tips for kindergarten homework

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Homework Ideas For Kindergarten

Homework is a tricky topic in most schools, especially in the younger grades. Homework in kindergarten is sometimes completely forbidden by the school, left up to the teacher, or required for all students. In my experience, homework for kindergarten students can be beneficial. It can reinforce the skills learned in the classroom and get parents involved in the learning process. However, it must be developmentally appropriate for our youngest learners. 

In order for homework to be perfect for kindergarten, it must be short enough to maintain students’ attention.

Pages and pages of written work will frustrate kids, and busy parents do not want to complete more school work for hours each evening. Short, meaningful assignments will keep kids and parents engaged. They will also be more likely to positively influence learning. 

In addition to the amount of time assignments take, the content of the assignments is also important to consider for kindergarten students. Research has shown again and again that reading with a parent (and independently) for 15-20 minutes daily is extremely beneficial to young learners. So reading together is probably the most important part! 

Assignments should also reinforce basic skills with targeted practice. It is not the time for learning completely new concepts. Additionally, assignments with oral components are perfect for kindergarten students. As they interact and talk with their caregivers, they are learning important communication skills. They are also cementing their understanding of the concepts they’ve been learning at school. 

So- short, meaningful, targeted homework that involves parents seems to be the perfect recipe for kindergarten.

That’s a lot to think about when making assignments. If you don’t have the time to plan and prepare assignments that fit your needs for homework- my Kindergarten Homework Packets might be the answer! 

This bundle includes homework packets for the entire year . They are editable, but can also be printed and used immediately. The homework packets are set up to go home every three weeks. You choose three books to send home with each packet, and your students will have everything they need for meaningful homework. 

Sight words as well as Common Core standards for reading, writing, math, science, and social studies are all addressed throughout the year. Activities include written and oral activities that are perfect for school-home connections. Your students will enjoy their homework, and you can rest assured that it is appropriate and engaging. 

What are your thoughts on homework in kindergarten? Let me know in the comments!

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Miss Kindergarten

Kindergarten Teacher Blog

Tips for Using Homework In Kindergarten

October 15, 2023 misskindergarten Leave a Comment

How do you set up homework in kindergarten that is appropriate, fun, and meaningful? This seems to be the million dollar question among many kindergarten teachers. It is hard to know what is too much or too little all while making sure it’s engaging and developmentally appropriate! Keep reading for some food for thought as you make the homework decision for your own classroom.

Should There Be Homework In Kindergarten?

When you first started out as a new kindergarten teacher , you likely noticed that there are two camps when it comes to homework in kindergarten: Those who like it and those who don’t! However, some districts require either daily or weekly homework, so you might need to regularly send work home no matter what camp you’re in.

I am a true believer in kids learning through play, and sometimes I think giving them the opportunity to play after school is MUCH more important than sitting down to do homework.

However, if you are required to send something home with your kinders or you DO like the idea of homework in kindergarten, let’s look at the positives!

Benefits Of Homework In Kindergarten

I used to dread assigning homework to young students and struggled with how to make it work. I learned over the years that there are some amazing benefits to having homework in kindergarten.

Grow in Responsibility

Sending work home for your students to work on after school can help teach them responsibility.

Homework isn’t all about academics, it’s also about helping students become responsible, lifelong learners. Teaching your students how to “be in charge” of something and take pride in it is an important life skill. They begin to learn that it feels good to do a good job and get work done on time!

I like to talk with my students about what it means to be responsible when doing homework. It means that you:

• Put your name on your paper first
• Complete all of the work on the page
• Keep the paper looking neat
• Check your work
• Turn it into the appropriate place on time

Practice Problem Solving

Homework allows students to practice being problem-solvers at home as they work independently and blast through challenges.

We all know those students that come running to us at the sight or sound of any problem. As teachers, it is our instinct to help them, but allowing them to be challenged is a GOOD THING! Homework in kindergarten encourages your students to problem solve, whether they are at school or at home.

Since this is a skill your students are still developing, it’s helpful to prepare students for being more independent problem-solvers when they are working on their homework at home. This will help keep your students (and their families!) from becoming frustrated with the homework process. One way to do this is to model different problem-solving strategies during your daily routine. Some ideas are:

• Reading or listening to the directions again
• Looking at similar problems
• Using anchor charts or posters around the room
• Using manipulatives
• Drawing a picture

Build Routines

Homework can provide a foundation for structure and routine as they progress through school.

By starting homework early on in their school years, you are helping to set up your students for success in the future. Having homework in kindergarten allows them to start learning and using those problem-solving strategies right away.

It is important to know your students, their abilities, and their families when assigning homework in kindergarten. You don’t want your students and their families to develop negative feelings toward having a routine of skill practice at home. You can avoid this by sending home developmentally appropriate homework that doesn’t place an undue burden on families.

3 “Musts” for Kindergarten Homework

Now that we know the benefits of homework in kindergarten, I am going to share my three musts for making homework actually WORK in kindergarten.

Homework Must Be Easy to Prep

This first must is all about you, teacher friend! No kindergarten teacher has time to prep, print, laminate, and hole punch homework! Just the thought of it makes me cringe. Keep homework prep simple! My Kindergarten Homework Weekly Bundle is designed to be low-prep and easy to manage. In fact, you can print off an entire week of homework on one page, front and back. Check it out  here  to get your homework for the entire year covered.

Homework Must Be Engaging

Homework tends to have a bad reputation for being boring and hard. It doesn’t have to be, though! Homework that is fun for your students will engage them in the learning, thus becoming more purposeful for them and you. It will also make it more likely that they will keep up the routine of grabbing their homework from their backpacks when they get home.

You can make homework more engaging for students by using kid-friendly printables with space to color. Students also love being allowed to use different writing tools on homework. (This is helpful for families who might have pens more readily available than pencils.) You can also incorporate a little bit of seasonal fun to your homework by using themed printables.

Homework Must Be Aligned to Standards

If you give your students random homework assignments, it just feels like busywork. Make sure that it is aligned to the standards and skills you are teaching. My weekly homework covers reading and math standards and follows a common sequence for spiral review. It is also editable to meet students’ needs every year. You’ll be able to ensure that you’re sending home developmentally appropriate homework that students can complete mostly independently.

Printable Kindergarten Homework Bundle

You can check out my year-long homework bundle that includes 32 weeks of weekly homework practice. These printables come in two size options, so you can decide how you’d like to assemble the homework. The activities in this bundle could also be repurposed for other parts of your daily routine.

For example, you could bind the printables into a packet that’s perfect to use for morning work, fast finishers , centers, and more! Click below if you’d like to take a closer look at this resource in my shop.

Kindergarten Weekly Homework

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Be sure to save these tips and resources for kindergarten homework! Just add the pin below to your favorite teaching board on Pinterest. You’ll be able to quickly find this post when you’re ready to set up a homework routine in your kindergarten classroom.

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Welcome to Miss Kindergarten. I’m so happy you’re here!

If you are looking for hands-on, engaging kindergarten activities, you came to the right place! I’m here to save you time by sharing tried and true kindergarten resources, and hopefully spark some ideas for your own kindergarten lesson plans!

Whether you need ideas to teach reading, sight words, math, or even some fun crafts, I have you covered. My ultimate goal is to help passionate educators and parents to young kids gain their valuable time back!

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PARENTING HUB

40 Top Parenting Tips for Navigating Homework Challenges

Dr. Roseann Capanna-Hodge

• October 6, 2023

Navigating the intricacies of homework assignments can often feel like a maze for both parents and children alike. As someone deeply involved in child development and having worked closely with many educators, I've gathered a wealth of insights into establishing a solid homework routine. 

This article is a compilation of those tried-and-tested homework tips, aimed to ease challenges and enhance productivity. Whether you're looking to foster a deeper connection with your child's teacher or seeking effective strategies to prioritize tasks, I'm here to guide you.

Homework Tips for Parents: Break the Stress and Boost Learning Hacks from a Children’s Psychologist

Homework tip: setting up the environment.

• Establish a Routine: Set a specific time and place for homework to create consistency and predictability.
• Routine Consistency: Keep the routine consistent, even on weekends, so the child knows what to expect.
• Provide a Quiet Space: Ensure your child has a quiet, well-lit, and comfortable place to work, free from distractions. 
• Limit Distractions: Keep TVs, mobile phones, and other distracting electronics off during homework time.
• Limit Overall Stimuli: A clutter-free workspace can reduce distractions. Try to minimize items on their workspace that they might fidget with or get distracted by.
• Stay Organized: Use planners, calendars, or apps to keep track of assignment due dates.
• Equip the Space: Stock the homework area with essential supplies such as pencils, paper, erasers, and rulers

Homework Tip: Instruction Support

• Clear and Concise Instructions: Ensure instructions are short and to the point. Use visuals and watch for body language signals that show understanding.

• Break Tasks Into Manageable Chunks : If an assignment is extensive, break it down into smaller steps to make it more manageable.
• Chunking Information: Divide information into smaller, more digestible chunks. This can make the work seem more manageable.
• Set Time Limits: Use a timer to allocate specific amounts of time for each task, helping children stay on track.
• Timers: Use a visual timer, so they can see how much time they have left to work. This can make the passage of time more tangible.
• Teach Time Management: Help them prioritize their tasks, tackling more challenging or urgent assignments first.
• Stay Involved: Regularly check in with your child about their assignments and progress, offering guidance when needed.
• Interactive Tools: Consider using interactive educational tools or apps that can make learning more engaging for them.
• Ask Them To Explain What The Task Is: Gage what your child understands before they start the task. This will help set them in the right direction and give you a sense of what they know.

Homework Tip: Brain Hacks

• Physical Activity: Encourage short bursts of physical activity during breaks, like jumping jacks or a quick walk around the block. Physical activity can help increase attention span.
• Encourage Breaks: For longer homework sessions, ensure kids take short breaks to rest their minds and bodies.
• Offer Healthy Snacks : Brain-boosting snacks can help maintain energy and focus during study time. Fizzy drinks such as a seltzer-magnesium drink can stimulate and calm the brain.
• Shorter Work Periods: Divide homework time into shorter, more frequent sessions. For instance, instead of a continuous 30-minute session, try three 10-minute sessions with short breaks in between.
• Visual Schedules: Use visual aids like charts or diagrams to outline the tasks that need completion. This can help them understand what's expected and track their progress.
• Tactile Tools: For some children, using tactile tools like stress balls or fidget toys can help them channel their extra energy and maintain focus.

• Background Music: Some children focus better with low-volume, non-distracting background music or white noise. But others are stressed by it , so play around and do what works best for them (not you!). 
• Color Coding: Use colors to categorize and prioritize tasks. This can help visually differentiate and organize their work.
• Mindfulness and Relaxation Techniques: Mindfulness techniques like deep breathing, visualization, or even short meditation sessions can help center their attention.

Homework Tip: Monitoring, Communication and Positive Reinforcement

• Stay Positive : In your own mindset. Focus on the effort and improvements, not just the end result. Praise hard work and resilience.
• Encourage Independence Over Time: While it's essential to offer support, allow kids to complete assignments on their own as they build skills before you check the work. This fosters responsibility and self-reliance.
• Be Available for Questions: Make sure your child knows they can come to you if they have questions or need clarification on a topic.
• Connect Learning to Real Life: Help your child see the real-world applications of what they're learning to make it more engaging.
• Review Completed Assignments: Go over finished homework to ensure understanding and check for errors, but avoid doing the work for them.
• Explain Consequences and Establish Rewards: Positive reinforcement can motivate your child. Consider rewards for consistent homework completion.
• Encourage a Growth Mindset: Teach your child to see challenges as opportunities for growth. Emphasize the value of persistence and learning from mistakes. Talk to kids about how regular practice builds skills even when the learning is hard!
• Positive Reinforcement: Reinforce positive behavior immediately. If they've focused well for a short span, reward that effort to encourage repetition of the desired behavior.
• Active Participation: Encourage them to engage actively with their work, such as reading aloud or teaching the content back to you. This can reinforce their understanding and attention.
• Regular Check-ins: Check in more frequently during their homework sessions, offering guidance, encouraging movement to support brain alertness.
• Immediate Feedback: Give immediate feedback on their work. This keeps them engaged and lets them know they're on the right track.
• Open Communication: Ensure your child feels comfortable discussing their challenges with you. Sometimes, they might have insights into what might help them focus better.

Long Game Parent Homework Tips

• Stay Informed: If your child has a diagnosed attention disorder, like ADHD, stay updated with the latest strategies and recommendations specific to their needs. You can join our CALM Brain Parenting Community for science-backed solutions to support attention and learning. 
• Stay in Touch with Teachers: Regular communication with educators can give insights into how your child is doing and where they might need additional help. They may benefit from school accommodations or more formal IEP support .
• Seek External Support: If focus issues persist, consider seeking help from a tutor, educational therapist, or counselor familiar with attention challenges.

Reflecting on these pivotal parent homework tips, it becomes evident that with the right strategies, we can turn potential struggles into stepping stones for success. By instilling a consistent homework routine and maintaining open communication with your child, we're setting the stage for academic achievements. 

Each child is a unique individual, and it's crucial to discover what resonates best with them during homework time. It is also important to look for root causes better and better understand why your child is struggling . 

With these tools at your disposal, I'm confident in your ability to lead your child through the myriad tasks and challenges that lie ahead. Together, let's make every homework session a journey of growth and discovery and tamp down frustration!

Always remember… “Calm Brain, Happy Family™”

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to give health advice and it is recommended to consult with a physician before beginning any new wellness regime. *The effectiveness of diagnosis and treatment vary by patient and condition. Dr. Roseann Capanna-Hodge, LLC does not guarantee certain results.

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Successful Homework Habits for Beginning Learners

Establishing routines in preschool and the lower grades can lay the groundwork for success in later years..

The goal of homework is to help students remember and understand what they learned in school that day. For children ages 5 to 7, it can also help teach them independence, responsibility, as well as time-management and planning skills — all keys to success in the real world.

