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How to Choose the Best Middle School Literature And Favorite Resources

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Today in how to choose the best middle school literature I want to help you conquer the overwhelm by giving you a few seasoned homeschooler secrets. Also, look at my page How to Successfully Homeschool Middle School for more ideas.

With so many wonderful books, literature guides, and reading programs available, how do you decide which ones are right for your middle school student?

How to Choose the Best Middle School Literature And Favorite Resources

When I approached the middle school years, there was no lack of middle school literature lists.

BEST MIDDLE SCHOOL LITERATURE

I loved having the lists, but I quickly learned that having tips on how to choose literature for my teen was better.

So first, look at these four questions asked and answered full of tips to help you decide which books are best for your family.

FOUR MIDDLE SCHOOL LITERATURE QUESTIONS ASKED AND ANSWERED

Question 1.
Should I Read Every Book My Child Reads?

The answer is complicated. It’s both yes and no. The way you determine if it’s a yes or no is your purpose.

For example, if you’re wanting to use literature for analysis and to engage your child with understanding an author’s purpose it’s hard to do that unless you read the book.

Middle school is the time that most kids can do some introductory analysis. If you’re wanting to fill the literature requirement for just reading or for enjoyment, the answer is no.

How to Choose the Best Middle School Literature And Favorite Resources

I couldn’t read every book my kids chose, but focused on reading the few we would used for analysis. That secret tip helped me conquer the literature overwhelm in middle school.

In addition, this site for Banned and Challenged Books gives you an idea of the theme or worldview behind some books.

Question 2.
How many books should my kid read each year?

That is another subjective answer. Some kids are voracious readers others not so much.

But if you’re using the literature to fill a credit (yes you can get high school credit in middle school), you’ll want to set your goal for a realistic amount.

Looking over some literature lists for middle schooled kids, I’ve seen some unreachable numbers.

Whatever the number of books you come up with lower it. It’s so much better to get through a handful of books with meaningful discussions than to overestimate and rush through them.

That is disheartening for both teacher and kid. Remember you can always add more literature for analysis anytime during the year.

I’ve had different requirements with each kid as my circumstances were different each year, but a good rule of thumb at this age was to analyze between 4 to 6 books or less.

Some years we did more, other years I struggled to get through three books, but it was still solid language arts.

The other books were pure pleasure and met my reading requirement.

READING FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL

Again, this is NOT all your child will read, but it’s the amount you want him to read to help him with the critical thinking part of literature.

Question 3.
Do I want my child to integrate other subjects or skills or to use literature as stand-alone?

My answer is to integrate as much as possible. My preference from the time I learned about how to integrate was to use this method for all literature.

Integrate means to combine several skills or to combine subjects. By integrating skills or subjects,

  • your child learns the practical application of grammar, vocabulary, or writing in a way that makes sense;
  • the areas of language arts that your child is weak at can be strengthened. For example, he sees the correct spelling of a word in literature and applies it to his writing;
  • your child can choose literature choices based on his interests or to cover a subject he may not like as well. Unlike public school, your child doesn’t have to follow arbitrary lists. Too, if he is not passionate about history, then well-written fiction prose can help him to fill a history credit. Literature can make a history time period come alive while filling both a literature and history requirement in a more fun way; and
  • one unexpected benefit was that my kids learned study skills and research skills.

LITERATURE ANALYSIS FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL

Question 4.
Should I require my child to write book reports?

Although it’s not necessary for kids to write book reports, understanding the purpose of a book report lets you decide if it’s for your family.

Book reports, oral or written, are the blueprints for high school literary analysis.

The point is not whether you assign a book report or not, it’s that your child understands things like elements of fiction, genre, and figures of speech.

Whether you choose to do this orally, through a book report, a lapbook, or reading journal, it’s your choice. I have only one kid that loved book reports, but I orally reviewed with each kid the assigned books.

Next, look at this list of questions to include in a written book report or to go over them orally:

  • Was it better that . . . ?
  • What do you think . . . ?
  • In your opinion . . . ?
  • How would you change the character to . . . ?
  • How is ____ tied in or related to ____?
  • What choice would you have made ____?

Now that you have a quick overview of some of the general tips about how to choose middle school literature, look at this list of books.

Remember that you can choose classics, follow a history theme, favorite author or do a balance of genres. There are many genres to choose from.

