Welcome to the Basic Curriculum for 5-Year-OldsDesigned for children 5 years in age, this easy-to-use, comprehensive curriculum is FREE for immediate family, in-home use. Use as a transitional kindergarten or kindergarten curriculum according to your state's requirements. If you intend to use the curriculum in a preschool, church, or daycare setting, please refer to the Complete 5 Year Curriculum.
The Basic 5 Year Curriculum prepares the child for kindergarten-level work, with weekly objectives to guide your focus. In using the 5 Year Curriculum it is assumed that the child can correctly hold a short pencil and write letters and numbers independently.
Each Online Lesson Plan includes:
To begin, choose one objective and activity to do with your child. Gradually add more as you establish a routine that fits your home. Read more in "Creating a Daily Schedule."
Week 1 includes extra guidance to help you get started. By incorporating learning into daily routines, you’ll create a seamless, enjoyable experience that fosters your child's growth and development.
Bible Teaching and PlayThe goal of the Basic 5 Year Curriculum is to take Bible stories to a deeper level. While I suggest My First Hands-On Bible when available, any age-appropriate children’s Bible can be used. For variety, you may read the same story from different Bibles. Be sure to read the Scripture yourself to understand the story's details.
Theme: Trinity
Bible Story: God the Father
Objective: God is my Father and He loves me.
Scripture: Genesis 1, I John 3:1a
Books of the Bible: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy
Introducing the Bible Story
Start by reading Genesis 1. Explain that God is called the Father because He created the world. He made us—His children—out of love. You can enhance this lesson using ABCJesusLovesMe Creation Activities. Next, read 1 John 1:3a and talk about what a father does. Loving fathers care for their children by meeting their needs and providing good things for them.
Who is God the Father?
God is called the Father because He created the world and us. Since God is the ultimate Father, the title "God the Father" is always capitalized. God is the Father of all people and shows His love by forgiving and forgetting our sins. He has no beginning or end, is present everywhere (omnipresent), knows everything (omniscient), and is all-powerful (omnipotent). Although these words may seem big, children often enjoy learning them!
Though the concept of the Trinity—God being three-in-one—is challenging for even adults to grasp, it’s helpful to introduce it to children. Start with the Shamrock worksheet, labeling the stem with "God." Explain that God reveals Himself to us in three ways. This week, introduce "God the Father" as one part of the Trinity. Have the child label one leaf with "Father."
Have the child draw a self-portrait in the mirror section of the I am a Child of God worksheet. Combine this activity with the Fine Motor Skill drawing.
Throughout your day, ask your child: "Who is always with you?" "Besides mommy, who loves you no matter what?" "Who knows everything about you?" Help them recognize that the answer is God.
Each Lesson Plan includes a simple Bible verse for the child to memorize. Focus on helping the child memorize at least the key words. To make it easier, say the verse in very short phrases, using a slow tempo, so the child can follow along more easily. Videos of the piggyback memory verse songs with actions have been created to help with retention.
Trinity Song
Tune: Are you Sleeping?
God the Father, God the Father
God the Son, God the Son
God the Holy Spirit,
God the Holy Spirit
Three in One, Three in One
The carefully selected Bible songs are beloved classics sung in Sunday School throughout the generations. Learning these tunes helps the child memorize verses and Bible stories while connecting them to strong theological truths. If any of these songs are unfamiliar, I've created free videos of each one, complete with actions, to help you learn them easily.
Sing this song very slowly and incorporate the actions throughout the day. Create a tradition of singing it during bath time, while driving, or as part of your bedtime routine. As you sing this song to the child repeatedly, they will gradually start to join in.
For effective Bible study, it's important for a person to be familiar with the order of the 66 books. With proper teaching, even preschool children can grasp this knowledge for a better understanding of God's story shared in the Bible.
In the 5 Year Curriculum, the Old Testament books have been divided into small groups with a new group being introduced every 2 weeks in the Curriculum. This week focus on Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Use a song (video above), motions, or simply repetition to help your child.
Flannelgraph provides a beautiful visual and tactile addition to the Bible story. Discover how to use it in this video or read the "Using Flannelgraph with Preschoolers" page.
The ABCJesusLovesMe 5 Year Curriculum is designed to foster academic, Bible, and developmental growth in a play-based format. Ideal for a transitional kindergarten program or as a supplement for kindergarten learning, this Curriculum offers easy-to-follow Lesson Plans and engaging activities that build the confidence and skills a child needs for success!
Academic Teaching and PlayChildren are always learning. The goal of the Curriculum is to introduce them to the world around them—letters, numbers, colors, shapes—in a way that feels like play. Whenever possible, incorporate learning into playtime, reading, conversations, and daily activities. Focus less on the outcome of the child’s art and more on the learning that takes place during the creative process. Note: While not in the Basic Curricula, weekly themes are covered in the Complete 3 Year Curriculum.
