Printed or PDF curriculum · Updated September 4, 2026

Kindy vs Meadowlark Learning

Meadowlark Learning's Preschool Homeschool Curriculum is a secular, open-and-go set of 90 scripted lessons, three a week over 30 weeks at 15 to 25 minutes each, sold for $64.99 in print with a Play Pack or as a PDF, following a SATPIN letter order the company describes as Orton-Gillingham inspired and Science of Reading aligned, with Simplify and Expand options in every lesson. Kindy is a $9.99 a month parent-led preschool curriculum that places the child by a free readiness check and gives the parent one 10 to 15 minute activity a day, adjusting from how each one went. Both are secular, screen-free and parent-led. Choose Meadowlark for a well-designed scripted book you own. Choose Kindy for a plan that starts from your child and keeps adjusting.

Choose Kindy if

  • You want the plan to start from what your child can do, not from lesson one
  • You want an activity every day, not three a week, and want it chosen for you
  • You want social, self-help and listening skills built in alongside literacy and math
  • You want progress tracked from what your child actually does

Choose Meadowlark Learning Preschool Homeschool Curriculum if

  • You want a physical, scripted lesson book and play pack you own for a one-time price
  • A systematic, Science of Reading aligned letter sequence is your priority
  • You like adjusting a lesson yourself with built-in simplify and expand notes
  • You are planning to continue into Meadowlark's kindergarten materials

At a glance

Kindy and Meadowlark Learning Preschool Homeschool Curriculum at a glance. Facts checked September 4, 2026; sources at the end of the page.
KindyMeadowlark Learning Preschool Homeschool Curriculum
Price$9.99 per month, $4.99 per month for each additional child, cancel anytime in the app$64.99 one-time, print with Play Pack or PDF; about $75 to $83 for both
Free option or trialFree readiness assessment with full results kept in the account; no card needed; subscribe only if you want the daily curriculumnone stated; free sample available before purchase (per RetailHub review); 30-day returns on unopened physical products, digital downloads non-refundable
Ages3-5 (the two to three years before kindergarten); placement is by ability, not age3-5 (product page notes some families report success with 2.5-year-olds and young kindergarteners)
Who is on the screenThe parent onlyNobody
Formatweb app for the parent (installable on a phone); activities are done hands-on, off screenprint + PDF
Time per dayOne 10 to 15 minute activity a day; the app offers more on energetic daysLessons take approximately 15-25 minutes each; prep time 0-3 minutes per lesson (product page, corroborated by RetailHub.co review dated 2026-06-17)
How it adapts to the childEvery 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.Fixed core sequence (SATPIN letter order) with built-in "Simplify" and "Expand" options in every lesson to scale content down for younger/less-ready children or up for advanced learners, described by the company as requiring "no separate purchase, no supplementing required" (per RetailHub.co review)
How the child is placedBy a readiness assessmentNo placement, fixed sequence
Skills coveredliteracy (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-controlletter recognition, phonological awareness, phonemic awareness, listening comprehension, vocabulary, motor coordination, prewriting readiness, number sense, shapes, sorting/classifying, spatial language, patterns
Secular or faith-basedsecularsecular
What the parent doesThe 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.Facilitator who leads short, hands-on, playful lessons directly from the scripted lesson book; minimal prep required (0-3 minutes typically)

What each one actually is

Meadowlark Learning is a newer secular homeschool publisher led by founder Maggie Enger, with a Director of Curriculum Development trained in Science of Reading and Orton-Gillingham practice. Its preschool curriculum is 90 guided lessons, three a week for 30 weeks, each 15 to 25 minutes with zero to three minutes of prep, covering letter recognition, phonological and phonemic awareness, listening comprehension, vocabulary, prewriting, number sense, shapes, sorting, spatial language and patterns. Letters follow SATPIN order, and every lesson includes Simplify and Expand options to scale for a younger or more advanced child. The printed lesson book with Play Pack is $64.99, the PDF is $64.99, and a print-plus-PDF bundle is around $75 to $83. The company describes it as 100% secular.

