12 Must-Have Items for your Homeschool Preschool
If you are like me and just starting homeschooling, it can be scary and super overwhelming. I’ve only made a one year commitment right now to this whole thing and its scary. Because I know that I want to do this thing so that it feels right to me, I want to make our homeschool space a place where we can function and thrive. These 12 Must-Have Items for your Homeschool Preschool are my list of things to keep me consistent, focused, and *most importantly* SANE. This list won’t be perfect for everyone – I totally get that some families don’t like any of this stuff and do all work at the dining room table or the couch. There’s nothing wrong with that at all. I’m sharing MY list – and I just hope that it helps out other mom’s with Type-A personalities like mine. Good luck!
1. Work Space
This one will be a little different for everyone. Some families like to do schoolwork at the dinner table – it’s practical and it’s something you already have. Other families like to have a separate space for school work – I fall under that category. I got a child-size table from Ikea with some matching chairs.
I got a table with storage. We have giant bins in the table that house our giant Duplo collection.
2. Floor Space
Preschoolers don’t sit well in chairs all the time. Somethings are just a lot better done on the floor. We have a fun kid’s rug on the floor. We use a play rug but you could also get an educational rug like this one. Try adding bean bags or floor pillows for reading time, song time, and circle time. There are a lot of options on Amazon.
3. Dry Erase Board or Chalk Board
While this may not be completely necessary at this age, I like to have one. I can write down our weekly Bible verse, the Letter and number of the week, and more. If anything, at this age, the board is more for me than the kids. It’ll remind me of what we are focusing on that week.
I got a dry erase board like this one. I wanted one that was large enough to actually work with and I liked that it was also magnetic. Versatility is always a good thing.
4. Posters for Circle Time
I was only public schooled and there are a lot of things from public school that I’ll be using with my kiddos. I like structure and circle time was always a lot of fun in school. I have a calendar, weather wheel, American Flag, and a map. I plan on rotating different posters depending on the theme of the week or month. We can start each school time with singing about the days of the week, saying the pledge to the flag, and practicing our Bible Verse. I keep the rug and floor pillows next to the “Reading Wall.” It’s been so easy to find this stuff! Amazon has a ton and so does Target’s dollar spot during Back to School season!
Reading Wall Ideas:
- World map
- We have a lot of maps in our house – I’m a bit of an addict. That’s what happens when you love to travel and you are a military pilot’s wife. It’s also great to have a map of the United States. We also have an awesome giant state puzzle. My three year old can do it completely by herself and is already starting to learn the names of the states and where special people live (like Grandparents).
- Clock
- Make sure you get an analog clock. It’s important that your child can read an analog clock and a digital clock.
- Calendar
- Weather Wheel
- My kids love talking about the weather every day! And every day, summertime or not, they wish for snow. Ha!
- Months of the Year Poster
- Days of the Week Poster
- American and Christian Flag poster and/or pledge poster
- ABC Poster
- We have a poster that came with our Usborne Start to Read Pack. It’s a whole little system that you go through with your child to teach them to read.
- Number Poster
- Chore Chart – We have age-appropriate chores for each of the kids. We’ve hung those up on the wall as well!
5. Bookshelf
We’ve chosen to go with a Literacy-based curriculum this year. My kids are only 2 and 3 so reading lots of books sounded like a perfect plan for us. Since it’s literacy-based, we have a lot of books to get us through the year. We like to keep a bookshelf in or near our school space for convenience. The better I set all of this up from the beginning, more likely I’ll actually go through with it all and stay consistent. I’ll keep books, lesson plans, assessments (check out this free preschool assessment you can download!), supplies and more on the shelves.
6. Laser Printer
Okay so this one is a luxury, I know. But I feel like we go through our ink SO FAST. I hate constantly getting more ink and feeling guilty every time I print something.
Switch to a laser printer – it’s an upfront investment but it’ll pay off in the long run – especially if you are using a lot of free printables off of Pinterest to homeschool.
I was reading about the difference between the printers and it was astounding how much cheaper Laser printers are in the long run. Laser prints cost about $0.027 and an inkjet print costs $0.09. Plus one cartridge of ink will only last you about 500 pages and a cartridge of toner (laser) will last about 6,500 pages! You won’t be replacing that toner nearly as often.
7. Basic Craft Supplies
Hit up that Beginning of the School Year store sale!! Buy all the markers, crayons, glue sticks, popsicle sticks, construction paper, safety scissors, and more! I like having a good stock on hand so that I don’t have to worry about what I need day-to-day.
8. Curriculum
If this is your first-time homeschooling and you want a semi-structured schooling (even if it’s just 20-30 minutes a day). Consider getting an Open and Go curriculum. Do diligence and look into all the options.
Things to take into account when choosing a curriculum:
- how much structure you do or do not want?
- do you want a day-by-day schedule made for you?
- what’s your budget?
- what subject do you want covered? Bible? Reading-time? Letters/numbers? Etc.
- what is your child’s personality? How much and what type of schooling is best for them?
9. Learning Toys
Kids learn best through play. Give them access to toys that spark their imagination.
- Duplos
- wooden blocks
- books
- pretend play items
- doll house
- puzzles
- age-appropriate games
What are your Must-Have items for your Homeschool Preschool?
