New homeschooling parents are often completely overwhelmed by all the choices of curricula that are available and many make bad choices based on ignorance or bad advice.
After over 20 years of homeschooling my own 6 children and being a part of the homeschooling community as well as a consultant, I have observed many pitfalls of choosing the ‘wrong’ curriculum – generally that refers to trying to replicate school at home!
While every family is unique, using products created specifically for home education by homeschooling subject experts generally results in a much more enjoyable learning experience for both the parents and the children, than using a school-at-home or distance education programme that has been adapted from the mainstream classroom-based system.
However, for some families, the latter do offer some convenience if parents don’t want to be or can’t be involved in supporting learning. (Not an ideal scenario!)
Family education is not school at home, it’s a lifestyle. Eclectic education, where you create a customised learning experience, using a variety of handpicked resources, to suit each child, is what I recommend. Parents are supervisors, supporters and co-learners, rather than teachers.
One of the hidden blessings of homeschooling is the interaction between parent and child! You start out thinking it’s all about academics, only to find that it offers priceless benefits to your relationships!
Year 1-3
At this age, most children only need about 20-30 minutes each of formal lessons in reading, writing and maths if they are ready, then LOADS of reading aloud together and even more time to PLAY.
Year 4-7
About 2-3 hours of formal lesson time (maximum) including reading aloud for about an hour a day plus practical learning experiences. Lots of play and productive free time – as above.
This generation spends enough time on screens, they don’t need to be on a screen to learn in the early years. Rather use other formats. They WILL learn to use computers!
Secondary years
Study time may vary depending on the intensity of the courses you choose, but probably about 2 -4 hours a day is enough. By this age, students work mostly independently.
THERE IS NO BEST CURRICULUM.
They all work. Just like there is no best car. Everyone has different needs and a different budget and we change the vehicle (or curriculum) in different seasons. What you choose now is not what you have to stick with indefinitely!
This page gives recommendations but DO NOT RUSH TO BUY A CURRICULUM. First take time reading, learning more about home education and deschooling your own mind. And give your child/ren a few months to ‘chill out’ and deschool.
You no longer have to keep up with the school system once you take them out. You will give your child a much richer and more varied, yet tailor-made education and let him/her progress at his/her own pace. You will know when s/he is ready to write a school exit exam or equivalent and when s/he is ready to be released to the next step on his journey. It might be at age 17 or 18 or 20 or anywhere in between. There is NO DEADLINE!!!
Recommended Curriculum Products for Starting Homeschooling
These products are tried and tested by my own family and well-loved by many other experience home educating families too!
1. MATHS
Math-U-See which you can buy in New Zealand from Engaging Minds.
Not sure which level to buy? Here is a link to download the placement tests with instructions how to use it.
You need the Instructor Guide and DVD and also the Student Workbook and Tests for whichever level it is. You will also need to buy the manipulatives for the appropriate grade level. These are bought once-off and re-used in subsequent grades.
This is a well-respected curriculum, used worldwide and popular with many homeschoolers. Suits children who learn in different ways as it is multi-sensory. The expert maths teacher does the teaching via video. The teacher guide has a full answer key that makes it very easy to use and convenient for a parent. Great if you don’t feel confident to teach maths and great if you are!
2. SCIENCE
Junior Science – Exploring Creation series by Jeannie Fulbright. Let your child/ren choose which book to start with according to their interests. These books are packed with scientific information written from a Biblical creationist/young earth perspective. Immerse yourselves in one topic for about 6 months at a time: Botany, Astronomy, Birds, Swimming Creatures, Land Animals etc.
Secondary Science – Apologia series – Christian creationist worldview. Very robust curricula each focusing on one aspect of Science at a time – indepth, such as General Science, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, etc Created by a university science professor who wanted to ensure that home educated learners would be up to standard by the time they entered university and understand scientific theories and the different worldviews within the scientific community.
These are available from Engaging Minds in NZ.
3. SOCIAL STUDIES
I always recommend reading aloud to children of all ages, even when they can read alone. There are too many advantages to list here. 6 Reasons stories are better than textbooks.
Reading allows your children to learn about other times (history), other places (geography), other people and how they solved their problems in a much more engaging way than boring textbooks filled with dates and dry facts!
Children love stories and so they are usually very enthusiastic about these world-class literature-based homeschool curricula that will give you loads of good quality stories to read aloud:
Sonlight – Christian worldview
Bookshark – Secular worldview
Ambleside online – free (use the library to locate titles)
4. ENGLISH
Year 1-3
Phonics/Reading:
Progressive Phonics – free printable beginner readers
Explode the Code workbooks 1,2,3 – available on Amazon (Australia)
I haven’t used the beginner materials from Excellence in Writing but they are well-recommended. Available from Engaging Minds.
If English is your child’s second language, only start at about Year 3 or 4 when they have mastered reading and writing in their mother tongue.
Primary and Secondary Grades English
Pick any of the following – they all work. There is no ‘best curriculum’
Structure and Style from Excellence in Writing – buy from Engaging Minds in NZ
Fixit Grammar – copywork-style grammar programme from Excellence in Writing
The Good and the Beautiful – buy online in digital format or hard copy (Christian elements)
All these listed above will prepare your children well for any of the school exit exams that are popular among homeschoolers. By about Year 11, you can learn more about those options, (like NCEA, GED+SAT, Cambridge or any others) and then switch to the study prep that is specific to each option.
5. ELECTIVES and FUN STUFF TO LEARN AT ANY AGE – when you have the capacity for optional extras!
Traditional school subjects are not all there is to learn.
You have the freedom to allow your children to pursue anything else that interests them – maybe videography, knife-making, robotics, cake decorating, permaculture, natural healing, philosophy, ethics, spiritual studies, civics and government, business ventures, hobbies, sports – you name it. Here are some options we’ve dabbled in, in different seasons of our home education journey.
Logic and Reasoning Skills – The Fallacy Detective – for ages 10 to adult
Electronics for Homeschoolers – Quick Study Labs The Edison Project (best for ages 10 and up)
Art – Artistic Pursuits (from the USA)
Art Appreciation – ideas and activities for all ages on my preschool website
Music Appreciation – Classics for Kids – free online
Lively Latin – made for homeschoolers (downloadable)
French – Nallenart French and/or Duolingo French (downloadable/online)
Animation – Blender – free online
Afrikaans first language – myafrikaanseavontuur.co.za is great for beginner mother tongue Afrikaans learners – grade 1-3
oolfant.com for higher grades – online resources
Other foreign languages – Duolingo.com – free online
Touch Typing free online – for little kids – BBC Dancemat typing and Typingtrainer.com for older children
It is so worth it to invest some time and money learning more about how homeschooling works best as it will build your confidence and equip you to make good decisions for your family.
ALSO – whatever you choose initially is not a permanent decision.
Often families try a few different curriculum options during the first few years and eventually settle on their favourites after they have more experience – this is normal and will not harm your children. It is all part of the learning process – about learning what works best for YOUR unique family. However, I am very confident, that like hundreds of other families, you will enjoy the products listed above as most of them were created specifically for homeschooling by home educating parents who understand this educational choice. They are not SCHOOL-AT-HOME programmes.
Don’t start with too much. Buy one product at a time and ease into homeschooling gently. Don’t feel under pressure.
Enjoy the ‘scenic route’.