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Choose Curriculum

BEST Curriculum by Homeschoolers for Homeschoolers

August 1, 2018 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Homeschooling today is different than it was when I started. Today, it seems all types of educational companies are wanting to make a buck off of homeschoolers. Don’t get me wrong. I love all the choices, but when it comes to teaching our kids at home some homeschool curriculum is superior to others. One area of curriculum that I’m thrilled to see an explosion in is curriculum by homeschoolers for homeschoolers.

3 Reasons to Love Curriculum by Homeschoolers For Homeschoolers

If you don’t already appreciate why that is important, look at these three reasons why you’ll love curriculum by homeschoolers.

I love all the choices, but when it comes to teaching our kids at home some homeschool curriculum is superior to others. One area of curriculum that I'm thrilled to see an explosion in is curriculum by homeschoolers for homeschoolers. CLICK HERE!Then, you’ll love the round up of homeschool curriculum which makes our job of teaching at home a delight.

One/ Curriculum written by a homeschooler assumes we don’t have a teacher’s background in a subject. You have to love that part.

When I started teaching my first son at home, I remember that the math book which was written for a public school was hard for me to understand.

Like most of you, I’m fairly capable of teaching any subject or at least tackling it if I knew a bit of the background information.

Curriculum written by homeschoolers can take more time to explain the foundation or background of a subject. Giving me a foundation or direction as to what I’m teaching educates me too alongside my kids. It gives me the bigger picture of what I’m aiming for when I teach.

Two/Curriculum written by a homeschooler understands our need to teach multiple ages of children at one time.

I always respect copyright on curriculum; I follow the direction of whether or not I can use it to teach more than one child. Most curriculum I’ve used understands our need to have a teaching tip for a grade up or below the level of the just purchased curriculum. This is a great time-savings tip when teaching our kids together.

Public school curriculum is set out to teach a classroom and the tips are to use for teaching the masses.

Three/Curriculum written by a homeschooler is normally priced better.

Budget is something we have to talk about. I’m not always about free because it’s true you get what you pay for. Again, though, curriculum written by a homeschooler understands our need to stretch our curriculum budget. They try to give us not only great options for purchasing, but deliver it in different formats to save costs.

Curriculum that is unique and hard to find suited for our purpose at home is easier with all the unique finds we have available today.

My reasons for loving special and unique curriculum by homeschoolers could be more expansive, but I wanted to give you a few treasures I’ve enjoyed through the years.

Look at a few of the homeschooling families I’ve come to treasure because of how much they have helped to give my kids an excellent education.

Homeschool Curriculum from the Pak Homeschooling Family

I remember the first time I saw something created by Amy Pak because I absolutely knew her way of teaching history, hands-on and engaging fit my idea of how I thought history should be taught.

Not only have I used their beautiful curriculum with my kids, but I’ve used it in a co-op setting.

After all, hands-on history is so much more fun when you have somebody to make a mess with.

Look here at Amazing Hands-on History Activities for 14 Ancient Empires (free notebook cover too) to see how we had fun with the Great Empires Activity Study,

You’ll love ALL of their hands-on projects and will have a hard time choosing which ones to do this year and which ones to do next year.

Homeschool Curriculum from the Bauer Homeschooling Family

I’ve used a lot of resources by Susan Wise Bauer because they’re timely, rigorous, and easy to use. Did I mention she is a lovely person in person too?

The Ordinary Parent’s Guide to Teaching Reading, Grammar for the Well-Trained Mind, Writing with Ease and Writing with Skill are just a few of the really helpful and rigorous language arts program.

From elementary to high school, you’ll love how the Bauer family at Peacehill Press lays out their curriculum in a friendly way for the homeschool educator.

Look at her curriculum here on my elementary age language arts Amazon board here, my middle school language arts Amazon board here, and my high school language arts Amazon board here.

Homeschool Curriculum from the Berg Homeschooling Family

Also, from the Russel and Rea Berg homeschool family, you’ll fall in love with all of their products.

I’ve used many of them for years. Be sure you start early collecting their products because I feel at times there are not enough years to homeschool to use them all. I’ve sure tried.

Beautiful feet books is about combining living history with history, geography, or even science to make it meaningful. Look at a few of their beautiful products that you’ll go crazy over.

BEST Curriculum by Homeschoolers

You’ll want to browse all of them from K to High School.

Medieval History Adv. Int. & Jr. High Pack

Early American History Primary

History of Science.

