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Curriculum>For Those That Don't Use a Curriculum...
SunflowerMama 11:20 AM 06-01-2010
What does your day look like if you either don't use a curriculum at all or just don't use one in the summer?

I'm debating about doing a summer curriculum and I do know other providers around that are just play-based all year with no set schedule or curriculum.

I go back and forth b/w a curriculum and just free play based and just wanted to see how those that don't have a curriculum work through their day. Right now I'm a little mixture of both. I do have Funshine but also encourage free play for the kids to work on those all-important social skills.
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TGT09 12:20 PM 06-01-2010
I keep going back and forth on using a summer curriculum. I have been using Funshine for the past few months but am afraid that it won't be worth it in the summer time.
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originalkat 01:11 PM 06-01-2010
I am not using a summer curriculum and I am LOVIN it! Today was our first day "off" from our preschool stuff. It has been such a nice break for me! I am glad I decided not to do curriculum this summer.

In the end of August/September the kids and I will all be refreshed and pumped up for the new school year. I am already making plans for the fall.
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mac60 01:51 PM 06-01-2010
We do preschool mid September to end mid May. Summer time is just for fun. Too many people going on vacations and taking days off to be consistent.
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Former Teacher 02:14 PM 06-01-2010
Originally Posted by mac60:
We do preschool mid September to end mid May. Summer time is just for fun. Too many people going on vacations and taking days off to be consistent.
Same thing as it was for me...I only taught from Sept to May. Now for the little boy I watch, I am still doing work but it's all fun projects and nothing is set in stone
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fctjc1979 03:30 PM 06-01-2010
Do you guys do extra work with kids that are entering kindergarten that maybe aren't quite ready? For instance, I had a dcg who would have been starting in the fall that couldn't write her name or tell people how old she was. (I don't have this child anymore, so this question is really more out of curiousity than anything else.)
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originalkat 06:03 PM 06-01-2010
Originally Posted by fctjc1979:
Do you guys do extra work with kids that are entering kindergarten that maybe aren't quite ready? For instance, I had a dcg who would have been starting in the fall that couldn't write her name or tell people how old she was. (I don't have this child anymore, so this question is really more out of curiousity than anything else.)
I would work with a child on any skills that would help them out when entering KG during the summer. My daughter starts KG in the fall and we will be working on quite a few things this summer...not anything major, just brushing up on skills.
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safechner 06:42 PM 06-01-2010
I will not use a curriculum for this summer because they would need summer vacation. I will be starting again this fall. It wouldn't fair for my younger daughters because they need to have some fun in summer. We are doing a lot of craft, going to Library for stories time, field trips, etc this summer to keep all of us busy. I also will take all kids to the little water park. Actually, I am still working on schedule for three months. Both of my daughters will be their last day of school this Thursday. They won't be back to school until August 23rd.
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gkids09 07:39 PM 06-01-2010
I don't buy a curriculum, but I do make my own. I have a theme for each week, but during the summer we base most of our learning on outdoor play. This summer, I plan to do "Ooey Gooey Fun" activities with the kids, and have requested that they bring an extra set of clothes to keep at the daycare throughout the summer to get dirty in. I am so excited about this because it's the first time I have done it. These kids love getting dirty, so I know they will love it. This is the last week of school for the older kids, so starting next week I will have a couple school age all day too. We are required to do some sort of art every single day, so I will keep that going, but will cut back on my circle time to only once or twice per week. Reason for that is the best time to go outside during the summer is right in the middle of our circle time. We will do water days during the summer too, where we play in the sprinkler and slip n' slide. The kids bring swimsuits to keep at the daycare all summer as well as sunscreen. These are their FAVORITE days of the year!
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SunflowerMama 06:41 AM 06-02-2010
Originally Posted by safechner:
I will not use a curriculum for this summer because they would need summer vacation. I will be starting again this fall. It wouldn't fair for my younger daughters because they need to have some fun in summer. We are doing a lot of craft, going to Library for stories time, field trips, etc this summer to keep all of us busy. I also will take all kids to the little water park. Actually, I am still working on schedule for three months. Both of my daughters will be their last day of school this Thursday. They won't be back to school until August 23rd.


This is what I've decided to do too. No set curriculum but lots of fun trips. I just checked with all the parents to see if they were ok with me driving the kids on little trips (less than 5 miles) this summer and I'm so excited!! We have a handfull of parks with splash pads, 2 fire stations, 2 libraries, some museums, a fun kids' art studio, and more within just miles of my house so I think it's going to be a great summer!!
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grandmom 07:18 AM 06-02-2010
Originally Posted by twinmama:
This is what I've decided to do too. No set curriculum but lots of fun trips. I just checked with all the parents to see if they were ok with me driving the kids on little trips (less than 5 miles) this summer and I'm so excited!! We have a handfull of parks with splash pads, 2 fire stations, 2 libraries, some museums, a fun kids' art studio, and more within just miles of my house so I think it's going to be a great summer!!
THIS is an awesome curriculum!

Ladies, don't short sell yourself, by telling parents you aren't doing curriculum in the summer. Tell them about the change in focus of your curriculum.
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Janet 12:31 PM 06-02-2010
I totally make up my own!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I think that I have as much fun as the kids do with that. Next week is International Cuisine Week and I can barely contain myself! Don't get me wrong, I teach them the school readiness stuff too, but I like to keep it interesting as well. It's pretty awesome when part of your lesson plan involves going out and locating and identifying all of the various birds in the neighborhood! I am helping to establish a group of "bird-nerds" (of which I am a part of! lol)
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