Child Care Training, Resources and Networking

Compare and Evaluate Child Care Curriculum Programs and Packages

There are many prepackaged child care program kits available. Here is a way to compare and find the best one for your program.

Curriculum	Ages	Form	Curricular Areas & Features	Materials Included?	D.A.P	Cost?	Free sample?	Qualifications of Preparer
Itty Bitty Bookworm	toddler and preschool	CD or instant downloads	4 Full weeks of lesson plans List of monthly objectives that correlate with the Head Start Indicators Patterns and blacklines that coordinate with the monthly lesson plans Letter activity sheets/mini-books Letter clip art Number activity sheets Large, letter outlines for collages/mosaics Readers/booklets that coordinate with the books-of-the-month Parent Newsletter Full Color Games Letter Display Cards Number Display Cards Shape Display Cards Color Display Learning Center Ideas for each week Easy-to-use observation records Daily Reports for Parents 4 Poem/Nursery Rhyme Posters	no	yes	Monthly CDs are $30 and Instant Downloads are $20	yes	Master's Degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education and a Bachelor's Degree in Developmental Psychology. She has taught in a variety of settings, including public schools, private schools, and child development centers. She has served as an assistant director, a teacher mentor, and a curriculum and training specialist.

Curriculum	Ages	Form	Curricular Areas & Features	Materials Included?	D.A.P	Cost?	Free sample?	Qualifications of Preparer
Learning Foundations	Ages 2-6	All units on CD sent by Child Care Lounge	Songs, poems, and fingerplays Literacy Activities Creative Art activity ideas Movement/Large motor ideas Science Experiences Prop Box/Dramatic Play ideas Block Area Enrichment ideas Math activities Flannel board ideas Printable Hands-on Activities And much more!	no materials, but a supply list is included	yes	$60 for Seasonal Theme Units CD, $60 for Any Time Units CD, or All units for $100 (savings of $20)	yes	Cathy Abraham has over 25 years experience in the early childhood field and a Master's degree in Education.

Curriculum	Ages	Form	Curricular Areas & Features	Materials Included?	D.A.P	Cost?	Free sample?	Qualifications of Preparer
Mother Goose Time	Mother Goose Time preschool curriculum 2 1/2 - 5 Mother Goose Time toddler curriculum 15 months - 2 1/2 years	Arrives in keepsake yellow school bus box with monthly CD and organized by Day Packs for each child. Packed chronologically: teacher is ready to get started each morning. Toddler Lesson Plan available.	Month-long Teacher Pack includes: Skill-Based Lesson Plan Book, Daily Lesson Plan Calendar, Music CD, Teacher Newsletter, Certificate of Participation, Web Chart, Calendar & Pieces, Skills Chart and Number Strip, and Cardboard die-cut theme Numbers & Letters. Curriculum features: 12+ monthly art activities monthly themed book monthly themed music recipes math games science experiments authentic assessment resources covering all domains of learning.	125 new activities each month; materials included	Yes. Research-based curriculum meets and/or exceeds all state and national standards as defined by Head Start and NAEYC.	Discounts available. First child: $54.99 includes book, custom-produced music CD, and full Teacher Pack with Full Materials Day Bag/child. $3.75 increments for additional children.	One Full Day Sample of Mother Goose Time Research-Based Preschool Curriculum available here, materials included.	Curriculum development team consists of early childhood education experts researching and writing early childhood curriculum for more than 25 years. The Mother Goose Time executive team serves Exchange Magazine, Youth Action International, National Association for the Education of Young Children and more.

Curriculum	Ages	Form	Curricular Areas & Features	Materials Included?	D.A.P	Cost?	Free sample?	Qualifications of Preparer
Funshine Express	preschool and toddler	Monthly theme-based curriculum. FunShine Express follows a three-year rotation of themes and activities. Mailed monthly	Activity ideas, creative art supplies, music, Fireflies™ includes 12 age-appropriate and creative art projects per month with craft supplies and patterns included for each child. New Quarterly Activity Kits for Toddlers.	Yes	unknown	$47.54 for first 2 children per month	Free sample days	FunShine Express' owner/president and curriculum director has a Master's Degree in Education and four years of licensed child care experience. She has also been a child care trainer for Southwest ND Child Care Resource and Referral. Both of our curriculum writers have a bachelor's degree in early childhood and/or a related field. They have teaching experience in centers and home-based environments with children of all ages.

