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Level A All-Subject Package
Ships for FREE with fast, trackable shipping (lower 48 states).
- Description
- What's Included
- Samples
- Consumables
- Customize
- FAQs
Here’s an in-depth look at what you’ll receive and learn with this kindergarten homeschool curriculum—an excellent foundation for your child’s educational journey.
Instructor’s Guides
The 36-week, 4-day kindergarten homeschool curriculum schedule is thoughtfully designed to leave one day open for co-ops, music lessons, sports, field trips, or other extracurricular activities. Each guide includes discussion questions, answers, and background notes to help you make the most of the time spent with your child, providing a well-rounded approach to homeschooling.
Virtual Learning (Optional)
Our optional online platform enables students to access reading schedules, complete assessments, and receive auto-graded results instantly. Parents can track student progress, customize assessments, and communicate directly via computer or mobile device. Each Virtual course includes accounts for one student and one parent/teacher. If purchased between April and June, access begins as early as July 1st. Courses must be started within 6 months of purchase and completed within 12 months from the start date.
History & Geography │ Intro to the World: Cultures
In this homeschool curriculum for kindergarten, your child will explore new cultures and far-off lands, learning about Ancient Egypt, Rome, knights, castles, geography, climates, and more. Engaging discussion questions help you connect your child to the people and places they encounter. You can enhance this learning experience with the optional Hands-On History: World Cultures Kit.
Read-Alouds
Reading aloud fosters vocabulary growth, listening skills, and imagination. Enjoy cuddling up with your child while reading 23 classic Read-Aloud stories such as Dr. Dolittle and The Boxcar Children. These activities help build cognitive development and spark a passion for learning.
Readers
As your child masters just eight letters of the alphabet, they’ll begin reading real stories in the Fun Tales series. If you’re unsure which reading level is appropriate, try our Quick Reading Assessment to guide your selection.
Language Arts
The Instructor’s Guide offers Weekly Overviews that summarize lessons, skills, and activities for each week. Prompts help you teach specific skills, and rubrics allow you to evaluate progress quickly and easily. Language Arts lessons cover phonics, spelling, creative expression, and writing mechanics. For additional practice, you can opt for the Explode the Code A, B, C Set, which is scheduled in the guide but not required.<"/p>
Handwriting Without Tears │ Letters & Numbers for Me
This program begins with capital letters, making it easier for children to distinguish letters, unlike more confusing lower-case letters like "p," "q," "b," and "d." Exercises focus on figure-ground discrimination and left-to-right sequencing, providing a solid foundation in handwriting.
Science
Our engaging, literature-based Science A course follows Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), introducing students to wildlife, ecosystems, weather patterns, forecasting, simple machines, and physics. Your child will explore these concepts through experiments that involve prediction, investigation, and conclusion. Fun hands-on activities include building an ant tunnel, making chocolate, and designing a boat. Eleven colorful, easy-to-read books supplement these topics, ensuring a comprehensive science experience in this kindergarten homeschool curriculum.
Math
The Math-U-See Primer Universal Set comes with this all-inclusive package. If you prefer, you can choose from other math programs like Saxon, Singapore, or RightStart. Unsure if your child is ready? Use the Primer Readiness Assessment to ensure your student’s success.
Required Resources
A few key resources enrich your learning experience this year. The set includes The Timeline Book, Markable Map & Markers, and a 3” Binder with Tabs to organize your Instructor’s Guides—essential tools for structure and hands-on learning in the best kindergarten homeschool curriculum.
This homeschool curriculum for kindergarten offers everything you need to give your child a successful and enriching start to their educational journey.
- History A Instructor's Guide (B-AHB)
- Mary On Horseback (B-AA23)
- Johnny Appleseed: the Story of a Legend (B-AA24)
- Create-a-Calendar (B-AE01)
- Wild Places (B-AH01)
- Living Long Ago (B-AH02)
- Usborne Internet-Linked Children's Encyclopedia (B-AH04)
- The Story of Exploration (B-AH07)
- Out of Darkness (B-AH08)
- Timeline Figures - A (B-AHB1)
- The House At Pooh Corner (B-AA01)
- The Story of Dr. Dolittle (B-AA02)
- The Arnold Lobel Book of Mother Goose (B-AA04)
- The Llama Who Had No Pajama (B-AA05)
- Richard Scarry's Please and Thank You Book (B-AA06)
- My Father's Dragon (B-AA09)
- Dolphin Adventure (B-AA10)
- The Light At Tern Rock (B-AA11)
- A Grain of Rice (B-AA14)
- The Hundred Dresses (B-AA15)
- Twenty and Ten (B-AA16)
- The Boxcar Children (B-AA17)
- James Herriot's Treasury for Children (B-AA21)
- Dolphin Treasure (B-AA22)
- Here's a Penny (B-AA27)
- Little House in the Big Woods (B-AA29)
- Beezus and Ramona (B-AA30)
- Anna Hibiscus (B-KA01)
- Heartwood Hotel: A True Home (B-KA18)
One Set of Consumables is included with the package. To add consumables for another student please click here.
When should I start my child in Level A?
Our Level A packages are designed for students from ages 5-7. If your child is in that age range, they may be ready for BookShark's Level A program!
Young children are natural learners (it is one of the reasons they ask so many questions), but academic work requires a different set of skills than the ones your child has been building. We expect the Level A work to take about 1.5-2 hours for you and your child. Before you buy, please consider whether or not they are ready to:
- Listen and pay attention when you read chapter books out loud
- Answer questions about what they hear and see
- Sit still for short periods of time
- Follow simple instructions
- Work with you to complete worksheets and activities
We strongly encourage you to wait if you have concerns about your child's readiness for academic work - even if they are the “appropriate” age - and consider using our Pre-K All-Subject Package instead!