It’s important for beginning learners to understand that homework is more important than dance class, soccer practice, karate, or the long list of activities they may be involved in outside of school. A little homework goes a long way toward reinforcing classroom learning. Just 10-20 minutes of homework or home practice a day for children in kindergarten through second grade is seen as most effective.

Here are four homework habits you and your child can develop right now for more successful school days (and stress-free nights) ahead.

1. Set the Stage

Your child needs a quiet, well-lit, clutter- and distraction-free spot to do their homework. This should be the same place every day, whether it’s the kitchen table or a desk in their room. Make sure all the materials your child needs to complete their homework are within arm’s reach, including pencils, paper, crayons, or anything else.

2. Time It Right

Decide with your child the best time to tackle homework. For some children, it’s best to complete assignments right after school, while the information is still fresh in their minds and they have ample energy. (An after-school schedule provides structure your child can stick to.)

If you choose to schedule extra-curriculars first, keep in mind that children may be too tired after these activities to focus on schoolwork. Bedtime is never the time to rush through homework.

3. It’s Not Your Homework, It’s Theirs

Parents should be involved in their child’s homework, both to see what they’re learning and to gauge how well they’re absorbing concepts. Being nearby while your child does their homework also allows you to monitor any frustration they feel — and encourage breaks when needed. But this doesn’t mean you will do their homework for them. You want them to get that feeling of pride and accomplishment on their own.

4. Get Excited and Be Positive

As your child’s role model, if you view homework as a chore or something that interferes with your personal schedule, your child will mimic that behavior. Let your child know how grown-up it is for them to have homework and how proud they should be of their hard work. Try to instill in them that it is “fun” to be able to do the assigned tasks.

Let them show you their work and praise them for finishing homework. Be encouraging — it will make a difference.  

Get ready for your child to go back to school with our guide — it's full of recommended books, teacher tips, homework help, and more resources for a successful school year.

Shop workbooks and other effective materials to support successful homework habits below. You can shop all books and activities at The Scholastic Store .

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Top 10 Homework Tips

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Kids are more successful in school when parents take an active interest in their homework — it shows kids that what they do is important.

Of course, helping with homework shouldn't mean spending hours hunched over a desk. Parents can be supportive by demonstrating study and organization skills, explaining a tricky problem, or just encouraging kids to take a break. And who knows? Parents might even learn a thing or two!

Here are some tips to guide the way:

• Know the teachers — and what they're looking for. Attend school events, such as parent-teacher conferences, to meet your child's teachers. Ask about their homework policies and how you should be involved.
• Set up a homework-friendly area. Make sure kids have a well-lit place to complete homework. Keep supplies — paper, pencils, glue, scissors — within reach.
• Schedule a regular study time. Some kids work best in the afternoon, following a snack and play period; others may prefer to wait until after dinner.
• Help them make a plan. On heavy homework nights or when there's an especially hefty assignment to tackle, encourage your child break up the work into manageable chunks. Create a work schedule for the night if necessary — and take time for a 15-minute break every hour, if possible.
• Keep distractions to a minimum. This means no TV, loud music, or phone calls. (Occasionally, though, a phone call to a classmate about an assignment can be helpful.)
• Make sure kids do their own work. They won't learn if they don't think for themselves and make their own mistakes. Parents can make suggestions and help with directions. But it's a kid's job to do the learning.
• Be a motivator and monitor. Ask about assignments, quizzes, and tests. Give encouragement, check completed homework, and make yourself available for questions and concerns.
• Set a good example. Do your kids ever see you diligently balancing your budget or reading a book? Kids are more likely to follow their parents' examples than their advice.
• Praise their work and efforts. Post an aced test or art project on the refrigerator. Mention academic achievements to relatives.
• If there are continuing problems with homework, get help. Talk about it with your child's teacher. Some kids have trouble seeing the board and may need glasses; others might need an evaluation for a learning problem or attention disorder.

Helping with Kindergarten Homework Assignments: Tips For Parents

• Finn Orfano
• Categories : Parenting grade school aged kids
• Tags : Teaching grades pre k to 5

Kindergarten homework is now a common occurrence, and many children will need help from their parents as they become familiar with completing at-home assignments. During the kindergarten years, homework activities are generally geared toward teaching letter sounds, letter formation, simple words, number formation, and basic math concepts such as making patterns. When helping kindergarten students with homework, parents can reinforce ideas learned at school while guiding their children toward good homework habits.

Letter Recognition And Writing

These tips are useful for parents who are helping their kids with homework assignments that involve letter recognition, printing letters and small words, and building kindergarten reading readiness skills.

• For printing assignments, encourage the child to trace the shape of the letter with his or her finger, then trace the letter lightly with a pencil. As the child begins to write the letter independently, offer guidance on proper formation.
• For letter recognition assignments, ask the child to correctly identify the letter (capital and lowercase), name the sound or sounds that the letter makes, and identify object names beginning with that letter.
• Help the child to think out loud when forming words on homework papers. (“Sound out the word ‘car’. Now look at your paper and write the letter that comes after ‘ca-’ to make the word ‘car’.”)
• For short reading assignments, ask the child to read out loud. Offer assistance with sounding out unknown words.

Number Recognition And Introductory Math

Parents can use these strategies in assisting their young children with math-oriented homework papers. These types of assignments involve both number recognition and kindergarten-level math concepts:

• Help the kindergarten student to identify numbers, trace them, and write them with proper formation and in the correct order.
• For introductory math assignments with basic addition problems, use visual aids to help the child find the answer. (“One plus three…draw one dot here and three dots over here…now count all of the dots.”)
• For homework assignments that focus on patterns and sequence, encourage the chlid to describe the pattern out loud: (“Red, blue, yellow, red, blue…what comes next? Yellow.”)

Adjusting To Homework: General Tips

Children who have not previously completed homework in preschool may have a difficult time adjusting to the process. Parents can help kindergartners adjust to the homework routine in the following ways.

• Choose a specific time of day to work on homework assignments (right after school, just before dinner, etc.). Most children thrive well on structure and will be cooperative about doing homework at an arranged time.
• Allow a kindergarten student to take short breaks if he or she has more than one page of homework.
• Parents should read over the homework guidelines first, then explain the goal of the assignment to the child. (“Today, we are going to make words that end with -at.”). This helps the child know what to expect before beginning to write.
• Keep a sticker chart at home, and give the kindergartner a sticker for every homework assignment that he or she completes.

Parents who take an active role in assisting their children with kindergarten homework assignments are providing a foundation for school success throughout the years. Kindergartners can often more readily grasp math skills and reading skills at an age-appropriate level under the consistent guidance of both teachers and parents.

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How to Help Kindergarteners Do Homework Without Tears

Inside: New students have a hard time working on homework. Kindergarteners especially have no desire to sit still and often refuse to do their homework. But there are tips and tricks to help new Kindergarteners do homework without complaining or without tears.

Congrats! You’ve survived the huge parenting milestone of sending your child off to Kindergarten!

But now there’s a new challenge for parents: homework.

Some Kindergarteners come home with no homework ever, some start it a month or two into school, and some schools start to send home homework Day 1.

There’s a huge debate over the purpose and benefits of homework in general and many, many parents are frustrated homework starts in Kindergarten.

Related: Here’s What You Need to Know About Homework and Why Teachers Assign It 

But if homework is being assigned to our youngest learners-and it is being assigned in the majority of our schools- we need ideas to help our Kindergarteners do homework without complaints and without tears. 

Because while a few kiddos might be excited to do homework because it makes them feel like a big kid, many kids balk at the idea of sitting down to do more work after their hours at school.

Our Kindergarten kids may fight us every step of the way to complete their homework, mostly because they’re absolutely exhausted . They are mentally and physically drained.

These new students have been told what to do all day.

They have probably had to sit still on a tiny rung spot with their legs folded under them way longer than they’ve ever had to.

They have to actually work. And think. And answer tough questions.

They have to memorize a long list of Kindergarten sight words. 

And now we expect them to do more work at home? More thinking? More sitting?

Of course they’re going to complain or flat out refuse or revert to tears and a tantrum.

But there are ways to help ease them into this new transition of coming home from school and helping kindergarteners do homework.

General Homework Tips To Help All Students:

Before we get into Kindergarten specific tips, there are several things you can do to help set your student up for homework success for years to come .

The first and most important is to create an afternoon schedule and routine and be consistent with it.

My kids know they come home, hang up their backpacks and empty them, wash their hands, get a snack, and start their homework.

Because if it’s something that happens every day, my kids know what to expect. They know it’s coming.

You will set yourself up for a lifetime of homework ease if you instill in them now the expectation that homework is done right after school.

If you’re unsure how to set up an afterschool routine, use this one.

My kids love to check things off their Afterschool Checklist almost as much as I love crossing things off my to-do list because they are in control of how fast they move through the list.

The faster they get their checklist done, the sooner they can go play.

For more general tips and tricks for homework solutions, like setting up a homework station and a homework supply box, click here .

Encourage Your Kindergarteners to Do Homework Without Complaining:

If you set the expectation that homework is something we do and we do it without complaining , it will benefit everyone in the family.

For you, you don’t have to hear the whining and can get through the afternoon without pulling your hair out or needing a cocktail by 4pm.

For them, they get a treat. Try punching a hole in a sheet of paper every time they finish their work without complaining.

When they get five, they get a special “date” with mom or dad or get to go somewhere they love.

Every month, you can increase the number of holes they need to earn the date.

Whatever it takes to discourage the complaints.

Homework Strategies to Help Kindergarteners Do Homework:

For our Kindergarteners, we need to help them actually finish their homework.

This is new, so there are going to be some growing pains.

Keep in mind, not all tricks will work for all kids. You need to choose what you think would motivate your child the most.

And if that doesn’t work, try another trick.

1. Physically Be Nearby

We can’t expect these five-year-olds to sit and work independently in September .

We need to build up to it.

For the first week, sit next to them as they finish their work. Then the next week, sit across from while they work. During the third week, don’t sit with them, but stay in the same room. You can then graduate to being in and out of the room as needed.

If they balk at you moving further away, take a step closer to them until they feel more confident.

The end goal is for them to not need you to be monitoring their every move.

2. Visually Reduce the Amount of Homework

If a whole math sheet overwhelms them, cover some of it up with another paper.

You can cover up half of the paper or you can cover it all and just show one line at a time.

As they finish their work, slide the paper down until they get to the bottom of the sheet.

3. Reduce the Amount of Time They Have to Work

It can be intimidating to sit down and finish all their work at once .

Set a timer and have them work for five minutes. Then take a “brain break” for five minutes. Repeat the pattern until the work is finished.

For the next week, extend the work timer to six minutes, but keep the brain break time the same.

Some brain break ideas: listening to music, dancing, coloring, building Legos, exercising, jumping, or these really cool brain breaks on youtube.

4. Let Kindergarteners Do Homework and Move Around While They Work

Who says kids have to sit still to do their work?

Let them stand to finish their work.

Let them do their work on a bosu ball or on an indoor trampoline with a clipboard.

Standing, jumping, bouncing, stretching, spinning…whatever their little bodies need.

If they can’t do these things while they actually work, encourage them to be active before and after homework time.

5. Let Kindergarteners Do Homework Outdoors

Who says homework has to be done inside? They’ve been stuck inside all day.

Let them finish their work while breathing in the fresh air.

Fresh air and oxygen will wake them up, refresh them, and get their brain moving.

Try working at a picnic table or on your back patio or balcony.

6. Use Their Whole Body to Finish Their Work

Since many kids learn best when they’re moving, encourage them to use their bodies to learn.

Let them stomp their math answers using this fun activity from the SuperKids Activity Guide . 3 + 4 = Stomp the 7! Then they can write it on their paper.

Use chalk to practice their letters and sounds.

If you write letters on the ground, have them run to the “C” or run to the letter that makes the /b/ sound.

When they’re starting to read, have them spell words by running to each letter.

Use chalk to practice their numbers and addition and subtraction. Write the numbers on the ground and have them run to the 4. Or have them run to the answers of  “1 + 1” or “6-2!”

7. Give Them Counters to Finish Their Math

When it’s time to start adding and subtracting, let them use real tangible things that they can move to add or subtract.

They can add and subtract with coins, Cheerios, crackers, or even their favorite toys.

1 Shopkin + 3 Shopkins = 4 Shopkins

8. Give Them Colorful Markers

Grey pencils can be so boring.

Let them use markers–or better yet, smelly markers –to trace their letters, write their name, or write their spelling words.

Rainbow colors make monotonous work more enjoyable and your kids will be used to “Rainbow Writing” from school. 

9. Offer them a Healthy Snack While Kindergarteners do Homework:

My kids live for snacks, so they love to eat snacks while they do their work.

They do a problem and then take a bite.

Offer them “brain food” during this time to boost their minds and memories: berries (especially blueberries), bananas, trail mix, sunbutter and jelly, and avocado (try guacamole and chips).

10. Use Rewards (for a short period of time)

Offer up rewards for when they finish a row of their work…stickers, stars, or even a treat.

Put their favorite food at the end of a row of problems. ..  I’ve used Goldfish Crackers, fruit snacks, and even jelly beans.

When they finish the row, let them eat the treat.

The following week, only put the treat on every other line of work.

Eventually, just put a treat at the end of the page.

The goal is to wean them off of needing or expecting the treat.

With these 10 tips, kindergartner homework will get done sooner without complaints, and without tears.

And your afternoon will go much smoother.

Need more Back to School Help and Ideas? We’ve got you covered:

Reader Interactions

Shelby @Fitasamamabear says

September 14, 2017 at 12:28 pm

There’s homework in kindergarten now?? Actually?! Oi

Nicole Black says

September 15, 2017 at 12:33 pm

In some classes, yes! A lot of Kindergartners don’t start right away though….

