The Lesson Garden

Six pillars, three age bands, one 60-second lesson per pillar every week. Below is the whole map: what growing looks like at every age, and the first series of lessons in each pillar.

The Map

The Sprout Grid

What mastery looks like in each pillar, at each age. Seedlings watch and point, Sprouts ask and do, Saplings can hold a small task start to finish.

Pillar Seedlings ages 2-3 Sprouts ages 4-5 Saplings age 6
Alphabet and Phonics Sings along with letter sounds and points at the first letter of their own name wherever it hides. Names most letters, matches each to its sound, and hunts letters in the real world: the cereal box, the street sign. Blends letter sounds into simple words and writes their own name with proud, wobbly confidence.
Numbers and Counting Counts to three, then five, one finger-touch per thing, no skipping. Counts to twenty out loud, recognizes numerals to ten, and counts real objects one-to-one. Counts to one hundred by ones and tens and knows the last number tells "how many," not just how the song ends.
Math Foundations Sorts by color and size, names circle, square, and triangle, and stacks big-to-small. Continues a pattern (leaf, stone, leaf, stone), compares more, less, and same, and builds shapes from other shapes. Adds and takes away within ten using real objects, splits a snack fairly in half, and spots patterns everywhere without being asked.
Reading Skills Holds a book right side up, turns the pages, and points to the picture when asked "where is the...?" Retells a favorite story in their own words and guesses what happens next before the page turns. Reads simple sentences aloud and asks real questions about the story, like "why did she do that?"
Science and Discovery Explores with all five senses alongside a grown-up and notices when something changes: wet, dry, melted, gone. Asks "why" and "what if," makes a guess before looking, and watches a seed or an ice cube change over days. Runs a tiny fair test with a grown-up (which cup grows taller?) and says what they saw before what they think.
Virtues and Values Uses please, thank you, and gentle hands, and waits a short turn with a grown-up's help. Names their own feelings, sometimes shares without being asked, and helps with one real family job. Tells the truth even when it is hard, finishes a small job start to end, and notices when someone needs help, then offers.

One lesson per pillar per week, same weekday every week: Benny on Monday, Luna on Tuesday, Max on Wednesday, Pip on Thursday, Sage on Friday, Willow on Saturday. Sunday is for rest and rewatching the week's favorite.

A little legend for the tags you will spot on the Sprout Steps: (Self) means my own body and world, (Household) means helping the family, and (Community) means kindness beyond the front door, the three circles every child grows through in turn.

Alphabet and Phonics

Series One, led by Benny Sprout. In Benny's garden, letters hide under leaves and sprout out of the dirt when you say their sound. Each lesson ends with an Echo: the one line your child takes with them.

  • B Says Buh

    Seedlings 2-3

    Echo "B says buh, buh, buh."

  • The Letter That Starts My Name

    Seedlings 2-3

    Echo "That letter starts my name."

  • The M Hunt

    Sprouts 4-5

    Echo "M says mmm, like milk."

  • S Is a Sound You Can Hear Coming

    Sprouts 4-5

    Echo "S says sss, like a sprinkler."

  • Sounds Hold Hands

    Saplings 6

    Echo "Sounds hold hands and make words."

  • Benny Writes His Name

    Saplings 6

    Echo "I can write my own name."

Six lessons watched and six Sprout Steps done with a grown-up earns the Alphabet sticker-leaf for your child's Sprout Tree.

Numbers and Counting

Series One, led by Luna Leaf. One finger-touch per thing, no skipping, from three snails on a leaf to leaping by tens to one hundred.

  • Three Snails on a Leaf

    Seedlings 2-3

    Echo "One, two, three, count with me."

  • Five Fingers, One Hand

    Seedlings 2-3

    Echo "Five fingers on my hand."

  • One Seed, One Hole

    Sprouts 4-5

    Echo "One seed, one hole."

  • Where Is 8 Hiding?

