child is artsy, they love playing outside. You're really a big fan of play based learning curriculum so dear to my heart is Blossom and Root. It's a literature based curriculum. So if your child loves listening to stories, there's lots of great books for you to choose from that you can get out of the library. Lots of fun artsy activities, outdoor activities. It's very easy for parents to follow. You can do these activities with your child or a caregiver can do these activities with your child. If you really see your young preschooler playing and being in nature at this age, but you're looking for some more educational activities to do, then choose Blossom and Rouge. There's not a math curriculum. I don't think it's necessarily needed at this age, but if you do feel like you want to get them into early math, I would recommend choosing a supplement like Right Start Math for a hands on approach to learning math. Now this it's so hard to pick a favorite curriculum because there are so many different types of learners, but I would say that this is the one I recommend the most often. So who is a good fit for Torchlight? If your child loves listening to podcasts, if they love music, if they love reading, I would go with Torchlight. What's really so Torchlight, similar to Blossom Root, is a literature based curriculum, so you'll get recommendations of books to read. You do not need to do all of them. There's a spine because sometimes people feel a little bit overwhelmed with all the choices. You can pick and choose which ones seem interesting to you and they'll give you activities to go along with it. And then there's also a whole listening component. So if your child is really sucking up information through listening, this is such a good choice. Also, if you do a lot of driving, you can just put on some of these audio components in the car. I almost always recommend Torchlight to kids who are big listeners who have been either diagnosed as gifted or are showing early signs of being kids who absorb knowledge really quickly. If your child loves poetry and writing, Torchlight is just a wonderful option. Both Blossom and Root and Torchlight are designed by teachers and very, very beloved in the homeschooling community. So those are my top choices for homeschooling curriculum. And as I've said before, you don't have to use a curriculum with your preschooler. It's not necessary. You can if you want to. There are some really wonderful activities here. And but play, play, play. Make sure whatever curriculum you use, they have a lot of time for unstructured learning. The final piece of advice I'd give about preschoolers, and I'll say this again, I Know, I've said it before is patience. Really respect those pauses, because it can seem so often like nothing is going on upstairs. So you might say, hey, do you remember what, you know, one plus one is? And they'll just kind of sit there and say, oh, do you want to read a book about bunnies? Or, you know, just ignore you or start playing around in the playground? And it seems like nothing is happening, but so much is happening inside that brain. You know, when I was a teacher, I had a kid in my class. I was teaching music, actually, at the time. And every single class, he would just be running around playing, every single. Playing with every toy in the classroom, not seeming to pay any attention. I was losing my mind. Sometimes he would take off all his clothes, but it's a really crazy, wild kid. And then about two months in, I decided to see if the children could recognize the names of the composers that we'd been playing in class, because we've been doing a sequence on music appreciation. And this was the only child who recognized every single piece of music, even Clara Schumann, who we had played in one class. And he didn't seem to be paying attention at all. But this child was just an incredibly kinesthetic learner, and he was absorbing information all the time as he was running around the classroom. So it's that process children go through of learning how to learn and process things in. In silence is just. Is so, so important. And I really hope that you will also see how vital it is and become comfortable with those fruitful silences in your child and not, you know, feel this kind of pressure for them to perform now. And the other thing, I guess I will just say is that in the preschool age group, time, time, time with you is so valuable. Those moments of high quality time, it's what creates secure attachment. And when children feel safe, learning really unfolds naturally from that. And you'll find a much more engaged, inspired learner. Oh, and I keep saying, last, one last thing, but I really do have one last thing. Boredom. I am always harping on this point, but often we feel as parents or teachers that we need to entertain children. And we get nervous when they say, I'm bored. Okay, here's an activity. Or, here, I'll entertain you. Or we even kind of leap into our time with them, trying to entertain them. But it's actually really great for kids to be bored. And so if your child comes and complains that they're bored or if they're just not doing anything at all, that's really a Good thing, because it's when a child is bored that they start getting ideas. They start understanding what they're passionate about. This friction and tension and discomfort with boredom is what leads to new activities. And if you can allow that to evolve naturally, instead of handing them an app or saying, okay, I'm going to entertain you by reading you a story or telling you a funny joke, you. If you can just say, oh, you're bored, that's okay, you know, and if it's a problem for you that they're bored, then you might want to consider being honest about that. You know, maybe you have some work that you need to do and they keep bugging you because they're bored and you can give them options. Say, you know, my need right now is to focus on this project, and I don't have the ability to entertain you, so can you kind of help support me in finishing the project that I need to do by finding something to do or just being here with me? So the more you allow yourself to be comfortable with the boredom, the more their intellectual curiosity and their intellectual capabilities will thrive. I hope that this video on preschool homeschooling curriculum has been helpful for you, and I would love it if you would leave a comment on this video. I answer every single question in the comments, and I would love to help you with all of yours. Remember, every child learns differently. Every family is differently. Every family is different. So there are some teachers who sometimes use adverbs improperly. And I just want to be able to be here to support your unique family. So all the better. If you have questions, let's dive in together. And remember, you know best, deep within you, what's right for your child.