Smart curriculum companies know that a homeschooling mom's time is at a premium. Anything used in the homeschool must be worth the time invested, and all of us want to know that our children are going to be well prepared for the next academic step. And yet, when we are just starting out, it's very difficult to navigate the curriculum waters. How do I know that a particular preschool curriculum will actually prepare my child to take next step? And as a beginning home educator, how can I be confident about teaching my child if I've never taught academics before?

The Pre K Scholars Teacher Kit provides parents with everything necessary to prepare their child for kindergarten. The step-by-step curriculum is "grab and go," even if you've never taught before. You can literally sit down the first day and know exactly how and what to teach.

The comprehensive, 22-week program kit includes 150+ fully integrated and developed lesson plans that are tabbed for easy use. The child receives an activities binder with instructions, skill completion stickers, and even a pouch pre-filled with scissors, glue stick, ruler, dice, pencil, and sharpener. The parent instructor's guide is jam-packed with activities, reproducible worksheets, and helpful information, such as master supply lists. It also includes a DVD with teaching tips.

Pre K Scholars is a beautiful curriculum as well. Artist Carson Abbert painted "Scholarville," the fictional town where characters representing each letter reside. Baker Bob, Karate Kicking Kim, and Addy the Acrobat are just a few of the people you'll meet as you progress through Scholarville and learn the letters and their sounds. The worksheets are aesthetically pleasing, a particularly nice feature when there are so many ho-hum options on the market.

So what is covered, and how does a parent go about using this curriculum from day to day? Each session starts with the character sounds and motions (Addy Acrobat, Baker Bob, and so forth). It is helpful for children to see the character and perform the motion. You can teach the entire alphabet when you begin the program or just tackle one letter per week; it's entirely up to you.

Scholarville characters, sounds, and motions are reinforced by playing "The Guessing Game" (high quality game cards included in the kit) and using the A-Z Phonics flash cards (also included). Throughout the week, the student completes worksheets designed to be fun, easy, and an enjoyable approach to learning. Once the child has competed the week's letter and work, he or she gets to place a corresponding letter sticker next to the appropriate Scholarville character on either or both of the Scholarville maps provided. I don't know about your home, but in my home stickers are a huge reward for the preschool crowd.

Overall, I think Pre K Scholars has produced a comprehensive kindergarten readiness curriculum, and they have done a lovely job creating a product that is as charming as it is educational. 

Product review by Kendra Fletcher, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, July 2010