How to Use Treehouse Story School: Preschool for Kindergarten

This year my youngest child is entering kindergarten and is so eager to be a part of our homeschool lessons. She loves reading books together with her siblings, learning the letters of the alphabet and joining in on projects and crafts with my other kids.

Even though she is kindergarten-age, this year we are using Treehouse Story School: Preschool as her core curriculum. This blog post will share why and how we are using Treehouse Story School: Preschool, what other curriculum we will add, and what a typical school day will look like for her.

In this blog post:

Why we are using Treehouse Story School: Preschool for kindergarten
Elements we are using from Treehouse Story School: Preschool
How we are adapting Treehouse Story School: Preschool for kindergarten
Other resources and curriculum we plan to include for homeschool kindergarten
Homeschool kindergarten resources from Treehouse Schoolhouse

Why we are using Treehouse Story School: Preschool for kindergarten

Treehouse Story School: Preschool is a gentle, literature-based preschool curriculum that invites children to learn through the themes in stories they love. The curriculum focuses on one picture book a week, inviting children into connection and learning through music and movement, play-based narration, alphabet and number play, motor skills, practical life development, crafts, and baking together.

We are choosing to use this for my daughter’s kindergarten year because I want to linger in the gentle, wonder-filled stage of learning. Story School will help me do that, while also preparing her for first grade. I am confident she will absolutely love all of the music, hand rhymes, stories, and especially the opportunity to “play the story” with the storytelling pieces and props that are part of the curriculum plan. Narration through play was a key component to my older children’s preschool and kindergarten years and set them up for oral narration in such a strong way, and I want to continue that with my youngest.

I am also excited to give my youngest child more time practicing letter and number formation in a hands-on way like forming them with playdough or writing them in a salt tray. She loves crafts and baking and Treehouse Story School: Preschool is full of opportunities for both, so she will thrive doing those projects that reinforce the themes in the stories. These are learning methods I have loved using for years, and Story School provides the opportunity to weave all of these learning experiences together through a central theme each week.

Elements we are using from Treehouse Story School: Preschool

While there may be some lessons we will adapt, most of what is offered in Treehouse Story School: Preschool can be used as-is for kindergarten. Using stories and picture books as a foundation for learning, the curriculum invites children to participate through music, alphabet learning, early math lessons, life skills, creative projects, and more.

The music and movement section of the guide includes hand rhymes and songs related to the week’s story. We will incorporate these elements, adding in instruments and inviting my 2nd grade son to join as well.

Storytime will be the foundation of her schooling time. Each day, I will read the story aloud and give her the opportunity to play with the Storytelling Pieces and props to tell back the story. As she grows in her language and sequencing skills, I will give her the opportunity to orally narrate the story. I will also use this as an opportunity for my 7-year-old son to practice oral narration.

We will use most of the alphabet section of the curriculum and just adapt it to her level. I know she will love the Beginning Sound Box, which ties in the letter of the alphabet with coordinating items we have around the house that start with the same letter. She will also love active games using the Story School Alphabet Cards and practicing writing letters with various materials like watercolor, chalk, and in the dirt with a stick!

The math section in Treehouse Story School: Preschool focuses on numbers 0-20, basic addition, and other preschool-appropriate math concepts like sorting, shapes, and colors. We will pull from some of these lessons, but will mostly just focus on the number formation and basic addition, since she has already mastered most of these concepts.

Most of the activities offered for fine motor skills and practical life skills are perfect for her. She will love threading beads onto pipe cleaners, peeling vegetables, and learning how to do basic household tasks. If something comes up that she is already great at, that’s okay! She will just get more practice.

The story connection section of the curriculum is perfect for all ages. This includes activities like playing games, crafting, baking, or going on nature walks and are inspired by the picture book for each week. These activities bring a deeper connection to the elements in the story.

We will also incorporate the weekly themed-reading offered through each week’s Book Basket. We can do these as read-alouds, reading with her siblings, and eventually reading them herself as she develops her ability to read. She will also love the weekly tea parties and field trips.

How we will adapt Treehouse Story School: Preschool for kindergarten

Kindergarten phonics, reading, and writing

For the past year, my daughter has learned to recognize the uppercase and lowercase letters of the alphabet, has been picking up on letter sounds, and has recently started reading basic words and sentences. Some of the alphabet activities in Treehouse Story School: Preschool may not be challenging enough for her as written in the guide, so we will just adapt as needed. For example, if the lesson says to write an uppercase A in the dirt with a stick, I may ask her to write uppercase and lowercase and tell me a few words that begin with the letter a.

Along with this, she will read aloud to me daily from books at her reading level, such as Bob Books, Dash into Learning Early Reading Program, and Pathway Readers First Steps. She will also work through Explode the Code books 2 and 3 throughout the year and Handwriting Without Tears Letters and Numbers for Me. I may also include some copywork for Eliza and my 2nd grader by pulling sentences from the stories for them to copy. She will also join us in Mail Monday each week.

