How Can I Include Three Year Old Preschoolers in Adventurers?

Although I love all Adventurers, Little Lambs is my favorite class. I spent my first four years in Adventurers in Little Lambs. If I could teach Little Lambs while directing my club, I’d would in a heartbeat! Even though I am no longer teaching Little Lambs, I still prepare the Little Lambs materials for our club. I can’t wait to share the resources I’ve discovered or created with you!

What Age Are Little Lambs?

Officially, Little Lambs is for four year olds or pre-k. However, I have found many three year olds who are eager to join Adventurers! In the clubs I have taught in, we turned Little Lambs into a two year program and welcomed the three year olds. My favorite class makeup includes a mix of threes and fours. We send them on to Eager Beavers at age five, or after two years in Little Lambs. The current NAD guidelines do make a two year rotation less interesting and more repetitive, so I think of the guidelines as just that – flexible guidelines. I use the older guidelines in putting together requirements for Investiture. 

How Do I Invest Little Lambs in a Two Year Program?

To invest, I like them to have completed the four puzzle patch program requirements – My God, My Self, My Family, My World, and any six awards.

I teach the four program requirement classes each year and rotate the awards on a two year cycle. An older adventurer who joins Little Lambs for one year will invest at the end of year. They will experience the wide variety of topics we explore. A younger adventurer who joins for two years will have the opportunity to earn most of the Little Lambs stars* and will see a small bit of review in the second year. (*Note: Little Lamb awards in the NAD are stars, but they are award triangles in other parts of the world.)

The Little Lambs manual includes two programs for My God, My Self, and My World. There is only one program for My Family, but my kids have never seemed to mind the repeat in their second year.

How Do I Stay Organized?

The Adventurer Club Resource USB Flash Drive at AdventSource has great wall charts for each level to keep track of what awards each child has earned. I like to keep the charts in my notebook. I have created a similar Little Lambs chart to better fit how I teach Little Lambs. If you also need the extra flexibility, I have a free PDF for you!

What do you enjoy about working with Little Lambs? Leave a comment and let me know!