Geography through Literature

Homeschool Curriculum From the Kautzer Homeschooling Family

I remember the first time I used WriteShop, I thought I was in cupcake heaven. Oh, maybe saying that was corny, but I felt like that teaching writing. It was as easy as baking cupcakes.

Many years, we used WriteShop because of all the teacher empowerment tips they give along with planning ideas. I attribute WriteShop with my first son’s love for writing.

WriteShopAdventure Builder StoryBuilders

Homeschool Curriculum From the Hogan Homeschooling Family

The Hogan family has created many helpful programs like their science programs and geography programs. You’ll want to look over the curriculum which just like the others is created to open and easily use.

I love their curriculum because I could get several of it in digital format so that as my sons got older they could keep it on their device.Geography BundleThen, I’ve really been excited about these next two homeschool families because they have filled a void I’ve had for a while when it comes to making literature studies interactive and finding electives.

Homeschool Curriculum From the McVey Homeschooling Family

Literary Adventures for Kids helps parents and students to dig deeper, go on rabbit trails, and add a little adventure all while enjoying great literature.

Facebook and Twitter

And I especially love the high school help.
Poetry and a Movie PIN

Oh I’m not finished yet.

Don’t you love knowing that there is curriculum written by homeschool families with an expert background in just about every subject?

Talking about every subject, we don’t want to leave out enrichment.

Homeschoool Curriculum From the Mayo Homeschooling Family

Anything Gena puts her hand to for enrichment only adds beauty to your homeschool.

You’ll love all of her programs. Below are just a few of them.

Be sure to look over all the courses.

https://learn.musicinourhomeschool.com/courses?affcode=50562_c5avrhro

A lot of easy formatted books like ebooks for science have been a life saver for me too both when we moved overseas and just when I was limited on storage. You’ll love some of these easy science finds too.

Did I mention it’s usually affordable when it’s in a digital format?

Homeschool Curriculum From the Goodwin Homeschooling Family

Not having a science background, I appreciate these families who have a strong science background. They make it easy for me to teach.

Not only do they appreciate I’m a homeschool mom who wants to be involved, but I like things easy for me too.

Hands-On Science Bundle

Homeschool Curriculum From the West Homeschooling Family

I’ve used Cindy’s science living books for multiple ages to save my mind. Easily downloadable and with activities for any season, you’re ready to go with minimal preparation.Look at a few links of how I used her curriculum:

Hands-On Nature Study: Bird Color Bar Graphing Activity, Hands-On Nature Study: Make a Fun Bird Nesting Bag, and Easy and Fun Nature Study: Beautiful Birds.

I love all the choices, but when it comes to teaching our kids at home some homeschool curriculum is superior to others. One area of curriculum that I'm thrilled to see an explosion in is curriculum by homeschoolers for homeschoolers. CLICK HERE!

Too, I want you to know that I believe in supporting families that support our homeschool lifestyle and always look to them first when choosing curriculum.

Not only is their homeschool curriculum easy to use, but it’s superior at times. Now you know the secret of how to easily homeschool.

You’ll love these other resources:

  • How to Build Middle School Curriculum Directly From Amazon
  • Digital Homeschool Curriculum – Big Ol’ List 
  • Big Ol’ List of All-In-One Homeschool Curriculum (a.k.a Boxed)

Hugs and love ya,

 

Leave a CommentFiled Under: Choose Curriculum Tagged With: boxedcurriculum, composition, curriculum, earthscience, grammar, history, homeschool grammar, homeschoolcurriculum, language arts, life science, multiple children, science, sciencecurriculum, teachingmultiplechildren

How to Build Middle School Curriculum Directly From Amazon

July 5, 2018 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Building middle school curriculum directly from Amazon has been a life saver for me more than one time. Also, look at my page homeschool middle school for more fun tips.

Let’s face it. We have homeschooled kids with unique needs and being able to build creative homeschool curriculum directly from Amazon is a huge benefit.

Not only do we get it quickly, but we love the savings.

Too, I love being able to return any supplies or curriculum that don’t work for us.

Although, I love homeschool conventions, there have been some years that I just couldn’t go.

It takes time to build curriculum for older learners and I love the flexibility of being able to choose curriculum specifically for my kids.

Many times through the years, my selections for middle school curriculum have been from different companies.