Kindergarten math lessons

To expand her math skills, we will add a supplemental kindergarten math curriculum, The Good and the Beautiful Math K.

Other resources and curriculum we plan to include for homeschool kindergarten

Here are my plans for incorporating my youngest daughter’s kindergarten year into our homeschool day. Even though we have practiced family-style learning for years, this is the first time I will be homeschooling four children at one time.

Bible Time

Each day my kindergartener will join in on Bible time over breakfast with the rest of the kids. My husband leads this time and pulls from various books, Bible stories, and shares from his own personal walk with the Lord.

Rooted Family Bible Curriculum This family curriculum focuses on the foundations of faith, being devoted to God, our identity in Christ, and what it looks like to walk out our faith in wisdom.
Flourish Family Bible Curriculum – This study delves into the fruits of the spirit and how to express the love of Christ in our daily lives, both in our home and in our community.

Morning Time

For Morning Time, I plan to rotate through each of these studies, as well as read poetry and recitation. My kindergartner will be included in these lessons.

Preschool Morning Time Bundle – Each morning she will start by filling out the preschool Morning Time Bundle, which includes a traceable monthly calendar, the daily weather, and more.
Beautiful Feet Books Music Appreciation Study – We will explore famous composers and listen to various kinds of music and discuss.
Beautiful Feet Books Art Appreciation Study – This study introduces children to art and gives them the opportunity to try to replicate types of art.
Simple Studies English Fairy Tales – I will be reading through English Fairy Tales and the children will practice narration and notebooking alongside this study. I love that it also includes coloring pages for the young children.

Read-alouds and unit studies

I am also planning to dedicate time to reading aloud to my younger two children and work through various unit studies that touch on themes in science, geography, and nature study. Here are some of the resources I am planning to incorporate this year with my kindergartener and 2nd grader.

Treehouse Book Studies – We are planning to use the primary-level book studies to read chapter books together and engage in coordinating discussion and activities. We will aim to read one every six weeks and host a book club meet-up for younger children. We are starting with My Father’s Dragon.
Me on the Map – This study gently teaches children about how they fit into the larger world, including learning about their home, street, city, state, country, continent, and planet.
Me and My Amazing Body – This study teaches children about the human body and how it works, including unit studies about the main functioning parts of the body, such as the skin & senses, the skeleton, muscles, brain, blood & veins, heart, lungs, stomach & intestines, and the effects of germs.
Treehouse Nature Study: Primary Years – We will sometimes pull from these seasonal nature studies. My older children will coordinate by doing lessons and activities from Treehouse Nature Study: Intermediate Years.

Kindergarten daily schedule

Here is what I am expecting my kindergartener’s daily rhythm to look like this year:

7:15 – 8 a.m. – Bible time over breakfast
8 – 9 a.m. – Morning responsibilities and playtime
9 – 10 a.m. – Morning Time
10 – 10:30 a.m. – Treehouse Story School and Reading
10:30 – 11 a.m. – Phonics, Handwriting, and Math
11 – 11:30 a.m. – Read aloud: Treehouse Book Studies and other unit studies
11:30 a.m. – 12 p.m. – Lunch
12 – 5 p.m. – Free play, crafting, play outside, field trips
5 – 6 p.m. – Dinner and family chores

See more kindergarten curriculum choices and daily rhythms here.

Homeschool kindergarten resources from Treehouse Schoolhouse

Are you looking for more learning resources for your homeschool? Consider these best-selling products from Treehouse Schoolhouse that offer a gentle invitation to learning.

Treehouse Story School: Preschool

Treehouse Story School: Preschool is 32-weeks of gentle, literature-based curriculum designed for ages 2.5-5 years. This preschool curriculum that invites children to learn through the themes in stories they love. Each week will focus on a picture book, inviting children into connection and learning through music and movement, play-based narration, alphabet and number play, motor skills, practical life development, crafts, and baking together.

It would be a great fit for your toddler or preschooler if you are looking to incorporate multi-sensory, play-based learning while introducing them to timeless stories.

From toddler through upper preschool, this curriculum can be used year after year as you dive deeper into beloved, classic stories your family will cherish. Preview a free week here.

Daily Rhythm Bundle

Children are highly visual–they can feel particularly out of control when they don’t know what to expect of their day. That’s why we recommend using a visual schedule to support your children from the time they are very young.

Rather than trying to stick to a rigid schedule, this set helps you create a general rhythm for your days. The daily rhythm worksheet is laminated and dry erase and the cards can be moved around offering you flexibility and adaptability.

Morning Time Bundle

This interactive, reusable set focuses on weather, seasons, moon phase, temperature, weather-appropriate clothing, date and time, and reading a calendar. With this daily bundle, your child will practice the skills of handwriting, tracing, copywork, and telling time. I recommend you print these materials and place them inside of a Morning Time Menu or dry-erase sleeve. Using dry-erase markers, your child can fill this bundle out over and over again.

We also offer a version of the Morning Time Bundle for those in our community who live in the Southern Hemisphere.

What curriculum are you using for homeschool kindergarten? Share your favorites in the comments below.