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Our homeschool preschool has been looking a little different lately. Mostly like this:
But one thing that has stood the test of adding a member to the family is our family’s basket time. Our days run much smoother and there seems to be less misbehavior if I make time to cuddle with the kids on the couch reading books, singing songs, and reciting poetry and nursery rhymes.
The kids favorite day for basket time is Wednesday. Why? Because it’s the day we work on a page in our sticker books!
Our basket time has an alphabet loop. We focus on one letter a week and do a different activity each day. You can find our morning time plans here. And Wednesdays are sticker book days.
Originally I had just planned to use this sticker activity book. But then I got to thinking how limiting this was. This book provides pre-outlined spots to place only 2-4 stickers per letter. With a book we make ourselves we can add more (like all those leftover stickers from my scrapbooking days, or all the stickers the kids bring home from outings.).
I ran across these alphabetized dividers in the school supply section in August, placed them in a 3-brad pocket folder and BAM! Alphabet book was done.
We of course use the stickers from the Sticker ABC book by priddy books that I originally bought. However around Halloween, Josiah spotted the eyelike Halloween stickers at the store and used his earnings to buy it. Although the cover advertises there are 400 reusable stickers, these aren’t the cling-like stickers that you can stick to plastic and glass and peel off. I probably wouldn’t call these reusable, but repositionable at best. Which is perfect for this use.
The eyelike Halloween stickers are great, but there’s not always one for each letter, so we added to our collection the eyelike letter stickers. Now we are always guaranteed plenty of stickers per letter. I just wish they weren’t sorted by letter to challenge Josiah a bit. I could probably cut them up and place them in a baggie to achieve this though.
I made Jessa’s book using cardstock for the pages, and colored cardstock tabs made with my tab punch. Not as quick as Josiah’s, but not difficult either. (Quick tip, to make a tab that folds over, fold the paper before inserting it into the punch. Then punch with the fold line at the top!)
How I plan to use these books
Other than a review of letter sounds and a place to put stickers, eventually we will use these books:
- to play a “find it” game | “What page is the pig on?” Josiah would then turn to the P page and find it. For Jessa’s color book I can ask the same question, but she would turn to the pink page. When we begin to learn a second language I can ask him to find the gato. He would then flip to the C page and point to the cat.
- to play “I Spy” | While open to a single page I’ll say. “I spy with my little eye a word that ends with t” or “I spy with my little eyes a word that has two syllables.”
- to play 20 questions | While open to a single page one player chooses an object and the other has 20 yes/no questions to ask before they must guess the word.
- as a beginner dictionary | When Josiah begins writing and would like to spell a word correctly, if it’s in his sticker book he can flip to it and use this as a reference
Free Printable
You may have noticed the customized covers the kids decorated for these books. Feel free to download a cover for your child to decorate (ABC book, color book). There are two images for each book: one with the image centered, and one with it off-center to use with a fivestar pocket folder with a clear insert for a customizable cover (what we used).
Do you have a basket time? What’s your kids’ favorite part?