Ask Mr. Bear

This series provides a wonderful way to nurture your relationship with your children and foster a lifelong adventure of learning. The Five in a Row title comes from reading the same classic children’s book five days in a row as a literature-based unit study to cover social studies, character, language arts, math, science and art. Use as a stand-alone program for preschool, or supplement with phonics and math and use it with older children. Literature selections contain positive moral stories that reflect Biblical values. Choose from many possible activities for each day.

The original Five in a Row series was written three decades ago for the previous generation of homeschoolers. Now, the author’s children have undertaken the task of modernizing the series and updating the literature lists. All books in the series will eventually be revised; however, at this writing, Beyond Five in a Row series are still in the previous edition.

Before Five in a Row has much the same content as the original book, but with three additional stories included. There are also updated illustrations, Animal Classification Cards that help children develop simple classification skills, and StoryDisks and a Storybook Map (an enjoyable way to teach where the story takes place). This book is a collection of discussion and play-based lessons to do for 10-15 minutes 2 or 3 days a week. It doesn’t follow the typical 5 day a week schedule. The first of two parts list the 24 stories, along with creative activity suggestions such as examining the stars or using colored tissue paper to make a simple collage. The second part is filled with ideas to build a foundation of readiness – talking and listening skills, coordination skills, activities in the kitchen and other primary skills.

More Before Five in a Row is the new addition to the series and includes 14 new books. It has been specifically written as a preschool curriculum (ages 3-5) and follows the typical format of the Five in a Row books. New to this book, however, is an encouraging Bible lesson before each story written specifically for the parent. Many lessons are built around six early literacy skills: vocabulary, narrative, print awareness, phonological awareness, letter knowledge, and print motivation. The gentle activities are not meant to teach in-depth concepts, but to enhance your child’s awareness of the world around them. Centered around play and discussion, the program provides a wide variety of activities involving science, social studies, Bible, language arts, health and much more. An Animal Classification game, StoryDisks and a Storybook Map are included in the back. The activities are a bit more detailed than in Before FIAR.

Completely redesigned and updated, the second edition of the Five in a Row Volumes 1-4 still have the same goal of providing elementary students with a quality educational foundation through well written and illustrated books. All you will need to complete the curriculum for 5-and-6-year-olds is a good phonics program and a simple introduction to math. For children who are reading successfully, you will want to supplement with math, spelling, penmanship, and grammar material if you desire to teach those as individual subjects. Volume 4 is designed for older elementary (9 years and up). The activities related to the different subjects in this volume are more involved; therefore, plan on spending 2 weeks on Volume 4 books instead of one. For ages 9 and 10, it is recommended adding math, spelling, and grammar. This volume prepares students for Level 5 as students transition to reading chapter books.

The new editions include special teaching tips from the author (including step-by-step guidance for each day of the week), along with an explanation of the philosophy behind the program. There is also a “Teacher’s Note” page and activity sheets following each book lesson. The “Teacher’s Note” page is handy to record relevant information such as activities done, library resources or videos used, and any field trip opportunities taken. The three or four activity sheets for each book title correlate with some of the activities and really add to the program. These sheets are reproducible for family use only. The books in each program remain the same with a couple of exceptions. They Were Strong and Good was taken out of Volume 2 and The Old Woman Who Named Things was added to Volume 3. Literature packages contain all available books for each volume. Note: literature packages do not contain the FIAR guides. Check out our website for the most current literature package updates! Christian Character and Bible content also available separately. ~ Gina

What is a "unit study"? Briefly, it's a thematic or topical approach to teaching as opposed to the traditional by-subject approach. Rather than teach each subject separately, a unit study attempts to integrate many or all subject areas into a unified study - usually centered around a particular subject or event. Obviously History (the study of events) and Science (the study of "things") are well-suited to unit studies, and usually form the "core" around which other subjects are integrated. Subjects like Bible, Geography, Government, English (writing), and Reading/Literature, Music, Home Economics, Life Skills, and Art, are usually easy to integrate around a core topics. Remaining subjects (Math, Phonics, Grammar, Spelling) can be integrated to some extent via related activities. Each, however, has its own "system" (progression of skills, mastery of "rules") which must be followed to some degree. Since one of the additional advantages of a unit study curriculum is the ability to use it with students of varying ages and skill levels, these subjects are generally taught apart from the core curriculum. This may be as simple as assigning pages in a grammar or spelling book, or using a separate "program" for Phonics and Math. Unit studies also tend to be more activity-oriented than the traditional approach, a real boon to kinesthetic learners. Advocates of the unit study approach site studies showing that children learn best when learning is unified rather than fragmented and when learning is more participatory than passive.