Erin Burton says

September 28, 2017 at 12:49 pm

I like that so many of your strategies involve moving. You are correct! Children have already had to sit still for hours at school, listening, following orders, and mentally concentrating (sometimes on things they care nothing about). They need time to get up and move! I am actually an ex-public educator who now homeschools my children. My children will often pace while reading, and sometimes we take it a bit further and study while we take a walk outside. My children are able to concentrate much longer when they move. We probably have an hour’s worth of sit-down time each day. The rest is spent moving, exploring, and playing. Children (well… and adults) are not built to sit for hours without moving. Nice post! 🙂

September 28, 2017 at 1:23 pm

Yes!! A lot of kids have to move to do everything. I force them to sit while they’re eating (I’ve given the Heimlich one too many times) but other than that, who cares if they’re standing or jumping while they spell or read or practice math facts??? Not only will they focus more for some kids, it will actually help them retain the info!!

Flossie McCowald | SuperMomHacks says

September 28, 2017 at 1:18 pm

OK, let me just get out of the way that having homework in K is SICK SICK SICK. (I’m a mama of a 3rd grader and a K student.) But – having said that – your tips are SO great and SO spot-on. Our third grader has ALWAYS struggled with homework; some of these are tricks we have tried with her in the past, some we still use with her now, and some I WISH I’d thought of when she was in K suffering through (what to her was) busywork! Thanks for the great post! 🙂

September 28, 2017 at 1:21 pm

I know a lot of people get angered by this post because of it’s premise. I’m not trying to take a stand in favor of Kinder homework. But if it’s getting assigned–and it is getting assigned– I wanted my readers to have some tips to help them get through it. And you’re right, these tips will apply for anyone trying to do homework… Glad you liked the tips!

Becca @ The Married Cat Lady says

September 28, 2017 at 2:38 pm

I don’t have kids yet, but I definitely want to remember some of these great tips for when I do someday!

Żarty O żydach says

January 29, 2022 at 4:33 am

Definitely, what a great blog and illuminating posts, I will bookmark your site.Best Regards!

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How to Homeschool Kindergarten: 10 Game Changer Tips!

Are you frantically searching, “How do I start homeschooling kindergarten?!”

Or, “How many hours a day do you homeschool kindergarten?”

And, “What subjects do you need to teach in homeschool kindergarten?”

Or the ever-present worry – “Will I go crazy trying to homeschool kindergarten?!”

I was asking the same questions not too long ago.

When I first started homeschooling, my oldest daughter was in first grade.

I knew that I had “cheated” a little bit by not starting with a kindergartener.

My oldest already had a strong foundation in several areas.

She could count to 100, skip count, understand the concepts of addition and subtraction, could read 100 sight words, and could write sentences.

Much more importantly, she understood the concepts of listening, waiting for her turn, and completing work without whining.

She was a breeze to work with.

As I looked at my younger 2 kids, I did worry about how easy or not easy it would be to homeschool them when they hit kindergarten.

Will they be receptive to this idea of reading, practicing handwriting, and doing math?

Or will they laugh at me and run away to play while I beg them to come back and play with the fancy math manipulatives I bought?

Homeschooling Kindergarten…the Struggle is Real

I am about to kick off our 4th year of homeschooling and I just put kindergarten in the books this past spring!

Truth be told, there were some rough days.

There were days where I wondered what I was doing, if they were learning anything, and if I was crazy.

But, that was mainly in the beginning.

Along the way, I stumbled onto some great homeschool kindergarten tips that I know will make all the difference in your year!

How to Homeschool Kindergarten: The 10 Best Tips!

1. Don’t Start Too Early

Many homeschooling parents make the mistake of starting a formal kindergarten curriculum too early.

The mentality always seems to be – the earlier the better !

And who doesn’t want to brag about everything that their 4 year old can do?!

Most traditional school systems do not admit kids that have not turned 5 by September. I happen to have two kids that have birthdays in late fall.

It would be easy to say, “Well, we homeschool, so I’ll just start anyways. I don’t want to waste an entire year.”

For some kids that would work okay…for a while. But then the kid will likely hit an educational wall that they are not developmentally ready to get over.

Maybe they can’t comprehend place value, math facts, phonics, or writing multiple sentences.

Whatever they are struggling with will likely be fixed by 6 months or more of development…but what are you supposed to do in the meantime?

Does the kid feel defeated? Frustrated? Turned off from learning? Burned out from their too early start?

Why not give them that year to be a kid and start kindergarten with the rest of the world next fall?

Or why not wait 6 months and start kindergarten in the spring instead of the fall?

Either way, don’t push your kid too early in order to validate your teaching and the homeschool you’re running.

2. Let Them Pick!

Whenever my kindergartener is a little grumpy about doing school, I always try to find something that looks like a choice…but it’s really not.

I might say:

“Do you want to do math or reading first?”

“Do you want to use the yellow or princess pencil to write your answers?”

“Do you want to count with the purple blocks or the red blocks?”

The kindergartener feels like they had a say in what happened…but the truth is that every choice was to complete their schoolwork.

Be creative with your questions and watch your kid complete their schoolwork with a smile!

3. Make Everything a Game – As Much As Possible

If you find your kindergartener is really struggling with a concept, try to make it a game!

Here are some ideas:

Be a monster hiding under the table and pop out whenever your child skips over a number. See if your kid can count without the monster popping up!

Give your kid a block for every word they sound out/right answer they get. tell them to try and build the tallest block tower they can, create a fake competition between them and a favorite stuffed animal. have the stuffed animal give off the wall answers and let the child build confidence as they answer something closer to right., for any memorization things, see if you can’t find a song on youtube to help them learn it. songs are such a fun way to memorize, a huge favorite of ours: whenever a kid completes a task that was difficult for them, they start running out of the classroom. they know that mom is a hug monster and i will chase them until i tackle them (gently) to the ground and give them a big hug they love and it really helps them to push through the hard moments..

Be original and keep the silliness factor high! You may feel ridiculous, but they will LOVE it!

4. Take Active Breaks. A Lot of Them.

Depending on the curriculum you’re using and the “squirminess” of your child, breaks will be a huge help.

I like to have a morning time with everyone together that covers Bible, our current read-aloud book, and another subject (science, art, music, or history).

Then we have an active break to do chores. The kids get up and move around emptying trashcans, pulling weeds, picking up their rooms, etc.

Then we come back together again and I do one subject (her choice) with my kindergartener. After that lesson, she gets another 10-15 minute break.

Then she does another subject. We continue in this pattern until she is done for the day.

It is never very difficult to get my kindergartener to come to the classroom because she knows she only has to sit for one subject at a time. This will not take “forever.”

It is important to emphasize being active on the breaks to your kindergartener. They need to get out their energy in order to focus and pay attention during lessons.

Sometimes I won’t even say my kid is on a break. I’ll just tell them to run circles around the living room until they’re ready for the next lesson.

Or maybe I’ll say we’re going to do a 10-minute dance party before we start the next subject.

For more ways to get your kids moving inside, check out 10 Indoor Recess Solutions for Homeschoolers .

****When your kindergartener is struggling to complete a lesson and you can see they are frustrated and their energy is low, tell them to stand up and run around the house for 5 laps, then do 20 jumping jacks, and then run around the house 5 more times. This movement (or any variation of this) helps tremendously to clear their mind, lift their mood, and help them to come back fresh to finish the lesson.

5. Give Them Positive Motivation Not Punishment

It would be a grave mistake to think you can threaten your kindergartener into finishing their work.

“Johnny, if you don’t finish your handwriting work, no TV for the rest of the day!”

This kind of negative punishment attitude will create a power struggle scenario that you do not want to deal with. Especially as they get older.

Your homeschooler will dread school, and you will too.

So what are you supposed to do?

At every turn, find a positive way to motivate your child.

“Don’t forget, when you finish your work you get to pick out one of those cool stickers to put on it!”

That kind of attitude will get you miles further with a 5-year-old.

I motivate my kids with a sticker chart on our wall. When they finish their work for the day with a good attitude, they pick out a sticker for the chart. After 5 days, they pick out a special treat from our treat box as a reward for all their hard work.

For more on positive motivation check out How to Motivate Your Homeschooler and Rewarding vs. Bribing in Homeschooling

6. Watch Your Language

I’m not talking about profanity here – although definitely don’t use those words either – ha!

If you grew up in a traditional school setting, you likely used a lot of negative talk about school and didn’t even realize it was happening.

Maybe you heard or said a lot of things like:

“Yes, it’s finally the weekend!”

“Ugh, school is tomorrow. I hate Mondays.”

“Yes, it’s a snow day – no school!”

I know these sound really innocent, but they subtly say that school is boring, and not doing school is way better.

Can you imagine your traditional school teacher using the above sentences? Probably not.

It would be pretty shocking!

Remember that as a homeschool teacher, you are setting the tone for the attitude about school.

Don’t say things like:

“Hurry up already, so we can be done with school for the day.”

“Ugh, let’s get going so we can get this over with.”

“Yay! It’s Friday, we’re almost done with school for the week.”

Bottle all that up and share it with your friends, spouse, or your coffee cup – but not your kindergartener.

7. Laugh Instead of Yelling

Yes, there will be times that you want to yell at your kindergartener.

Your patience will be shot, and you’ll start to feel anger welling up. Your instinct will be to yell , snap , or use rapid speech to get your kindergartener to comply.

When there is tension in the room and you feel anger coming on, recognize it, and do the opposite of yelling – laugh!

Kindergarteners are an easy crowd , so they’ll laugh at just about anything.

Pretend to fall out of your chair and say someone must have put slippery slime on it.

Say someone should call the doctor (in an overly serious voice) because your kid’s face is stuck in a silly position (when they’re sad, mopey, angry).

Pretend you saw a tiny dragon baby running across the table.

And my personal favorite: “I’m glad that you’re sad/angry. I don’t like happy children. They annoy me. In fact, I forbid you to laugh or even smile. What is that?! I said no smiling! Stop it this instant!”

My kids are usually rolling on the floor at this point. Every. Time.

Laughter for kids is like magic. It breaks through the walls they’ve set up because they’re frustrated, overwhelmed, or angry. It helps them to reset and come back to the table fresh.

It also helps to diffuse your own tension and frustration as an adult.

So the next time you feel tension rising – laugh! See how it changes the energy in the room immediately and completely alters the course of your homeschool day.

8. Keep the Days Short

Homeschool kindergarten should not last more than 1-2 hours per day.

Seatwork should not go beyond 1 hour – and that would be pushing it.

If you have a great read-aloud book, a cool art project, or a fun science experiment going on then you might see that time stretch a little longer.

But for the most part, do not push your kid to go beyond 1-2 hours of school per day. In the one-on-one setting of homeschool, it is just not necessary (and maybe detrimental) to go any longer than that.

Kids at this age desperately need gross motor play, pretend time, park time, outside time, and friend time – just as much as they need school time.

To help you prioritize your homeschool routine, remember that reading, writing, and math are the core subjects you want to cover every day. Everything else is considered enrichment.

The enrichment subjects are important, but not worth keeping a fussy, squirmy kindergartener in their seat longer than they can developmentally handle.

9. Read Until You Can’t Read Anymore

A huge piece of kindergarten is learning to read and instilling a love of books in children. One of the best ways you an do that is to make sure you set aside time to read for at least 30 minutes a day to your kid.

This reading time will increase their attention span, expand their imagination, and give them a strong desire to learn to read themselves (like mom does!).

Some ideas to get your reading time up:

Go to the library every week and pick up new books – variety keeps the kids interested!

Read during meal and snack times. kids are more likely to sit still and be quiet while eating., pick out a chapter book that has been made into a movie. kids (even little ones) love the idea of being able to “see” the story in a movie after the book is complete. here is a list of our favorite 25 read aloud books that have been made into movies., involve dad kids are always so excited to climb into dad’s lap and listen to stories. this is an area he can easily step into homeschooling and help you out, put your tv and tablets in a storage closet for a while. yep, i did that, and its probably one of the best things i’ve ever done in my homeschool. check out my crazy mom moment here  – screen time struggles: the game changer that saved my homeschool ., 10. post a daily routine so your kid knows when they are done for the day.

All homeschooling parents want their kids to fall in love with learning.

But the reality is that some days kids just want to know, “ Are we done yet?! ”

My kids love having their scheduled posted every day so they know what needs to be finished for the day to be done.

At first I thought this was something only my oldest daughter would appreciate, but I quickly found out that my younger kids also thrived on a posted schedule.

What does that look like exactly?

In our homeschool, I use routine cards that have all of our subjects on them.

I post the subjects for the day on our whiteboard and make small notes next to the cards about what we’re going to do today.

As we finish each subject, my kids get to turn over that subject on the whiteboard.

Here is be a sample of kindergarten routine cards in our whiteboard:

You could make cards like this for your whiteboard or fridge. Or you could write your subjects on a piece of paper and have your kid cross them out as they go along with their homeschool day.

Recap How to Homeschool Kindergarten + Free Printable!

There you have it!

My top ten tips to show you how to homeschool kindergarten – with confidence and skill!

You can absolutely do this – and do it well , Homeschool Mama.

I have started this blog exactly for people like you – to get you started and keep you going on your homeschool journey!

Did you think those routine cards were pretty nifty ?

You can download a free copy of my standard routine cards today when you subscribe to The Simple Homeschooler (no SPAM ever, unsubscribe anytime)!

You can expect Monday morning emails full of homeschool support, encouragement, freebies, curriculum deals, and laughs!

Just fill out the form below and download your free routine cards today!

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You will love how this simple tool can keep your kids (and you!) on track and productive!

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Welcome to The Simple Homeschooler Community!

Want to save all this info for later? I totally get it. Just pin it to your favorite Pinterest Board and share it with your homeschool friends and followers!

Heya. I homeschool my seven year old twins in order to save money. Since we live near a farm I think that we will visit it fairly soon. We prefer to have fun at the museum instead of in a zoo however. My family like to hear nice concerts on the radio and we also love to bake cakes. I do a weekly art and gardening lesson as well. In those lessons I tend to focus on teaching techniques and skills as much as possible. In addition I include a hour long tennis lesson and music lesson too. I even do a fun Bible study lesson once a week.