    Sprouts 4-5

    Echo "Eight is two circles, round and round."

  • How Many Blueberries?

    Saplings 6

    Echo "The last number tells how many."

  • Ten Leaps to One Hundred

    Saplings 6

    Echo "Ten, twenty, thirty, leap by tens."

Finish the series with a grown-up to earn the Numbers sticker-leaf for the Sprout Tree.

Math Foundations

Series One, led by Max Root. Shapes, sizes, patterns, fair halves, and the first taking-away, all with things you can hold.

  • Round Like the Sun

    Seedlings 2-3

    Echo "A circle is round like the sun."

  • Big Pot, Little Pot

    Seedlings 2-3

    Echo "Big on the bottom, small on top."

  • Leaf, Stone, Leaf, Stone

    Sprouts 4-5

    Echo "Leaf, stone, leaf, stone, what comes next?"

  • More, Less, or the Same?

    Sprouts 4-5

    Echo "More, less, or the same?"

  • Half for You, Half for Me

    Saplings 6

    Echo "Half for you, half for me."

  • Five Carrots, Soup Tonight

    Saplings 6

    Echo "Take some away, then count again."

Finish the series with a grown-up to earn the Math sticker-leaf for the Sprout Tree.

Reading Skills

Series One, led by Pip Berry (a draft friend, still sprouting). From holding the book the right way up to reading a whole sentence alone and asking the book why.

  • The Upside-Down Dog

    Seedlings 2-3

    Echo "Turn it, turn it, this way up."

  • Where Is the Duck?

    Seedlings 2-3

    Echo "Point, point, I found the duck."

  • Guess, Then Turn

    Sprouts 4-5

    Echo "Guess first, then turn the page."

  • Tell It Back to Teddy

    Sprouts 4-5

    Echo "First, then, at the end."

  • The Words Hold Hands

    Saplings 6

    Echo "I read it all by myself."

  • Ask the Book Why

    Saplings 6

    Echo "Good readers ask why."

Finish the series with a grown-up to earn the Reading sticker-leaf for the Sprout Tree.

Science and Discovery

Series One, led by Sage Bloom. Guess first, then look, then say what you saw: the whole scientific method, garden-sized.

  • Where Did the Ice Go?

    Seedlings 2-3

    Echo "The ice melted into water."

  • The Sun Is a Dryer

    Seedlings 2-3

    Echo "The sun dried it up."

  • Guess First, Then Look

    Sprouts 4-5

    Echo "First I guess, then I look."

  • The Bean That Took Its Time

    Sprouts 4-5

    Echo "Seeds change a little every day."

  • The Two-Cup Test

    Saplings 6

    Echo "Change one thing, keep the rest."

  • Say What You Saw

    Saplings 6

    Echo "Say what you saw first."

Finish the series with a grown-up to earn the Science sticker-leaf for the Sprout Tree.

Virtues and Values

Series One, led by Willow Vine (a draft friend, still sprouting). These lessons land on Saturdays, when the whole family is home to practice them together.

  • The Ladybug Landing

    Seedlings 2-3

    Echo "Gentle hands, soft and slow."

  • The Berry That Came Back

    Seedlings 2-3

    Echo "Thank you makes us both smile."

  • Benny's Little Rain Cloud

    Sprouts 4-5

    Echo "I can say how I feel."

  • The Smallest Job in the Garden

    Sprouts 4-5

    Echo "Little hands do real jobs."

  • The Wobbly Tower Truth

    Saplings 6

    Echo "The truth helps us fix it."

  • Noticer Eyes

    Saplings 6

    Echo "I noticed. Can I help?"

Six leaves, one per pillar, and the Sprout Tree is full: your child is a Little Sprout, and the celebration is a small feast they helped prepare with a grown-up.

Start watching - it is free

Every lesson above arrives as a 60-second animated short on our YouTube channel, one pillar per weekday.

Watch on YouTube