Kindergarten Curriculum
Bible and Character Development
Biblical Study & Prayer:
We introduce many Bible stories and cultivate a love for reading the Bible.
- READ ALOUD: The Beginner’s Bible: Timeless Children’s Stories by ZonderKidz
- READ ALOUD: The Children’s Illustrated Bible by Selina Hastings
- READ ALOUD: A First Bible Story Book by Mary Hoffman
- READ ALOUD: The Story for Little Ones: Discover the Bible in Pictures by Josee Masse. Max Lucado, and Randy Frazee
- AUDIOBOOK: NIV Unabridged and Dramatized Bible Audiobook
Biblical History:
We use Tapestry of Grace Primer Digital Edition to survey and contextualize Bible history. We study Bible history in the first five books by Moses: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. We study the following:
- Creation
- Adam and Eve
- Noah
- Tower of Babel
- Abraham, Sarah, Isaac
- Jacob
- Joseph
- Moses
Biblical Worldview:
We begin the first book in the What We Believe: Biblical Worldview of God and Truth series by John Hay and David Webb
- AUDIOBOOK: Who Is God?
- BOOK: Who Is God? And Can I Really Know Him?
- COLORING BOOK: Who Is God? Coloring Book
We also use a few beloved titles:
- READ ALOUD: Leading Little Ones to God: A Child’s Book of Bible Teachings by Marian M. Schoolland
- READ ALOUD: God Loves His Precious Children: Safe in the Arms of the Good Shepard by Jim and Elizabeth George
- READ ALOUD: Good Morning, God by Davis Carman
- READ ALOUD: A Light for My Path: An ABC Book Based on Psalm 119 by Davis Carman
Character Development:
We begin a character and values notebooking journal using:
- CURRICULUM: For Instruction in Righteousness: A Topical Reference Guide for Biblical Training by Pam Forster
- CURRICULUM: Plants Grown Up (boys) by Pam Forster
- CURRICULUM: Polished Cornerstones (girls) by Pam Forster; pages ____
- ACTIVITY: The Ruby Doll by Pam Forster (includes The Young Lady of Valor Coloring Book and The Virtuous Woman Bible Study Guide)
- READ ALOUD: The Book of Virtues by William J. Bennett
- READ ALOUD: The Book of Virtues for Young People by William J. Bennett
- CURRICULUM: Book of Virtues Study curriculum by the Shiver Academy (free download at their site)
We also use a few beloved titles:
- READ ALOUD: God’s Wisdom for Little Boys: Character-Building Fun from Proverbs by Jim and Elizabeth George
- READ ALOUD: God’s Wisdom for Little Girls: Virtues and Fun from Proverbs 31 by Elizabeth George
I am not a teacher,
But an awakener.
– Robert Frost
History
We use Tapestry of Grace Primer Digital Edition for a basic and general world history overview.
- September: Mini-Unit 1: Eden to Egypt
- October: Mini-Unit 2: Tabernacle and Temple
- November: Mini-Unit 3: Daniel’s Revelation
- December: Mini-Unit 4: Christ and the Church
- January: Mini-Unit 5: The Broken Road
- February: Mini-Unit 6: Recovery and Discovery
- March: Mini-Unit 7: A New World
- April: Mini-Unit 8: One Nation
- May: Mini-Unit 9: Growing Pains
- June: Mini-Unit 10: A House Divided
- July: Mini-Unit 11: Engines of Empires
- August: Mini-Unit 12: A Smaller World
Tapestry of Grace Primer consists of these components:
- Primer Handbook
- Primer Guidebook
- Love the Journey
- Primer Activity Book
- Primer Big Story Game
Tapestry of Grace Primer includes assignments from these books:
- READ ALOUD: Kingfisher Atlas of World History by
- READ ALOUD: Illustrated Family Bible Stories by
- READ ALOUD: The Ancient Egyptians by
- READ ALOUD: Ancient Greece by
- READ ALOUD: Ancient Rome – A Might Empire by
- READ ALOUD: Aesop’s Fables by
- READ ALOUD: Patrick: Patron Saint of Ireland by
- READ ALOUD: The Minstrel in the Tower by
