This will be our second time going through The Good and the Beautiful Math Level K and I am so excited. We waited for this math with Jacob and it was completely worth it. He is solid in math and I attribute it completely to this program. And Sarah is SO EXCITED to begin!
Since this is our second time going through this level of math – a lot of the prep I’ve already done. Can I get a “WOOT WOOT”?!
The feeling is wonderful. I literally took about 30 minutes to “prep” things this time around and it was AWESOME. But I will take you through the steps I did before and the few things I did for Sarah this time around.
Step 1: Activity Box
When you order your Level K Course Set, you get two course books as well as an “Activity Box”. This activity box is just for Level K – but completely worth it if you ask me. It brings such an added depth of learning and fun. I could definitely have used other things but it is filled with effective, good, and beautiful materials.
This is everything included in the activity box:
- 20 bee manipulatives
- 60 garden plant manipulatives
- 12 inchworm manipulatives
- 4 ten frame cards
- 1 wooden Rekenrek
- 1 laminated handwriting card
- 12 double-sided pattern-block picture cards
- 78 piece colored pattern-block set
- 3 sets of flashcards, numbers 0 – 10
- 1 set of flashcards, numbers 11 – 20
- 1 set of flashcards, ten frames 0 – 20
- 1 set of flashcards, 14 shapes
- 1 “odd” and one “even” flashcard
- 1 ten-sided dice
- 1 standard dice
- 1 “My Place Value Chart”
- 1 page of place value pieces
- 60-piece colored wooden cube set
- 1 “Part-Part-Whole” Mat
- 1 spiral-bound “My Calendar”
- Toothpicks
Several of these things don’t need any preparation. And, as with most things, I prep a little more than you would NEED to. But, I have found it very worth it, and am really grateful now going to do it a second time around.
Additional Supplies
There are a few additional supplies to also have on hand. Most of these were things I already had but they include:
- Pencils, crayons (or colored pencils), scissors, glue stick
- A timer (I just use the one on my phone)
- A personal size dry erase board with marker
- 100 pennies
- 10 dimes
I purchased a set of play coins when we started homeschooling and it was a great decision for us. I personally hate using coins. Little sweaty hands get stinky and I am just not a fan.
Manipulatives
Okay, back to the activity box. First step is to punch out your manipulatives. There are bees, garden plants, inchworms, and colored blocks. These all come with great packages to put them in and are really durable. Ours still look good as new!
Flashcards
Next up are the flashcards. There are several sets of flashcards (numbers, ten frames, shapes, and odd/even cards). Just cut them ALL out.
Next step, bring out your trusty laminator and have some fun! This step is NOT required, but I am really glad I did it. If you are planning on using the flashcards with more than one child, I would definitely do it. Our cards are still in tip-top shape and they will get a lot of use over the year.
Then I separated them into groups, rubber banded them together, and put them in our activity box.
Cards
Don’t put away that laminator just yet! Your box also comes with 4 ten-frame cards and 12 double-sided pattern block picture cards (say that three times fast!). These are printed on nice paper, but again, if you are planning on using them for more than one kiddo, I would take the extra time to laminate them – especially the ten frame cards (those will get a lot of use!).
Place Value Chart
You don’t need to do anything to prepare you place value chart EXCEPT I would make a copy of your place value pieces. I feel like I am saying the same song over and over, but if you are planning on using these for more than one kiddo, you will need more than one of these pages. So keep a master copy and then cut up another one.
Part-Part-Whole Mat
Last piece of prep for your activity box – take out your “Part-Part-Whole Mat” and just laminate it. Just do it, friends.
Step 2: Course Book
So, I realize Step 1 was more like five steps, but stick with me here! That was definitely the hardest part!
This is not a necessary step at all. In fact, it was not a step I did at all with Jacob and it was totally fine. However, I did it this year because if you’ve been here awhile you know that I like to have as much PREPPED before we start as possible.
If you flip to the back of your two course books, you will find the appendix. I pulled out the pages that needed to be cut out and did it before hand.
Again, this is definitely not necessary, but it saves me a couple minutes on those days when I need them and I’d much rather just do them now. Once I cut them out, I simply put them in a ziplock bag (paper clipping the things that go together) and place it in the bottom of our activity box. That way I just have to grab and go when the day arrives.
Step 3: Level K Answer Key
This is another step that I didn’t utilize last time with Jacob, but am this year. Having lots of young kiddos means my attention is always being pulled in lots of directions. Even though I am definitely capable of doing kindergarten math 😋, it will be nice to simply open up my answer key and glance over her worksheets without any thought.
This is strictly for ease (and maybe sanity!). You can find the answer key here. I printed it out, laminated the front and back covers, and spiral-bound it together with my trusty pro-click. That way, it will be set for all my other kiddos in the future as well!
Step 4: Songs
There are two song you can download for FREE that accompany the course. They are the:
- Days of the Week Song
- Months of the Year Song
These songs are simple and fantastic. I actually download them to my phone (for ease). You will use them loads throughout the year and have been really helpful for my kiddos.
You can also access the songs with adorable videos on The Good and the Beautiful Kids YouTube page. I will probably introduce the songs with the video, but then play them on my phone after that.
Optional Step: If you are using for a second…or third…or fourth time
When we decided to homeschool, I became ALL IN really quick. It just felt so right for our family and I have never turned back. With that said, I really try to make things last and teach our kiddos to treat things with kindness out of respect for us, as their parents, and their siblings. So far, I feel like we have done really well with this.
I hope to make the activity box LAST us through all four kiddos (wish me luck!). If you are prepping this course for the first time, I would do the above steps – it really is worth it!
If you have already prepped this once before (like I have), all you really need to do is some little finishing touches.
If you are anything like us – I LOVE DRY ERASE MARKERS – but they do seem to leave little black flecks everywhere. I went through our laminated materials that got heavy use (think handwriting card and place value chart) and give it a good wipe down. I used some windex and a paper towel and it really helped just to give it a fresh look. I am sure it will look “dirty” again in no time, but at least it will be Sarah’s dirt, not Jacob’s – you get what I mean?
If things are looking dicey, you can also purchase individual items of your math box. One thing I needed to do was order a new “My Calendar” for Sarah (as this is a one-time-use item). And I probably will order a new “My Place Value Chart” for Benji (but we will cross that bridge in a couple years!).
And you are…DONE!
And that’s it, friends! I feel like I can get kind of wordy (sorry!) and these posts end up being long, but I really feel like the prep is quite simple. It’s something that is actually fun for me in the summer. I put on a movie for the kiddos and I to watch, and I cut, laminate, and PREP! It’s relaxing and makes our learning time relaxing for the rest of the year. WIN.
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