It is fun. Other lessons are a dance lesson on Wednesday afternoon, a math lesson on Thursday and literature lesson on Monday afternoons after lunch. I like to squeeze in a themed life skills class on Friday mornings. In the fall this year I’m hoping to start up history and geography classes. We already fit in a long lesson in French on Wednesday mornings.

Reading during lunch–that’s genius! My girls are always goofing off during lunch. Thank you for all of these!

Your post is wonderful! Thank you for the tips! Very helpful

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Homework in kindergarten? What’s best for students?

Kindergarten cafe.

You can't teach the child without teaching the WHOLE child! Welcome to Kindergarten Cafe, LLC - your home for teaching ideas, activities, and strategies to support you in teaching the whole child! I am Zeba McGibbon and I love creating resources for teachers and sharing my teaching experience with others. Kindergarten Cafe is aimed for kindergarten, but teachers of Preschool-Second grade can find resources here for their students! I love to connect with other teachers so please reach out and say hello!

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Sub tub for a smooth and easy absence, ideas for classroom jobs and why they are important, 5 steps to making an interactive seesaw activity, quick and easy movement breaks for distance learning.

Homework in kindergarten? Sending home some worksheets ends up being more work for you, the teacher, causes stress and struggles for the families, and isn’t effective for the students. So what can we do instead?

Homework in kindergarten? Research shows it’s not effective

Research shows that the cons outweigh any benefits homework might provide. Especially, if the teacher feels they have to provide homework every day, then the purpose of the homework might be just to have something as opposed to being of value to the students. It ends up being busy work that families struggle and fight with their students to complete. And what do teachers do with the homework? Most often, with this kind of busy work, teachers throw it away, because they can’t know for sure how much the child actually did independently versus how much the parents helped or even did the homework for the child. Standard homework just isn’t worth all the negatives.

But parents like homework…

Parents often complain when teachers and districts eliminate homework. When you hear what their complaints are though, you hear that they want extra practice for their child because they want them to succeed, and they want to know what their child is learning in school . Alternatives to homework can still address these concerns that parents have while making learning fun and engaging for both students and their families.

Homework in kindergarten? What about Homework Bingo!

Homework in kindergarten? Instead of sending home paper worksheets that are mindless, I like to use Homework Bingo to show families how much learning is already happening in their everyday life. Each board has simple tasks that connects to the learning happening in the classroom and can easily be done within the family’s busy life. It doesn’t require a lot of time or a lot of materials. Additionally, if the family doesn’t have time that day, then they don’t have to do it.

The goal would be to try and get bingo, but if the family wanted more ideas for learning at home then they could keep going. Families are very busy and so the homework shouldn’t take too long if the child needs adult help to complete it. I know from my experience that families really appreciated getting the Homework Bingo and seeing how easy it is to connect our learning in school to learning at home.

Book Buddies

What’s better than homework in kindergarten? Book Buddies! Every weekend I send home Book Buddies with my students. Students don’t get one every weekend, so it is a special thing when they get their turn. The Book Buddy bags each center around a theme and have a few books inside along with related activities. These activities always connect to the learning we are doing in the classroom and families and students love doing them together. I’ve heard from families that they love getting these bags and knowing that, if they have the time that weekend, they can enjoy completing them together as a family. It’s a great way to see the learning that we are doing in school and see how easy it can be to connect fun, engaging activities to some great read-alouds. Plus, when families read together, it fosters a great love of reading!

Home Intervention Bags

Some students do require more practice to learn certain skills, but do they need homework in kindergarten? When a student is struggling to learn a school within my small groups and the school day, I send them home with a home intervention bag .  The bag includes directions on how to play the simple and engaging games that help the student practice the skill they need help with. I only send home a few activities at a time, focusing on the most pressing and foundational skills. When families can give 10-15 minutes a day to these activities, I can always tell when I see them in my small groups. When the games are simple, fun, and quick, it’s more likely for the student to want to do it and it’s easier for the families to fit them into their busy schedules.

Kindergarten Home Support Bags

Homework in kindergarten? Homework on its own just doesn’t offer enough benefits to outweigh all the negatives. Instead, teachers and families can use Homework Bingo, book buddy bags, and home intervention bags, to help students enjoy some routine practice of important academic skills.

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There I was in a hot yoga studio with plenty of bright natural light and bending myself into pretzel like positions for the very first time.

Homeschooling Kindergarten: 10 Tips for a Successful Year

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Homeschooling kindergarten can be such an exciting time. It’s usually the first time parents attempt any formal education with their child.

Children who are just entering kindergarten are generally filled with wonder and are excited to explore, discover, and learn.

But, it can also be a time of anxiety for us homeschool moms. Is this your first time teaching kindergarten? Are you worried about what to teach your kindergartner? Or how to make sure they get enough socialization?

And let’s not even talk about how much you’re worried about teaching our baby to read!

Do you wonder what a typical homeschool kindergarten schedule looks like? Or, maybe you just need some encouragement that you aren’t going to mess it all up and leave your child hating homeschool.

Today, I’d like to share ten tips for a successful homeschool year. I’ve already gotten one of my girls through homeschool and my second is just starting. I’m here to share what you should be concerned about and what is just unnecessary worry.

In case you’re in a hurry, I’ll give you the ten tips for homeschooling kindergarten here, then go into more detail further down.

Ten Tips for a Successful Kindergarten Homeschool Year

• Allow time for lots of unstructured play
• Jump on your child’s curiosity.
• Read aloud.
• Focus on counting and beginning language.
• Use games and activities for structured learning times.
• Take it easy on handwriting.
• Answer their questions.
• Keep a flexible homeschool schedule.
• Get outside a lot.
• Homeschool does not mean school at home.

One other thing I want to mention is that it important to make sure you are checking all the legal boxes for homeschooling in your state. While homeschooling is legal in every state, the requirements for homeschool documentation vary largely from state to state.

HSLDA is an invaluable resource when it comes to figuring out what to do and what paperwork to file. They are a homeschooling Legal Defense group that provides tons of info on homeschooling and provides legal help to homeschoolers who find themselves in legal trouble for any reason related to homeschooling.

Their website has links to each state and the requirements to properly register for homeschooling in that state. You can also become an HSLDA member. There are numerous benefits such as a magazine, access to exclusive homeschooling resources on their site, and free legal help if needed.

1) Allow time for lots of unstructured play

Studies show that the right brain develops first in children. We’ve all heard people saying “oh, I’m more of a left-brain person.” Or, “I tend to use my right brain more.” When people say things like this, they are usually talking about whether they are more of an emotional, creative person or more of a logical, data type person.

Well, studies have shown that the right side of the brain develops sooner in children. In fact, the right side of the brain, which governs empathy, creativity, and imagination, to name a few things develops by the time a child is three to four years old!

Now it makes total sense why young children are so imaginative in their play and creative in their storytelling! That part of their brain has developed the most.

However, that left side. The left side doesn’t develop until about seven years old. The left side takes care of things like literacy, language, analysis, numeracy, and more. All those things that are covered in worksheets and sitting still and paying attention – left brain.

This is why unstructured play is so important when homeschooling kindergarten.

The right brain is more interested in being and going through the process as opposed to what the outcome is. This is why some young children are not at all interested in learning their numbers and letters. They just want to play. to be.

The fact that the left side of the brain doesn’t generally start to kick into until seven should give you reassurance if your child doesn’t want to learn her numbers or letters at age five.

There is still plenty of time in the next few years to learn them. And, I would suggest, it will be much easier if you wait until they are ready to learn them instead of pushing them before they are ready.

“Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.” ~ Albert Einstein

Play allows children to use the right side of their brains, but don’t be fooled. They are also learning a lot. Here are just a few of the skills that children are working on when they are playing:

• gross and fine motor skills
• problem-solving
• cooperation
• negotiation
• expressing emotions
• self-control
• physical health
• mental health
• spatial skills

Play is such an important part of childhood. It should be an important part of homeschooling kindergarten, too.

Another reason for allowing plenty of time for play when you homeschool kindergarten is that kindergarten is often the first time a child is introduced to actual sit-at-the-table school time.

If your child is not ready to learn her numbers and letters, or how to write and you force the issue, it will be frustrating for both of you. Maybe worse though, is that you just made his first school experience a negative one because you wanted him to do things his brain wasn’t ready for.

Now, I’m not saying just play all day. You can easily teach about letters, numbers, and just about anything through play and reading to your child.

You can count out groups of legos while you build a tower. You can build a red tower or a blue tower or a red/blue tower and talk about patterns.

Just gently incorporate learning into their play a little bit each day. If your child wants to do more, then do more. If not, then don’t sweat it.

2) Jump on your child’s curiosity.

What exactly do I mean, jump on your child’s curiosity?

I mean, every time your child asks a question or expresses interest in a topic, take advantage of that moment to foster their curiosity and love of learning.

Your son just loooves dragons. So, learn about dragons. Get some dragons to play to add to his toybox. Check out books about dragons. Watch How to Train Your Dragon .

When you incorporate topics that your children tell you are important to them, you are showing that they are important to you. This can build their self-esteem and confidence. It also keeps the awe and love of learning alive.

I would venture that instilling a love of learning in your child is one of your biggest goals in homeschooling. Well, when they are just starting out in school, getting excited about what they are excited about it a great (and easy) way to do that.

It might mean that you don’t cover the letter of the alphabet you had planned for that day. But, you could cover D for dragon. Or W for wings. Or T for tail. Or C for claws.

If your child is obsessed with a topic, then use that topic in your structured school time. This will not only satisfy his curiosity about that particular subject, but it will also encourage more curiosity.

Hmm, Mom was excited when I asked about dragons. I bet she’ll be excited when I ask about lions, too!

When you pounce on your child’s curiosity and let it flourish, they are more likely to come to you again with new things they want to learn about. And that is how you foster a love of learning in your child.

3) Read aloud.

There are so many benefits to reading with your children.

You are spending quality time with your children.

Often times you are snuggled up close on the couch , so they are getting physical closeness with you, as well.

They are hearing lots and lots of words, so that, when they do begin to read, their vocabulary bank will be amazing.

You are working on pre-reading skills like reading from left to right, letters are grouped into words, and reading goes page by page.

And you can use books to teach just about any subject .

I highly suggest avoiding dry, textbook type books in kindergarten and instead going for good ol’ fashioned picture books.

There are picture books on just about anything you can think of. The storylines will be simple enough for your child to understand and the pictures will keep their interest.

Looking for book suggestions? These are all wonderful books that contain booklists for reading aloud to your children:

The Read-Aloud Family

Honey for a Child’s Heart

Give Your Child the World

The Read-Aloud Handbook

4) Focus on counting and beginning language.

One of the biggest concerns I hear from moms who are starting to homeschool their kindergartner is around teaching them to read.

But, while most public schools do teach children to read in kindergarten – the standards don’t actually require it!

Now, I’m not saying that most homeschoolers follow the Common Core, and I don’t really, either. But, I do glance at it to see if we are loosely where we should be.

The Common Core mentions knowing a few sight words , sounding out CVC words , and using “grade-level phonics” to decode words . CVC words are three-letter words that follow the pattern consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC). So, words like mat, cat, sit, etc.

Those standards, to me, do not say “your child must be reading by the end of kindergarten.”

If your child is ready to start reading, great! But, if your child is not ready, don’t worry about it! My oldest didn’t read until the middle of first grade (despite a few grandparents that were suuuure she was ready in kindergarten) and she took off right away. Because she was ready.

So, what do I teach in kindergarten language arts?

You can certainly talk a lot about language and words. Read a lot of books and talk about the plot. Talk about the characters. What is an author? What does an illustrator do? Have your child tell the story back in her own words. Ask them questions about the book.

Most of the skills for reading in kindergarten are really pre-reading skills. There should be lots of talking about letters, both uppercase and lowercase. You can talk about basic grammar rules – ending punctuation and beginning each sentence with a capital letter. You read from left to right and top to bottom. That sort of thing.

Working on syllables is another fun pre-reading skill to work on in your kindergarten homeschool. Children love to clap along as you count out the syllables.

Recognizing and providing rhyming words is another fun reading skill to work into your homeschool kindergarten schedule. You can read lots of rhyming books.

A game we like to play around our house is when someone chooses a word and then everyone else has to say a word that rhymes. My kids love to make up words that rhyme.

What rhymes with dog?

flog, magog, log, patog.

Yep, those are all answers my kids give. I don’t care if it’s an actual word . In fact, making up a word is even better.

As long as they are understanding what makes two words rhyme, then they can be as silly as they want. They think its more fun (and funny) when they make up silly words like that. And kindergarten should be fun!

What about math activities for kindergarten?

Math in kindergarten should be fun and hands-on.

Everything your child needs to learn for kindergarten math can be learned through play .

The focus of kindergarten math is counting and organizing. Count to 100 Count by ones Count by tens Count from a number that is not 1 Write numbers 0-20 Count objects in a group Compare two groups (more, less, etc.) Classify objects in a group by a measurable attribute (height, weight) Know some 2-D and 3-D shapes Use fingers and objects to represent addition and subtraction Work on adding to ten and adding to five Describe positions (above, under, below, beside) Make real-world shapes (hello Mad Mattr and Clay) Talk about and know place value up to the tens place

Ok, the place value one might be a bit tougher to incorporate directly into play. But, you can certainly use Legos to talk about it.

Or dinosaurs.

Or sparkly gems.

Whatever your child is in to. It doesn’t have to be counting bears or snap cubes!

There are 14 skills on that list for kindergarten math . Fourteen! That’s it!

That definitely leaves plenty of time for unstructured play.

5) Use games and activities for structured learning times.

Games are a great way to learn through play. You can use board games, apps, or just little activities you engage in with your child that happen to be teaching him to count to 100 .

In our house, we like to play Uno , Rummikub , Mastermind , and do puzzles.

