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Home > Homeschool > Our Favorite Curriculum (by grade level!) > Nursery
Nursery Curriculum (Ages 0-
There are those who would say that nursery is too young an age for intentionally planning any sort of homeschooling curriculum, but the way I see it, children are born with an incredible ability to learn. Studies have even shown that even before birth an infant is picking up on all that is going on around them; they are incredibly intelligent and naturally inclined towards learning. Obviously, they’re not anywhere near being ready to pick up a pencil and start writing, but they are never to young to start learning.
This being the case, I like to be very intentional about what I expose my children to at an early age, and very intentional to surround them with things that will stimulate their senses and enhance their learning experience.
Perhaps the most important thing to remember when choosing “curriculum” for an infant is the simple fact that regardless of what you do (or don’t do) your baby IS learning! There’s no need to stress out about how much your stimulating your baby or what you’re doing right or wrong – don’t stress it! The intent here is not to push your child to learn things ahead of their time, or to stress about getting them to the front of the class, it is merely to give them the added advantage of exposure.
Hidden In My Heart Scripture Lullabies
Hidden In My Heart Scripture Lullabies. This music album is really beautiful (there
are actually 4 volumes, all together, but volume 1 is definitely our favorite). It’s
just beautiful lullaby music that introduces children to the promises of the Bible.
No, it’s not word-
Quiet Time Scripture Songs From Proverbs (Patch the Pirate)
Quiet Time Scripture Songs From Proverbs. Another beautiful Scripture based music album that teaches Biblical truths. I like to put this one on for the kids in the middle of the day, either for quiet time, or when the children are getting too excited and need help calming down.
Read and Share Bible Videos. The Read and Share Bible Videos are the very best Bible videos I have found for kids! As far as children’s Bible videos go, these stay very close to the actual story, and they are very calm and peaceful (no added hype that we see in a lot of other animated Bible movies). With all of my children, the Read and Share Bible Videos were their very first screen time exposure. And I was amazed to see my 1 and 2 year olds actually tracking with the story and understanding the Bible stories. I think these animated Bible stories were a very formative part of my children’s development and faith.
Baby Einstein: My First Signs. Learning basic signs (especially before the child can talk) was always something we found very helpful with our home, and this particular video really helped a lot to lay the groundwork for that.
In fact, the Baby Einstein videos, in general, are all really great for babies and toddlers. Our other favorite Baby Einstein videos were: Animals, Neighborhood Animals, On the Go, and Water.
Baby Signing Time: First Signs
Baby Signing Time: First Signs. Another really great video for teaching sign language to babies and toddlers (and their parents, too!). Rachel Coleman does a really great job of making the lessons fun and educational. And the signs are all really simple and easy to remember.
In the same series there is also Baby Signing Time Let’s Be Friends, Here I Go, and A New Day, which are all equally excellent!
I think the Spot videos are the BEST! They’re very simple and fun, not over stimulating, and just really engaging for young children. Our favorite spot videos are Discover Spot and Spot and His Grandparents Go To The Carnival, but there are lots more Spot videos, and they are all really excellent! I always appreciate videos that can teach and hold a child’s attention without all the unnecessary hype!
The Bible App for Kids. By this point you’re probably thinking that we give our kids way too much screen time (and I don’t know, maybe you’d be right), but early on my husband and I realized that the world in which our children are being born is a very technical world, and success in any field of work these days depends a lot on being computer and tech savvy, so with that in mind we aren’t opposed to giving our kids a reasonable amount of screen time – but we ARE very intentional about that screen time being educational!
This app, in particular, is one that my kids absolutely loved! And I found it to
be a really great way to introduce young kids to the stories of the Bible, with fun,
interactive Bible stories that are not over-
The Bible App for Kids Storybook Bible
The Bible App for Kids Storybook Bible. Our family was so excited when we discovered that our favorite Bible app had been turned into a published book. We’ve tried a lot of different children’s Bibles over the years, but this one was definitely our favorite!
Teach Your Baby to Sign (Monica Beyer)
Teach Your Baby to Sign. Teaching basic signs to my babies has always been something I’ve made a priority. Young children often learn to communicate through signs much sooner than they learn to communicate through words. Studies have also shown that children who grow up with a familiarity with sign language also seem to have an easier time later on in life when they try learning foreign languages, with is an added motivation for teaching my babies to sign.
InnyBin (Fat Brain Toys). This toy may be a little overpriced, but it was certainly worth the investment (especially since it lasted through multiple children). I’ve always liked the classic shape sorter toys, but infants always seem to need so much parental help to use the shape sorters, which makes them not so ideal. But this particular toy is one that even infants can figure out and enjoy.
And, as a mom, my absolute favorite part about this toy is the fact that if (or rather when) the pieces get lost it doesn’t really matter since you can easily substitute any other toys – it doesn’t have to be the original ones!