Is BookShark a History or a Reading program?
BookShark is both! We are a literature-based program that teaches History through reading and listening. In Levels A-C, the focus of our program is on developing and strengthening reading ability. This is why we offer multiple Reader levels for the early packages. Beginning in Level D, however, the focus shifts from strengthening the reading ability to building reading comprehension. From Level D up, we integrate the Reading, Read-Alouds, and Language Arts assignments with the History readings. Instead of learning to read, your children will be reading to learn!
My child already knows how to read, can I still use the Level A program?
Yes, you can! If your child is reading comfortably at a 1st Grade (or higher) reading level, customize your Level A program with Level 1 Readers & Language Arts, or Level 2 Readers & Language Arts. To change the Reader level in your package, select the correct level from the “Select a Reading Level” drop-down menu on the “Customize” tab.
What books are included in the Level 1 Readers?
Level 1 Readers are equivalent to a 1st Grade reading level and include the following:
What books are included in the Level 2 Readers?
Level 2 Regular Readers are equivalent to a 2nd Grade reading level and include the following:
Which Readers/Language Arts should I choose?
We offer multiple Readers/Language Arts levels for our Level A-C packages to accommodate advanced and struggling learners. Choosing a Readers/Language Arts level that is appropriate for your child will help ensure that there are no gaps in their knowledge.
If you are unsure which Readers level would be best for your child, please have them take our Quick Reading Assessment. It is very important to match the Readers level to your child’s reading ability, and the assessment will help you find the most comfortable fit for them. We encourage you to be sure that they are reading fluidly, not just decoding the words. Our goal is to help you instill a love of reading and learning in your child. If they are working too hard to decode the words, they may not enjoy the stories and the reading may become frustrating.
Please note that many young students read at a higher level than their Language Arts ability. We recommend that you look through the Scope & Sequence and the 3-Week Samples for our Language Arts Instructor's Guides before you make a final decision on which level will be best for your child.
Feel free to use the assignments in the samples as a way to test which Language Arts level will match your student's skills. If your student's Language Arts skill is slightly behind their Reading levels, you may want to consider choosing your Readers based on your student's Language Arts ability. Our Readers are engaging and fun for students of all levels!
Do the Readers integrate with the History reading?
We offer multiple Reader levels for our Level A-C programs, so the Readers are not tied with the History reading for this package. In Levels A-C, the focus of our program is on developing and strengthening reading ability. The Readers are integrated with the History program beginning in Level D.
Can I use this package for both of my children?
Yes, you can use the All-Subject Package with two or more students!
If your children are within three years of age, we recommend that you put them in the same BookShark All-Subject Package. Your children will be able to share most of the resources in the All-Subject package, including Read-Alouds, Science, and History books. They can also share the Timeline Book and Timeline Figures, but you will need duplicates of some of the Activity Sheets. You may also need additional Math resources. Please look at the “Consumables” tab to see a full list of the consumable materials in this package.
Please remember that Reading & Language Arts and Math are skill-based subjects. Even though your students are in the same age range, they may not have the same skill levels. Use the assessments on our Resources page to help you pick the correct Reading and Math option for each of your children.
Once you know the correct Reader and Math levels, customize the All-Subject Package to fit one of your student’s needs. Then, supplement the package with an additional Reading & Language Arts and a Math program that fits your other students.
Not sure if this is the right fit? Please review the options below to find a package that will work for both of your children:
- Ages 6-8 | Level B All-Subject Package
- Ages 7-9 | Level C All-Subject Package
If there is more than a three year age difference between your children, we recommend that you purchase a separate package for each student. Our Level F All-Subject Package (for ages 10-13) is a good pairing with our Level A package as it provides an overview of Eastern Hemisphere History and Geography.
Can my students share the Science Supplies Kit?
Yes! If your students are willing to work together as lab partners, they can share the resources in the Science Supplies Kit A. You may want a second kit if you prefer that each student perform every experiment, or if you have more than two scientists sharing the Science package.
Which Math program/level will be best for my child?
Math, like reading, is a skill-based subject. It is important to pick a program and a level that fits with your child’s learning style and ability. Please take a look at our Resources page for a comparison of our different math options. We also have placement tests to help you figure out the appropriate starting point for your child.
Can I purchase the package without Math?
Our All-Subject Packages are built to include everything you need for your school year: History, Reading, Language Arts, Science, and Math. We love our packages so much that we discount them 20% off retail price. You can purchase the elements of the All-Subject package without purchasing math, but you will not receive our 20% off package discount.
If you are certain none of our math options will work for you, please add the following products to your cart individually:
- Reading with History A (this package is discounted 15% off the retail price)
- Language Arts K (if you chose Kindergarten Readers for Reading with History) OR Language Arts 1 (if you chose Level 1 Readers for Reading with History)
- Science A (be sure to select that you purchased the Usborne Children’s Encyclopedia with your History program)
What are the “Required Resources” and why are they required?
The Required Resources includes a big binder with 36 week tabs for your Instructor’s Guides, The Timeline Book, a reusable Markable Map, and a set of wet-erase markers. These resources will be reused in almost every level of our History program and can be shared by multiple students. You will be given the option to purchase these items every time you buy an All-Subject or Reading with History Package, but you only need to buy it once.
For more information on BookShark, please see our FAQs page.
The decision to homeschool our daughter, Alexa, was an easy one. Choosing a curriculum that worked well with her goals and schedule was a little more difficult.
Jenna Henning