Preschool/Kindergarten Curriculum Review

Are you overwhelmed by the homeschool curriculum you can choose from for your preschooler? Here is a short, breakdown of some I've used or looked at:
 Abeka, love their phonics with blend ladders. This curriculum is very thorough and uses reward pictures for getting the answer right (feed a bone to a dog for each right answer)
 Sonlight, if you want to bond with your children through read aloud books. Again, very thorough and laid out with a daily plan for you to follow. Great Books!
 Five in a Row, for a literature based unit study. You read award winning books and learn about history geography and other subjects while reading.
 Saxon Phonics, they use different manipulatives to make learning to read hands on.
 My Fathers World, I haven't used this curriculum but have heard great things. It's a Charlotte Mason influenced curriculum. It has an all-in-one, classical unit study approach. Strong Biblical base, uses real books and its hands on.
 Sing, Spell, Read and Write for my 4yr. old. He started by learning his colors and shapes, then on to his numbers and ABC's. 
 Alphabet Island each letter has been created into a character and they live on alphabet island. There are stories and songs that clearly enforce the phonic rules. 
 The Phonics Road teaches you the letters and letter teams and after a few weeks are already introducing beginning readers.  
 Dollar Store Workbooks, Winnie the Pooh will help with numbers, Cookie Monster will help with shapes. I love this affordable route to introduce your preschooler to fun learning.
ABCMouse.com that goes through K. It costs $80 for the year or $7.95 a month. My son has had a lot of fun. There is a learning path and he follows it and has learned a lot. Every time you play a game or finish a path lesson, a mouse gives you tickets. My son would go to the "mall" with his tickets and buy things or pets for his virtual room.
 Starfall.com Free or pay for a wider variety of activities. You pick a letter, then follow the "stars" to go through the reader and hear the sound that letter makes and words that begin with that letter sound. 


I hope you find this helpful. Picking a curriculum can be so overwhelming. Even going to convention or talking to your homeschooling friends can still leave you feeling unsure. Every child is different with their own strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes. I have found that just by spending this time with your little ones, they are developing confidence and security in who they are and the education will come.