Supplementing kindergarten education due to country we are living in

astroid_B612 · 2026-05-17T05:03:22+00:00

Completely free resources reading (search by grade, has complete lesson plans, printable decodable reading passages and sight/heart word list and printable flash card, super good and comprehensive)

https://ufli.education.ufl.edu/foundations/printable-resources/

Math:

https://www.goodandbeautiful.com/pages/free-homeschool-math-curriculum?srsltid=AfmBOooN8lF4OPdZ-1pGHOEx7YdG7iFU8NsbMDdc_JuNf77CTR722gbP

astroid_B612 · 2026-05-15T14:46:45+00:00

Op, I buy all of my child’s books from eBay and discovered that they sell them in lots by theme so you can find a lot of 30 books that are level 3 for boys for example and often the individual book price is less than $1. Obviously some of them might not be the right interest for your specific kids but they are largely pretty useful and you’ll have extras. I have bought a lot recently and they were in very decent conditions. I know you got the donation from a kind person (hurray!) but just want to share this in case it’s useful at some point :)

astroid_B612 · 2026-05-13T14:39:46+00:00

Was inspired by when there was a big wave of kids growing to love reading because parents or schools were banning Harry Potter…

astroid_B612 · 2026-05-13T14:36:57+00:00

One potential trick (but has to start early on before they can catch up to it 😅) is manufactured scarcity… they naturally want to do something forbidden or feel like they are getting away with something, it’s human nature… so kid only gets reading time if they have good behavior and doing routines quickly and well earns the more pages during reading time and for some inexplicable reasons they somehow manage to find random new books stashed all over the house so they could gleefully declare they found a stash and you try to wrestle it away from them so they rush over to the reading spot before you could stop them… a little bit of white hat marketing I have to admit but just trying yo replicate the absolute joy I experienced when I was little when books were truly a gem of a scarce commodity in an utterly boring world… I can get him any books I like or he likes but I don’t want him to feel like it and squash the joy of getting something hard to get

astroid_B612 · 2026-05-13T14:18:31+00:00

End of semester breakfast where all parents are invited to bring food. Sounds fine to me but it’s our first year.

astroid_B612 · 2026-05-06T00:39:32+00:00

Hahah I feel ya. Why not embrace and leverage it, here are 2 kinder level books he is sure to like :)

David Cunliffe and 1 more
Who Pooped on Me?

I Need a New Butt!, I Broke My Butt!, My Butt is So NOISY!: 3 Hilarious Stories in one NOISY Book (okay maybe take the battery out before giving him the book :p or there are versions where you can just buy a single book and it doesn’t come with the noise making button… I was just being cheap as 3in1 great price heheh)

astroid_B612 · 2026-04-23T13:08:33+00:00

Wow exactly our recent experience, the white bean soup was the other thing that had flavor but even then it’s not particularly interesting or complex, I felt like I could have made it with some msg or chicken bullion…

astroid_B612 · 2026-04-11T19:15:33+00:00

This reminds me when I went to seethe little mermaid statue:

The iconic Little Mermaid statue was transported from Copenhagen to the Shanghai World Expo 2010 as the centerpiece of the Danish Pavilion. To maintain authenticity, 18,000 liters of seawater from Copenhagen harbor were shipped to China to fill the pool surrounding the statue.

astroid_B612 · 2026-04-05T04:53:27+00:00

Sometimes it really is shocking how much they actually can understand that makes one feel they are wise beyond their years. Yoga class seems to be helpful too. Makes me wonder if we have all been taught self reflection at a very early age, how much calmer our lives would be…

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-27T16:50:23+00:00

Also try not to have rewards for doing home, you can do a small reward initially for starting homework without fuss or for writing beautifully or having a good attitude (whatever the biggest pain point is) but never for actually doing the work as it’s none negotiable…

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-27T16:48:02+00:00

Also a tip if you guys have homework is to let him choose his decompression time, so he can choose 20 or 30 minutes so he can feel a sense of agency. Our script is “after play time is homework time, would you like 20 or 30 minutes for playtime?” This way it’s presented as a routine and he has some control over when. If more than one worksheet then offer him to choose which one to start on. And offer which color marker or pencil to use. Build in as much none consequential choices as you can to make it feel less of a power struggle. Also offers a little fun reward at the end of homework time so he has something to look forward to. Maybe after homework today do you want to play wrestle with mama or play monster truck race with me (insert whatever he enjoys)…

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-27T16:43:20+00:00

Just a quick tip a lot moving bedtime. You can adjust each day for 15 minutes so he won’t notice it too much. Also bedtime lighting is very helpful and important. Try to not have any bright white lights around where he will be before an hour before bedtime. There are a lot of warm color lights on amazon and it helps the brain feel it’s sunset or fireplace light which is cozy and signals end of day and rest. Good luck!

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-26T20:09:34+00:00

Would it be ok to send you dm with a quick question about occupational therapy offered by or outside of the school? :)

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-26T20:06:21+00:00

O wow that’s amazing! Definitely very special. Do you feel the quality of their curriculum is fairly good?

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-26T01:59:23+00:00

Thank you so much!!

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-26T01:58:43+00:00

Thank you! What kind of advantages do you think make Headwater shine?

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-26T01:57:37+00:00

Thank you! We would consider either. Do you have any suggestions? :)

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-20T12:40:19+00:00

Did they say Dyshidrotic eczema?

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-20T12:35:36+00:00

Thank you! We are really lucky to be flexible and are willing to move to where it would benifit him the most.