We have homeschooled kids with unique needs and being able to to build creative homeschool curriculum directly from Amazon is a huge benefit. Click here to see how to build unique curriculum for your middleschooler!

At this age and grade most kids have strengths that have emerged and weaknesses too.

I know it can be challenging and overwhelming to make choices and also to be sure you cover everything. So I’ve taken time to create different lists or boards in my Amazon store and have selected items which I have either used personally or have some experience with.

Organizing them by boards or lists (you know my fixation with lists) will help you to quickly see flexible choices.

Also, I wanted you to know I have these posts also which are How to Build Elementary Homeschool Curriculum Directly From Amazon and How to Build High School Curriculum Directly From Amazon.

I have created the following lists and will continue to add to them as I come across things that have worked for me:

  • Middle School Math List
  • Middle School Language Arts List
  • Middle School Literature
  • Electives for Middle School
  • Middle School Science
  • Middle School History
  • School Supplies – Older Learners

To be sure you’ve covered the bases for subjects, use my checklist for curriculum resources. You can download an editable copy over at STEP 5A of my free 7 Step Homeschool Planner.

Unique Homeschool Middle School Curriculum

I think you’ll love my Amazon storefront as I will be updating my likes and finds that have worked well for me through the years.

For more help check out my Homeschool Helps page where I’ve listed resources for K to 12. I’ve homeschooled a long time and have used lots of great resources.

You’ll also want to look at these tips:

  • Big Ol’ List of All-In-One Homeschool Curriculum (a.k.a Boxed)
  • 7 Budget-Friendly Language Arts Curriculum to Pair with Unit Studies (with printable)
  • 5 Best Resources to Start a Homeschool Unit Study in a Few Hours
We have homeschooled kids with unique needs and being able to to build creative homeschool curriculum directly from Amazon is a huge benefit. Click here to see how to build unique curriculum for your middleschooler!

Hugs and love ya,

Leave a CommentFiled Under: Choose Curriculum, Middle School Homeschool Tagged With: curriculum, homeschool curriculum, middleschool

Big Ol’ List of All-In-One Homeschool Curriculum (a.k.a Boxed)

June 14, 2018 | 4 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

There are many reasons to use an all-in-one homeschool curriculum and the best reason is that all the planning is done for you. Also, look at my page The Dynamics of How to Homeschool Easily and Smarter for more ideas.

Whether you’re new, feel like you don’t have time to lesson plan, or just need a teaching break, you’ll want to know these boxed curriculum providers or all-in-one homeschool curriculum providers.

Big Ol' List of All-In-One Homeschool Curriculum (a.k.a Boxed)

First things first.

There is a lot of confusion that swirls around the definition of what is an all-in-one curriculum. It is the same as a boxed curriculum.

That may not tell you anything either because you may think that means it comes in a box. It may or may not.

What Is an All-In-One Homeschool Curriculum

Look at my easy definition below so you sound like a seasoned veteran when you curriculum shop.

An all-in-one homeschool curriculum or boxed curriculum means that all of your core subjects like the 3 Rs and content subjects like science and history are included in the program.

The Definition of an All-In-One or Boxed Homeschool Curriculum

It means just what it says in that all of your basic subjects are covered. In addition, most all-in-one providers have teacher’s manuals or teacher notes along with suggested schedules on how to cover the material.

Like a boxed cake mix, the curriculum comes with everything you need to begin homeschooling for a school year. Normally, you need very little extra supplies to start.

The curriculum may consist of part physical books, part online, part dvd, or all physical book or all on line.

A lot of the options with this approach can be considered public school at home or workbook approach.

However, all-in-one curriculum providers have really changed since I’ve started and some take another homeschool approach like Charlotte Mason or even a unit study type of approach.

Because accredited has nothing to do with the rigor of the curriculum, you’ll want to be sure to read Accreditation Removing the Shroud of Mystery.

Advantages of All-In-One or Boxed Curriculum

Additionally, it’s important to understand the advantages of an all-in-one to see if it’s a good fit.

  • It’s all laid out which means the lesson planning is done. Some new homeschoolers are not comfortable with their freedom to homeschool and feel better having a pattern to follow.
  • Contrary to popular belief, they can save you money in the long run because you learn what you like or don’t like about teaching. You don’t spend years switching curriculum because you took the time to learn how to teach.
  • Not having to worry about lesson planning frees up your time to hone in on the weaknesses of your children that may need to be addressed this year.
  • Most companies provide you with a schedule on how to fit it all in for the day. It can be a great guide for time management and you can avoid the stress of over planning.
  • If you live in a state that has stricter homeschooling laws, an all-in-one curriculum can help you to comply with the laws of you state.