Kindy is $9.99 a month and is also secular, screen-free for the child and parent-led. The difference is that it is a plan rather than a book: a free readiness check places the child by ability, Kindy builds a curriculum across literacy, early math, language, thinking, social-emotional and fine motor skills, and each day hands the parent one 10 to 15 minute activity with what to do and say. A tap on how it went adjusts tomorrow.

Simplify and Expand versus placement and adaptation

Meadowlark's answer to children being different is thoughtful: every lesson tells the parent how to make it easier or harder. That is a fixed sequence with adjustable difficulty, and the parent makes the call each time. Kindy's answer is to change the sequence itself: the readiness check decides where each strand starts, and every rating decides what comes next. A child who knows letters but struggles with scissors gets a different week from a child the other way round, without the parent deciding.

Scope differs too. Meadowlark is literacy-forward with math and prewriting; it is a strong reading foundation. Kindy adds language, thinking and social-emotional strands as daily practice, because kindergarten readiness is wider than reading readiness.

Where Meadowlark Learning Preschool Homeschool Curriculum is the better choice

A serious, scripted, secular book you own. Ninety lessons with almost no prep, a play pack in the box, a research-informed letter order, and built-in ways to adjust each lesson. For a family that wants a physical curriculum and a systematic path to reading, Meadowlark is one of the best-regarded new options and costs $64.99 once.

Continuity. Meadowlark launched kindergarten language arts, math and handwriting in 2026, so a family can continue in the same style. Kindy ends at kindergarten.

Where Kindy is the better choice

The plan starts from your child and keeps moving. No lesson one for everyone; placement by readiness check, a different activity every day, and progress that reflects your own ratings. Mastered skills circle back for review so they stick.

Wider readiness and daily rhythm. Kindy covers social, self-help, listening and thinking skills alongside literacy and math, and gives you something to do every day, not three times a week. $9.99 a month, cancel in one tap.

Questions parents ask

How much does Meadowlark Learning's preschool curriculum cost?

$64.99 for the printed lesson book with Play Pack, $64.99 for the PDF, or about $75 to $83 for both, with $5 flat shipping or free over $89. Digital downloads are non-refundable. Checked September 4, 2026.

Is Meadowlark Learning secular?

Yes. The company describes its curriculum as 100% secular and inclusive with no religious instruction. Kindy is also secular.

Is Meadowlark Learning screen-free?

It is a printed book or PDF with no app component, so the child's lessons are off screen. Kindy is screen-free for the child too; only the parent uses the app.

What is SATPIN order?

A letter-introduction sequence, s, a, t, p, i, n, used in Orton-Gillingham and Science of Reading based instruction because those letters quickly form many simple words. Meadowlark follows it. Kindy introduces letters based on the child's readiness picture.

Can I use both?

Yes. Kindy lets you log activities from other materials so they count toward your child's progress, and it will keep choosing the daily activity from your child's readiness picture.

Sources

Facts about Meadowlark Learning Preschool Homeschool Curriculum:

Facts about Kindy:

Note: No founding year for the company was found on meadowlarklearning.com or in third-party sources searched; recorded as null/unstated. The product page and homepage use slightly different wording for the OG/SOR claim ('OG-inspired and SOR-aligned' on the product page vs. 'built from the ground up around the Science of Reading and Orton-Gillingham principles' per the RetailHub.co third-party review) -- both are quoted as sourced. No explicit 'screen-free' marketing claim was located; the product is inherently screen-free by being a print/PDF curriculum, but this inference is noted, not asserted as their claim. Pricing shown varies slightly across pages/bundles ($64.99 base per format on the product page vs. ~$100 bundle and $10 PDF add-on figures cited by the RetailHub.co review) -- the product page's own stated $64.99 per-format price is used as the primary one_time_usd figure.

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