Of course, if your child is college bound you will want to do a variety of genre even in junior high.

READING FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL HOMESCHOOL

And one final thought there is a huge difference in maturity between sixth grade and eighth grade.

Keep that in mind in looking over this literature list as I provided options for different reading levels. This list below is a mix of literature that works well for this age, but you can always add to it.

Books for Middle School Kids

Alternatively, you may want to use something besides just a reader or the literature.

TEACHER GUIDES, THEMED GUIDES AND ALL-IN-ONE CURRICULUM

For my first time teaching literature at the middle school level I loved using teacher helps and many times I used them as life happened. Why reinvent the wheel?

You can choose a book along with a teacher guide to help you teach the important parts of the book or use an all-in-one guide or curriculum.

How to Choose the Best Middle School Literature And Favorite Resources

Look at some of your options below.

I love Lightning Literature and they’re perfect for the older grades because they have a schedule which helps when you’re first beginning to teach literature.

Still, I had the tendency to over teach literary analysis, but key to keeping it fun is to do a bit each day.

Then, Language Arts Through Literature series is timeless. Their middle and high school grades are solid.

It is a Charlotte Mason gentle approach to literature and fits a lot of my likes; it takes an integrated approach which aligns with how I feel beautiful literature should be learned.

However, one of my VERY favorite resources for middle school kids was created by another homeschool mom.

You’ll love Literary Adventures for Kids which is online and self-paced.

You choose the books and course and your child goes at his own pace. All the stress and prep for learning about literature was taken out.

If you’re looking for something that your child can do on his own, or you don’t have time to read every book, you’ll love Literary Adventures for Kids.

Also, Progeny Press Study Guides have been timeless.

My kids can pick the book they want to read and we find the accompanying study guide. The guides cover background information, vocabulary, literary analysis, and more.

MORE RESOURCES FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL TIPS

HOMESCHOOL HELPS FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL

Another favorite has been the literature unit guides by Teacher Created Resources. Although they are created for a classroom, I’ve been able to get many ideas to flesh out with my kids.

Additionally, Memoria Press literature guides are grade level literature units which also have helped me at this age.

Next, Beautiful Feet literature are some of my favorite themed literature units.

Covering history and literature simultaneously helped us to learn how to utilize our time and widen our reading diet.

If your child loves history, then integrating history and literature together makes practical use of your child’s time.

Did I mention that reading doesn’t become a chore, but becomes a time you and your child look forward to during the day?

Finally, paying attention to detail looks different for each book with each child, but that is the purpose of literature analysis. Too, our children can come to view each book loved as an artistic expression. It’s quite possible.

What books are you using for literature analysis for middle school kids?

Hugs and love ya,

How to Put Together a Homeschooled High School Writer’s Notebook & Free Resources

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I’m sharing how to put together a homeschooled high school writer’s notebook. Also, look at my pages How to Homeschool High School and The Dynamics of How to Homeschool Easily and Smarter for more tips.

With two move overseas in the last two years, we have been slowly catching up on subjects. Tiny is still straddling middle and high school. However, his writing has been at high school level. Because we had to set up his high school writer’s notebook after our move back, I am sharing it with you today along with some free resources.

How to Put Together a Homeschooled High School Writer's Notebook & Free Resources

I have used many writing courses with my boys through the years. And I have genuinely enjoyed each one. One that we really enjoyed which was created by homeschool moms because it worked and made teaching writing easy is WriteShop.

In another post, I will be sharing some things we liked and didn’t like so much about writing programs. Today, I’m sticking to showing you an easy set up for a writer’s notebook.

Really, this set up would work for a middle schooled kid too.

I. Outside Cover

Notebooks can be made out of anything, like a file folder, composition book or even a binder.

Your teen can design his own cover. And coloring is cool now even for adults and young teens. So, I listed some free and cool looking coloring pages.

How to Put Together a Homeschooled High School Writer's Notebook & Free Resources

I ask Tiny if he wanted to color or design his cover and he rolled his eyes. I took that as a no.

Instead, he found this handsome and dare I say elegant, houndstooth-ish looking Divoga black and gold notebook in late December when we arrived back in the states.

WriteShop

I believe it may have been seasonal, but you can look at this picture below to see the other ones they have.

They are pretty impressive looking if you have a teen that wants a more professional look.

