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How We Use Abeka Phonics in Our Homeschooling

Of all the phonics programs I have interacted with over the years, Abeka’s is most definitely my favorite!

How We Use Abeka Phonics will give you a glimpse in to the specific items I order from Abeka and how I use them in our homeschooling.

Mom and Daughters Reading on the Couch Together

Do I purchase entire curriculum kits? The short answer is no.

Starting at the preschool level, I pick and choose certain items I like to use to achieve various learning goals I have for my kids.

Everything else I do with them is either an interactive activity I’ve found online or a hands-on learning activity I picked up at a yard sale or on consignment.

How We Use Abeka Phonics

Let’s get started with an explanation of how we use this phonics program: starting at the preschool level and moving in to the elementary years.

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Two-Year Old Preschool

For the two-year old year, I like to focus on the alphabet: a letter-a-week works well for us!

Week one, we focus on the letter A. Week two, we focus on the letter B. You get the idea.

We stick with very simple hands-on activities (things I already have around here or easy ideas I’ve spotted online), and workbooks are not a part of what we do each day.

The internet is full and overflowing with letter-a-week curriculum that has already been put together for you!

With a quick online search, you will find an overwhelming number of programs from which to choose.

Two Year Old Homeschool Preschool

I have enjoyed brainstorming and putting together simple plans specially for my little ones, but I have found great inspiration by taking a peek at some of the excellent letter-a-week programs that have been together by others and made available on-line.

Three-Year Old Preschool

For the three-year old year, I like to continue the letter-a-week concept – focusing on one letter of the alphabet each week – starting with A and working our way through Z over a period of 26 weeks.

Feel strongly about working through the alphabet in a different order? That works, too!

It is during this time when I like to introduce Abeka Phonics Chart #1 (vowels):

We usually sing this song each day. It’s sung to the tune of B-I-N-G-O:

The vowels of the alphabet, I know them all by name-o, A-E-I-O-U, A-E-I-O-U, A-E-I-O-U, I know them all by name-o.

and Abeka Phonics Chart #2 (all 26 letters of the alphabet).

Together, we

  • sing the alphabet.
  • say each special word that goes with each letter.
  • practice each letter’s sound.
Front Cover of Three Year Old Books from Abeka

We practice these charts each Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

In addition, we typically plan to do one Abeka’s Letters & Sounds for 3’s worksheet and one Abeka’s Numbers & Skills with Button Bear worksheet each Monday and Wednesday with a third Letters & Sounds for 3’s worksheet either on Tuesday or Thursday – for a total of five worksheets per week.

Front Cover of Three Year Old Books from Abeka

You may thinking, “Five worksheets?! Five worksheets a week?! For a three-year old?!” Let me clarify!

Each of these worksheets are very basic with a simple activity of either tracing [for example] one uppercase and one lowercase letter or tracing a single number and coloring a picture that goes with it.

Simple. So, so simple.

I am absolutely not in favor of overwhelming little ones with worksheets.

Quick Tip: I don’t always do the worksheets in order.

Can you tell I march to the beat of my own drum?

Yes, and that’s one of the beautiful things about homeschooling – you can do that! It’s wonderful!

So what do I do?

I do the A worksheets during A week…the B worksheets during B week – It’s that simple.

Find what groove works best for you and your kiddos and don’t be afraid to go with it!

After each day’s worksheets (Maybe we should refer to them as activity pages – Does that sound less daunting?) have been completed, then it’s on to hands-on activities that provide practice and reinforcement in our areas of focus!

Once again, we stick with very simple activities we either already own or I’ve found online.

Four-Year Old Preschool

We kick off the four-year-old year with the Writing with Phonics K4 Workbook as well as Phonics Charts 1 & 2.

Phonics Resources Sitting on a Table

Then as the year goes on and our preschooler grows in their understanding of phonics, we add additional phonics charts to our daily practice and we begin using the following Abeka products:

Front Cover of Four Year Old Year Books from Abeka

We have also enjoyed using the Little Book Collection Abeka offers.

Collection of Four Year Old Readers from Abeka

While these cute little consumables are not a must, they have been a great supplemental item and an awesome confidence booster – perfect for a preschooler entering the world of reading on their own!

Phonics Resources on a Table

A closer look at the Blend Practice Cards A and the One-Vowel Word Cards that we use heavily throughout the four-year-old year:

Phonics Flashcards from Abeka

Quick Tip: New to Abeka Phonics? Abeka’s Basic Phonics Sounds CD can be great practice for kids but also a huge help to parents, too!

Homeschooling Second-Grade by This Little Home of Mine

Interested in encouraging your preschooler in their love of reading?

Time and time again, I have seen Abeka’s phonics curriculum prove to be just the ticket – establishing an incredible foundation and creating the most confident readers!

Mom and Daughters Reading on the Couch Together

Want to read more? Check out this blog post!

Disclaimer: Formal schooling for your toddlers and preschoolers is not a necessity by any stretch of the imagination.

Schooling toddlers and preschoolers is a fairly new phenomenon, and in my mind, Homeschool Preschool is simply a somewhat more organized/structured approach to providing your little one(s) with focused activities (many of which you are probably already doing!) that will reinforce all of the amazing things they are already learning in their day-to-day experiences.

  • Provide them with loads of opportunities to play.
  • Read aloud with them…A LOT!
  • Encourage them to explore in the great outdoors.
  • Place more of an emphasis on hands-activities than workbooks.

You may thinking, Well then why on earth are you suggesting all of these workbooks?

This post is simply a glimpse in to the products we have chosen to use in our Homeschool Preschool.

They serve as a guide for our school year with hands-on activities making up a larger part of our day-to-day.