Math, science, and social science activities are included to help the child understand such topics as: patterns, counting, calendars, sorting, life cycle, community, transportation. As early elementary concepts, some of these objectives may be too difficult for a child. And that’s okay. Introduction is key and retention is an added bonus!
Colors: Black, White, Blue, Brown, Green, Yellow, Orange, Red, Purple
Shapes: Oval, Heart, Rectangle, Triangle, Circle, Square, Star, Diamond
This week, ensure your child knows all the basic shapes (oval, heart, rectangle, triangle, circle, square, star, diamond) and colors (black, white, blue, brown, green, yellow, orange, red, purple). If needed, play games and do activities with shapes and colors for additional practice.
Song: Seven Days
Tune: Are You Sleeping? or Where is Thumbkin?
Seven days, seven days
In a week, in a week
Sunday, Monday, Tuesday
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Saturday, that’s a week
In the first eight weeks of the Basic 5 Year Curriculum, the focus is on the calendar, weather, and seasons. A calendar and weather wall chart can help reinforce these lessons throughout the Curriculum. You can purchase wall charts online or make your own by using a Big Print Wall Calendar
Dress: Sunglasses, hat, sunscreen, shorts, t-shirt
Science: Where is the Sun?
God placed the sun at the perfect distance from the earth, providing warmth without being too hot. The sun also gives us light. Use a balloon to represent the earth and have your child act as the sun. Explain that the sun stays in place (which can be tricky for some children to understand). Mark your location on the balloon, then demonstrate:
Craft: Sun
Draw a circle on a white sheet of paper. Place large dots of yellow paint inside the circle and a tiny red dot in the middle. Lay a piece of wax paper over the circle and press it gently with your fingers to spread the paint. Once you lift the wax paper, use a Q-tip to pull extra paint out from the circle to create sun rays.
Clouds are small collections of very small droplets of water. The droplets are so small and light that they can float.
Dress: Depending on the season, cloudy weather may mean you need to wear warmer clothes.
Craft: Cotton Ball Clouds
Glue cotton balls on a piece of blue construction paper to form different sized clouds.
Craft: Surprise Clouds
With a white crayon firmly draw clouds on a piece of paper. Using diluted blue paint, have the child paint the entire piece of paper to find the clouds. Count the clouds that are discovered.
The handwriting worksheets in the Basic 5 Year Curriculum give children practice writing the Letter of the Week and numbers while also covering phonics, 1:1 correlation, visual perception, creativity, and art. These worksheets assume that the child can correctly hold a short pencil and write letters and numbers independently.
If the child needs more support, consider using the 4 Year Curriculum or Handwriting Curriculum to build foundational skills. The horizontal handwriting worksheets in the Complete 5 Year Curriculum have been entirely redesigned and can be purchased as part of the Complete 5 Year Curriculum or Handwriting Curriculum.
Formation Chant
I - body, roof, floor
i - down, dot
Use the Ii Writing Worksheet to practice writing the letter correctly. As you write, remember to say the Letter Formation Chants to reinforce the proper technique. Next, draw pictures of words that begin with the short-vowel sound of the letter I. For added fun, search for the letter I in a list of words to strengthen visual perception skills.
Gather five items. As you point to each item, count aloud from 0 to 5, making sure to touch and count each item only once. This will help reinforce one-to-one correspondence and accurate counting skills.
Get the support you need with helpful videos and simple worksheets using the unique ABCJesusLovesMe Handwriting Curriculum. The key to successful penmanship lies in the process, where each level builds upon the previous one. Perfect for home use, this curriculum prepares your child for a lifetime of beautiful handwriting.
Pre-Reading LearningPre-reading activities like rhyming, phonemic awareness, and rhythm help prepare children for independent reading and spelling. Each Lesson Plan includes a Nursery Rhyme, poem or fingerplay to introduce the child to beginning and ending sounds of words and fluency. While the Basic 5 Year Curriculum doesn't include specific weekly activates for these skills, point out the phonetic sound of each letter, find rhyming words as you read, and discuss beginning and ending sounds. If you're unsure how to do this, consider upgrading to the Complete 5 Year Curriculum, which includes weekly activities focused on pre-reading. Read more in "How to Teach Poems to Children."
Additionally, each Lesson Plan features Books of the Week. Children should be exposed to quality literature for at least 15 minutes a day. Each week, they will be introduced to a carefully selected picture book that complements their learning and provides pre-reading exposure. Before reading a new story, practice taking a “picture walk,” where you preview the story by looking through the pictures without reading the text. This helps spark interest, aids in comprehension, encourages imagination, and teaches the child to use visual clues as a reading strategy. Once the child is familiar with the book, let them fill in key words and rhyming words, connecting them to the week's learning (e.g., colors, shapes, letters, numbers). Always discuss vocabulary, breaking words into syllables, and review the beginning, middle, and end of the story along with favorite parts to boost comprehension skills. Each week also includes a literacy activity to further prepare the child for advanced reading tasks. For more information, read "How to Teach Key Skills While Reading."
Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey tells the story of little Sal and her mother as they pick blueberries on a hillside. Meanwhile, a bear cub and its mother are also gathering berries nearby. Play a musical instrument every time the words "ku-plink, ku-plank, ku-plunk" are read. Then for fun, make blueberry muffins, jam, or pancakes.
Place a small cotton ball or pom pom in the end of a clothespin or hold it between your thumb and index finger. Lightly dip the tip of the pom pom into blue paint. Dab it onto a paper plate to create the look of a blueberry pie. Finish by gluing brown paper strips on top to form a lattice crust.
- Slowly turn pages at the corner.
- Do not write in books unless it is a workbook and an adult tells you to.
- Keep books away from food, drinks, younger siblings, and animals; make sure your hands are clean.
- Do not turn down pages in a book. Use a bookmark instead.
- Do not fold the cover of a book back or lay an open book upside down.
- Shelve books vertically.
- Gently turn pages without bending or ripping them.
- Take care of books so that others can read them.
1 potato, 2 potato
3 potato, 4
5 potato, 6 potato
7 potato, more
At this age, some children are developmental ready to begin combining phonetic sounds together form words and read. If the child is ready, I suggest using the Bob Books
Help your little ones learn their colors with these vibrant, fun flashcards—perfect for preschoolers! Click the link below to download your free set today and start learning through play.
Developmental Learning and PlayDevelopment is just as important as academic and Bible learning. Fine motor skills help a child improve their ability to write and handle small objects, while gross motor skills are essential for larger movements like running and kicking a ball. Both types of skills are crucial for developing pencil control, balance, and coordination. Each Lesson Plan includes activities to strengthen the child’s fine and gross motor skills.
Avoid using markers or pens, as broken crayons and short pencils provide better opportunities for muscle development and proper pencil grasp. Please ensure these activities are not skipped, as they play a vital role in the child’s growth.
Along with fine and gross motor activities, each Lesson Plan contains visual perception activities. Visual perception is the translation between the eyes and the brain. Correct translation is imperative to reading and writing. These activities can help correct visual perception issues as well as strengthen the brain and eye communication. While one activity may be difficult for the child, another may be simple. Additional worksheets and teaching aids are available in the ABCJesusLovesMe Visual Perception Curriculum.
Periodically throughout the 5 Year Curriculum, the child will be instructed to draw his family. This can be a daunted task for some children. Begin by demonstrating how to draw a person. Use simple shapes for parts and explain what you are doing as you draw. Let your child assist in the process. Later in the week, give your child a chance to try it himself. For more ideas read, "Teaching Your Child How to Draw."
This week, play "Put the Fire Out," a fun outside activity that involves sidewalk chalk, water, and a sponge. Begin by drawing a ladder on cement with sidewalk chalk. Draw a fire at the top of the ladder. Place a bucket and a sponge at the bottom of the ladder. Have the child wet the sponge and jump between the rungs of the ladder to get to the fire. Once at the fire, squeeze the sponge over the fire to put it out! My children loved this game!
For the first week, use the Color Tracking Visual Perception Worksheets - Color Tracking 1-1, Color Tracking 2-1. Highlight the color words in the same color to help the child connect the word with the color. Assign each shape a colored candy or little Lego. Have the child place the correct candy or Lego on the corresponding shape as a fun, interactive way to reinforce color recognition. Continue doing this activity throughout the week.
On the final day of the week instruct the child to color specific shapes using the designated colors. Highlight the color words in the same color to help the child connect the word with the color. This activity also encourages the child to practice scanning left to right and row by row.
Create a family tradition of making homemade ice cream in a bag or in a coffee can.
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon sugar
½ cup milk, cream, or half and half
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Place the three ingredients in a quart-sized zip-top bag or a small coffee can. Mix and seal the container very well. Because the seal may not hold through the mixing process, you may want to tape the seals closed. If possible, refrigerate this mixture for a few hours to speed up the freezing process. Place the well-sealed zip-top bag in a gallon-sized zip-top bag or the small coffee can inside a large coffee can. Place crushed ice cubes and approximately 1/2 cup rock salt inside the larger containers to surround the smaller bag or can. Seal the larger bag or coffee can very well. Then shake and roll the containers for 5-10 minutes until the mixture turns into ice cream. Carefully open the smaller container making sure that the water and salt freezing ingredients do not come in contact with the ice cream. Grab a spoon and enjoy!
Use the First Day of Preschool poster to create a precious photo op for remembering today. Be sure to tag #ABCJesusLovesMe or @ABCJesusLovesMe when you post the image on social media!
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