We are under construction!
Welcome to Aldo Learns@Home!This homeschool curriculum was designed to be a mixture of Unit-Based and Project-Based learning for early- elementary school students.
This is Aldo! He will help guide you around the website. Dr. Mom works behind the scenes to ensure the curriculum makes sense, interesting resources are updated, and any questions are answered. Contact information for Dr. Mom is on the About page. |
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Merging Unit-Based and Project-Based LearningThis website merges Unit-Based and Project-Based learning for students Kindergarten through 2nd grade (otherwise known as Early Elementary).
For each section, you will have access to the resources we used to do each unit. Parents also have access to the ideas of Project-Based Learning that ties with each Unit. For example, the Human Body Unit is tied to the Design a Restaurant Project. We link directly to outside resources that we have found useful for activities, ideas, videos, and other existing materials that do not require paid access (most of the time). It is our firm belief that quality content be available to all students. |
Available Options
- Entire Kit (Unit and Project, plus step-by-step guide to walk parent-teachers through each step)
- Parent-Helper Guides (using the ideas to craft your own projects)
- Unit-specific kits with parent guides
- Project-specific kits with parent guides
- Ideas only blog (FREE)
New Units and New Projects are posted often.
Design your own Restaurant
Learn about the human body while you design your own restaurant. When designing your restaurant, you'll find the answers to the following questions, and more:
This lesson includes:
- What is a restaurant?
- What kinds of foods do they serve?
- What kind of restaurant would be best in your neighborhood?
- Who works at a restaurant?
- How do they know what to serve and what to charge?
- Where does the food come from?
This lesson includes:
- Choosing the type of restaurant (includes research of restaurant types and optional food sampling and cooking lessons)
- Setting the menu (aligns with 5 senses and recipe and cooking options)
- Creating the menu (using samples provided, design your own menu on paper)
- Set Pricing (using price guides provided, set prices for your menu and calculate out a simple meal cost)
- Design your seating area (using provided template to design your restaurant seating area by choosing colors, table and chairs, dishes, and walls)
- and more...
Map your Neighborhood (mini-lesson)
Learn map-reading skills by creating your own map of your neighborhood!
This lesson includes:
This lesson includes:
- Introduction to Map Basics, Compass Rose, Legend/Key reading, and other key map-related skills
- Activities in exploring and mapping small spaces (rooms), larger spaces (house), even larger spaces (house and yard), and even larger spaces (neighborhood).
- Transferable activities to include Legos, Minecraft, or other building related toys.
- and more...
Coming Soon...
Build your own Zoo
Learn about ecosystems, habitats, animals, and the people who make a zoo or nature preserve work. When designing your own zoo, you will answer these questions, and more:
- What makes up an ecosystem?
- What habitats do animals live in naturally?
- What is the difference between a zoo and a nature preserve?
- How do zoos replicate habitats?
- How do zoos care for their animals?
- Exploring ecosystems (locally and globally)
- Identifying animals and their habitats (includes a puzzle to print and color)
- Exploring zoos and nature preserves (includes links to free websites, zoo-cams, and information about documentaries and docu-series)
- Setting up a zoo habitat (using the provided template, you will decide which animal to house and how to design their habitat)
- and more...
Design your own City
Learn about what makes a city (buildings, infrastructure, and government). This lesson encourages a basic understanding of how cities are planned, how they function, and what goes into a well-functioning community. When designing your own city, you will answer these questions and more:
- What exactly is a city?
- Do all cities have skyscrapers?
- What does a city need so the people who live there are happy and healthy?
- How does someone design a city?
- What is important to know about a city?
- Who makes decisions in a city?
- Exploring infrastructure (power, water, sewage, and roads)
- Identifying the types of buildings where city work happens (city hall, fire departments, police stations, courthouse, etc. - includes a match and find activity)
- Exploring different types of cities around the world (includes powerpoint with different city maps and pictures, and links to their city websites)
- Setting up your own city (use the provided graphing sheet template, you will decide how to set up your town square and how to set your streets, and where people live, shop, and work.)
- and more...
Plan out your Garden
Learn about what is needed to plan, plant, and grow your own garden using the space you have (vertical, potted, and traditional garden varieties included). This lesson includes basic information on plant life cycles, insects, backyard habitat, complementary plants, and creative solutions to growing in limited space. When designing your own garden, you will need to answer these questions:
- What is a garden's purpose?
- How do seeds grow?
- What plants should I plant?
- What meals can I make from the plants I grow?
- What natural challenges come up during the growing season, and what can I do to address these challenges?
- Exploring seed life cycles and backyard ecosystems
- Identifying plants based on their leaf shape, seed shape, or other characteristics (included are links to helpful mobile apps and other resources that make plant identification easier)
- Grow your own seeds (included instructions with links to locations to buy seeds in person or online)
- Build your own vertical planter (included instructions with how to craft using existing items you have in your home)
- Plan out your garden (use the included planner template to design your garden or garden space).
- and more...
Put on a Play
What exactly goes into putting on a play? This lesson takes a detailed look into set design, costume design, playwriting, acting, and performance. Before you can put on your own play, we will answer:
- What is a play? How is it different from a musical or stand-up comedy?
- What exactly goes into a play?
- What is behind the stage?
- How do they make a set?
- How do they make the costumes?
- How can I write my own play?
- Explore what it means to be a playwright (including examples and activities that encourage writing their own short play)
- Identify and discover the parts of the stage and scenery (including look and find and other engaging activities)
- Design your own costume(s) and set(s) (including instructions for cardboard set design, model design, and sewing basics)
- Explore links to resources, videos, and movies to view examples of different types of plays
- and more...
Curate a Museum Exhibit
Design Your Own Game
Let's Build a House
Plan a Trip Around the World
Plan a Road Trip
Create an Obstacle Course
Coming soon: Mini-Lessons
These lessons follow the same quality of content and careful attention to detail but can be completed in much less time.
Design your Dream Room (mini-lesson)
Have you ever wanted to design your bedroom to look more like a spaceship, pirate ship, or fire station? Then this lesson is the one for you! Learn about interior design, measuring, and colors with this fun mini-lesson.
Hold a Fashion Show (mini-lesson)
Have you ever wished to design your own outfit or have you been curious about where clothes come from? This lesson describes the creative process for designing, creating, and getting new clothes into stores. We also explore where our materials come from, how to make our own clothes, and the basics of sewing.
Nature Scavenger Hunt (mini-lesson)
Grab your hiking boots, field notebook, and pencil and get ready for the Great Outdoors! This lesson takes a look at how to navigate through the forest by identifying plants, identifying animal tracks and nests or burrows, and what plants to watch out for.
Healthcare: a trip around the world
(mini-lesson)
Come travel the world through the lens of healthcare. This lesson takes a look at traditional and current medical practices from the United States and other countries around the world.