And it helps if the binders are on sale because a teen can change their mind often when it comes to expressing their individuality in their writer’s notebook.

II. Superb Writing Tools Equals a Master Writer (okay, well maybe, but it doesn’t hurt)

Next, the pen zipper pouch is important because I make sure Tiny has a variety of pen colors to work with.

When they boys were younger, we used the skip line method when writing so that there is a line to write on under the first draft and to rewrite the next draft or to change a word.

It keeps a child from erasing, which should be completely ruled out in writing, but kids have a hard time  doing that.

If they learn to eradicate erasing when they are young, then as they grow to a teen writer, it helps them to learn the writing process faster because writing is the culmination of many mark ups and deletions.

How to Put Together a Homeschooled High School Writer's Notebook & Free Resources

As the boys get older, they get the choice. Do they want to keep skipping lines and/or use different color pens to identify the different stages of writing like initial draft, revise and final draft.

Tiny likes black ink for writing and red ink for correcting.

HOMESCHOOLED HIGH SCHOOL LANGUAGE ARTS OPTION

If it is needs to be completely rewritten as a draft, he can choose another color, like blue or green. I think Tiny keeps the pencil in his zipper as a good measure.

Tiny and I both tend to like the Zebra z grip, medium point. And Z grip has the other colors too.

He also likes keeping highlighters in his zip pouch because when he has finished his thoughts, he can return later and substitute a more colorful adjective or word.

At the time, I encourage him to keep his ideas flowing. He will highlight real quick and keep moving.

He loves the Yoobi highlighters like I do and grabbed mine, but we have been eyeing these mini yoobi highlighters. Unfortunately they’re still not available.

A few paper clips  for keeping his pages together and some post it notes and he is set up for referencing his pages the way he wants to.

How to Help Your Teen to Find the Best Words for His Ideas

Next, I keep a heavy duty top loading protector page with fresh paper in it. It is by Wilson Jones.

This just keeps fresh paper in the front and he can easily see when he needs to fill it up again.

Then,  we set our tabs up in a variety of ways.

So we set up some of the tabs the same way, but not all of them. Remember, your teen still needs your help in organizing their notebooks.

III. But It’s the Inside That Matters.

We have five sections and they are:

5 SECTIONS FOR A HOMESCHOOLED HIGH SCHOOL WRITER’S NOTEBOOK

1. OUTLINES/COMPOSITIONS

This is where Tiny keeps his outlines and drafts. He likes keeping his final compositions at the very end of the notebook.

He also likes to keep the model he is working on here under this tab and not under a separate tab.

2. STRUCTURAL MODELS

At this point, I want you know how important the order of the tabs are because it helps your teen to go through the writing process in a logical order.

For example, some teens like to correct spacing and grammar before they are finished writing their content. This is not only exhausting to do, but can be both stressful and a waste of time when their focus needs to be first on content.

This is an important part in helping a teen organize his thoughts. Your teen needs to understand that before he focuses on the mechanics of writing, he has to clarify his thoughts.

Put models in this section which you want your teen follow.

3. STYLE CHARTS

Put words or lists here that help improve his technique of writing. We like list of adjectives and adverbs.

Again, these three tabs helps a teen writer to not forget the very basics of writing like having a beginning, middle and an end, that writing using noun and verb is solid writing and wordiness is a waste of good writing.

Look at this free Stylistic Techniques Overview.

4. BANNED WORDS

Though this section for me could be part of Writing Helps, it is a section that Tiny needs to focus on this year. Keeping it a separate tab reminds him to narrow down his word choice carefully.

Banned words, however, could easily fit into the Writing Helps too.

And look at this list of banned words.

5. WRITING HELPS

Tiny needed help with the details of his writing so we named this part Writing Helps. Placing this at the end of the notebook he is reminded that punctuation and grammar helps can now be focused on after he has made his choice of ideas.

That is the strength of making each writer’s notebook to fit their unique and immediate needs.

Because we have had many interruptions with our writing, I need to be sure that he has some of the basics like parts of speech that he learned in his younger years.

In addition, he needs to expand the way he connects thoughts so I have printed a transitional words list.

How to Put Together a Homeschooled High School Writer's Notebook & Free Resources

Instead of constantly reminding him about them, it is his job now to check his work for that.