- READ ALOUD: Usborne Internet-Linked Medieval World by
- READ ALOUD: The Making of a Knight by
- READ ALOUD: Robin Hood by
- READ ALOUD: Henry VIII and His Wives Paper Dolls by
- READ ALOUD: Martin Luther: A Man Who Changed the World by
- READ ALOUD: Good Queen Bess by
- READ ALOUD: Bard of Avon: the Story of Shakespeare by
- READ ALOUD: The Courage of Sarah Noble by
- READ ALOUD: The New Americans by
- READ ALOUD: Three Young Pilgrims by
- READ ALOUD: George Washington by
- READ ALOUD: The Matchlock Gun by
- READ ALOUD: Liberty! How the Revolutionary War Began by
- READ ALOUD: Presidents of the United States by
- READ ALOUD: America in the Time of Lewis and Clark by
- READ ALOUD: How We Crossed the West by
- READ ALOUD: America in the time of Abraham Lincoln by
- READ ALOUD: If You Lived at the Time of the Civil War by
- READ ALOUD: The Classic Tales of Brer Rabbit by
- READ ALOUD: Coming to America: The Story of Immigration by
- READ ALOUD: Andrew Carnegie and the Steel Industry by
- READ ALOUD: A Little Prairie House by
- READ ALOUD: First Flight: Story of the Wright Brothers by
- READ ALOUD: Henry Ford: Putting the World on Wheels by
- READ ALOUD: When We Were Very Young by
- READ ALOUD: America in the Time of Franklin Delano Roosevelt by
- READ ALOUD: America in the Time of Martin Luther King Jr. by
- READ ALOUD: Old Testament Days by
- READ ALOUD: Classical Kids by
- READ ALOUD: Colonial Kids: An Activity Guide to Life in the New World by
- READ ALOUD: Westward Ho! An Activity Guide to the Wild West by
- READ ALOUD: Civil War Days by
Geography
We learn basic world geography and geographic terminology through exploring various maps, the globe, and reading books.
- READ ALOUD: Usborne Children’s Picture Atlas by Ruth Brocklehurst
- READ ALOUD: Lift The Flap Picture Atlas by Alex Frith and Helen Lee
- READ ALOUD: A Child’s Introduction to the World: Geography, Cultures, and People – From the Grand Canyon to the Great Wall of China by Heather Alexander
- READ ALOUD: The Geography Book: Activities for Exploring, Mapping, and Enjoying Your World by Caroline Arnold
- READ ALOUD: How I Learned Geography by Uri Shulevitz
- READ ALOUD: Maps and Globes by Jack Knowlton
- READ ALOUD: As the Crow Flies: A First Book of Maps by Gail Hartman
- READ ALOUD: Follow That Map!: A First Look at Mapping Skills by Scot Ritchie
- READ ALOUD: Me on the Map by Joan Sweeney
- READ ALOUD: Geography from A to Z: A Picture Glossary by Jack Knowlton
Literature
There are so many choices when it comes to literature for your child. And so many good choices! How will I ever read all the books that I want to read to my kids? This becomes my dilemma. We have a growing list of Kindergarten Literature on Good Reads. I add them as we discover them. Here are some ‘don’t miss’ books that we read:
Classics:
- READ ALOUD: Winnie-the-Pooh by A. A. Milne
- READ ALOUD: The House at Pooh Corner by A.A. Milne
- READ ALOUD: When We Were Very Young by A. A. Milne
- READ ALOUD: Now We Are Six by A. A. Milne
- READ ALOUD: The Complete Tales of Beatrix Potter
- READ ALOUD: The Complete Adventures of Curious George by Margret and H. A. Rey
- READ ALOUD: A Child’s Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson
- READ ALOUD: Eloise Wilkin Stories
- READ ALOUD: Make Way for McCloskey: A Robert McCloskey Treasury by Robert McCloskey
- READ ALOUD: The Arnold Lobel Book of Mother Goose
- READ ALOUD: James Herriot’s Treasury for Children
Stories
The Bremen Town Musicians
Chicken Little
Cinderella
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
How Many Spots Does a Leopard Have?