Uno and Rummikub teach number recognition, grouping, counting, etc.

Mastermind teaching logic, deductive reasoning, and problem-solving.

Working puzzles is a great way to practice spatial reasoning and persistence in your kindergarten homeschool.

One nice thing about games that are geared for kindergarten set is that they are generally pretty short.

One of the reasons kids can struggle in kindergarten is the requirement for them to sit still and pay attention for longer periods of time. But, a game that lasts 10-15 minutes is perfect. Then, they can go play something else and their mind will work on sorting out what they just learned.

Providing toys that allow students to work on certain skills is also a great way to incorporate learning through play .

6) Take it easy on handwriting.

I frequently hear homeschool parents expressing concern that their kindergarteners can’t write well. Did you know that the standards say “print many upper- and lowercase letters”?

Kindergarten skills generally focus on a lot of recognition and talking about topics. There is actually very little writing required in kindergarten .

I found this a big relief because a lot of kindergartens still have trouble holding a pencil. Not because there is any sort of problem, it’s just that their little hand muscles haven’t quite developed yet.

If you want to practice writing with your kindergartener, there are lots of alternative ways to go about it.

• trace words
• write in sand
• write in shaving cream
• rainbow sensory writing
• write letters using squishy bags

If you are just starting out with letters or writing words, a great first word for kindergartners is their name.

Kids love their names. One of my favorite activities for helping children write their nems is rainbow name writing . Simply write your child’s name in black marker or crayon. Then have your child trace over top in several different colors. You can let your child choose five or so colors and write their name and create a unique art piece all in one!

I mentioned before how there is not a lot of actual writing in the kindergarten standards, but there is a lot of communicating.

A lot of the “writing” standards call for using a combination of “drawing, dictating, and writing”. You can vary the amounts of each of those depending on the current skill level of your kiddo.

Maybe at the beginning of kindergarten your child likes to just draw a picture to express a thought or tell a story. She might dictate a sentence or two to you about what is happening in the picture. That’s all totally fine for kindergarten!

Maybe by the end of kindergarten she is drawing a picture and copying a sentence that you wrote out for her. Or, maybe she is still just dictating the sentences to you. Or, maybe she writes a few words and you write the rest. You get the idea. Be flexible.

7) Answer their questions.

This tip kind of goes along with jumping on their curiosity, but in a different way. Earlier, we talked about letting your child’s curiosity guide the topics you cover when homeschooling kindergarten. Now, we are going to focus on just simply answer his questions when he asks them.

Which is probably all the time.

Children are curious and when they ask a question, there are really only two options:

You answer their question, or

you don’t.

When you get frustrated with all the questions coming out of your five-year-old’s mouth, you are sending the signal that the question is not important, the information is not important, and ultimately, that she is not important .

But, when you look them in the eye and answer their question you are sending so many wonderful signals !

Paying attention and answering your child’s questions show them that

1) they are important

2) you value curiosity and wonder

3) learning new things is important and valued in your home

Now, don’t get me wrong, certain times for questions are better than others.

When you are running late for the doctor appointment because Suzy can’t find her shoes and Billy asks “where do babies come from?”…maybe not perfect timing.

But, a good answer might be “that’s a great question and it has a long answer, so let’s talk about it when we’re in the car .”

Answering your kindergartner’s questions is a great way to encourage her curiosity and foster that love of learning that so many homeschool mom’s want for their children.

So much of the kindergarten requirements are focused around language and discussion that answering questions is a great way to cover lots of ground – for free!

Here are just a few of the kindergarten Common Core standards that are covered when you discuss the answer to your child’s question: >state opinions or preferences about a topic (what do they think about the topic?) >participate in shared research (help them look up the answer) demonstrate command of English grammar when speaking >Use frequently occurring nouns and verbs >form regular plural verbs >understand and use question words >Use the most frequent prepositions (to, from, in, out, on, off, for, of, by, with) >Produce complete sentences >Identify new meanings for familiar words >demonstrate an understanding of frequently occurring verbs and adjectives >participate in collaborative conversations with adults >follow rules for conversations (listen to others, take turns speaking) >continue a conversation with multiple exchanges >Confirm an understanding of information by asking and answering questions >ask and answer questions in order to seek help, get information, or clarify something >speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings, and ideas clearly

8) Keep a flexible homeschool schedule.

Raise your hand if you are one of the many well-intentioned homeschool parents who thinks they might need a complete curriculum in order to properly homeschool kindergarten.

Yeah, I did, too.

And then, I realized that there was no way that we would cover all the material and it would just be a waste of money. And there would be lots of arguing.

Me telling her it was time for school.

Her wanting to play.

You get the idea.

Kindergarten aged kiddos are wired to play. It’s how they learn.

I mean, my girls looove worksheets and even they are hot and cold on them from day to day and week to week.

Kids pay more attention to academic tasks when they are given frequent, brief opportunities for free play . Gwen Dewar, Ph.D.

Having a flexible kindergarten homeschool daily schedule is key to a successful year.

A simple alternative to a daily homeschooling schedule is a weekly homeschooling schedule.

Instead of picking out five things you want to cover on Monday, pick out five things you want to cover that week .

Maybe you want to work on vowels, writing her name, counting to 20, the letter H, and counting by tens. Great! Do one or two of those each day, read a bunch of books together, talk about the books, and play. You will c over so much during your school year and it will be so much less stressful.

A simple kindergarten homeschool schedule also allows you to feel like you are accomplishing what needs to get done and still provides time for jumping on their curiosity and answering their questions.

What counts as school in kindergarten?

Depending on what state you live in , your documentation requirements will vary. However, most states have an hourly requirement to fulfill.

So what can you count as school time?

Here are just a few ideas of acceptable school activities. But, really, the list is endless. ~reading books ~playing with Legos ~building with blocks ~playing outside ~dress-up/pretend play ~coloring ~drawing/painting ~crafts ~playing with clay/Mad Mattr

9) Get outside a lot.

There are so many health benefits to having your kindergartner play outside.

We’ve all heard that playing outside helps build a stronger immune system. But, did you also know that it helps make them physically stronger, improves their cognitive abilities, helps develop their social/emotional skills, and increases their attention span?

I mean, we should be outside all day, right?

Yep, basically.

Being outside can be just “go play outside” or it can also be “let’s go outside and…”.

Some ideas for structured play outside might be scavenger hunts, doing counting or geometry with chalk, building towers with rocks. Lots of ideas for outside learning through play.

10) Homeschool does not mean school at home.

One nice thing about homeschooling kindergarten is your small class size . I mean, most of the time it’s one! You don’t have to spend time on classroom management, so you need less time to do more stuff. And you don’t need all those routines to keep order in the classroom. Kindergarten teacher are amazing. They keep all those young kids focused, paying attention, and semi-organized for an entire day. Every day. Just because you are doing homeschooling doesn’t mean it has to look like school at home. You are working with a fidgety, curious, excited little learner. Play to her strengths and tailor your days to fit her needs. I hope you now understand just how much can be covered in your homeschool kindergarten without having to resort to worksheets and structure galore.

Finally…

Have fun. Kindergarten should be a fun time for both you and your child. It’s a time of wonder and excitement. Don’t waste that. Have a great year!

Please share or save this post below, so other homeschool moms can have a great homeschool kindergarten year, too!

7 thoughts on “Homeschooling Kindergarten: 10 Tips for a Successful Year”

I could say that I love reading this article because I was able to gain a lot of advices or suggestions about this topic. I found it very helpful because it is also informative and reliable.

Hi! I’m so glad you enjoyed it and found it useful. I hope you’re having a great school year!

Wow, this blog is awesome. Very interesting and impressive. It was also informative. Thank you for sharing this article. Great work.

I am actually homeschooling my four-year-old grandson this year. Next year he will be in school so I am trying to prepare him since I worked in schools and don’t want him to be ready. But I’m finding his enthusiasm has suddenly waned. I question if I have pushed too hard although I have been careful not to do that. He is smart and just naturally picks everything up quickly, but I can see that maybe I have structured it too much in some areas. Learning through play is what I will focus on more than ever now! Thank you for this article… I want him to continue loving learning. Any advice on socialization as mom is still worried about group events due to lingering Covid?

I am actually homeschooling my four-year-old grandson this year. Next year he will be in school so I am trying to prepare him since I worked in schools and want! him to be ready. But I’m finding his enthusiasm has suddenly waned. I question if I have pushed too hard although I have been careful not to do that. He is smart and just naturally picks everything up quickly, but I can see that maybe I have structured it too much in some areas. Learning through play is what I will focus on more than ever now! Thank you for this article… I want him to continue loving learning. Any advice on socialization as mom is still worried about group events due to lingering Covid?

Hi Karen, It’s so easy to over structure kindergarten because we are so excited to be teaching our loved ones! I’m definitely guilty of it at times, too. Learning through play is great way to keep that love of learning going and still learn a TON! As far as socialization during Covid it can definitely be challenging. We have had luck with outdoor playtimes and activities – meeting at parks, etc. Wishing you and your grandson the best experience!

I was so nervous regarding my five-year old and what societal standards reflect as “the right way.” Fact is, these additional pressures I have put on myself of, “it should look like” are good up to a point. Meaning, I cannot compare to what another family is doing with his/her child because I know not their background? Similarly, the fact I am seeking answers suggests I am taking the right “course“ of action. HA! Seriously, I am just a mom with one child and desire the best for my son as any other parent knows. In addition to all ‘we moms’ are exposed to (in a digital era) these tips have provided incredible simplicity and reassurance.

Thank you for being a resource of reason.

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Books and Giggles

40 ENGAGING Free Kindergarten Worksheets for School and Home Learning

With everyone home on an extended “vacation”, lots of teachers and families are looking for free kindergarten worksheets. But little kids don’t like to sit and do worksheets all day! (nor should they).

You don’t want to add to their screen time either.

Enter hands-on worksheets and printables!

In a classroom setting, these can involve special materials that families might not have at home. To help out, I’ve rounded up a selection of some super engaging worksheets and printable activities that use items families are likely to have on hand.

Free Early Literacy Worksheets & Printables

Many of these free kindergarten worksheets and activities are also perfect for academically advanced preschoolers.

Printable Alphabet Activities

Working on letter sounds, letter recognition, and writing letters doesn’t have to be boring with these fun printable activities!

Clockwise from the top right:

Ducks-in-a-row letter matching worksheets  – I show these being used with do-a-dot markers, but children could also use cotton balls and paint, or just color with crayons.

Circus Play Dough and Letter Mats – a fun, creative way for kids to practice pre-reading and letter knowledge skills.

Easter Egg Letter Recognition worksheets – color these with crayon and then paint with watercolor – or just color the whole thing.

Spring Alphabet Worksheets – these are designed to be filled in with stamp markers (a.k.a. emoji markers), but you can also use a cotton swab and paint. Kids LOVE these!

Transportation Alphabet Playdough Mats – another fun playdough mat for learning ABCs, sure to appeal to preschoolers.

Bunny Hop Alphabet Board Game – Get the kids hopping while they name letters and letter sounds.

Alphabet Chart Activities – print one or two color pages and use it for several different letter practice activities.

Lego Duplo Animal Alphabet Cards – bring along reluctant learners and enthusiastic builders with these clever free printable cards.

Early Reading and Writing Printables

4 Seasons Emergent Readers – these free printable booklets can be personalized with your child’s name to make reading time extra-relevant.

The Little Red Hen Activities – practice fluency with the free emergent reader and letter sounds with a cute printable activity.

Robot Sight Word Game – type in the sight words your child is learning. Or, you could even use it to teach letter identification, letter sounds, or math facts. There are several other themed game boards available too, including a Unicorn and a Dinosaur version.

Sequencing Cards – story sequencing is an important reading comprehension skill, and these cards are an engaging way to practice it.

Letter Collage – Make it easy for little learners to “write” with these printable alphabet pages

Free PreK/K Math Worksheets & Printables

Some of these are more for preschool or struggling kindergartners, while others are more advanced or come in several levels.

Left to right by row:

Popcorn Counting Mats – a hands-on way to practice identifying numbers and counting from 1 to 20.

Snack Time Addition – print out one of these mats and use small snacks to work on addition.

Superhero Number Recognition Game – print out these bingo-style cards and number card deck to practice instantly recognizing and naming numbers through 20. Kids can use any small object as card markers.

Monster Math Dice Activity – practice counting, number writing, and numeral recognition while doing a fun drawing game. Also try Robot Math , which is the same activity, but involves drawing a robot instead of a monster.

Sensory Bin Number Puzzles – while not strictly a worksheet, this adorable printable looks like an engaging way to practice counting and number recognition.

Indoor Scavenger Hunt – children count common household objects with this cute printable worksheet.

Complete the Pattern Germ Worksheets – completing patterns is an early math skill, and this relevant printable is a hands-on way to practice it.

Farm Theme Sorting Worksheets – preschoolers can work the early math skill of sorting with this cute farm theme cut and paste activity.

Number Hunt – a more open-ended version of an indoor scavenger hunt.

Letter Sudoku – (not pictured) yes, these use letters, but I’m including them in the math section since they work on logical thinking skills. Great for kids who crave a challenge!

Calendar Time Printable – have calendar time at home with this done-for-you free printable.

Number Line Game – build number sense with a fun bingo game that comes in 3 different levels.

Rainforest Frog Math Games – work on a variety of early math skills with this cute rainforest themed printable set.

Free Science Worksheets and Printables

Growing a Flower Playdough Mat – reinforce the concept of what a flower needs to grow with this pretty printable.

Human Body Puzzles – match the puzzle pieces for 6 organs in this engaging free printable activity.

Forest Food Chain Cards – create different possible food chains with these colorful cards. This post also includes a suggested book list – or you can sign up for a free account on BrainPOP junior and watch their informative food chain video .

Weather Chart Activity – use this free printable to observe and track the weather.

