Do it yourself · Updated September 4, 2026

Kindy vs doing it yourself with free printables

Most parents preparing a child for kindergarten start with free printables, letter-of-the-week crafts and Pinterest boards, including the 26 free letter activity pages on this site. It costs nothing but time, and for occasional supplementing it is enough. Kindy is a $9.99 a month parent-led curriculum that adds what the do-it-yourself approach cannot: a readiness check that shows where your child stands, one activity a day chosen for your child, and a record of what worked. Choose DIY if you enjoy planning and want full control. Choose Kindy if you want to stop searching and know it is working.

Choose Kindy if

You are tired of Sunday-night searching and printing
You want to know where your child stands, not guess
You want social, listening and self-help skills covered, which rarely come as a printable
You want each day's activity chosen for your child and the result remembered

Choose Free printables and Pinterest if

You genuinely enjoy planning and choosing every activity
You are supplementing a preschool your child already attends and just want the odd craft
Your budget is zero
Your child is thriving and you have no questions about readiness

At a glance

Kindy and Free printables and Pinterest at a glance. Facts checked September 4, 2026; sources at the end of the page.
	Kindy	Free printables and Pinterest
Price	$9.99 per month, $4.99 per month for each additional child, cancel anytime in the app	Free, plus paper, ink and your planning time
Free option or trial	Free readiness assessment with full results kept in the account; no card needed; subscribe only if you want the daily curriculum	Free forever
Ages	3-5 (the two to three years before kindergarten); placement is by ability, not age	Any; most free preschool printables target ages 3 to 5
Who is on the screen	The parent only	The parent only
Format	web app for the parent (installable on a phone); activities are done hands-on, off screen	PDF worksheets and blog posts you find, print and organise yourself
Time per day	One 10 to 15 minute activity a day; the app offers more on energetic days	Whatever you plan; there is no set daily amount
How it adapts to the child	Every activity ends with one tap on how it went (Nailed it, Almost, Not yet). Three Nailed it ratings mark a skill mastered and it leaves the rotation; mastered letters and skills circle back for quick reviews so they stick. The next day's activity is chosen from the child's current level across all areas.	None. You decide what to do next, judge whether it worked, and remember what to revisit
How the child is placed	By a readiness assessment	No placement, fixed sequence
Skills covered	literacy (letters, sounds, print awareness), early math (counting, number sense, shapes), language (vocabulary, storytelling, listening), thinking (problem solving, memory), social-emotional (sharing, manners, separation, feelings), fine motor (pencil grip, scissors, self-help), focus and self-control	whatever you search for; letters, counting and crafts are the most common, social-emotional and self-help activities are rare in free printable form
Secular or faith-based	secular	Depends on the source
What the parent does	The parent reads today's activity on their phone and does it with the child using things at home; the app tells them what to do and what to say. The child never uses the app.	Searches, picks, prints, prepares, teaches, and decides what comes next; keeps track of progress by memory or a notebook

We publish free printables. Here is what they are good for.

The letter activity pages on kindergarten-prep.com are free and always will be, and tens of thousands of parents and teachers use them every month. A free craft for letter A is a good afternoon. A free worksheet is a fine way to practise a letter your child is close to knowing. Pinterest is full of ideas from real parents and teachers, and many of them are excellent.

What free printables are not is a plan. A worksheet does not know what your child did yesterday, whether the letter it practises is already mastered or still far away, or that your child has not yet held scissors properly. Nothing records how it went. Next week you search again, and the skills kindergarten teachers notice first, following a two-step direction, waiting a turn, managing a goodbye, almost never come as a PDF.

What Kindy adds, specifically

Three things. First, a free five-minute readiness check that shows what your child already does easily and where a little attention pays off most, so you stop guessing. Second, one 10 to 15 minute activity a day chosen from that picture, with what to do and what to say, using things at home, and no printer required. Third, memory: one tap on how it went re-evaluates your child's level, mastered skills leave the rotation and circle back later for review, and the dashboard shows real progress.

Kindy also lets you log your own materials. A printable from Etsy, a game from another curriculum, a craft from one of our letter pages: mark it done and it counts toward your child's progress. Doing it yourself and Kindy are not opposites. Kindy is the plan behind whatever you already have.

Where Free printables and Pinterest is the better choice

Cost and control. Free is free, and for a parent who enjoys the choosing, the searching is part of the pleasure. If your child is thriving and you have no questions about readiness, you do not need a plan, and we would rather say so than sell you one.

Variety. There is a free activity for every letter, theme, season and holiday. Kindy chooses one thing a day and deliberately keeps the choosing away from you.

Where Kindy is the better choice

A starting point and a memory. The readiness check tells you where your child stands; the daily rating tells Kindy what to do next. Free printables give you neither, which is why gaps and repeats go unnoticed until a teacher mentions them.

The skills a worksheet cannot practise. Listening, sharing, separation, self-help and pencil grip are daily practice in Kindy, done with you. For $9.99 a month, cancel in one tap, with the readiness check and its results free whether or not you subscribe.

Questions parents ask

Are the letter activities on this site still free?

Yes, all 26 letter pages are free and stay free. Kindy is a separate product for parents who want a plan behind them.

Can I use my own printables with Kindy?

Yes. Kindy lets you log activities from any source so they count toward your child's progress, and it keeps choosing the daily activity from your child's readiness picture.

Do I need a printer for Kindy?

No. Daily activities use things you already have at home. Some activities offer an optional printable worksheet.

Is a free readiness checklist the same as Kindy's readiness check?

A checklist tells you what a child should know. Kindy's check tells you what your child does know, then turns it into a daily plan. The check itself is free and takes about five minutes.

How do I know if DIY is working?

The honest answer is that without some record, you do not. Take the free readiness check; it will show what is already strong and what is still on its way, whether or not you ever subscribe.

Sources

Facts about Free printables and Pinterest:

Letter activities for preschoolers hub, kindergarten-prep.com (accessed 2026-09-04, used for example of free printable sources)

Facts about Kindy:

Kindy landing page (accessed 2026-09-04)

Note: This page compares Kindy with the do-it-yourself approach rather than with a company. There is no vendor to misrepresent, but we have kept the description of the approach to what is generally true and said where it is genuinely the right choice.