These helpful sheets that are free and that I list at the bottom are nifty for shoring up any weakness of a teen writer.

FREE HOMESCHOOL WRITING HELPS

Then I love this site because we have used some of her printables and they are especially for teen writers. I like the story brainstorming questions and it helped my boys to hone some of their thoughts.

A plethora of free helps and downloads here. I like the 475 Writing Prompts (be aware I have not read all of them, but a lot of them) and the templates for printing.

If you want to make your own notebook, your child can color a picture for the front of their notebook and glue it on a composition notebook or print the character sketch template.

Check out the wonderful graphic organizers and journal topics.

Then this site has been around for years and I have used it at various stages of my boys’ writing to help them visualize and organize their thoughts. It works fine for an older student too and especially if they are a visual learning.

The Worksheet Place, under the category Writing Worksheets, also has very helpful sheets. Under persuasive worksheets is where I found the transitional words worksheet, which I printed off for Tiny.

As I mentioned before, each one of my sons had things they struggled with or needed help remembering. I want their notebooks to be a place that not only helps creative thought processes flow, but to be especially helpful.

A writer’s notebook should reflect each writer’s personality and making the notebook feel personal helps.

The grading process stays with me, but as Mr. Senior 2013 did more writing he wanted to see how the paper was graded and so I added helpful rubrics for writing to his notebook. You can grab them here.

Right now, Tiny is not interested in that as he is beginning high school and he has different goals for this year.

Does this give you a good starting point for your homeschooled teen writers’ notebook?

You’ll love these other helpful tips:

What else do you like to include?

How to Put Together a Homeschooled High School Writer's Notebook and Free Resources

How to Easily Add Language Arts to Homeschool Unit Studies (& Resources)

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

How to add language arts to homeschool unit studies is one hurdle for delight directed learning. Also, look at my page Best Homeschool Unit Studies for more tips and resources.

The fear of missing something huge can keep some tied to a boxed curriculum. The beauty of unit studies is being able to study topics which ignite your child’s interests.

How to Easily Add Language Arts to Homeschool Unit Studies (& Resources)

With that being said, language art skills need to be applied to bodies of knowledge instead of learning language arts skills in isolation. This approach to learning the components of language arts makes it meaningful.

5 WAYS TO ADD LANGUAGE ARTS TO UNIT STUDIES

Look at these 5 ways to easily add language arts to homeschool unit studies.

1. Pair a living book with your unit study.

Although you want to include plenty of living books, depending on the unit study topic you may be using more reference type books.

So if you want to include many elements of language arts, choose one well-written living book to accompany your unit study.

Choose the living book with these things in mind:

  • Aim for the middle to highest reading level of all your children.
  • Keep in mind that it’s easier to scale down for language art components than it is to scale up for your highest level reader. Choose a higher reading level if in doubt.
  • In addition, make sure you understand not only the literary elements like plot, setting, and characters, but the theme too. It’s important for a smooth transition for the theme of the one main living book to connect with the unit study topic. The easiest themes for us in the beginning were ones like good v. evil, courage, and persistence. For example, I chose Swiss Family Robinson by Johann Wyss for our ocean unit study. Surviving on an island as a family if you got shipwrecked appealed as a theme to my kids and is a smooth tie-in to the ocean theme.
  • You can search for booklist ideas here on my site, but here are some to get you started.

Choosing the right living book means the difference with themes which ignite expressive conversations in your house about your unit study theme and your unit study falling flat and being shallow.

LANGUAGE ARTS FOR UNIT STUDIES

In addition, look at these other components of language arts which can naturally be pulled from a living book:

  • defining vocabulary words;
  • dictation;
  • narration;
  • copywork;
  • outlining;
  • reciting an oral speech;
  • reading; and
  • topics for writing or essays.
How to Easily Add Language Arts to Homeschool Unit Studies (& Resources)

The bottom line is that a well-written living book can equal a powerful inclusive language arts component.

When the living book is tied to the unit study topic which has already piqued your child’s interest, you’ve set yourself up for success from the start.

That is why I also love using Literary Adventures for Kids.

You choose a book and your kids can do a self-paced online language art course. Doing an online self-paced course where your child chooses the book is a great tie-in for the language arts component.

Look at my post Online Homeschool High School Poetry (No Teaching Involved).