Sink or Float Experiment – grab all the fresh fruit and veggies in the house for a memorable science experiment (don’t worry, no produce will be harmed in this activity!)

Free Social Studies Printables

Printable Continent Puzzle – okay, this is a puzzle, not a worksheet. But if you want to fit in some hands-on geography this is a fun way to teach about the continents.

Not pictured, but these look like good free resources for kindergarten social studies:

Needs vs. Wants Worksheet – cut, sort, and paste the needs and wants cards in this kindergarten social studies activity.

Community Helpers Puzzles – match community workers with the tools they use, with help from some simple sentences.

Community Helper Hats – print out these adorable hats for some educational pretend play!

Printable Fine Motor Skills Activities

Clockwise, from the top right:

Glue Dot Practice – read aloud (or watch on youtube) the story Put Me in the Zoo , and then have fun practicing the important fine motor skill of using ‘just a dot’ of glue.

Hungry Caterpillar Hole-Punching – retell the favorite story while working on fine motor skills. Not everyone has a hole punch, but for those that do this is super fun!

Dot Dabber Butterfly worksheets – If you have a kid who loves using bingo dot markers, they won’t want to miss dabbing on wings to these butterflies.

Make a Face – print out this simple page and fill in the face in one of the 5 suggested ways from materials you have at home.

Lion’s Mane Cutting Activity – use this cute free printable template for some fun scissors practice.

Want to find all these fun free worksheets and printables again later? Here’s an image you can save to Pinterest:

Thank you so much! I work with Multiple Disabilities Students and some of these are great for me.

What a great resource! I am pinning these free kindergarten worksheets now.

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Homeschool Kindergarten: 8 Best Practices and Strategies

Introduction To Homeschooling Kindergarten Kids

How to make the right schedule for kindergarten homeschooling, what subjects are taught in a homeschool kindergarten curriculum, defining the right kindergarten learning objectives, 10 important reading list for kindergarten homeschooling, how you can encourage reading better, 8 best kindergarten homeschooling tips, how do you assess readiness for kindergarten, setting the right kindergarten homeschool routine, frequently asked questions (faqs).

When looking for the best ways on how to homeschool kindergarten kids, it is important to reflect on what’s best for them. You can leverage the necessary teaching tools to help them grow while giving them the right principles for an early foundation.

Kindergarten is also an excellent time to begin homeschooling , as you can mold their early work ethic, habits, and schedules. You can focus on a 365-day schooling experience while customizing the curriculum to fit their learning style .

In fact, the root of the word “kindergarten” focuses on nourishing the minds of young ones like a plant in a garden. It is important to provide them the right skills, opportunities, and infrastructure to help them grow organically.

SplashLearn: Most Comprehensive Learning Program for PreK-5

SplashLearn inspires lifelong curiosity with its game-based PreK-5 learning program loved by over 40 million children. With over 4,000 fun games and activities, it’s the perfect balance of learning and play for your little one.

Let’s have a look at our homeschooling program for kids without missing anything!

One of the most important aspects of homeschooling kindergarteners is to look at your local state requirements. This can help you set a foundation for what subjects, lessons, and skills to impart to your children. You can create a lesson plan and a vision for the school year.

You can also focus on starting early with some basic language, math and social sciences skills to engage them. You can stock up on some educational toys , books, and props that can help you teach different subjects easily.

You’ll also get a sense of what your child responds to the best. Different teaching trategies can be used when homeschooling, whether that be through book reading or direct instructions. You can also use online videos and animations to help kids visually learn about new subjects.

You’re also trying to understand your children’s strengths and weaknesses, in which case you can start the school year with subjects they love. If they also enjoy talking about animals or plants, you can use metaphors and examples about those passion subjects when teaching math in a fun way .

The right way to approach scheduling for a homeschooled child is to keep things flexible. You want to balance timing and teaching duration to make the lessons impactful. You also want your child to remember the lesson after it has been taught. Retention is key when it comes to homeschooling for kindergarten kids.

You don’t want to push past the 2-3 hours a day limit of attention span and engagement while also limiting teaching to around 4 days a week. You can schedule the time spent into learning into different splits or have your child power through a 3-hour lesson plan based on their preference.

You can also break up a lesson plan based on different subjects. You can focus on teaching math on Monday, science on Tuesday, language on Thursday, while giving Wednesday as a holiday. Alternatively, you can focus on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, being off days, based on your schedule and homeschooling flexibility.

It’s important to get a sense of what subjects get taught in kindergarten so that you can structure your lesson plan around them. There are 5-6 major subjects that you should focus on while creating your homeschool kindergarten lesson plan. These kindergarten homeschool subjects can also be taught using a range of educational tools.

Reading & writing

When it comes to homeschool kindergarten lesson plans, emphasize the importance of structured reading and writing. You need your little one to be able to strengthen their skills throughout the homeschool year. For better engagement in reading and writing, you can intorduce your kids with the reading games and writing games .

Mathematics

Math is probably one of the most important subjects in kindergarten, as it empowers kids to explore the world around them empirically. You can focus on counting, number theory, digits, and other foundational mathematics coursework.

In terms of science, you can start with the types of weather, seasons, senses, animal and plant kingdom, etc. These concepts can help kids know more about the world and analyze different objects and things based on their characteristics.

Social studies

You can teach your children the foundational skills to help them develop their curiosity for geography, history, etc. You can focus on teaching your kids about their cities, maps, geographical events, and other relevant topics.

Social skills

Understanding how to communicate with others is a valuable soft-skill that should be taught to kids across the board. You can also focus on imparting the right values of sharing, identifying feelings, empathy and taking turns.

Arts expression

You can help your kids express themselves better through artistic capabilities and feats. They can focus on their drawing, coloring, arts skills & craft for kids to help them strengthen their motor skills, creative expression skills, etc.

Physical education

Physical education or PE is a critical part of any homeschool kindergarten curriculum. Ensure that your children are getting adequate exercise and can strengthen their coordination skills with the right exercises.

The best way to structure a homeschool kindergarten curriculum is to focus on the learning objectives. You can set the right foundation for your school year and improve collaborative results through structured learning.

While there are specific subject-based learning objectives, it is also important to focus on general learning objectives as well. These can help you stay on course through different times in the year and help you assess how well your child can grasp concepts.

In terms of reading and writing, the ability to understand different parts of a book, identify uppercase and lowercase letters and grasp phonetics is key. Kindergarteners should also be able to write legibly and understand sight words.

When it comes to math, your child should be able to read numbers from 0-100, be adept at counting, compare and order numbers, etc. They should also be able to perform basic computations by the end of the year. Recognizing and analyzing shapes is another core objective.

Kids should be able to sort objects, describe weather, understand differences between living & non-living objects and make accurate observations. Kids should also be able to identify sources of heat and light and external parts of a range of plants & animals.

Kindergarten homeschooling objectives should include understanding goods and services, recognizing maps, identifying basic landforms, and contrast the present and past. A homeschool for kindergarten learning objective should include essential social studies skills.  

General capabilities

In terms of general capabilities and overall skills, your child should display personal growth and development. They should also be able to follow directions with ease, while being a good listener. They should be comfortable with a range of gross and fine motor skills as well.

You should know about the best books for your young one, especially when you are teaching kindergarten at home. The best kindergarten homeschool books are the ones that allow for creative thinking, empowerment, and curious exploration.

You can get started with the following foundational books as a part of your child’s reading list.

1. Swashby and the Sea by Beth Ferry

2. If You Take a Mouse to School by Laura Joffe Numeroff

3. I Am Enough by Grace Byers

4. The Maggie B by Irene Haas

5. Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak

6. How Do Dinosaurs Go to School? by Jane Yolen

7. Waiting Is Not Easy by Mo Willems

8. May I Bring a Friend? By Beatrice Schenk de Regniers

9. David Goes to School by David Shannon

10. All Are Welcome by Alexandra Penfold

It’s important to include a diverse range of books when developing a reading list for your little one. A complete homeschool schedule for kindergarten should include a rich array of books from multiple authors. You can also focus on using props, toys, and other objects to role-play as some of the characters.

As a parent, you need to teach the right habits and practices for educational development. This starts from the right approach to reading and learning. You need to set specific time out within your child’s day to have them read through a range of books and worksheets .

Reading becomes a habit after it has been practiced over several weeks. That’s why it is important to encourage your children to read daily. You can maximize their time spent on reading books if you make them read books that they enjoy. You can start by picking up books based on their interest.

You can also encourage your child to read by asking them to visualize what’s being read. This can help them immerse themselves deeper into the story being told. You can also help them read more by getting books that best reflect their experiences.

Your child may also show an affinity to certain types of genres as well. They may relate more to inspirational books about great leaders, or they may enjoy the world of fiction and storytelling. You can get them hooked on reading by getting books from genres of their interest.

You can benefit from the following tips for homeschooling kindergarten kids, as they are designed to help you manage routines, interest levels, objectives, and goals, with the best approach. When you’re looking for the best homeschool ideas for kindergarten kids, you may have to create your own version of these strategies after applying them with your kids.

1. Maximizing the time spent in reading will pay off dividends by the end of the school year.

2. You should schedule several breaks throughout the day to help your child reflect on what they’ve learned during the day.

3. Going outside for field trips, museum visits, and art exploration can help your child learn first-hand as well.

4. Being flexible with time, engagement, and routines will help your child learn much faster.

5. You should establish a policy of debriefing wherein your child can talk about everything they’ve learned over the last few hours.

6. You can use the right technology solutions to make learning more interactive and engaging for your kids.

7. It’s critical to use a range of books for your kindergarten curriculum to find the one that’s the most updated with current times.

8. Having adequate play time is also important as it allows you to help them relax after an intense day of studying.

Another important aspect to consider is the readiness of your child to accept and excel within a kindergarten curriculum. You need to talk to them about upcoming changes in their routine, as well as how education and learning will become a daily part of their life.

With the right books and educational tools, you can assess how ready your child is for kindergarten. You can also create a roadmap for your child early on so that they know different experiences and educational resources lined up for them.

You can also measure their comfort levels based on specific skills they’ll need to start kindergarten. Holding a pencil, recognizing letters, writing names, sounding words, counting, basic arithmetic, and other foundational skills need to be embedded prior to starting a kindergarten curriculum.

You can also get them started with some basic kindergarten homeschool activities that they can participate in. These can revolve around elemental skills, coordination, counting, music, and other important subjects.

What’s important to understand is that making the schedule flexible yet reliable is the key here. You want the schedule to be around what works for both you and your children. You also want to carve out 30-minute sections as well as breaks in the middle of the routine.

It’s also essential to add play time in the middle of the day so that they can reflect on what they’ve learned in a playful environment. You can encourage playing with educational toys and activities so that they’re active throughout the day.

You can schedule in a routine such as the following –

10:00 am – Math

10:30 am – Phonics

11:00 am – Reading

12:00 pm – Lunch

1:00 pm – Handwriting

1:30 pm – Science

2:00 – 4 pm – Break

Depending on the level of interest and engagement shown by your child, you can move things around so that they’re able to complete their worksheets and assignments.

Now that you’re more prepared to start the homeschooling year for your kindergartener, you can mix things up. You can make your own routine, schedule, reading list, and teaching style that helps you achieve your learning objectives for your child.

You can implement the right strategies at the start of the year so that your child responds better to the curriculum outline. You can make modifications as you go along and change the routine to make it fit better into your overall schedule.

What homeschool curriculum is best for my child?

While there isn’t one single approach that works for every child universally, you can follow best practices and guidelines to help you establish a solid outline.

How do you make a kindergarten program?

You can start with learning objectives, assessments, reading lists, and subject lists to start making your homeschool program.

How do you improve participation in the homeschool program?

You can start with subjects or topics that your child is naturally curious about before expanding their horizons with other subjects.

What’s the first thing you should teach to kids in kindergarten?

You should start with letters and shapes as these are some of the first few things you should teach kids.

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15 Tips for Homeschooling Kindergarten: How to Have a Successful Year

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“What have I done??”

That was the question I asked myself as I desperately googled ‘tips for homeschooling Kindergarten’ a few days after deciding to homeschool my daughter.

I was equal parts panic and excited. I knew this was a good idea, but I was also a little terrified I would totally mess it up and her entire academic career would be ruined.

Homeschooling that first year can be a little overwhelming, especially if you’re new to homeschooling . After 8 years of homeschooling, I’ve learned a few things through trial and error.

In this post, I’m sharing 15 tips for homeschooling Kindergarten to help you have a relaxed, but successful school year.

Ready to get started?

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links which I’m happy to promote. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Much love & thank you for your support. 😊 To learn more about my policy, click  here.

15 Tips for Homeschooling Kindergarten

I’ve homeschooled 2 kids through Kindergarten and I’m getting ready to start with my 3rd child in a few months. Each of my children has pretty different learning styles, so Kindergarten has looked different for them.

However, there are common tips for homeschooling Kindergarten that apply no matter where your child is starting or their particular learning style.

1. Don’t Reproduce Public School

My first tip for homeschooling Kindergarten is to make sure you don’t try to reproduce public school at home. This is a trap that many new homeschoolers fall into.

When the only schooling experience you have is public school, it can be easy to think that particular system is the only way to do it.

Here is something you need to understand though, the public school system is all about crowd control. The teachers spend as much time, if not more, just trying to keep all the kids organized and not running around acting crazy.

At home, that’s not something you need to worry about.

What might take a teacher 30-40 minutes to teach a class of 25 students, you can probably teach your own child in about 5-10 minutes.

Here are some things you don’t need to worry about doing:

• Having a strict 8 hour school day.
• Busy work that you’re child has already mastered.
• Teaching every single Kingergarten subject you come across.
• Making your child sit still until all their work is done.

2. Make Lots of Time for Free Play

Another important tip for homeschooling kindergarten is to make lots of time for free play. Lots and lots of time.

Play is how children learn. It’s how they test and explore new concepts that their little, growing brains are trying to understand.

At this age, children focus so much better when they have lots of time to freely explore and experience their environment.