Curriculum	Ages	Form	Curricular Areas & Features	Materials Included?	D.A.P	Cost?	Free sample?	Qualifications of Preparer
High Reach	Infants-pre-K	Learning Experiences Guide, Interactive Posters, Conversation Cards	Integrates learning across all areas of the curriculum. Balances teacher-guided and independent center activities. Saves planning time with an average of 125 monthly activity ideas. Includes adaptations for individualization for mixed-age groups. Compliant with ECERS-R and NAEYC guidelines.	yes	yes	$39.99 per topic	unknown	Each member of the development team holds at least a bachelor's degree in early childhood and/or related field. Several members of the team hold master's degrees as well. Equally important, all members of the product development team have real world classroom experience working with young children

Curriculum	Ages	Form	Curricular Areas & Features	Materials Included?	D.A.P	Cost?	Free sample?	Qualifications of Preparer
Creative Prek	unknown	Each Volume Includes: 12 Weeks of Daily Lesson Plans Each Theme includes five daily lesson plans	Circle Time Messy Table Cut & Color Table Creative Art Outside Games And Activities	no	unknown	$34.95 + $5.00 (S/H)	sample lesson plan	unknown

Curriculum	Ages	Form	Curricular Areas & Features	Materials Included?	D.A.P	Cost?	Free sample?	Qualifications of Preparer
Funsteps	Funsteps program for 3 to 5 year olds and Twosteps for 2 to 3 year olds.	unknown	Each month's kit contains 12 full days of fun activitiesBoth include alphabet and number activities, 3 to 4 themes each month and holiday and special day activities. Crafts come packed in separate bags with all materials included and are different every year for 6 years.	All materials for crafts projects and activity pages are included	Yes	$50.99 for Funsteps and $43.99 for Twosteps	Full month's kit as a free sample	20 years of experience in publishing professional curriculum as Kapers for Kids and Funsteps; BA and MA in education; public school teaching and many years experience in family child care

Curriculum	Ages	Form	Curricular Areas & Features	Materials Included?	D.A.P	Cost?	Free sample?	Qualifications of Preparer
Carol's Affordable Curriculum	Jumping Kangaroo (Non-Christian) ages 2-6 Tiny Tots (Non-Christian) ages 18 months to 36 months Son Shine (Christian) ages 2-6 Little Disciples (Christian) ages 18 months to 36 months Summer Curriculum (June, July & August)	Activity for every day of the work week. Over half the month is crafts and the other half includes worksheets and other educational pages and projects. All the materials are included. All curriculums coordinate with each other. We do not rotate our curriculum every year is new.	We adapt our curriculum with the Core Pre-K Standards. Easy to read instructional guide, which includes tips, essential skills, circle time discussion questions, provider calendar, provider newsletter, menu, recipe cards, songs, book suggestions, easy to follow instructions, visual examples, parent newsletter, progress report, plus more. Alphabet letters Numbers Shapes Colors Opposites Science Experiments Math Matching Dot to Dot Holidays Birthday Calendar Certificate Story Book Poster Packet Large calendar and dates Stickers Song Sheet Custom pack each order Language Development Creative Arts Social & Emotional Development Health & Safety	Yes, all materials are included.	Yes	Jumping Kangaroo/Son Shine - starting at $13.70 plus shipping per month Tiny Tots/Little Disciples - starting at $12.85 plus shipping per month Discounts available with 3,6 or 9 month package.	Full month as a free sample.	Curriculum development team consists of early childhood education experts researching and writing children's curriculum for over 30 plus years. Carol heads the department and guides her team with the newest and latest educational development techniques. Carol was a licensed child care provider for over 14 years, worked with a Food Program Sponsor and inspected child care providers pertaining to the food program for 16 years, free-lancer speaker on many child care related topics, has a CDA certificate and created Carol's Affordable Curriculum for 17 years.