King Midas and the Golden Touch
The Legend of Jumping Mouse
The Little Red Hen
Little Red Riding Hood
Momotaro: Peach Boy
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
The Three Billy Goats Gruff
The Three Little Pigs
A Tug of War
The Ugly Duckling
The Velveteen Rabbit
The Wolf and the Kids
Fairy Tales:
These fairy tale books are a fantastic collection and great investment. We love to read fairy tales at the library to enjoy the different illustrations and the many variations.
- READ ALOUD: The Blue Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
- READ ALOUD: The Red Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
- READ ALOUD: The Green Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
- READ ALOUD: The Yellow Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
- READ ALOUD: The Pink Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
- READ ALOUD: The Grey Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
- READ ALOUD: The Violet Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
- READ ALOUD: The Crimson Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
- READ ALOUD: The Brown Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
- READ ALOUD: The Orange Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
- READ ALOUD: The Olive Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
- READ ALOUD: The Lilac Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
We love Magically Told Fairy Tales Collection. We downloaded ours on iTunes.
Fables
The Lion and the Mouse
The Grasshopper and the Ants
The Dog and His Shadow
The Hare and the Tortoise
Folk Heroes and Tall Tales
Johnny Appleseed
Casey Jones
Favorites:
- READ ALOUD: The Story of Dr. Dolittle
- READ ALOUD: Harold and the Purple Crayon by
- READ ALOUD: Caps for Sale
- READ ALOUD: Corduroy
- READ ALOUD: The Story About Ping
- READ ALOUD: The Llama Who Had No Pajama
- READ ALOUD: Katy No-Pocket
- READ ALOUD: Mouse and Mole
- READ ALOUD: Richard Scarry’s Please and Thank You Book
- READ ALOUD: The Story About Ping by Marjorie Flack and Kurt Wiese
- READ ALOUD: Lentil by Robert McCloskey
- READ ALOUD: Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans
- READ ALOUD: A Pair of Red Clogs by Masako Matsuno
- READ ALOUD: The Rag Coat by Lauren Mills
- READ ALOUD: Who Owns the Sun? by Stacy Chbosky
- READ ALOUD: Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton
- READ ALOUD: The Glorious Flight by Alice and Martin Provensen
- READ ALOUD: How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World by Marjorie Priceman
- READ ALOUD: Grandfather’s Journey by Allen Say Cranberry
- READ ALOUD: Thanksgiving by Wende and Harry Devlin
- READ ALOUD: Another Celebrated Dancing Bear by Gladys Scheffrin-Falk
- READ ALOUD: Papa Piccolo by Carol Talley
- READ ALOUD: Very Last First Time by Jan Andrews
- READ ALOUD: The Clown of God by Tomie DePaola
- READ ALOUD: Storm in the Night by Mary Stoltz
- READ ALOUD: Katy and the Big Snow by Virginia Lee Burton
- READ ALOUD: Night of the Moonjellies by Mark Shasha
- READ ALOUD: Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost (with illustrations by Susan Jeffers)
- READ ALOUD: The Foot Book by Dr. Seuss
- READ ALOUD: The Ear Book by Dr. Seuss
- READ ALOUD: The Eye Book by Dr. Seuss
- READ ALOUD: Great Day for Up! by Dr. Seuss
- READ ALOUD: McElligot’s Pool by Dr. Seuss
- READ ALOUD: My Father’s Dragon
- READ ALOUD: In Grandma’s Attic
- READ ALOUD: Five True Dog Stories
- READ ALOUD: Least of All
- READ ALOUD: Dolphin Adventure
- READ ALOUD: The Light at Tern Rock
- READ ALOUD: A Grain of Rice
- READ ALOUD: The Hundred Dresses
- READ ALOUD: Twenty and Ten
- READ ALOUD: The Boxcar Children
- READ ALOUD: Dolphin Treasure
- READ ALOUD: Here’s a Penny
- READ ALOUD: No Children, No Pets
- READ ALOUD: Not a Stick by Antoinette Portis
- READ ALOUD: Not a Box by Antoinette Portis
- READ ALOUD: Little House in the Big Woods
- READ ALOUD: Beezus and Ramona
- READ ALOUD: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
- READ ALOUD: Frog and Toad are Friends (I Can Read Book 2)
- READ ALOUD: Frog and Toad Together (I Can Read Book 2)
- READ ALOUD: Frog and Toad All Year (I Can Read Book 2)
- READ ALOUD: Days with Frog and Toad (I Can Read Book 2)
- READ ALOUD: Little Bear
- Swimmy
- The Bee Tree
- The Tortoise and the Hare
- Make Way for Ducklings
- Moonbear’s Shadow
- Love You Forever
- The Story of Ferdinand
- If the Dinosaurs Came Back
- Mouse and Mole
- Fine Feathered Friends
- Amazing Animal Alphabet
- Seven Blind Mice
- Tacky the Penguin
- Little Jewel Bird
- Fritz and the Beautiful Horses
- The Color Kittens
- The Year at Maple Hill Farm
- How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World
- A Tree is Nice
- Annie and Snowball and the Cozy Nest
- Stone Soup
- How to Hide a Butterfly
Wordless Picture Books:
I came across this article on wordless picture books and my eyes were opened to a new world of literature. Here is a list of Wordless Picture Books on Good Reads. Have fun!