Get Outside a Lot

Kindergarteners also benefit a lot of time spent outside. Not only is it the best way to explore and learn about nature, but it also has been shown to reduce stress and increase attention spans.

Being out in nature allows children to refresh their brains as well as explore the world with all their senses: smell, taste, touch, hearing, and sight.

3. Follow Your Child’s Interests

Next in the list of tips for homeschooling kindergarten is to follow your child’s interests whenever you can. This is one of my favorite benefits of homeschooling .

By following your child’s interests, you get to make learning a fun and exciting experience, instead of a chore that everyone has to suffer through.

Let them play with alien slime , practice counting dinosaurs, or read dinosaur alphabet books. (Or whatever they’re into. We have some big dino fans at my house.)

Following your child’s interests helps them become more engaged and a part of the learning process. Plus, it helps them develop a love of learning that can last a lifetime.

4. Keep an Eye Open for Learning Opportunities

Another good tip for homeschooling Kindergarten is to make sure that you keep an eye out for learning opportunities. One of the best things about homeschooling is that you can learn everywhere.

When you’re child lines up his toy cars, you can have them count them and that’s math. When you sit down for lunch, you can talk about the apples on his plate and how they’re plants.

I have frequent conversations with my son about whether something is a plant or meat and whether a carnivore or herbivore would eat it. (He’s one of the big dino fans.)

It’s a simple conversation as we sit down to eat lunch, but it’s a great learning opportunity as well.

By using these little moments to share a new concept or idea, you help make learning a more natural process. It takes a lot of the fight and struggles out of trying to force them to memorize or master concepts.

When it’s taught in a more relaxed context of playing or just talking, it also helps them better understand the information you’re trying to teach.

Answer Their Questions

One of the perfect learning opportunities to take advantage of is all the questions then ask. And believe me, kids ask a LOT of questions.

Sometimes they will even ask the same questions over and over again. This seems tedious and can sometimes be frustrating, but try to hang in there. So much learning is going on in those moments.

Children often ask questions to help them better understand new ideas or concepts they come across. Even if it’s just something they saw in a TV show or heard another kid say at the playground.

And when they ask the same questions over and over again, that is how they reinforce concepts that they’ve already learned. They’re checking to see if the information you told them one day is the same today.

This is a natural part of the learning process, especially at this age. And it’s a great opportunity to expand and nurture their growing curiosity.

5. Read Lots of Books

Another great tip for homeschooling Kindergarten is to make sure you’re reading lots of books . As many as your child is willing to listen to.

Here are some great benefits of reading books:

• Expands their vocabulary.
• Builds important pre-reading skills.
• Increases their attention span.
• Improves their listening and speaking skills.

A huge part of learning to read is being read to often. I have definitely seen a correlation with my own kids: the more I read to them as a child, the easier time they had when it came to learning to read.

Feel free to read whatever books spark their interest. You can even try graphic novels for early readers . Keep reading a fun and enjoyable experience for them and they’re much more likely to turn into life-long readers.

6. Hands-On Activities

Next on our list of tips for homeschooling Kindergarten is to include lots of hands-on activities. At this age, kids learn best by being active participants.

When they can involve their bodies in an activity, they focus better, learn faster, and better retain the information. It’s also a really good way to help keep them engaged in the learning process.

Build Those Motor Skills

Hands-on activities also help really develop their fine and gross motor skills. Fine motor skills are necessary for handwriting, cutting with scissors, typing, using the computer, and skills like that.

These are all things that children need to develop as they learn to communicate out in the bigger world.

Gross motor skills are used for activities like running, jumping, playing, and sports. Hands-on activities help your child continue to build and develop those important motor skills.

Related Posts:

• What Subjects to Homeschool for Kindergarten – A Quick & Easy Guide
• Simple Homeschool Kindergarten Schedule + Easy Tips on How to Create Your Own
• Pros and Cons of Homeschooling Kindergarten: How to Decide If It’s Right for You

7. Introduce Handwriting

Another great tip for homeschooling Kindergarten is to introduce handwriting. You aren’t looking for mastery quite yet, but the sooner they at least begin to understand how to properly write letters, the better.

This is something I wish I had focused on earlier when I first started homeschooling. I kind of assumed that if my daughter saw letters often enough she could just copy them and her handwriting would come naturally.

Instead, she developed some weird pencil grips, wrote her letters very awkwardly, and her handwriting was pretty rough. We had to spend a lot of time doing extra worksheets to help it improve.

I definitely think that had I worked to introduce how to write letters correctly early on, handwriting would have come much easier to her.

8. Create a Schedule, But Keep it Flexible

One of the best things you can do to have a successful year of homeschooling Kindergarten is to create a flexible schedule . Children thrive on routine.

When your homeschool days follow a similar pattern, your children will better understand what’s expected of them. They’ll know what’s coming next and when.

This allows their brain to free up space and energy to focus on learning, rather than worrying or wondering what’s going to happen next.

But definitely keep your schedule flexible. You want to be able to follow rabbit trails of interest when they come along.

Take a day off when someone isn’t feeling well or go on a spur of the moment field trip with friends. All of these things are some of the benefits of homeschooling that public school kids don’t get.

I like using paper planners or even a really good homeschool planner app to help me keep track of our schedule.

9. Combine Subjects

Next on the list of tips for homeschooling Kindergarten is to combine your Kindergarten subjects where you can. In the real world, life isn’t sectioned off into different categories.

When you go to the grocery store to buy food for your family, you aren’t just using one skill. You’re using science to sort through the different types of food at the store.

You use reading and writing to make your list and find the items on the shelf. You use math to figure out how much everything costs and what you need to pay the cashier.

Our world is designed to use so many different subjects at once and so are our brains. So where possible, combine subjects together.

Count leaves you find outside for science and math. Read interesting books about different time periods for history and reading.

Not only will this save you time during your homeschool day, but it also plays into how children naturally learn.

10. Create a Homeschool Space

Another great idea for homeschooling Kindergarten is to create a homeschool learning space. This is a really good idea for children who struggle to focus when sitting down to work.

Having a dedicated space helps set the routine and expectation that when you guys sit down in that area, this is the type of work that will be done. Even if you just sit there for 5-10 minutes a day, it will help reinforce those focus and study skills they will need later.

It also helps to have somewhere to stash all your homeschool books and supplies so they don’t take over your entire house lol.

11. Embrace Your Child’s Learning Style

One of the very best things you can do when homeschooling Kindergarten is to make sure that you embrace your child’s learning style. It’s so much easier to teach a child in the way that they’re geared to learn.

Three common learning styles are auditory, visual, and kinesthetic. Auditory learners learn best through listening and being spoken to.

Visual learners learn best through reading or seeing something demonstrated. Kinesthetic learners learn best through doing.

By choosing activities and lessons that reflect your child’s learning style, they are going to better understand and enjoy the information you’re trying to teach and your entire homeschool experience will be a lot more enjoyable.

If you don’t know you’re child’s learning style yet, you can take this quiz to help figure it out.

12. Don’t Push Too Hard

Another of my top tips for homeschooling Kindergarten is to make sure that you aren’t pushing your child too hard. At this age, learning should be fun and full of wonder and excitement.

It’s far more important to encourage their curiosity and a love of learning than it is to make sure that they’re memorizing vowel sounds and sight words. Pushing too hard can not only frustrate you and your child, but it can also develop negative perceptions about their ability to learn.

If your child sees your frustration or irritation that they aren’t getting a certain concept, they might think something is wrong with them or that they’re stupid. They might resist sitting down to do schoolwork because it’s a frustrating experience for you and for them.

Instead, challenge your children and work to expand their knowledge, but recognize that sometimes they will need a little more time and practice to learn certain skills and that’s ok. The beauty of homeschooling is that now you have the time to let them learn at a pace that works for them.

13. Make It Fun

One of the best parts of homeschooling is that you and your child don’t have to be stuck doing boring workbooks. You’re free to make your lessons as fun as you want.

Break out the crafts and the toys for your lessons. Have your child write their letters in shaving cream or sand. Let them use a whiteboard instead of paper.

Let them go do cartwheels for every question they answer correctly on their math. (My oldest daughter loved this one.)

Make learning fun and your children will happily be coming back for more.

Plus, kindergarteners have the attention span of a goldfish. The more fun the lessons are, the more they will focus and engage with them.

14. Use Your Curriculum as a Guide, Not a Rule

My next tip for homeschooling Kindergarten is to be a little relaxed with your curriculum. Use it as more of a guide rather than a strict rulebook.

Using a curriculum is a great way to figure out what subjects to teach for Kindergarten and make sure you know exactly what to cover to make sure your child is ready for 1st grade.

However, even the best curriculum isn’t going to be designed for your child’s exact learning needs. It might move too slow or it might move too quickly.

If you notice this, feel free to adjust as needed. Skip sections if you know your child doesn’t need to practice it or spend extra time on sections they do.

You might even opt to use a free preschool curriculum for homeschool for the first few weeks or months to ease into doing regular schoolwork. Then when they’re ready you can move on to tougher lessons.

I’ve seen other homeschool parents struggle to get their kids to complete sections of a workbook that their child had already mastered. Just because they felt like they “had to” finish it.

When it comes to homeschooling, you make the rules. Go at the pace that best fits your child’s needs, and remember the curriculum is just a suggestion.

15. Focus on Math, Reading, and Writing

Last on my list of tips for homeschooling Kindergarten is to focus on the 3 core subjects first and then fit in the rest where you can. The most important subjects for all of elementary school are math, reading, and writing.

If your child learns these subjects well, they will be able to easily progress through all of their academic career all the way through college. Every other subject that is taught in school is based on one of these subjects.

Science uses reading, writing, and math. History uses reading and writing. It’s the same with social studies.

It’s wonderful to expose your child to other subjects (science, history, social studies, art, music, etc.) in Kindergarten, but you don’t need to focus on teaching them to mastery. Spend more time making sure they are solid in their reading, writing, and math skills, and they will be more than prepared for 1st grade.

Final Thoughts on 15 Tips for Homeschooling Kindergarten

Those are my best 15 tips for homeschooling Kindergarten. I know sometimes it can be a little overwhelming knowing that your child’s academic success rests on your shoulders.

Don’t worry, you can do this! Follow the tips I’ve listed and you should have a fun and successful year of homeschooling.

Did this list of tips for homeschooling kindergarten help? If you have more questions or concerns, feel free to reach out. Comment below or email me at [email protected].

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Candice is a mom of 3 who has been homeschooling since 2013. She has an A.A.S. in Early Childhood Studies and cares deeply about helping other parents get the information and resources they need to help them homeschool their children with confidence.

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12 Tips to Start a Successful Kindergarten Year

How to start kindergarten on the right foot with 12 tips to start a successful kindergarten year. These tips to start kindergarten successfully will cover setting procedures, using the alphabet and names in addition to connecting with parents.

Starting kindergarten  successfully is a planned event and these 12 tips can be applied whether you are a new teacher or have been teaching for years.

Setting the foundation for strong readers and writers can begin the first week of kindergarten! I’ve got a few ideas and resources to point to that helped me get my year off to a great start.

Looking back to what worked well, I hope these tips and resources can help you gather for next year or remind you of just how far you’ve already come from the beginning of the year with your class!

Set up classroom management & procedures

1.  Have a kindergarten classroom management plan in place. Even if you think you may want to tweak it later on.

Get it down in writing for yourself!

Come up with short phrases you think you can use to refer to often and decide what language you want to use so that when the time comes day one, you’ll feel prepared and won’t be searching for the right words.

For example:

• “Make a better choice.”
• “You chose to…”
• “This is your warning for…”

2. Be prepared to explain the why behind procedures and choices in short, concise terms.

My favorite is explaining why we will follow directions the first time, and explaining what a fun teacher I am if I have to explain things 23 times, 23 times, 23 times, 23 times…

3. Consider how updating a color card or clip chart system can work for you to help keep track with students, but best communicate to kinders and parents about their choices.

Often these systems put emphasis on colors to help track choices, but it’d be best if the colors can be used in connection with your classroom system as a way of reporting choices. That way the colors are not the focus .

For example, I used “ think cards ” in my classroom. These are cards a student has to reflect upon if they have chosen not to follow a classroom rule or procedure. They speak a positive confession like “I will {insert good choice}.”

They do use colors like the typical color card system to then report home the number of think cards or the number of great choices they made. They are much more likely to remember their choice if that is the focus during the day as opposed to just a color.

4. Plan for both the positive and negative.

Of course, we want to focus on the positive! Something new I am trying this year and love the flexibility with is using  reward coupons for students who have made excellent choices. These are free once you have them in place and they love the choices.

But you’ve got to make a plan you’re willing to follow through with for both the positive and the negative. I didn’t want anything elaborate – that’s not my style.

5. To incentivize in the moment , if you have a great-smelling chapstick in hand – you’re good to go!

I fondly call them “smelly spots” and these are treasured, invisible marks used in our classroom to reward little moments to recognize great behavior, citizenship or responsibility.

Students love recalling their excellent choice each time they get a whiff of the back of their hand.

6. Learning the alphabet is what we do! And learning it as fast as possible seems to be our goal with the new Common Core Standards.

Why not practice letter sounds right alongside identifying letters so you also meet the needs of those who are ready?

The (affiliate)  Letter Factory Video  is a great way to promote the sounds the first couple weeks of school. You can shorten it to a half-hour after watching the entire thing once.

By just reviewing the alphabet portions you may find that students can connect a physical and kinesthetic motion to each letter of the alphabet which you can easily incorporate into any alphabet chart or chant!

This video is a great example of how easily you can use the /a/ as a “frightened” motion to always refer to for your kinesthetic learners.

Use student names

Starting with student names is a classic way to begin working on letter recognition, sight words and sound production. So, how can you effectively use names?

7. Create class books the first weeks of school that feature their names. These quickly become the most read books, since they learn quickly to read their friend’s names and feel successful at “reading!”