Not to leave out the eager younger children, this volume provides mini Five in a Row- style lessons for youngsters. This book; however, is divided into two parts, the first being similar to the other curriculum guides. Just as in the original series, each unit is built around a simple, classic children's storybook. This book differs from the older volumes in that it is not structured around a week. The purpose is simply to provide an array of activities for each book that engage children and lay the foundation for further learning. Some of the activities are subject related, such as Bible, science, math, language arts, and art; others are various skills such as learning shapes, sequencing, colors or problem solving, and the rest are centered on specific topics, like relationships, contentment, birthdays or another book-related idea. The second part of this book focuses on arming parents with creative ideas to build learning readiness. This section is a treasure trove of activities that help develop reading readiness and motor skills or focus on the arts. Additional activities also capitalize on teachable moments that arise during bath time, in the kitchen, or during a trip to the store. 149 pgs. ~ Steph

It is no secret that reading engaging stories aloud fosters intimacy between parents and their little ones. And children love to have someone read to them! There are a plethora of children’s books to choose from these days. But have you ever just wanted a list of great classic literature to read to your young ones? In the Before Five in a Row series, the authors have carefully selected classic stories that are rich in content and illustration. Not only is there a list of wonderful stories, but also a range of interesting and simple activities to select from that correlate with the reading book. This series has been available for many years, but has recently been revised to include two books for this age group: Before Five in a Row and More Before Five in a Row. The goal of the first book is to provide children with an introduction to quality books in order to stimulate their natural curiosity to learn. The second book has a new list of books with more connection-building lessons focused on six early literacy skills: vocabulary, narrative, print awareness, phonological awareness, letter knowledge, and print motivation. Unlike the original Five in a Row, this series is not structured around a week, but rather follows a more leisurely pace with what works best for you and your child.

Before Five in a Row has much the same content as the original book. In fact, the stories remain the same; however, there are three additional stories included. There are also updated illustrations, Animal Classification Cards that help young minds develop simple classification skills, and StoryDisks and a Storybook Map providing hands-on fun. All of these activities are designed to prepare children for later studies with More Before Five in a Row and Five in a Row. The book is divided into two parts. The first part lists the 24 stories along with the simple and creative activity suggestions such as examining the stars or using colored tissue paper to make a simple collage. The second part is filled with many ideas to help build a foundation of readiness in some area of your child’s life (talking and listening skills, coordination skills, activities in the kitchen and many others). This is such a helpful resource for young parents!

More Before Five in a Row is the new addition to the series and includes 14 new books. It has been specifically written as a preschool curriculum (3-5 year olds) but also serves as an encouragement to parents of young children by providing a simple Bible lesson at the beginning of each lesson. The gentle activities focused on early literacy skills are not meant to teach in depth concepts, but to enhance your child’s awareness of the world around them and create special bonding time between you and your child. Focusing on play and discussion, one of the activities might include a rhyming exercise or an activity talking about one of the five senses. The activities are a bit more detailed than the Before Five in a Row book. StoryDisks, a Storybook Map, and the Animal Classification Game are also included.

With so many distractions in our world today, it is important to be intentional in teaching children to love reading. Not just passive reading, but also interactive reading (asking your child questions as your read) to help your children understand a greater depth of what they are reading in order to enhance their comprehension skills. This series provides a wonderful way for parents or grandparents to nurture their relationship with the little ones that are under their charge and foster a lifelong adventure of learning.

*Note: Jenny’s Surprise Summer in Before Five in a Row is currently out-of-print. It was included as an extra title because it provides an excellent opportunity to introduce decision making skills at a very young level.