So we decided to spend a year traveling the United States in our Airstream with our five year old daughter Elle. What an adventure… but what about school? It was time for kindergarten…
Neither of us have a teaching background so I started searching the internet for homeschooling curriculums. I didn’t want anything internet based because we weren’t confident that we would have good internet connections, especially in the National Parks. And I wanted to make sure that Elle was able to enroll into public school when we eventually settled down somewhere. What I eventually settled on was Hooked On Phonics, Handwriting without Tears and Singapore Math. Then we would supplement this with the Junior Ranger programs in the National Parks (and other NPS sites). I’ve discussed all these programs in more detail below.
In addition to us reading to her, Elle listens to a huge number of audiobooks – favorites are anything by Beverly Cleary and the Box Car Children Mysteries by Gertrude Chandler Warner (there are over a hundred of these so we have not yet run out!).
Finally, we are tracking our progress across the country on a giant map so Elle is hopefully picking up some U.S. geography!
We generally spend 4 days a week on school but we don’t have four specific days – it just depends on what fits for our schedule that week. The one thing thing that is non-negotiable is school has to be held in the morning. In the afternoon, Elle is tired and has trouble concentrating and it is fun for no one.
Reading – Hooked on Phonics – I only knew Hooked on Phonics from their TV commercials but once I started doing research online, looking at various homeschooling websites people seemed to recommend it as an effective way to learn to read. Elle was in a play-based preschool but she was familiar with most of her letters and knew most of the sounds. I ordered the full Hooked On Phonics set for preschool through second grade. Over the summer we did the preschool level just to make sure she knew the letters and their related sounds. After that we started the kindergarten reading which is sounding out the words and learning sight words. So far, so good. Elle is happily learning to read. The kindergarten section has short books (of the “See Jane Run” variety) for kids to read after each three lessons and Elle was SO excited to be reading real books! And I expect we will have completed the complete set through second grade by the end of the year! I am actually amazed at how easy this has been.
Handwriting – Handwriting Without Tears – Based on internet reviews, people seemed happy with the results on Handwriting Without Tears so we decided to give it a try. I ordered the Handwriting Without Tears Kindergarten: Letters & Numbers for Me Workbook, the Teacher’s Guide, the Wooden Blocks, and slate board.
Elle could only right her name in capital letters when we started so we were basically starting at square one. And although Elle calls it Handwriting with Tears, it’s been a pretty painless process. The lessons go pretty quickly and Elle is learning to write. She flew through the capital letters and we are now working on the lowercase. The instruction on how to form the letters is very clear and easy to follow. However, in hindsight I would not have ordered the wooden blocks – they didn’t really add anything for us. The teacher’s guide was not really necessary either but I found it handy for tips on how to grip the pencil and angle the paper, as well as for ideas for writing practices.
The other thing that we have found helpful for handwriting are these pencils. They have guides to make sure Elle is holding the pencil properly. We bought them after she was struggling to figure out where to put her fingers and they really seemed to have done the trick.
Math – Singapore Math – We choose Singapore Math for two reasons – good reviews on various homeschooling sites as well as that is what the kindergartens in our school district in Connecticut used. In addition to counting, the kindergarten book teaches shapes, measurement, telling time, money, and graphs. Elle seems to be learning the concepts and the exercises are fun and engaging. You do need to have a set of blocks and other supplemental items for which I am always scavenging around the Airstream, so I have to read the lesson ahead of time and take a few minutes to pull things out, but we have been happy with Singapore Math and feel like it teaches basic math concepts.
Science/Nature – The National Park Service Junior Ranger Program – Elle loves doing these programs! It’s actually a fun learning experience for the whole family. Children simply request a Junior Ranger book at the visitor center and complete a certain number of activities based on their age. We always request the book as soon as we arrive at the park so Elle has time to complete all the activities before we leave.
They have these programs not only at National Parks, but at National Seashores, National Monuments and other NPS sites. It’s a program generally targeted at children aged 5-13, although any age can participate (including adults!). The activities would probably be difficult for a child younger than five, even with adult assistance (which is allowed and encouraged).
The activities often include attending a ranger program or taking a hike. Then the child turns in their book, has a discussion with the ranger and then takes the Junior Ranger pledge and receives their badge or patch! Elle has a Junior Ranger vest and hat (they seem to carry them in most of the National Park stores) that she proudly wears when she gets sworn in. She is SO proud to be a Junior Ranger.