I’m not going to lie, I LOVE reading reviews! I read book reviews, product reviews, curriculum reviews, and even clothing reviews. Over the last year as we’ve continued to research homeschool curriculum, I’ve spent hours reading parents’ reviews of the various options I’ve been even slightly interested in. I want to know what real people think when using the curriculum in their real lives! So today, I’m sharing an honest, in-depth review of A Year of Playing Skillfully after using it in our real life for the past 7 months.
Let me, of course, begin with a disclaimer. I am not affiliated with The Homegrown Preschooler or A Year of Playing Skillfully in any way. We have used it this school year, and I want to offer you my honest opinion of the curriculum, how it has worked for us, what I love, and things to consider to help you decide if it would be a good fit for your family.
Okay, now on to the review! Keep in mind that I am talking about the physical copy of the curriculum. I ordered my curriculum and had a physical product mailed to my door (it came quickly, too).
What I LOVE about A Year of Playing Skillfully
#1. The curriculum itself is beautiful.
This is certainly not the most important aspect of a curriculum, but as a former professional photographer, I really appreciate beautiful photographs, well-packaged products, and lovely design work. You’ll find all of that in the AYOPS curriculum!
It has been a lot of fun, not to mention super helpful, to look at the beautiful photographs of the author’s children engaging in the activities. It helps give context and ideas as I plan the activities, and sometimes even helps me know how to set it up.
#2. It’s comprehensive and well-organized.
The curriculum is divided by months, and each month has an overall theme. Each month’s activities are further divided into 6 categories: home life and social-emotional; language and literacy; art and music; math and manipulatives; science and sensory; and outdoor and gross motor. There are also field trip suggestions each month to complement the month’s theme.
Within each category, there are numerous activities to choose from, and they hit on a variety of skills and experiences. I have been so impressed by how many skills this curriculum hits on throughout the year. I love the nature study bits, how alphabet learning is hands-on and interactive, how much counting and math skills of many different kinds are reinforced, and how a love of art and music is cultivated.
The curriculum comes with a printable checklist for each month (and it’s pretty), so you have a handy, one-page visual to keep track of what you’ve completed. I LOVE the checklist!
#3. It’s a play-based preschool curriculum.
Here’s where I have to confess that because of my background as a public educator, it was actually a bit of a stretch for me to order this curriculum. When I first began looking at our options for preschool, I found loads of workbook-style curricula that felt more like what I’d be comfortable with. My husband and I actually had several discussions in which he urged me not to push too hard, too fast. He reminded me again and again that kids don’t really NEED any kind of formal preschool in order to be successful, that they learn by playing and doing. I know that in my heart, but my head needed some convincing (what with all the emphasis on “rigor” in public schools).
It felt like a leap of faith for me to click the button and make the purchase, but it was one of the best decisions I made in 2018!
This curriculum has been a gift of wonder, excitement, and fun for my boys (yes, even my 2-year-old participates in most of the activities). It has also been a bit of public school detox for me. It has helped me really come to see and appreciate the value of a few things:
- letting them truly be little without forcing “academics” on them too soon;
- how much children really do learn about the world around them by playing and exploring on their own; and
- how to let go of what I thought it had to look like and let it be what it is.
#4. A Year of Playing Skillfully has given us so many beautiful memories and experiences this year.
How often can you honestly say that about a school curriculum? But it’s absolutely true about AYOPS. Our first month, September, was all about letting go for me. I had to bite my tongue when the paint projects left the canvas and went all over their little bodies. I had to refrain from correcting them when, instead of just painting the salt, they started mixing the colors in the paint cups.
I had to let go of what I thought the end product should look like and enjoy the process.
My son still asks me if I remember when we played with the frog life cycle and water beads months ago. He has become quite proficient at using pipettes, scissors, and paint this year. He LOVES when I say, “Let’s do school!” And then we go outside and dig for worms or we see what happens when we mix vinegar and baking soda.
This curriculum has invited us into a world of imagination, play, and experiences that I wouldn’t trade for anything!
#5. It has taught me how to SAY YES more often.
Last week, I wrote a blog post about saying yes to my son when he asked to make homemade lemonade one morning while I was making breakfast. My first instinct was to tell him no, that we were getting ready to eat and maybe we could do it later.
But then I remembered that some of our favorite memories and his biggest learning experiences happen when I said yes. So my four-year-old son squeezed lemons by hand while I made their breakfast. We sugared it and added some water, and he enjoyed the fruits of his labor over breakfast.
