Before Five in a Row

Before Five in a Row is a lovely reading program for preschoolers ages two through four.

Getting the Most out of Before Five in a Row

The Before Five in a Row manual has two sections. The first is a section with activities for each book title and the last third contains ideas for general play with preschoolers. Here’s a few pieces of advice on using Before Five in a Row.

• Plan simply. Resist the urge to over plan and do lots of prescribed activities with your preschoolers. Some of us love them, but remember to keep things simple so they stay enjoyable for everyone.
• Play– Pay attention to the back of the manual! There ideas on songs, fingerplays, art, and other general ideas for play. You don’t want to miss this treasure.
• Read– It wouldn’t be Before FIAR if there weren’t books to enjoy. Read daily to your kids and have fun.
• Talk– With your children about the books, the stories, and the people in them. We would often make this a regular part of the rhythm of our days by talking about the stories and playing them out while we went about our day.

Planning Before Five in a Row

Before Five in a Row is a gentle program which doesn’t require a lot of planning. It just asks that you sit and read with your child and play. The book describes a lot of ways to play.

However, when you have small children at home, we all know that sometimes time gets away from us and if activities are not planned, they may not happen at all.

The Preschool Planning Page– This post is old, but it tells how to plan preschool activities for each day of the week. One column for the idea and the other for materials to have ready.

Other Levels of Five in a Row at Blog, She Wrote

Five in a Row– for elementary schoolers

Beyond Five in a Row– for late elementary and middle schoolers