Curriculum	Ages	Form	Curricular Areas & Features	Materials Included?	D.A.P	Cost?	Free sample?	Qualifications of Preparer
ChubbieCubbie's Customizable Curriculum!	toddler and preschool	Approx. 65-95 activities per month (depending on kit size).	art & craft projects; songs & finger plays; science, cooking, & math: suggested stories & books; group activities; coloring pages; worksheets and booklets, special holidays, and more.	optional	unknown	$19.95 for City Bears Kit & $15.95 for Country Bears Kit (Precuts, Copies, & Supplies extra).	no	Childcare Administration Certificate & ODHS 45-Credit Hour Certificate plus over 20 years working and volunteering with children.

Curriculum	Ages	Form	Curricular Areas & Features	Materials Included?	D.A.P	Cost?	Free sample?	Qualifications of Preparer
Early Beginnings	preschool	unknown	Language development, as well as thinking and motor skills. Interaction with other children through cooperative learning activities together with social skill awareness; i.e., good manners and appropriate ways to behave. Curriculum activities that foster a positive self-image in each child and facilitate in their intellectual, social, emotional & physical	yes	unknown	$38 per child first month	unknown	Ph.D. in Early Childhood Education

Curriculum	Ages	Form	Curricular Areas & Features	Materials Included?	D.A.P	Cost?	Free sample?	Qualifications of Preparer
KidCrafters	toddler; preschool	Large printed lesson plans books & artwork CD; downloads. Print your own art pages, so the cost is the same regardless of how many children you care for. Easy to store the CD and use the activities from year to year. Curricular Areas & Features: Preschool program; Big Books (seasonal activities, Mother Goose, Readiness Skills & Toddler Activities), and Literature-based curriculum. Lesson plans are theme-based and contain ideas for art, cooking, science, math, finger-plays, music, large & small motor activities, and dramatic play. Artwork CD containing an average of 750+ pages for each month includes black & white and color art patterns, family notes, felt board activities, games, math manipulatives, flash cards and wall posters for alphabet - number - color - shape, two-color calendar cutouts to use for math & patterning activities, & other theme-related activities	theme-based ideas for art, cooking, science, finger-plays, music, large & small motor activities, and dramatic playLarge (400+ page) file of black & white and color art patterns, family notes, felt board activities, games, math manipulatives, flash cards and wall posters for alphabet - number - color - shape, two-color calendar cutouts to use for math & patterning activities, & other theme-related activities	no	Yes. Curriculum meets and/or exceeds all state and national standards as defined by Head Start and NAEYC	$17.50-$65.00 (s/h included); discounts available; download prices $1-$4 each	Yes-on website & by email	Our curriculum writers have degrees in early childhood and/or a related field. They have teaching experience in preschools and home-based environments with children of all ages.

Curriculum	Ages	Form	Curricular Areas & Features	Materials Included?	D.A.P	Cost?	Free sample?	Qualifications of Preparer
Pamm's House Curriculum	Toddler-- 12 months through 36 months Preschool-- 2years through 5 years Package-- 12 months through 5 years	Toddler--Weekly lesson plans, tips and menus with recipes PDFs, available monthly, quarterly or for the whole year. Preschool--Two weeks of lesson plans PDFs, available monthly, quarterly or for the whole year Package--Toddler, preschool, literature guides, Bible story guides, and cookbook PDFs, available for one year	Toddler--Creative Activities, Special Toys & Games, Bible, Language, Sign Language Preschool--Bible, Letters, Math, Social Science, Science, Gross Motor Skills, Easy and Fun Summer Plans Package--Same as Toddler and Preschool, plus Bible and Literature Guides which include Language, Math, Gross Motor, Fine Motor, Game, Sensory Activity, Music, and Pretend Play.	no	unknown	Toddler-- $7.50 monthly, $20 quarterly, $50 year, or center license $100 Preschool-- $9.50 monthly, $22 quarterly, $59 year, or center license $125 Package-- Individual $110, Center License $225	yes	Pamm has over two decades of childcare experience with infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and homeschooling including working at schools and owning her own childcare business. Pamm earned her AA in ECE in 1993.