There are some disadvantages to any curriculum, but I’ll save those for another time because I want you to see the plethora of choices. I’ll add a few notes as I go along too.

Choosing Curriculum When You’re New

And if I have a savings for one or two below, I’ll let you know too.

And remember these are curriculum providers NOT schools!

Workbook Approach You Know in Public School

*Unless noted all of these are a traditional or workbook approach.
* Also, don’t be uniformed because curriculum is not accredited, only schools. Be sure you read my post about accreditation above if you need to understand the difference.

A Beka.

  • Christian
  • PK to 12
  • Accredited or Independent Study
  • Print-based and computer-based

A.C.E. (Accelerated Christian Education).

  • Christian
  • K to 12
  • Accredited
  • Colorful printed packs enhanced with CDs, DVD and computer software

Also look at my video What Is An All In One Homeschool Curriculum a k a Boxed Curriculum

Acellus.

  • Faith-free i.e. Secular
  • K to 12
  • Computer based online
  • Note: Homeschoolers have a love hate relationship with them. Some lessons are short and to the point, others seem overly easy or unnecessarily complicated. There are glitches at time and scheduling seems to be a problem. Overall, homeschoolers like the flexibility of homeschooling when they want to just login and go.

Alpha Omega LifePac., Switched-on Schoolhouse.
Alpha Omega Horizons.
Alpha Omega Weaver.

(Note: You save 10% by buying it from the Homeschool Buyer’s Co-op). Four different programs with different approaches and purposes from the same publisher.

  • Christian
  • K to 12
  • Accredited
  • Note: Weaver is a unit study approach and not a workbook-based approach.
  • Print-based, computer-based, and online homeschooling curriculum.

Bob Jones Press.

  • Christian
  • K3 to 12
  • Accredited
  • Print-based and video-based

Easy Peasy All In One.

  • Christian
  • PK to 12
  • Note: This is completely FREE and I will suggest it at times for new or struggling homeschoolers to start with this to see what will work and not work for you as the investment is only your time and whatever you choose to print.
  • Note: Easy Peasy All in One is a Charlotte Mason approach with a gentle workbook based approach.
  • Computer-based online.

Designed by Lee Giles beginning 2011 as she put assignments down for her children and saved them for the younger ones. It has grown in popularity over the years.

BookShark.

  • Faith-free i.e. Secular
  • K to 12
  • Print-based and some items computer- based
  • Note: BookShark is a literature-based approach.

Calvert Education.

  • Faith-free i.e. Secular
  • PK to 12
  • Accredited
  • Print-based or digital-only format with e-textbooks.

Christian Light Education.

  • Christian
  • K to 12
  • Print-based

Christian Liberty Press.

  • Christian
  • PK to 12
  • Accredited
  • Print-based

MasterBooks.

  • Christian
  • PK to 12
  • Print-based (committed to putting ink on paper) or pdf downloads for about 90% of the products
  • mix and match bundles

Moving Beyond the Page

  • Faith-free i.e. Secular
  • PK to 12
  • Print-based or computer-interface and you print lessons.
  • Note: Moving Beyond the Page is a literature-based unit study approach with a twist of classical, Montessori and unschooling approaches.
  • mix and match bundles

My Father’s World.

  • Christian

  • PK to 12
  • Print-based
  • Note: My Father’s World is a Charlotte Mason approach with a unit study twist.
All About Spelling

Oak Meadow.

  • Faith-free i.e. Secular
  • PK to 12
  • Print-based
  • Accredited
  • Note: Oak Meadows incorporates nature-based learning and a Waldorf influenced approach.

Rod and Staff.

  • Christian
  • 1 to 10. (Their belief affects grade level meaning they feel most concepts should be learned by tenth grade.)
  • Print-based

Sonlight.

  • Christian
  • PK to 12
  • Print-based
  • Note: Sonlight is literature-based with a Charlotte Mason approach.
  • mix and match bundles

The Good and the Beautiful.

  • Non-denominational Christian
  • PK to 12
  • Print-based
  • Note: Follows a Charlotte Mason approach.

Time4Learning.

  • Faith-free i.e. Secular
  • PK to 12
  • Computer-based online

Timberdoodle.