You can pretty much make a name-focused class book based on any book you read to your class the first week of school. Take these ideas for example:

• Class book for The Kissing Hand
• Class book based on Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
• Class book inspired by Pete the Cat

8. Actually plan which names you can use right away in your interactive writing and which names you can use later on as you grow in phonics so that you always have a “go to” list.

I write down who will be our anchor names for bits like “er” or “br” since these will help us become effective word detectives (later on in the school year).

Don’t forget to go to last names if you’re in need of trickier sounds eventually, but usually you’ll be amazed to find exactly what you need in your class roster.

9. Put their names everywhere and in mobile places so they can always carry a model to wherever they are working in the classroom. Pencil boxes are a great solution to making this work!

Hit the basics

I’d be at fault if I didn’t say that kinders need to practice the basics . Oh boy, do they ever.

This year I am thankful that we included secret gluing techniques  into our first weeks of school and edified great  lunch procedures  {an activity that gave us great cutting and gluing practice}.

The best tip I have to getting down the basics of whatever multi-step process you have going on is to create a social story for it.

Create an actual book with simple text and photos of you following each step. Not only will this help students with special needs, but it will help all students live through the experience before they ever do it.

The power of literature.

Yep – even literature written by moi.

Social stories to consider creating:

• lunch line procedures / table procedures
• classroom bathroom procedures
• preparing to go home
• hallway procedures or specials

Why feature yourself?

Because on the first day, you are the superstar and the only one they’ll know. Make yourself the main character and they will love it.

Plus, you’ll love the opportunity to sit {phew!} read a short story that is teaching exactly what you want them to know in preparation for the next 10-15 minutes of your day.

Connect with parents

Making a connection with parents is part of our job, and as uncomfortable it can sometimes be to calm parent fears at the same time as kinder ones, it comes with the territory.

What can help?

1. Have an open house or informal meeting night where students can meet you, drop off supplies and you can get materials needed for the first day into parent hands. They’ll feel better knowing what to expect.

2. Have a parent-friendly class procedures letter ready to go home day one. Make every topic short, relevant and include clipart. Make it attractive so parents will want to read it.

Keep it brief.

Mention hot topic things that most first-time school parents will want to know like: gym shoes on which days, library books due what day, birthday treat policy, homework policy, book logs for at home reading, sending money to school {your preference} and student daily folders.

Include your preferred method of contact and also send it by email once school has started, so they can always have a reference copy.

3. Call them. Yep. Just do it. It does take your time. Its not comfortable. Do it anyway.

I always “knew” that it was a good thing to do and that it would be appreciated by parents. This year was the first year I actually did it. I called after the first week just to let them know their child had a good first week {no matter what} and wanted to see if they had any questions. A little time on the front end can have a huge pay off over the entire year.

It’s a great way to start that phone documentation log you always knew you should have going.

I hope you find these 12 tips of value to you as you start your kindergarten year successfully!

If you like what I do here on KindergartenWorks, then be sure to subscribe today. I look forward to sharing ideas with you weekly.

Feeling a little overwhelmed at the idea of starting out in kindergarten? Get my best stuff on starting kindergarten sent directly to your email over the next 2 weeks with my free Back to School Bootcamp course  and be on your way to feeling more prepared than ever!

More back to school

• How to Use Icons to Develop Classroom Routines
• Lesson Plan Bracelet
• Preparing for Parent Night

Leslie is the teacher behind KindergartenWorks . She believes in teaching kinders how to be pretty incredible along with teaching them to read, write and think for themselves. She enjoys drinking hot tea, making mud pies with her four kids and sharing what she's learned with teachers.

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39 Comments

Thank you so much for these! Three years ago, I started teaching KG and this helped me a lot!

You’re welcome Carmen. I’m so happy they could be helpful to you! – Leslie

Thank you so much for the free boot camp! Returning to K from 6th grade is exciting but a little scary! I also love your lesson plan bracelet idea and may tweek it a little… laminate it and hole punch it to add it to my lanyard to glance out during the day.

Yaaaaasssss!!!

I absolutely love these ideas! I just shared this page. I love the ideas of the send home classroom procedure books.

Just some food for thought…

The past seven years of teaching kindergarten, I have utilized a Stoplight Behavior Chart. Green stood for good, yellow was received after 3 warnings stood for uh-oh, and red was after an additional warning and a note went home. The biggest problem I had with this behavior chart was that neither I nor the students could always remember exactly what they did to receive a note home. At the end of this year, I thought to myself what the point of a behavior chart is if the students and I could not remember the negative behavior they did. So this year I found a solution! I created a Popsicle Stick Classroom Management System! Each popsicle stick stands for an expected behavior. This allows students to get direct reinforcement for a particular behavior skill. Find out more at https://kindergartensailors.wordpress.com/2016/07/13/classroom-management/ or here https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Classroom-RulesBehavior-ChartClassroom-Management-2636412

Popsicles are easy to use! Good thinking – yes, i’ts important to focus on the behavior to improve upon instead of just the color. – Leslie

Informative commentary . For what it’s worth , if someone require to merge PDF or PNG files , my husband merged a service here http://goo.gl/4ILp1c

Thank you Leslie. That was the little light in my day. My second year teaching kindergarten after teaching for many years. Pretty hard some days….

Hi! Wow I love the think cards! Do use you this in combination with a typical clip chart (green,red,yellow). This will be my first year teaching kinder and I’m trying to decide how I want to go about rewards/consequences. I’ve been reading articles all about the “clip chart debate”. Thank you!

Yes, I have used them in combination with a clip chart. Welcome to the teaching world of kindergarten. If you haven’t I highly recommend reading the (affiliate) book Conscious Discipline ( http://amzn.to/1ehIXVj ) – it may help you draw your own conclusions and find the right solution for you.

– Leslie

Leslie, You mentioned planning for positive and negative; you told us about the positive reinforcement, but you didn’t mention any consequences for poor choices. Do you use anything besides the think cards? Thanks, great post! Jeremy

Hi Jeremy, Yes I have used the think cards in combination with the color system. But I also am a firm believer in immediate time-outs/removals from an activity for 2 mins. since that can make a difference. Thanks for the compliment. – Leslie

As a first year kindergarten teacher, I found this post very helpful! Thank you for sharing your first day procedures and great tips!

I love the social story idea! Thanks.

Glad to hear! – Leslie

Thanks for the tips! I love them!!

These are great ideas for *every* teacher, not just teachers of Kinders.

Thanks TeacherTess 😉

This is a great post, Leslie. So many good ideas! My favorite, you ask … “We do school everyday by ourselves.” — I might just start working on that poster today. 🙂

Thanks for sharing your favorite Katharine! – Leslie

Im sorry that the main thing I noticed in this is the use of the name “Victoria Laskowski” That is my last name! I never see it anywhere!

Juliane, This made me laugh! I never use real names or combinations of real names of my students, but I will mix it up and use names I’ve come across in my past. I’ve never taught a Laskowski, but I went to school with one. Ha! Funny 🙂 – Leslie

I love the Chicka class book! Thank you!

Oh do you have your think cards on TpT?

Yes m’am! http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Behavior-Plan-and-Parent-Notes – thanks for asking

I am bookmarking this to make sure i re-read it over the summer. Such great ideas! I love how you pulled out the blends in their names!

These are great tips, Leslie. I especially love your ideas for social stories (your pictures are fabulous!) and using students’ names for word bits. Renee

Thanks Renee for taking the time to comment and share your thoughts. It means a lot! I honestly had a lot of fun taking those photos… perhaps too much! – Leslie

Once again I’m walking away with ideas that will help my kiddos (and in turn help me)! Thank you! I have a larger group of kids not getting blends, as much as I use names in the room I never thought of looking at the chunks! I’ve also been looking for more technology (every kiddo has an ebook although I only have 2 head phones at this point) for reinforcing letters, sounds, and basic reading. The Leap Frog was a favortie here at home 13 years ago so I’m excited to see it still around! Thanks again Leslie!

Melissa, Its great to hear what you took away from this article! Hope that finding chunks in your kinder’s names will play a big role in developing their reading skills. – Leslie

Thank you so much! This post is so full of useful ideas and information. Excellent work! Kirra

I just LOVE your blog!! I do many of these things as a fellow K tchr! I LOVE the idea however of using names to teacher harder phonic “bits” LOVE LOVE. Gonna try to figure out how to include that yet this week w/ our final vowel sounds / patterns! AND I think I will pull it back in to review all the sounds!! LOVE LOVE!

Thanks! Sarah [email protected]

Sarah, I always love hearing from you! Glad to hear that these tips are things you’re already trying. Let me know how the phonics and sound patterns go using your kinders’ names! – Leslie

Thank you, Leslie!!!!!!! This is VERY helpful. It is useful & fun to read. This is my 30th year teaching K, & it is still good to be reminded & internalize these things. Keep up the great work! You are a gem!

Thanks for sharing your kind words Sms! I know it’s only January, but it is hard to believe how far we come each year and how we have to start fresh. You’re probably a pro with all of your experience, so any tips you want to throw our way would be awesome too! – Leslie

This is a great post! I love all of the ideas. Most of them work for second graders too! Thanks so much for sharing! Hilary Second Grade is Out of This World!

Thanks Hilary – that’s neat to know it could translate to second grade in most areas! – Leslie

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Helpful Tips for Kindergarten Take Home Folders

Parent communication is essential in supporting young children in kindergarten, but it can feel daunting to maintain back-and-forth daily communication with the parents of over 20 students! In this post, I’m sharing some helpful tips that will help you create a simple system for kindergarten take home folders.  You’ll be able to maintain consistent communication with families without the overwhelm!

Do We Still Need Kindergarten Communication Folders?

Platforms like SeeSaw allow parents and teachers to easily communicate while students share their daily digital work. Do we ACTUALLY need communication folders?

My answer is yes!  Take home folders for kindergarten allow students and their families to get in the habit of talking about school every evening.  They also encourage students to learn responsibility for taking care of their folders and turning them in each day.

6 Tips for Kindergarten Take Home Folders

Adding communication folders to your classroom routine can be a great way to keep parents up to speed on what is going on in the classroom, but the nuts and bolts of a folder system can seem overwhelming for busy kindergarten teachers.  Here are some helpful things to consider as you set up your own folder system.

1. Create a Routine

One of the most important parts of having a simple communication folder setup is to create a routine.  I like to start using take home folders as soon as possible in the school year, so that it becomes a regular part of each family’s after-school routine.  I have found that families start the year excited about checking backpacks and referencing schedules, so I definitely try to use that momentum to help build that habit!  

The next part of a take-home folder routine is to have a consistent procedure for students to turn in their folders each morning.  Whether it’s a turn-in tub on the back table or a designated folder collector, find a method that works within your morning routine.  The more predictable the routine, the more sustainable it will be!

Finally, make sure that you set aside time in your day to check and prep the take home folders.  By keeping this routine as one of the top priorities in your schedule, it is more likely to stick!

2. Make it Last

Having a routine that lasts for the whole year is important, but you need the actual folders to last, as well! Take home folders receive a lot of wear and tear throughout the year, so I like to use the plastic poly folders whenever possible.  They are less likely to end up squashed at the bottom of backpacks or destroyed by pets and liquids. Plus, I never think it’s a bad thing when something can be wiped down with cleaner, so that’s a bonus of using poly folders.

3. Label, Label, Label!

Keeping your take home folders labeled is an easy way to simplify your communication folder routine.  You can add a large label on the front with the student name to make quick work of passing out folders. If you use poly folders, you can use large mailing labels for the front to make sure they stay put!

It’s also helpful to label the inside pockets of the folder so that parents can clearly see what should be “LEFT at Home” and what should “Come RIGHT Back.”  This is another part of the take home folder routine that will become habit for parents. It’s a very simple way to communicate what to do with the papers being sent home each day.

(If you would like a set of FREE labels for take home folders, you can find some here .)

4. Keep the Folder Filled

One of the quickest ways to derail a communication folder routine is to send home a folder with nothing inside.  After a couple of days of opening a folder full of nothing, families will simply stop checking. Does this mean you need to find something to add to the folder on a “light news” day? Absolutely not!

One way to make sure that there is always helpful information in your communication tool is to use a folder with prongs.  (So that means the ideal take home folder is a two-pocket poly folder with three prongs.) You can keep helpful reference information attached to the folder, so it doesn’t disappear on either side of the communication chain.  This means that the folder will never be truly empty, important reference information won’t be misplaced, and families will stay in the routine of checking the folder each day.

5. Allow for Flexibility

In order for a take home folder system to work, it needs to be sustainable.  Switching up the monthly calendar every time there’s a new addition or change to the schedule is the opposite of sustainable!  I've found that the easiest way to allow for flexibility is to use a weekly communication log, as well.

The monthly calendar provides a birds-eye-view of the month, with important reminders that are unlikely to change, like days with no school. Then the week-at-a-glance schedule provides the opportunity to communicate additional information to families as it comes up throughout the month. It can also share learning goals for the week, suggestions for at-home practice, and more!

6. Use Consistent Colors

This is a simple but effective tip for take home folders: Use consistent paper colors! By printing off your regular communication tools on the same color paper each week, parents will know exactly what to look for each time they open the folder.  The other benefit of this is that important flyers and papers will easily stand out against the colors that are used each week.

More Kindergarten Take Home Folder Tips

Would you like to see more details about how I have used kindergarten take home folders in my classroom?  Check out this video, where I walk you through the specifics of my take home folder printables .

Kindergarten Take Home Folder Printables

You can find all of the take home folder printables shown above in the money-saving Parent Communication Editable Forms Bundle! Would you like to take a closer look at what’s included in this bundle of helpful parent communication resources? You can find it in the Teaching Exceptional Kinders shop or on Teachers Pay Teachers .

Save These Kindergarten Take Home Folder Ideas

Are you short on time? Be sure to save this pin to your favorite teacher board on Pinterest.  You’ll be able to quickly download and print these resources whenever you’re ready.

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