It’s a small word, yes, but it has the potential to make a world of difference to our kids. This curriculum has taught me not only to let go of my own preconceived notions, but also to let go of the plans I meticulously wrote in my calendar and SAY YES to making memories, making messes, exploring, and learning.
#6. It can be implemented for a WIDE range of ages and skill-levels.
Another thing I LOVE about this curriculum is that it’s not exclusive. My four-year-old is the one “in preschool” this year, but my two-year-old has no idea that he’s not yet “in school!” Not every activity is suitable for my two-year-old, so I usually save those for his nap time so that Clark and I can play on our own. However, most activities can be adapted so that both boys can participate.
That has taken a lot of stress out of this year. At the start of our school year, I was honestly concerned about how I would keep Elliot entertained while Clark and I did school. However, Elliot has joined in for most of our AYOPS activities.
It has been so fun to see them interact, help each other, and play alongside each other. Sometimes I can see that an activity is too advanced for Elliot, and he quickly loses interest. And that’s okay. But it’s a been a gift to have a curriculum that includes the whole family!
#7. AYOPS can be used year after year.
We will continue to use this curriculum every single year until my kids get too big for it. Clark will begin homeschool Kindergarten in the fall, and Elliot won’t quite be preschool-aged yet, but we’ll use it again! And the best part is, because each activity is so process-oriented, there’s no way I can see them getting bored from repeating activities from year to year. Each year they do the activities, I imagine they’ll learn something new, fine tune their skills, and have a completely different end product or observation!
I’m excited to see how different their art projects look, or what new observations and hypotheses they make about the gummy bears next year!
#8. You can implement as many or as few of the activities as you want.
Because this curriculum doesn’t necessarily build on itself as you progress through the year, you can pick and choose activities you want to do. If some months are particularly busy or challenging, you don’t have to feel pressured to check every box. But you can if you want to!
We completed most of the activities September through January. February was not a great month, because I hit the peak of first trimester exhaustion and nausea. We didn’t get to many of the activities, so I only chose the ones I knew Clark would love the most. March picked up again, and I anticipate we’ll finish strong with April and May’s activities.
The great news is that there is not a set number of lessons you have to get through, or a certain order you have to follow to make sure you’ve adequately scaffolded for new skills. It’s play-based, so they’ll learn what they need to learn. And if you don’t get to all of the activities? You can do them next year! And if you don’t love an activity? Skip it! (For me, it’s basically anything that involves rice in a sensory bin. I’ve tried to love it, but I just can’t.)
#9. The AYOPS Facebook community is incredible!
This isn’t specific to the curriculum that you order, but once you’ve purchased and received the curriculum, you can join their amazing Facebook group. It has been such a supportive community this year! Fellow parents share their ideas, suggestions, and successes. It’s a wonderful place to ask questions, and it’s honestly one of the few communities I’ve been in where there’s NO drama…just a lot of support and encouragement!
What to Consider about A Year of Playing Skillfully
I’m going to be honest with you here and say that I had to think long and hard to come up with what may be drawbacks to this curriculum for some people (and why you should buy it anyway). I love it that much! But there were a couple things that popped into my mind, and that I can see a fellow homeschool mom hesitating about. So here goes…
#1. The price point.
A Year of Playing Skillfully isn’t cheap. It’s not the most expensive preschool curriculum I found, but it’s not the least expensive either. When I was searching for a preschool curriculum, I looked around and found curricula for $20 that looked cute and simple.
And yet, to us, the price of this curriculum has been worth every penny. It has given us rich experiences and taught each of us far more than academic skills (though plenty of those, too). There’s great value in that!
I also mentioned above, this curriculum can be reused for many years and with multiple children. It doesn’t come with a student workbook or a packet of consumables you’ll have to purchase for each child. It’s a book full of ideas and experiences, so you can use it again and again.
However, I do understand that the price point may be an issue and scare some people off. I’m sure you can find this curriculum used in homeschool buy/sell groups, so if the price point is an issue, look around before you give up!
So that’s my complete review of A Year of Playing Skillfully!
I hope that it was helpful for you as you consider whether or not to use this curriculum (do it!). The truth is, I cannot recommend it enough! I have several homeschool mom friends who never planned on doing preschool with their kids (or aren’t even going to homeschool after preschool), but after I talked (incessantly) about how much we love it, they have also invested in it and rave about it!
To download a *FREE* month of the curriculum to really get a good look at they types of activities offered, head here for the download.
And to see how I organize our AYOPS supplies, head over to THIS POST.
Drop any questions or thoughts below! I’d love to hear from you!