  • Faith-free i.e. Secular AND Christian options
  • PK to 12
  • print-based
  • mix and match bundles

Veritas Press.

  • Christian
  • K to 12
  • Print-based and online courses
  • Note: Veritas Press is literature-based with a Classic approach.

WinterPromise.

  • Christian
  • K to 12
  • Print-based and pdf. option
  • Note: WinterPromise is literature-based with a Charlotte Mason and unit study approach.

Homeschool Providers Worthy of Mention

Big Ol' List of All-In-One Homeschool Curriculum (a.k.a Boxed)

Add a subject or two to make them complete.

These curriculum providers below are also popular because of their flexibility and excellent literature quality.

They require maybe one or two subjects to make them complete. I’m putting them here so you can have them as an option.

Beautiful Feet Literature.

  • Christian
  • K to 12
  • Print-based and downloadable pdf.
  • Note: Beautiful Feet is literature-based with a unit study focus on history.
  • Need to purchase: Math program and depending on your child you may need to purchase a composition, grammar, and spelling program.

Build Your Library.

  • Faith-free i.e. Secular
  • PK to 10. TBA 11, 12
  • Downloadable teachers guide, you buy your own literature
  • Note: Literature-based with a Charlotte Mason and eclectic approach.
  • Need to purchase: Math program and depending on your child’s need you may need to purchase separate spelling and grammar programs.

Torch Light.

  • Faith-free i.e. Secular
  • K and 1 only available now
  • Downloadable teachers guide, you buy your own literature
  • Note: Literature-based with a Charlotte Mason and eclectic approach.
  • Need to purchase: Math program and depending on your child’s need you may need to purchase separate spelling and grammar programs.

You’ll also love these other tips:

  • BEST Digital Homeschool Curriculum – Big Ol’ List
  • 10 Affordable and Complete Homeschool Kindergarten Curriculum
  • Best High School Homeschool Curriculum Packages (Accredited and Not Accredited)
  • Which One is Really the Best Homeschool Writing Curriculum (a comparison)
  • 8 Components of a Boxed Curriculum 
  • How to Use a Boxed Curriculum without Giving Up Your Homeschool Approach 
  • The Big List of Unit Study Hands-on (and Hands-off) Curriculum
Big Ol' List of All-In-One Homeschool Curriculum (a.k.a Boxed). There are many reasons to use an all-in-one homeschool curriculum and the best reason is that all the planning is done for you. CLICK here to grab this list!
Big Ol' List of All-In-One Homeschool Curriculum (a.k.a Boxed). There are many reasons to use an all-in-one homeschool curriculum and the best reason is that all the planning is done for you. CLICK here to grab this list!

4 CommentsFiled Under: Choose Curriculum, Kick Off Your Homeschool Year, Plan For & School Year Around, Teach Homeschool History, Teach Homeschool Language Arts, Teach Homeschool Math, Teach Homeschool Science, Teach/Which Subjects to Teach/Cover EVERYTHING Tagged With: boxedcurriculum, curriculum, homeschool curriculum, new homeschooler homeschool curriculum

Why Buying Curriculum Won’t Make You a Homeschooler (But What Will)

March 27, 2018 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

You should have seen it! It was the newest hyper speed printer you’ve ever seen in a homeschool household. I kept it busy night and day printing hefty 3-inch binders full of every subject I could dream of to teach my then preschoolers. At the end of three months when it was time to start my first official day of homeschool, I was already burned out. Buying curriculum and printing everything I could find on the internet didn’t anymore make a homeschooler than buying my son’s first car made him an experienced driver.

You couldn’t have convinced me then that unless I had purchased curriculum, I wasn’t a full member of the national unified happy homeschoolers society. (No, there is no such club.)

So You Call Yourself a Homeschooler, Uh

Instead of focusing on buying curriculum, which is only part of the homeschool puzzle, I should’ve been educating myself on homeschool approaches, my definition of education, and trusting a child’s natural bent to learn.

Why Buying Curriculum Won't Make You a Homeschooler (But What Will)

Curriculum seems to be the hallmark of identifying yourself as a homeschooler. While it’s important to have curriculum, I’v learned that:

  • curriculum doesn’t really teach anything,
  • you need very little to get started,
  • focusing on the three Rs – reading, writing, and ‘rithmetic is the starting point,
  • subjects like history, geography, art, and science can wait for a for while as you focus on the three Rs,
  • understanding what is the homeschool lifestyle is of much more importance, and
  • understanding what is NOT homeschooling is just as important as calling yourself a homeschooler.

