Curriculum Review: My Father's World, Kindergarten

Now that we are 8 weeks into our school year, I want to share with you about a new kindergarten curriculum I'm trying. This is new for me in several ways:

• Normally, I would never use an all-inclusive curriculum. I'm more the eclectic sort.
• Starting a new curriculum with my 4th, and possibly last, student, is out of character for me.
• I really didn't think I would like it. So I tried it with Wyatt, since he's technically too young for Kindergarten, but ready for some kind of school. I figured this would be a good pre-K course, as it initially looked too simple to me...

That being said, I was wrong. :) I DO like it! It is not "too" simple. And I'm glad I tried it! Here's another Homeschool Mom's review. She also tried it with her "Pre-K" aged son.

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My Father's World, Kindergarten (complete) comes with:

Teacher's Manual

Student Sheets include:

• Student pages
• Teaching charts
• Game cards
• Badge patterns
• Monthly calendars
• Short vowel song cards
• 100 chart for math
• Activity sheets

Alphabet Flashcards

A-Z Textured Letters by Lauri

What Really Happened to the Dinosaurs?

Butterfly Garden

Ant Hill

For the Children's Sake, by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay

Say Hello to Classical Music

Cuisenaire® Rods

Cuisenaire® Rods Alphabet Book

Inflatable Globe

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The friend who gave it to me (thank you Kelly!!!!) did not have the complete list as above, but had pretty much everything I needed. And she had already organized it into a tote (see photo), and collected lots of complimentary material. She is SO awesome. I would have struggled to plunk down the cash to try something new, but since she shared, I'm so glad I tried it.

What we had included:

Teacher's Manual

Student Sheets include:

• Student pages
• Teaching charts
• Game cards
• Badge patterns
• Monthly calendars
• Short vowel song cards
• 100 chart for math
• Activity sheets

Alphabet Flashcards

A-Z Textured Letters by Lauri

What Really Happened to the Dinosaurs?

Ant Hill (a gift from Grandma and Grandpa!)

Each week's unit covers one letter of the alphabet, after the initial weeks of studying creation in depth. Each unit covers a fun hands on activity for each day, a reading list for great library books to check out, and most importantly a lot of Scripture and a simple lesson to apply all week long. For example:

This week we studied the Turtle, for the letter T. There was a short motto: "I don't quit; I persevere." There are 6 days of lessons with a different activity to re-enforce the letter T and the science exploration of turtles (which we expanded to other pond creatures). There were Scripture passages pertaining to the character of perseverance:

• Phil. 3:13-14
• Hebrews 12:1
• Galatians 6:9

There was also a poem about turtles, and instructions to read the story of the Tortoise and the Hare in Aesop's Fables. We lucked out with that one, as we were able to actually attend a play of Tortoise Vs. Hare, performed by local school-children thanks to the Missoula Children's Theatre.

As for Math and Phonics, there are daily activities to re-enforce number names and counting, as well as letter names and sounds. There is plenty of emphasis on tactile exploration, such as making the shapes of letters with clay, or just using the textured foam letters that came with the kit. We make use of the number chart, focusing on one number each day, as well as shapes and colors and patterns of those in sequence. (See right.)

A major help to supplement this curriculum came from my very own bookshelves. The Christian Liberty Nature Reader (book 1) has short stories about various animals. It worked out that there were 3-4 stories to fit with each unit theme. It took me a little prep to page through the book and match them up on my assignment charts, but it was worth it. They fit so well, and add a thread of continuity. I highly recommend it as a complimentary purchase to MFW.

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Conclusion:

I honestly thought MFW would be too simplistic for Wyatt, hitting more on the Pre-K level than on the Kindergarten level. I was pleasantly surprised at the methodical way it is bringing him to know his letters and numbers. While he already knew his letters and their names and sounds, I now find him running around naming things and shouting out what letter fits! And the counting methods have helped us navigate the missing teen numbers we were struggling with.  8 Weeks in, he can count to 30 already, and knows what those values mean. Overall, I am very pleased with My Father's World, and I'm wishing I had used it with my older 3 children.

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Other Kindergarten Curriculum Reviews:

Awana: Bible
SchoolhouseTeachers.com
Touchmath: Kindergarten
ABeCeDarian Co.: Reading
Supercharged Science

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Linked at:

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And a this review is also shared HERE

Thanks to The Homeschool Mom