Everyone knows I like a good plan, and we love a good rhythm with our learning. We’ve walked through the alphabet, one letter per day, A through Z (if you missed the deets, check out The ABC Update). Each letter has its day to shine, and by the time we reach Z, we’ve built an entire foundation brick by brick.
But what comes after Z?
A pause. A reset. A chance to circle back and strengthen those pathways in the brain that don’t always stick the first time around. Enter Spiral Review Week: a week off of traditional bookwork and into review-through-play.
Why We Do It
For Eleanor, who is still working hard on her early foundations, review looks like confidence-building. Letter recognition, sound repetition, and number sense all become second nature when approached in fresh, playful ways.
For Athena, my spiral learner, this week is her sweet spot. She thrives on circling back, revisiting concepts, and reinforcing skills through movement, laughter, and a little extra wiggle room. Spiral review gives her exactly that; a chance to master by returning, not by plowing forward.
And for me? It’s a needed breather, a reminder that learning doesn’t always have to look like books and pencils.
What It Looks Like
Spiral review week is hands-on, energetic, and yes—sometimes a little messy. That’s the beauty of it. Here are a few of our favorite activities:
- Hopscotch – Numbers, letters, or even math facts can be written into hopscotch squares. The kids jump, call out, and giggle their way through review without even realizing it’s “school.”
- Chalk. Always chalk. Sometimes I write the letters or numbers and call them out for them to find, or I give them the letter and THEY have to write it for me.
- Flash Card Races – Spread them out on the floor, or line them up outside. Call out a letter, a sound, or a math fact, and watch your kids sprint to the right card.
- Kinetic Learning Games – Think “Simon Says” with phonics. Or clapping rhythms while reciting skip-counting. The movement cements the memory. I recommend this lily pad game ALWAYS.
- Garden Math – Out in the sunshine, we measure seed spacing, compare plant heights, and count how many rows we can fit in our beds. Math becomes alive when it’s tied to dirt and seedlings. It’s fall sow for a few things, and they’re going in!
- Worth of Numbers – Not just identifying the digit, but asking: “What is this number worth?” Place value comes alive when it’s acted out, stacked with blocks, or chalked into big spaces. Grabbing rocks, leaves, flowers, you name it, we count it.
This week is a week of more. More laughter. More chalk-covered knees. More dirt under fingernails, and the kind of wiggles that only come from real, embodied learning. It’s an intentionality that sometimes I don’t take the time to have because life keeps moving. It’s an intentional slow down, and pause. It’s a bit of a reset and break for all of us. We keep reading. We keep doing some of our other subjects. But Math and & ELA get put on hold, for a breath.
The Gift of Review
Spiral Review Week isn’t a week “off.” It’s a week that reminds us that review is valuable in itself. It celebrates what we’ve learned, shores up weak spots, and gives my kids the chance to say, “I know this!”
By the time we loop back into core bookwork, both girls feel steadier. Eleanor has more confidence, Athena realizes how much she actually knows because skills that used to be hard are now easier and more fluid. And me? I’ve had the joy of seeing learning happen in the garden, on the sidewalk, and in the middle of giggling races.
The Nurtured Bee 