How to Instantly Become a Homeschooler

You don’t have to wait long to become a homeschooler. It’s not buying curriculum that advances you; it is about adopting ideas from the homeschool lifestyle.

One common weave of all successful homeschoolers is that they think out of the box. Determined to not follow the same method of teaching that wasn’t working in public school, a true homeschooler takes time to know her children first. Then, she finds curriculum to meet her needs. She doesn’t buy curriculum then make her family adjust to it.

True homeschoolers appreciate quickly that:

  • they’re free to choose when and how they learn,
  • they can set their own deadlines,
  • more emphasis can be given to their child’s interests,
  • lessons can be short and still be rigorous,
  • kids are encouraged to be problem solvers and independent thinkers,
  • the day and lesson plans can be flexible,
  • traveling is part of the homeschool lifestyle and
  • that kids do learn by living.

Although we say it all the time, a true homeschooler takes time to understand how curriculum is a tool. A tool can wield great power and hurt others if the user does not know how to use it well.  Like any dangerous tool in our home, we take time to read the instructions well and take great care when using any tools around our kids.

However. new homeschoolers pick up curriculum and command it with such force and that if their kids have trouble, they question first the child instead of the homeschool approach or curriculum. When completing curriculum is set up as the absolute measure of a child’s progress instead of measuring progress individually, a child could be left feeling worthless.

Unintentionally, the harm at home may become worse than what was going on in public school.

Like any tool, sometimes it needs to be used longer, other times it needs to be put down. It reminds me of baking bread. At times, I need to use my kitchen tools and other times I put it away and use my hands. Using my hands is the only way I can tell how well the dough mixed and the consistency of it.

Teaching is the same. If we never take a hands-on approach to our child’s learning, learn to put down the curriculum and change things in the curriculum fit our child, we will never have a pulse for how our child is advancing. Homeschooling will be a struggle from the start and stay hard period.

Use free online curriculum like Easy Peasy All In One to find a true starting point for buying curriculum. I know some homeschoolers who use Easy Peasy primarily and supplement it. Personally, I prefer to buy curriculum and supplement with free curriculum because I want to hand pick curriculum that is unique to each child’s strength.

Also, true homeschoolers avoid the thinking that all of their kids have to use the same math or language arts program. One sanity saving tip is for your kids to learn together. However, you’ll want to take time to understand which subjects can easily be taught together and which subjects are best learned separately. Look at the tips here on my post Skill Subjects vs. Content Subjects: What’s the Difference.

Besides using free curriculum and free online tests to gauge a starting point, a seasoned homeschooler includes her child’s interest as part of her curriculum. When a child comes from public school they’ve been taught to take a passive approach to learning. In otherwords, the teacher dictated the lesson plans and subjects.


Although a child may have been a good public school student, had excellent grades, and be responsible, he was not a partner in lesson making. This concept may seem offensive to the average public school teacher. To a homeschool mom, the concept of including a child in what interests him and how he learns is the first step to independent learning. We’ve learned that an obedient child doesn’t always equal a child interested in learning lifelong. It just means they learned to do what was necessary to get by or to have good grades.

Intrinsic learning happens by independent learning. By giving choices to our kids, we seem them as a partner to their learning and not a passive bystander.

My bountiful binders full of printing material cost me a fortune to print and cost more in stress. Only doing a handful of the worksheets, I learned quickly that preschoolers learn best by doing and not by all the school-ish things I had got ready. Thankfully, my misguided exuberance didn’t mess my sons up for life.

Why Buying Curriculum Won't Make You a Homeschooler (But What Will). You should have seen it! It was the newest hyper speed printer you've ever seen in a homeschool household. I kept it busy night and day printing hefty 3-inch binders full of every subject I could dream of to teach my then preschoolers. At the end of three months when it was time to start my first official day of homeschool, I was already burned out. Buying curriculum and printing everything I could find on the internet didn't anymore make a homeschooler than buying my son's first car made him an experienced driver. Click here to read how to become a homeschooler!

I had time to change my attitude to appreciate that buying curriculum did not a homeschooler make.Have you made the same mistake?

Look at these other tips you’ll love:

  • 3 Common Missteps in Teaching Multi-Level Children (And How to Fix Them) 
  • What Homeschool Subjects to Teach and When to Teach Them? Part 1 of 3
  •  Homeschooling Kindergarten : What Subjects to Teach and For How Long?