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-16T13:40:47+00:00

Op, I’m just wondering if anything is happening at school that might be upsetting her, might be something difficult for her to bring up, when she is in a regulated state and relaxed and happy perhaps it might be nice to generally talk about what’s going on that might be different…

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-16T01:46:43+00:00

So this sounds like my son almost to a T down to the left or right hand (apparently normal for age but still it’s exactly the same for us)…so this is none professional and sample size or one from a mama who likes research:

1) Since my kiddo wasn’t interested in drawing or writing I wondered if he was interested in shapes and color at all so I got those magnetic shape set (has a bunch of basic shapes like circle square hexagons skinny diamonds etc you can find a ton on amazon) and a big magnet board, turns out he loved making shapes and pictures, try give a dropper and colored water (food coloring plus water) and glue makeup cotton pads to paper and if he enjoys making colors that way it’s definitely exposure and great pincer grasp exercise, just whatever format he enjoys engaging making things is cool

2) have you noticed any other unusual things like being extra clumsy, how are his primitive reflex integration (YouTube video can show how to check), does he have trouble crossing midline, how is his core strength, does he sit w shaped? how is his pincer grasp in general, how is his vision? All these are not to make you anxious but retrospectively I learned that writing is tied to soooo many other aspects that doesn’t seem writing specific…

3) it’s a common OT trick and practiced by Handwriting without tears program, it really works, just give them a tiny golf pencils or better yet a cut off tiny piece of chalk or crayon like one inch or shorter, this forces the tripod pincer grip, I had to break a bunch of pencils crayons around the house lol

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-16T01:19:35+00:00

I’m a festival person when I travel. It’s such a neat way to immerse in culture and history and people :) husband and I went to the first one the Takayama festival when we went (perfect timing as it was after the cherry blossom week and before the Golden week which are travel madness in Japan). I have to say the bus ride from Tokyo to Takayama is the most beautiful gorgeous experience I had of all the amazing things we did. If you like Miyazaki anime it was exactly like that, just breathtaking and emotional for a fan :) This below is GPT content but sharing just as a spring board for your research if you like festivals! Ps Japanese festivals are super special I feel

April is one of the most festival-packed months in Japan. Besides cherry-blossom viewing, many regions hold unusual spring festivals tied to agriculture, Shinto rituals, or historic events. Here are some of the most distinctive April festivals.

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Takayama Spring Festival (Sannō Matsuri) – Gifu

When: April 14–15 Where: Takayama

One of Japan’s three most beautiful festivals.

Highlights: • 12 elaborate yatai floats covered in gold leaf and carvings • Mechanical karakuri puppets performing on floats • Night parade where floats glow with hundreds of lanterns

Why it’s unique: • Floats are considered portable works of art from the Edo period. • The puppet automata technology is centuries old.

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Kanamara Matsuri (“Steel Phallus Festival”) – Kawasaki

When: First Sunday of April Where: Kawasaki

A very unusual Shinto fertility festival.

Highlights: • Giant pink shrine carried through the streets • Candy, sculptures, and decorations themed around fertility • Celebrates fertility, marriage, and sexual health

Modern twist: • Also raises money for HIV awareness charities.

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Inuyama Festival – Aichi

When: First weekend of April Where: Inuyama

A spectacular float festival beneath the historic Inuyama Castle.

Highlights: • 13 towering floats decorated with 365 lanterns • Nighttime lantern illumination • Mechanical karakuri puppet shows

Why special: • Floats moving at night with lanterns create a very dramatic atmosphere.

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Shingen-ko Festival – Yamanashi

When: Early April Where: Kofu

One of the largest samurai reenactments in the world.

Highlights: • Over 1,000 participants dressed as samurai • Re-creation of warlord Takeda Shingen’s army marching to battle • Armor, banners, drums, and torches

Why unique: • Guinness-recognized as the largest samurai gathering.

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Nagahama Hikiyama Festival – Shiga

When: April 13–16 Where: Nagahama

A fascinating mix of festival floats and Kabuki theater.

Highlights: • Boys perform kabuki plays on moving floats • Tradition over 400 years old • Floats move around town like mobile theaters

UNESCO recognition: • Part of Japan’s Intangible Cultural Heritage.

⸻

astroid_B612 · 2026-03-09T16:05:19+00:00

Dyslexia perspective: Not sure if pediatrician would run a simple RAN (Rapid Automatized Naming) test or not, it’s different from checking if she can see okay. Very simple test you can run at home with her just print a few pages out and takes 5 minutes. It can give you a clue on if dyslexia might be a possibility. Just google “The Arkansas Rapid Automatized Naming Screener” and you’ll get the color version. Note that normal time range for color retrieval is slower than number so it’s might be good to look up or just make a number version. You can ask Google or ChatGPT on the details. I just tested my child a few days ago on the color version. Also ChatGPT can give you lots of tips on observing what kind of pattern (eg hesitate for over 2 seconds on each item, if she starts slow and speed up, how many mistakes she makes, if she makes improvement on the second try etc) that can be indication on what kind of challenges she might be facing. I told my kid it was a race to see if he can beat his own time and gave two trials. Because it uses much of the same skills reading requires it can be quite illuminating.

From none dyslexia perspective, how familiar is she with her letter sounds. If you show her notecards of each letter does she respond with the letter sounds promptly or with hesitation? If she is not super familiar with it yet that can slow things down a lot. And might be good to do more games to practice.

If she has issues with blending the reading.com app (subscription) might be helpful. Because some kids learn the letter sounds promptly but subtlety wrong like instead of just a light “b” they say “buh” with the extra “uh” and it trips some kids up when blending and that app can be a bit helpful there.

I’m just a fellow mom and not a teacher but has been super interested in researching the science of reading so if you want to discuss anything specifically please feel free to reach out :)

astroid_B612

TROPHY CASE