Next, I use quick study guides. Realizing how beautifully I could zero in on the exact skill my kids needed to work on, I use them frequently.

2. Use Quick Reference Materials Like BarCharts.

Because Quick Study Guides can put information in a nutshell and organize skill by grade level, I use them as general guides.

Look at a few tips on how to use these quick guides:

  • Keep language arts concise and straightforward by learning fewer elements.
  • With my guide in hand, I can pair the objectives on the quick study guide with our main living book to shore up my kids weak areas in language arts.
  • My kids put the guides in their notebooks to use as reference for their writing or grammar. I made copies and we used a single hole punch to add them to their notebook.
  • Also, I could use the guides as a way to orally test my kids or if I wanted to create written quizzes I had a guide.
  • Likewise as my children grew, they can independently review the guides as memorization tools.
How to Easily Add Language Arts to Homeschool Unit Studies (& Resources)

Because quick study guides focus on fewer elements of language arts, our language arts focus could be as complicated or as gentle as we need.

Besides, I’m not paying for a full language arts curriculum, but choosing exactly what my kids need to focus on. Did I mention they last years?

Also, look at this How to Put Together a Homeschooled High School Writer’s Notebook & Free Resources because we added them there. Along with adding free resources online creating a language arts notebooks works.

Add Language Arts to Homeschool Unit Studies

Too, if you live near a Barnes and Noble, I’ve collected several of their guides which are called Quamut. They seem to have more guides about hobbies, but I’ve been able to cull through the quamuts for help in language arts.

However, the SparkCharts are another line of handy references which I love also.

Don’t underestimate the power of the simple and uncomplicated to teach straightforward grammar, punctuation, and types of writing.

You’ll love filling up your bookshelves and notebooks with quick and handy references to get to the point while teaching language arts.

3. Use an Ungraded, Multi-Level Resource.

Then, one of my earliest purchases was one of my best purchases which has stood the test of time.

Kathryn Stout created a series of how-to or reference books for subjects which are basically guides for grades K to 12.

My first purchase was Comprehensive Composition and I used it extensively in my unit studies.

Like the author, Kathryn Stout stated on her site she wrote the Design-A-Study guides to provide both a framework of objectives and detailed methods for teaching basic subjects effectively.

Homeschool Language Arts

For example, having a scope and sequence for composition which can be applied to any unit study for all your kids at one time is sanity-saving.

Equally, despite the age differences between your kids reference guides which lays out objectives and goals keeps composition related to the topic.

What I learned from teaching my kids about composition until high school is that boredom springs from writing about meaningless topics.

An ungraded, multi-level resource gives you freedom to learn how to write well on topics which are meaningful to your family.

However, another useful feature of filling your shelves with resources like these is that you’re using them for years. Unlike curriculum where you’re constantly switching out, a multi-age resource is timeless.

Look at few more resources for multiple grades:

Also, another long time keeper in the homeschool world is the book If You’re Trying to Teach Kids How to Write . . . Revised Edition: You’ve Gotta Have This Book! which is from Preschool to 12.

Having books to give you the big picture along with details of how to implement language arts daily keeps unit studies fun. Plus you know you’re not really missing any big language arts gap.

Then, other newer versions of helps for multiple levels have come along like Everything You Need to Ace English Language Arts in One Big Fat Notebook.

4. Play games.

Also, playing games is another fun and easy way to add language arts to unit studies.

While playing games is a fun way to learn language arts, it’s not always a smooth tie-in to a unit study topic. However, I love having options.

I use games sometimes to keep language arts front and center if I don’t have an exact language art tie-in to our current unit study.

  • Another favorite is Scrabble. Attempt to think of words used in your unit study and spell them. It helps with vocabulary too.
  • Mad Libs are timeless and fun play.

Don’t forget that I have the Ultimate Unit Study Planner. Having an eye for detail and creating many unit studies with multiple levels of kids, I know you’ll love it.

5. Free Curriculum Online.

Then of course nothing beats free – ever. However, I didn’t list free resources first because sometimes it’s harder to use free resources.

Not always related to your unit study curriculum, free curriculum can be hard to tie to your subject.

So what I’ve learned through the years is to cover the parts of language art which naturally fit into my current unit study.

Then, I can add in supplementary or free resources.

How to Easily Add Language Arts to Homeschool Unit Studies (& Resources)

Do not let fear of missing something make you miss out on delight-directed learning.