Hugs and love ya,

Leave a CommentFiled Under: Be an Exceptional Homeschool Teacher, Begin Homeschooling, Choose Curriculum Tagged With: curriculum, homeschoolingcosts, lesson, lessonplanning, relaxedhomeschooling

3 Ways to Choose the BEST Online Homeschool Curriculum (Psst! Don’t Miss Black Friday!)

November 21, 2017 | 2 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I’m PROUD to partner with Time4Learning. However, Time4Learning did not pay for this post. All opinions of any curriculum are always mine, but I wanted you to know that I’m proud to have Time4Learning as a sponsor.


In the past 10 years, it seems like online homeschool curriculum has popped up and taken over the homeschool market.

We’ve never had so many choices in choosing online homeschool curriculum as we do now.

When I chose to use Time4Learning,  I had a lens through which I chose online curriculum and it worked.

ONLINE HOMESCHOOL CURRICULUM THAT ROCKS

[ad] You'll love reading these 3 timeless tips about how to choose online curriculum, but come on over for Black Friday BOGO from Nov. 24 to 27! Hurry!!

Sharing 3 ways to choose the best online homeschool curriculum, I want you to look past all the blinking beacons on websites and look at these tried and true tips.

One/ Flexibility. Don’t underestimate the value of it.

One of the reasons I started homeschooling was to decide when and how my kids would learn.

During my homeschool journey, I’ve experienced many exhilarating planned adventures like living overseas in South America and trekking the Amazon Rain Forest and many unplanned sad and stressful times like time spent in the ICU as my husband recovered.

I needed laid out lesson plans and I needed a variety of grade levels to choose from. It’s why I chose Time4Learning.

I don’t want to have to check in with a teacher like an online school.

I simply did not need the stress of answering to the schedule of another person.

Second/ Curriculum on the go. 

Until I moved overseas, I didn’t appreciate the value of curriculum on the go.

When I learned that we could take only two suitcases each for our move overseas, I almost passed out.

My shoes (ha) wouldn’t fit in two suitcases let alone our homeschooling books.

Oh sure. We could have paid thousands of dollars to ship my physical curriculum or I could look for a PreK to 12th grade curriculum to cover multiple grades. That’s another reason I love  Time4Learning.

You simply sign up and sign in each day and follow a routine set up for you.

Third/ Know the difference between choosing online curriculum and an online school.

When you first start homeschooling, you may think you want an online school.

Soon, you realize that it’s just public school at home. Look at my tips The Great Homeschool Hoax – Public School At Home.

You move to another phase of your journey, the one you stay at longer and learn then what you really need is curriculum help and not an online school.

For me, what I really wanted was NOT another school telling me what to do, but homeschool curriculum laid out in an easy way for me to use.

That is one BIG reason I love, love Time4Learning.  It’s not a school but curriculum.

It’s not like those online schools designed to stress you out because they want your kids to test, meet with you in a parent/teacher conference, and dictate what my kids should learn.

I’ll decide if I need that for my kids since I’m the one with them each day.

There are many online schools, but not many all online homeschool curriculum providers for Prek to 12th grade that have been around for a long time and understand homeschoolers.  Because Time4Learning is not public school at home, it’s not offered to public schools.

It’s just what it says, online homeschool curriculum that does not bring public school to home just because you chose online homeschool curriculum, but supports you when you need help.

You’ll love how easy Time4Learning makes it for you to teach and guess what?

You can try them out because for Black Friday they have a super nifty deal. It’s a BOGO. Buy one month, get the 2nd free!

HURRY- BOGO November 24 to 27 or Mark Your Calendar

[ad] You'll love reading these 3 timeless tips about how to choose online curriculum, but come on over for Black Friday BOGO from Nov. 24 to 27! Hurry!!

Have you tried Time4Learning? What do you like best about online homeschool curriculum?

Also, look at these other super helpful tips.

  • Digital Homeschool Curriculum – Big Ol’ List 
  • 31 Day Free Homeschool Boot Camp

Hugs and love ya,

2 CommentsFiled Under: Avoid the Homeschool Blues, Be an Exceptional Homeschool Teacher, Begin Homeschooling, Choose Curriculum Tagged With: curriculum, digital, homeschoolcurriculum, online learning, onlinewriting, sciencecurriculum

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