The word curriculum has Latin roots and it means to “run a course.” Instead of taking time to expand your definition of homeschool curriculum, it’s easy to run out and buy the first textbook that smells good (okay, I did that). Can you relate? Today, I am sharing 45 ways to define homeschool curriculum.
Not only am I hoping that it will help you to expand your definition of how to use your experiences in everyday life to teach your children, but I hope you will see how many of these things that you can easily and without much money put your hands-on.
Don’t get me wrong. You have to have formal curriculum and it’s paid for somehow. Whether you spend hours poring over free curriculum or you pay with your hard earned money, homeschool curriculum has a cost.
Looking beyond the cost of homeschool curriculum, I put this list together because I want you to focus more on the content or quality of your instruction.
Many one-room schoolhouses of the past had very little in the way of formal curriculum. Also, they had shorter school days. What they did have was a strong work ethic and took time to build not only character, but teach kids life skills that would take them into adulthood.
Too, more than ever, we are booming with an abundance of techie devices and online learning, but have they really raised literacy levels?
Don’t let the overwhelming amount of curriculum that we have today, which tout high rigorous standards replace everyday experiences in our life. Teaching our children how to think can’t be replaced by online learning.
So look at these 45 ways to define homeschool curriculum.
- View videos.
- Study art prints.
- Watch DVDs.
- Listen to CDs. Yes, they are still around and sometimes have the best lessons about a subject.
- Watching movies.
True ‘Classic’ Homeschool Curriculum
- Your life examples.
- Your life experiences.
- The life examples of others.
- The life experiences of others.
- Analyze primary resources.
- Play board games to learn about math, science, history and language arts.
- View online and print magazines.
- Use educational apps.
- Oral interviews with professionals, experts in specialty fields and persons with first-hand knowledge of current or old events. Think of an interview with a grandmother or grandfather or neighbor.
- Animal care.
- Gardening.
- Manipulatives.
- Old toys.
- Read any book like history, biographies or cook books.
- Your specific written plans about any topic.
- Watch and learn from reenactments.
- Memorization.
- Podcasts.
- Visit museums and attend museum classes.
- Listen and study music from the past and present.
- Learn and study musical instruments.
- Analyze old photos and new photos.
- Study a timeline.
- Review old and new advertisements.
- Attend plays.
How to Begin Homeschooling With Minimal Curriculum
- Attend a musical or ballet.
- Read old newspapers.
- Take nature walks and a trip to the beach.
- Nature collections.
- Learning about sculptures or statues.
- Old cemeteries not only showcase a period in history, but provide details about people from a certain time.
- Specialty workshops or group classes like cooking classes, CPR classes and babysitting classes.
- Read old documents in a courthouse. Did you know that most of the documents are free to the public? Read an old Will or an old Deed to learn about what people owned and how they lived their lives.
- Visit significant battle sites.
- Visit first homes of Presidents.
- View historic buildings or homes in the old downtown part of your city.
- Visit an antique shop to learn about things used in agriculture and everyday life from times past.
- Visit an aquarium.
- Free online old school books.
What else do you include as homeschool curriculum? Look at some of my other tips below.
Do You Need to Know What a Scope and Sequence Is When You Homeschool?
Why Most Homeschool Curriculum Tips Are Useless
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Love this1 This fits perfectly well with what I tell new homeschoolers- don’t run out and buy curriculum immediately. Simply live life with your child, get to know them, and explore what the community around you has to offer. Getting to know what your child is like and what interests them is crucial to choosing curriculum, so better late than early!
Exactly!!! There is so much time and this is no rush….
I say be sure to savor the journey too…..