Fill your shelves with more how-to books so that you truly enjoy the freedom of homeschooling in the way that best fits your children.

Do you have any favorite multi-level teaching resources or ways you add language arts to your unit studies?

You’ll love some of these other helps:

Hugs and love ya,

7 Best Budget-Friendly Homeschool Language Arts Curriculum

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I have 7 best budget-friendly homeschool language arts ideas to pair with your unit studies.

Through the years, I’ve given the same long-standing advice. Spend first what money you have budgeted for curriculum on the core subjects. They are essential to a well-rounded education.

7 Best Budget-Friendly Homeschool Language Arts Curriculum

This is a sponsored post for Homeschool Buyers Co-op and I was paid for my time. However, paid for my time does not mean paid off. All opinions are my own and for sure I will always tell you what is on my mind. Read my full disclosure here.

And its reading in the younger grades and literature in the older grades. Too, grammar and writing are vital pieces of a homeschool language arts program.

And it can become expensive quickly when you’re implementing the unit study approach using an all-in-one language arts program.

So, I was excited to share some budget-friendly homeschool language arts curriculum options.

Breaking down the language arts components worked best for me because like most kids, they are ahead in one subject and may need more time on another.

Mapping Out the Components of Language Arts

Picking and choosing the individual parts of a homeschool language arts program gives you a customized curriculum.

It’s a better match for your child’s learning style and a better value when you have a limited dollar amount to get exactly what you need.

►VOCABULARY

For vocabulary, I always try to pull words from what we’re reading about in our unit studies. Reading words in that context and using them in everyday speech is the best way to master them.

But I used the printed version of Wordly Wise 3000 with Mr. Senior to be sure I exposed him to word study as a way to enhance our unit studies. Kids can master more words than we think they can, and to cripple their vocabulary with limited vocabulary instruction can be detrimental.

Lessons don’t have to be long, but they should be comprehensive. Using Wordly Wise 3000, I can expand lessons or cut back according to each son’s need.

    1. WORDLY WISE

    Although I know Wordly Wise 3000 touts that the audio feature is great for struggling readers, I think it’s great for independent learners. I don’t have to supervise my sons to see if they are correctly pronouncing a word.

    I know you’ll love it if you’re looking for an interactive vocabulary program that is not boring.

    2. LITERATURE ADVENTURES FOR KIDS

    Then, literature adventures for kids is my VERY favorite stand-alone self-paced online language arts program. Pair a great book with your unit study.

    Are you a busy, sweet, overwhelmed homeschooler craving a consistent, dependable language arts curriculum that adds a little enchantment to your homeschool? We help homeschoolers just like you reclaim their time and reduce stress with our open-and-go courses that turn every lesson into an adventure

    ►READING OR LITERATURE

    When I started making my own unit studies, I would get a gallon size ziploc bag and put the book and literature guide together in one bag.

    3. PROGENY PRESS LITERATURE GUIDES

    Then, I would mark the reading level on the bag and organize them for the year, and I started off using printed versions of Progeny Press Literature Guides.

    7 Best Budget-Friendly Homeschool Language Arts Curriculum

    Too, I would even unfasten the literature guide so I could add just the pages that my boys needed to do for that year.

    HOMESCHOOL LANGUAGE ARTS

    I printed what I needed that year with one son, and printed a different page or pages needed for another year.

    Now, the guides are interactive which means you don’t have to print; a child can type his answers directly into the document. That is a nifty time-saving tip for a high school teen with a rigorous academic load or a reluctant writer. But sometimes we like to hold our paper in hand so we print. And I still like pairing specific lessons on pages to themes in my unit studies.

    Look at a few things they offer:

    • FOUR LEVELS – Lower Elementary for Grades K-4, Upper Elementary for Grades 3-5, Middle School for Grades 5-8, and High School for Grades 9-12
    • 100+ TITLE CHOICES – We’ve put together SIX different 5-pack bundle choices for you! YOU CHOOSE your wish list from OVER 100 TITLE CHOICES! Choose from excellent reading titles such as Beowulf (*NEW*), The Eagle of the Ninth (*NEW*), Charlotte’s Web, Anne of Green Gables, The Island of the Blue Dolphins, The Secret Garden, The Hobbit, Julius Caesar, Macbeth, Pride and Prejudice, The Screwtape Letters, To Kill A Mockingbird, and MANY, MANY MORE!

