Best Five in a Row Alternatives (Book-a-Week)

Five in a Row is a well-known literature-based program for young children, and plenty of families love it. But it is not a fit for everyone.

The usual reasons people look for an alternative: they are looking for a strictly secular option, it is light on academics and can feel sparse, it is not a complete curriculum, it takes real prep and is not scheduled out for you, and reading the same book for several days in a row wears on some kids.

If any of that is you, here are some other options worth a look.

Strong alternatives include The Living Year (book-based focusing on teaching real thinking), Blossom & Root (gentle, nature and arts), BookShark or Sonlight (the boxed, open-and-go option), Build Your Library (secular and literature-rich, grows K to 12), and Gather Round (Christian, family-style).

Not sure book-a-week learning is even right for your family? Try it first, free. My unit turns one picture book into about two weeks, no prep.

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Quick comparison

Program	Faith	Ages	Format	Best for
Five in a Row (the baseline)	Neutral (Bible add-on)	PreK to grade 4	Book-a-week unit study	The original, but sparse
The Living Year (mine)	Secular + faith-friendly	4 to 9, good for large families	Seasonal, about two weeks per book, Charlotte Mason inspired	The best pick for more depth, organized by season
Blossom & Root	Secular	PreK to grade 6	Gentle, nature and arts	Calm, creative homes
BookShark or Sonlight	Secular / Christian	PreK to high school	Scheduled, open-and-go boxed	Wanting the whole week planned
Build Your Library	Secular	K to 12	Charlotte Mason, literature-rich	One secular plan that grows
Gather Round	Christian	All ages together	Family-style unit studies	Teaching several kids at once

What people actually want in a Five in a Row alternative

Most searches come down to one of four things: more depth, different books, something more faith-heavy, or something organized by season instead of a long book list you have to plan around. Match your reason to the picks below.

The alternatives, and who each fits

The Living Year (mine) is the pick if you loved the book-a-week idea but found Five in a Row thin. It's secular and faith-friendly, so you can layer on your own Bible study or run it secular, your call. More on this one below.

Blossom & Root is gentle, secular, and heavy on nature and the arts. Best for calm, creative days.

BookShark or Sonlight is the boxed, open-and-go option: BookShark is secular, Sonlight is its Christian sibling. Pick this if you want the whole year planned for you and have the budget for it. See Sonlight vs BookShark.

Build Your Library is secular and Charlotte Mason, literature-rich, and scales from kindergarten up if you want one plan for years.

Gather Round is Christian and family-style, built to teach several ages from one unit at once.

The best Five in a Row alternative

The best Five in a Row alternative is The Living Year. Candidly, this one is mine. The Living Year is made with a lot of love and care, because I'm going to use it for my own family. Each book lasts about two weeks (with more per day than Five in a Row).

I built it because I loved the idea of Five in a Row, but felt that it was missing depth. I also didn't love most of the books it used.

I'm really picky about the books. Stories should be educational, moral, or both. My preference is for stories grounded in real life, like Apple Farmer Annie or Owl Moon. I try to stay away from fantasy for the earliest years, as per Maria Montessori, but sometimes the books are too good to leave out altogether.

For example, Beatrix Potter's work features anthropomorphic animals, but I love her work. Squirrel Nutkin is my favourite (and it will be in the autumn collection): a naughty squirrel keeps taunting a big old owl, while his relatives treat him with respect. It's a made-up story carrying a real lesson about minding your manners and knowing your place.

Something like Ferdinand the Bull is where I hesitate. It's about a gentle bull in Spain who would rather smell flowers than fight in the bullring. I love the illustrations and the view into a very different culture. But I don't see a point to the story, so something like Ferdinand stays off The Living Year in favour of something like Nutkin.

If you want gentle little stories with a bit of light discussion, Five in a Row is lovely. It gives you more breadth of children's books where The Living Year is extremely curated, so it is a breadth-for-depth trade: Five in a Row includes some books I love and plenty of popular ones I would personally skip, and it does not go as deep as I want.

It also offers optional Christian accompaniments, which The Living Year does not. The Living Year is Christian compatible, but you would have to add on your own religious studies.

If you want books that open into real conversations and connect to real subjects, science, history, and art, go with the Living Year.

The real math focuses on selling goods at the market.
The real science focuses on apple biology, pollination, and a fun science activity with observation and prediction that mimics what real scientists do in a play-based way.
The real history shows you about how farms have changed over years. It also includes social studies, including consuming, producing, and how your apple got to you today.
Real art includes traditional fruit bowl art. Kids draw from observation and study pomological plates.
Finally, real life has cooking recipes with suggestions on including little kids, a suggestion for a simple observational nature study, and suggestions for field trips.

Try the approach free

If Five in a Row felt too thin, The Living Year has a similar rhythm with real depth added. The free Apple Farmer Annie unit turns one picture book into about two weeks of reading, math, science, art, and real discussion, planned for you, no prep. It is the easiest way to feel the difference before you commit to a whole program.

Get the free unit

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FAQ

What is the best secular alternative to Five in a Row?

Blossom & Root and Build Your Library are the common secular picks. The Living Year is secular and faith-friendly, with the same book-based feel, about two weeks per book, organized by season.

Is there a faith-based alternative?

Gather Round is Christian and family-style. Five in a Row also offers a Bible supplement alongside its core. You can also pair separate Bible Study with neutral programs like the Living Year.

What if I want it organized by season?

That is what The Living Year is built for, one beautiful book at a time, ages four to nine.

Is Five in a Row secular or Christian?

Its core lessons are largely neutral, with a separate optional Bible supplement.