Language Arts
Phonics and Spelling and Reading:
We use All About Learning Press’ All About Reading and All About Spelling. They are excellent programs. We start with learning the alphabet and basic phonograms in All About Reading Pre-Reading. We also use the All About Learning Letter Sounds A to Z app. Then we start All About Reading Level 1 and All About Spelling Level 1. We also use the All About Learning Phonogram Sounds app.
We have fun practicing letter recognition and enhancing life skills by cooking recipes from My A to Z Recipe Box: An Alphabet of Recipes for Kids
- READ ALOUD: Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin, Jr.
- READ ALOUD: The Wheels on the Bus by Raffi
- READ ALOUD: Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman
- READ ALOUD: Over in the Meadow by Ezra Jack Keats
- READ ALOUD: Have You Seen My Ducklings? by Nancy Tafuri
- READ ALOUD: The Three Billy Goats Gruff by Ellen Appleby
- READ ALOUD: The Very Hungry Catepillar by Eric Carle
- READ ALOUD: Who Put the Cookies in the Cookie Jar? by George Shannon
Barefoot Books is a favorite YouTube Channel that has the cutest videos for repetition.
READ ALOUD: Mouse Letters
Vocabulary
We use Wordly Wise 3000: Book K and as many picture dictionaries as we can find. Our favorite picture dictionary is My First Picture Dictionary by Huck Scarry.
Writing and Handwriting:
We use a simple version of the Handwriting Without Tears program. We purchased the Wet-Dry-Try app for the iPad for general instruction. The app was designed for independent learning and it’s very easy for small children. The kids love it; very fun! We are using a 4″ x 6″ slate chalkboard, chalk bits, and sponge pieces for hands-on practice. I printed out the Handwriting Without Tears uppercase and lowercase manuscript and numbers printables and put them in page protectors for some dry erase practice. I purchased a Mead See and Feel Learn to Letter with Raised Ruling handwriting pad. I love these handwriting pads because my kids can feel where the guidelines are on the page.
Math
We take a living math approach during kindergarten. All of our math at this point is fun and hands-on and, most importantly, developmentally appropriate. We have lots of math ‘tools and toys’. There is a lot of identifying, counting, and sorting going on at our house.
READ ALOUD: Mouse Numbers
Learning Resources Three Bear Family Rainbow Counters
Learning Resources Three Bear Family Pattern Cards
Learning Resources Beads and Pattern Card Set
Learning Resources Pattern Block Activity Pack
Science
We use God’s Design for Science curriculum and lots of great supplemental books for the lessons. We will be ‘dabbling’ in science projects that we find interesting.
Art Skills, Appreciation, and History
We study art appreciation and history and implement art skills as it pertains to our history studies. We begin the Art Appreciation and History Lapbook and Notebook that will be used though all grades. We use Artistic Pursuits: The Way They See It with our little one.
READ ALOUD: Mouse Paint
Here are some sweet books by one of our favorite authors, Jim Arnosky.
READ ALOUD: Mouse Colors
READ ALOUD: Mouse Shapes
Music Skills, Appreciation, and History
We study music appreciation and history and implement music skills as it pertains to our history studies. We begin the Music Appreciation and History Lapbook and Notebook that will be used though all grades.
We continue listening to and learning various songs. We use free lessons online for the following:
- Beginning Recorder
- Beginning Piano
Live the Perissos Life!
Blessings,