    ►GRAMMAR

    Grammar is a tool to best apply while writing so I’ve always kept it a separate subject. But grammar is also just the rules of any language. Teaching rules shouldn’t be complicated. Short lessons are best, which is why Analytical Grammar works.

    4. ANALYTICAL GRAMMAR

    In my beginning years, I used a grammar program which combined complex writing assignments with grammar.

    After homeschooling another 5 years, I realized that a grammar program should focus only on explaining grammar rules without time-consuming composition assignments as the only way to learn them.

    Yes, writing assignments are a great way to illustrate grammar rules, but shorter is better.

    Besides, I needed a grammar curriculum which would give me the flexibility to pull writing themes from topics that piqued my boys’ interest in our current unit study. More important, I wanted a program that helped us to use words in a way that conformed to the rules of grammar. I wished I would have used Analytical Grammar, for grades 4-12 earlier, but I’m glad I hopped on board when I did.

    ►WRITING OR COMPOSITION

    Next, identifying a writing program which was engaging for my sons and took them incrementally through the writing process was not easy. Institute for Excellence in Writing, for grades K-12 was our answer.

    Melding Homeschool Language Arts and Unit Studies

    It was a huge load of stress off after separating grammar and composition when I started using Institute for Excellence in Writing, grades K-12.

    7 Best Budget-Friendly Homeschool Language Arts Curriculum

    As you can see in the picture above, the boys were working on our FBI unit study. Dad was helping the boys make a crystal radio after they wrote about it.

    However, their essay followed the writing model learned in Institute for Excellence in Writing or (IEW). IEW makes it easy to choose your own topics to write about or they have writing topics for your children to choose.

    What I liked the most is that although grammar and writing are inextricably linked, it’s important to not overwhelm beginner writers.

    5. INSTITUTE FOR EXCELLENCE IN WRITING (IEW)

    The veteran teaching tip is to make one skill or the other the focus at different times. IEW explained grammar while keeping the focus on writing and modeling to my sons how to compose their ideas.

    7 Best Budget-Friendly Homeschool Language Arts Curriculum

    Here is how IEW works: It takes a unique approach provides the structure that students need to develop confidence in the writing process, while gradually guiding them toward greater independence and creativity.

    They will learn nine structural models (note taking, writing paragraphs, stories, simple reports, writing from pictures, research reports, creative writing, essays, and critiques) to help them organize any type of composition.

    ►READING OR LITERATURE

    Then, buying living history literature guides gives me a two for one deal.

    Not only do I use living literature in my unit studies as a topic or theme, but it counts as the reading or literature aspect of the three Rs. Buying living history literature helps me to keep homeschooling affordable.

    6. BEAUTIFUL FEET BOOKS (HISTORY & LITERATURE)

    With living history literature by Beautiful Feet Books.

    Remember, since this is living literature, the vocabulary is not simplified, and it may be harder for some kids.

    Though I school for Biblical reasons, I don’t think you have to teach about it in every book.

    I do try to choose living history books which have a good story line, are intriguing, have a challenging reading level, include details about the time period, and can be easily implemented in a unit study which builds character without feeling preachy.

    It’s a lot to ask for in a book. I’m selective, but I love starting with Beautiful Feet Books.

    ►REVIEW AND ENRICHMENT

    Then I hear about the fear of gaps when doing unit studies. Having a way to fill in gaps or shore up weaknesses is a great feature of IXL Language Arts Practice, which is for grades K-12.

    You probably heard of their math, but their language arts is equally practical.

    7. IXL LANGUAGE ARTS PRACTICE

    Look at what they offer: IXL makes the world of words come alive with fun visuals and interactive questions. Build great writers through playful skills that pique students’ curiosity about language!  

    Then this next deal, which is Discovery Education, for grades K-12 is the one I’m about to pull the trigger on because we love media with our unit studies.

    8. DISCOVERY EDUCATION

    But did you know it’s so much more? It covers every content area.

    Look at what you get:

    It’s easy to see why homeschoolers rave about Discovery Education Streaming Plus and probably the most extensive and feature-rich educational video streaming service in the world.

