Early Pre-k School Supplies Tips

     Since I decided to open my blog to be public and have started spreading the word around to my social media account I have also been looking for posts made by friends that focused on early childhood/early pre-k education questions mainly for inspiration of things to write about. One question I happened to notice this week was about the main necessaties that are really needed for teaching early pre-k at home. After working for almost a decade in a 2/3's age classroom it has been somewhat of a struggle to remember that I need to dial down what I was able to work with in a daycare classroom to what I really do need to spend some money on buying. Thankfully some things I have already owned or were gifted to Anthony for birthday/Christmas presents. With that being said, here are some of the basic things I ended up buying for the beginning of the school year.

My calendar for calendar time
A little American flag for calendar time
Washable paint
Larger sized paintbrushes
The bigger markers
Crayons, one box of the large ones and one of the regular sized
A packet of bigger, easier 3 yr old sized pencils
A packet of abc flashcards
3 different curriculum work books, 1 for ABC recognition, 1 for him to learn to trace and cut with, and 1 for mathematics
A bag of pom poms
Construction paper
Glue sticks
Toddler safety scissors
Blank paper for him to paint/color on
A ruler

What I already own and have here at the house

Playdough
Shaving cream
Blocks
A bead and shoelace srring set
Play cars and people
A little tool set and tool bench
Outdoor play chalk
Bubbles
A couple board puzzles

Along with these things I must say if you have the luxery of a library nearby, as some people do not, than make good use of it. Half of the books I am using for these themes come from the library. Such a money saver and books are so important for so many reasons. I do suggest going alone for the trips you are needing to pick out theme based books so you can really focus on what is actually in them rather than quickly picking out titles while also keeping on the look-out for your kid.

     Also look around your home. The simplest things can be remade into something new for them to learn with. Google ideas if you are not feeling as inspired by your topic of choice as you thought you would be. Repition is also key for this stage. Even if that means singing a new song on the theme like ten times in a row. Yes, I did that just this morning...Do not take this stage too seriously. It is about introducing new ideas, but if you stress too much than you will miss out of the fun. Enjoy watching them learn as they explore. That is where the magic will happen.