Need a little help with the hands-on activities? I’ve done all the work for you!

Five Senses Activity Guide for Letter-a-Week by This Little Home of Mine

Abeka Phonics: Kindergarten

For the Kindergarten year, I order the Letters and Sounds K5 workbook as well as the Writing with Phonics K5 workbook.

Kindergarten Homeschooling Books from Abeka

We focus on mastering the Special Sounds (using the Phonics Charts and corresponding Clue Word Cards).

Kindergarten Abeka Phonics Curriculum

The supplemental readers are fun, but definitely not a must.

Kindergarten Phonics Readers from Abeka

There are so many great options out there – in your home library, at your local library – and this is definitely an area where you can save a little bit of money.

Psst…I love the little Bible Memory Verse Cards – I used them when I was in Kindergarten (back in the 80s…ahem…), and they’re just a little something extra I like to do with my kiddos – however, also not a must-have. 

As you move throughout the Kindergarten year, those Blend Practice Cards B and Two-Vowel Word Cards are going to get more of a workout! Here’s a closer peek at those:

Phonics Flashcards from Abeka

How I Keep my Abeka Phonics Flashcards Organized

Some educators choose to put the their flashcards on metal rings such as these (which is a great idea!), but storing them in this basket has worked really well for us in our space:

Phonics Flashcards from Abeka Organized in a Brown Basket

For on-the-go, this little plastic container and lid from The Container Store (picked up at a yard sale for fifty cents!) has been perfect.

Not all of the cards fit in this particular option, but it’s perfect for taking along just the ones we need.

Phonics Flashcards from Abeka Organized in a Plastic Container

For the larger cards (the Phonics Charts), a three-ringer binder has been JUST THE TICKET for us:

Large Abeka Phonics Cards Organized in Large 3-Ring Binder

When it’s time to use the charts for various activities I want to do with my kids, I can leave the charts in the binder or take them out with ease.

Young Boy Sitting at a Table Doing a Spelling Activity

BONUS: They’re well-covered with page protectors!

Large Abeka Phonics Cards Organized in Large 3-Ring Binder

Laminating all of the Phonics Charts would have cost a pretty penny – This has been a great alternative!*

  • Binder Available Here
  • Sheet Protectors Available Here
Large Abeka Phonics Cards Organized in Large 3-Ring Binder

Abeka Phonics: A Few Thoughts

Some educators feel that Abeka’s curriculum is too traditional, but I love the strong foundation it builds.

This is definitely not to say that their phonics program is for everyone!

Every child is different…every parent teaches in their own unique way…but this is simply why we have chosen to use it in our homeschooling.

Mom and Daughters Reading on the Couch Together

Homeschooling Special Needs

If you have a child with special needs, you may like browsing some of the resources we’ve shared in this post about Homeschooling Down Syndrome. 

Homeschooling Down Syndrome - Learning without Tears

Overwhelmed by the Thought of a New Program?

Some parents may feel overwhelmed by the thought of learning Abeka’s phonics curriculum.

I can completely understand this as it may seem like a foreign language to those who have never taught it; but I promise that if you choose to give it a try, after a little bit of time, it will become second nature to you and your child.

Abeka’s preschool curriculum allows you to start with basic concepts and then grow from there as your child moves along in the program.

Do I incorporate other resources beyond what Abeka offers?

Absolutely!

There are loads of great tools out there for extending what we’re learning!

How We Use Abeka Phonics

My kids are second-generation Abeka students – I was raised in the program!

In addition, I have taught Abeka phonics in a classroom setting, and we are now several years into using it at home.

I am comfortable with the flow of how it works, so I do not order the curriculum guides, etc. that are made available for parents.

However, if you are new to the Abeka curriculum – or simply want to make sure you’re staying on tasks with the various pieces of the program – they are helpful resources, and I wouldn’t hesitate to order them. 

Abeka: Kindergarten through Fifth-Grade

Interested in more information about Homeschooling Kindergarten?

Kindergarten Student Using Keyboard Without Tears on a Laptop

Or Homeschooling First-Grade?

Child and Mom Sitting at Table Playing Math Game

During the second-grade year, Abeka begins to phase out their phonics instruction to begin focusing more on comprehension.

Want to look a bit down the road for your child? These posts might be helpful to you:

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4 Comments

  1. What if I am a late starter with many of these things? How do I implement them without overloading his brain before he begins Kindergarten the following year? He knows some things, can spell his name, is very bright and ready to learn. He is four years old.

    1. thislittlehomeofmineblog@gmail.com says:

      Hey Rhonda! I would definitely suggest starting small with just a few key areas you would like to focus ON and then see where things lead – I really love the way kids can guide the way – especially when they’re eager to learn as it sounds like your little one is! Keep me posted on how things go – I would love to stay in touch with you!

  2. Stephanie says:

    Hi! My daughter is in first grade at our local public school, but she’s struggling with writing her letters properly, and with reading. She’s going to be checked with the speech path, because her pronunciation is not quite right. but I was thinking that maybe the Abeka phonics charts and writing habits that I learned as a kid might be helpful for her now. I’ve been looking around the Abeka website and it’s a bit daunting. I’m not up to homeschooling, but I was hoping to supplement a little.
    What do you recommend I start with?

    1. thislittlehomeofmineblog@gmail.com says:

      Hey Stephanie! This might give you a peek into what we’ve been using in the first-grade year: https://thislittlehomeofmine.com/homeschooling-first-grade/ – Maybe this will help with the ordering process as I know it can feel like a lot! We are doing first-grade now and have ordered in the same way~ Are we connected on Facebook and/or Instagram? I would love to stay in touch!

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