My stepson is 5 and he never went to preschool and his mother never taught him much other then the ABC song?

Question

do any one have any home school tips or no of any online sites so i can catch him up over the summer he is 5 and going to kindergarten way!! behind HELP

Answer 1

Above all, keep it fun- when you see letters out and about say Hey - that's the first letter of your name and he will soon start recognizing letters. Same with shapes, colors, numbers - make games out of them and he will respond. He will love the extra attention - I applaud you for wanting to help him.  Enroll him in summer preschool camps or library story hours  Check out the community and see what's available.

Answer 2

This is a good one. It has all sorts of stuff from letters, numbers, shapes, to reading, listening, using a computer, etc.

Answer 3

Well, I bet he has learned more that what you think.  Most kids pick up many things naturally...without actually being taught.  :-)  I hope you find yourself pleasantly surprised!

Home school tips:

*  Make it fun...exactly what other people are saying.

*  Don't stress... sound familiar?  :-) They pick it up pretty quick at this age and he won't be the only child with little "preschool education" in his Kindergarten class.

*  Write goals for yourself so you can see if you are meeting them.

* Incorporate the child's interest when "teaching".

As others have mentioned:

* independence with self-help skills

* recognizing emotions--beginning problem solving skills

* if he hasn't been with peers...find a storytime or playgroup where he can go consistently.

* Basic concepts: shapes, numbers (beyond rote counting :-) Being able to count verbally up to 20 doesn't help a whole lot if they don't understand 1:1 correspondence or that the last number they counted is the number "in all"; letter sounds/ letter recogntion (starting with his name and names of those that he loves...remember that the majority of print around him are in lower case letters and when he begins reading...it will be with lower case letters so start with them...or teach the upper and lower case letters together).

* Provide lots of hand strengthening and fine motor practice...puzzles, playdough, monkey bars, scissors, etc.  Provide many opportunities for writing...whether writing with sticks in the mud or writing with washable markers on the window...fat crayons, skinny crayons, colored pencils...Provide a variety. Please be sure that you are correcting his hand grip if it's incorrect.  Habits are sure hard to break so make sure he's forming a good habit!  :-)

*  read to him daily...read read read!  

*  Talk talk talk...oral language and the amount of vocabulary that the child has/understands plays a big role in being successful with literacy.

Good luck!

Answer 4

Is he toilet-trained? Does he speak at least one language? Can he tie his shoes?

Then he's ready for kindergarten.

Answer 5

Great answers have already been given. Keep it fun and make sure he gains some Independence on doing things with toys, books and art. Encourage taking care of his own bathroom needs, eating, throwing trash away and picking up his toys. Read read read!!! Talk about the difference between letters and numbers. Tell him what an author does, what an illustrator does and that letters make up words. Words make up sentences and sentences tell a story. Show him the front and back of things. Talk about opposites and likes. Give him paint, scissors and markers. Enjoy and how lucky he is to have you in his life. Oh and make sure he can put on his own clothes and shoes.

Answer 6

Talk to him about everything pointing out colors, etc.

Booker, paige,,,,, awesome site. i am definitly going to spend time at starfall.com alot with my kids. I would definitly recomend that you do the same asker.

Answer 7

Play games with him that teach him the basic shapes, colors, letter recognition, and counting at least to 10.  The library has tons of fun picture books that you can read him that teach these things.  Starfall.com  is a fun website for educational games. As you go about your day with him in the grocery store, in the car, etc, point out colors, shapes, letters, count things and so on - to make it relevant to him. Most important thing is to make learning fun for him, if it becomes a job he won't learn.  

When kindergarten starts, build a good rapport with the teacher and relax, he's probably going to be ok!

Answer 8

Well, it depends on his kindergarten whether he will behind or not--some kids go to kindergarten not knowing what to do with a pencil (sigh).

Play with him lot, don't let him see that you are stressed about it.--colors, shapes, identifying letters, be good if he can write his first and last name.   If you are a terrific housekeeper, let it go for a summer, it won't kill you.

But, make it fun, so he'll want to do it.

Oh, and you can also read to him--that's fun.

Answer 9

my daughter is going into kindergarten in the fall and i am constantly doing things to try and make learning fun.  For example, I typed her name on a sheet of paper in the largest font and taped it to the front door.  Then, she had to learn the letters and spell her name before every time she was going out the door.  It became a game to her.  Also, we bought her a v-tech learning laptop at Toys R Us.  So, when I get on the computer and she wants to do things that mommy does, I tell her to work on her computer.  So, we sit side by side.  But, all of her games are learning activities.  Also, she started doing chores for the summer.  On her chore list is homework.  I bought educational books that teach how to write letters and numbers, draw shapes, etc.  So, she does homework while I cook and knows that if she does all her chores, she gets money at the end of the week.  Homework is included.  No homework, no money.  Also, we sing songs for the days of the week and months of the year, which we can do in the car.  When we are in the store, I ask her to point out all the circles, for example, that she sees.  Or, if we are looking at a rack or in an isle in the store, i tell her to point out different colors.  When she gets dressed, I tell her to tell me the colors in her outfit and to point out and identify any shapes that may be in the picture on her shirt.  These are just some of the things that I have done and/or continue to do with my 5 year old.  She really enjoys them.  Hopefully some of these suggestions will help with your 5 year old.  GOOD LUCK!

Answer 10

Teach him:

How to cut

Write his name

Use a glue stick and Elmers

The letters in his name/Recognize his name

How to put on his jacket by himself

Wait time/ How to wait his turn

Sit down for 10 minutes and listen to a story

How to hold a pencil

Read to him and ask questions about a story

Starfall.com is a very good site

Jump Start series are good as well (Cd roms)