    But it’s not just a collection of videos that you can watch from beginning to end. This library has been organized into useable video clips, organized and categorized, close-captioned, and supplemented with lesson plans, teaching guides, interactive simulations, images, audio resources, and other resources and materials that you can incorporate into virtually every aspect of your homeschool curriculum.

    What a comprehensive way to enrich a unit study with so many features like audio books, self-paced training, images, games and the ability to customize lessons at your fingertips.

    When you’ve chosen curriculum which gives your child a solid foundation in language arts and covers the significant areas, you can spend more time planning the fun part of unit studies.

    MORE HOMESCHOOL LANGUAGE ARTS RESOURCES

    How to Buy It

    Products:

     ►Grammar: Analytical Grammar for grades 4-12.

    ► Self-Paced Language Arts for all grades: Literature Adventures for Kids

    ►Literature Guides: Progeny Press Literature Guides, pdf format, grades K-12

    ►    Vocabulary: Wordly Wise 3000

    ►Composition or Writing: Institute for Excellence in Writing, grades K-12

    ►    Review and Enrichment:

    Video Streaming: Discovery Education grades K-12

    Language Arts Review: IXL Language Arts Practice, grades K-12

    ►Reading or Literature:

    Living History Literature: Living History literature by Beautiful Feet Books

    Also, look at these other homeschool articles to help you.

    5 Best Resources to Start a Homeschool Unit Study in a Few Hours, 24 Borderline Genius Ways To Relieve Language Arts Boredom and Unfolding of a Homeschool Unit Study – An Easy Mnemonic { I-SIP}.

    Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for AWESOME pins.

    Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


    Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

    Why Is Geronimo Stilton So Popular Among Young Readers

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    This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

    Why is Geronimo Stilton so popular among young readers? Also, look at my page Geronimo Stilton Books for more great activities.

    Geronimo Stilton was created by Italian author Elisabetta Dami. But the books are presented like they are written by Geronimo himself.

    The first Geronimo Stilton book was published in Italy in 2000 and then later translated into English and other languages.

    Why Is Geronimo Stilton So Popular Among Young Readers

    And if you’ve seen a brightly colored book with a mouse in a suit dashing across the cover it is none other than Geronimo Stilton.

    But why is Geronimo Stilton so popular among young readers?

    When we read our first one, we laughed almost the whole way through the fun read.

    GERONIMO STILTON BOOK SERIES

    First, look at some of the titles of the fun books.

    Geronimo Stilton Books 1 - 20

    It is not necessary to go in order, each book is its own stand-alone story, and the main characters are properly reintroduced each time.  So, you can choose the books based on your child's current interest, the season, or a unit study topic.

    Now, look at some of the fun reasons both parents and children love the series.

    WHY IS GERONIMO STILTON SO POPULAR

    Look at these facts about the book series.

    • The books have a visual flair both with text and pictures. For example, some text is larger than the other and color coded. It brings attention to certain words to help young readers understand the tone. Basically, the words are different colors, fonts, and sizes.
    • Also, Geronimo Stilton is a mouse and the editor and publisher of the fictional newspaper The Rodent’s Gazette in New Mouse City on Mouse Island. However, he is very human to children.
    • Geronimo is always going on an adventure and is a scaredy mouse. He is curious, funny, and cautious. Because he is not very brave, children of all ages love his charming personality.
    • Many of the books explore geographical areas and historical events, ancient civilizations, and time travel. It’s a fun blend of stepping back in time, adventure and education. Children read about history and geography in a natural and fun way much like a living book.
    • And of course being a mouse, he loves his cheese. He especially loves Mozarella and Swiss. We did a charcuterie board one time as we were reading.
    • Because there is educational information packed into the stories, they pair nicely with our geography and history unit studies.
    • I wouldn’t really call Geronimo a superhero. He is thoughtful and kind. Because he is cowardly but overcomes his fear and helps others, his character can make a great model for kids. He models perseverance and curiosity.
    • Too, it appeals to many cultures because of the universal theme of friendship and courage.

    Why Is Geronimo Stilton So Popular Among Young Readers

    Finally, look at these activities that we have done to pair with the adventures in some of his books.

    MORE GERONIMO STILTON ACTIVITIES

    You should try one or two.

    Because of the fast-pace, and visual design and adventurous plot the series really appeals to the reluctant reader.

    In a world full of digital distractions your young readers will keep coming back from.