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How to Choose the BEST Homeschool Middle and High School Language Arts Curriculum & Options

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

How to choose the best homeschool middle and high school language arts curriculum can be intimidating unless you have a road map. Also, look at my page homeschool middle school and how to homeschool high school page for more fun tips

Knowing the elements of language arts is important; knowing that not every teen needs the same amount of instruction for each component is equally important.

Using free language arts curriculum before you make a purchase can be especially helpful for many reasons:

  • Budget friendly curriculum allows you to assess problem areas in greater detail without busting the budget;
  • A free curriculum can be used as a reference alongside a purchased curriculum;
  • Your teen may need review in just a couple of areas and you can save your hard earned dollars to buy language arts where he requires in-depth focus or help;
  • Returning to free curriculum resources throughout the middle and high school years helps your teen review quickly; and
  • Let’s face it. Teen curriculum resources can be pricey, so having many options at your fingertips helps.

Homeschool Middle and High School Language Arts

Let’s start with a language arts road map.

Step one is knowing the language arts components.

Step 1. Identify the Language Arts Components.

The easiest, but most useful definition is that English language arts is any subject to do with written or oral communication, including listening.

Right away you can see that some things are not formally taught or don’t have to be taught in isolation.

For example, from the time your teen was a toddler, you started speaking to him in full sentences.

He learned your language through the art of conversation and discussion. That part still continues in the teen years.

Too, especially at the middle and high school years, teens need to make sense out of what they have been learning.

Combining language arts elements makes language arts practical and gives teens a reason to understand it.

For example, grammar can be revised or used while a teen writes an essay.

Next, let’s dive into the subject breakdown of what is language arts so you know that you’re covering it and that you choose the subjects your teen needs.

Language arts includes all facets of English: phonics, reading/literature, spelling/vocabulary, grammar, composition, and penmanship. In addition, it includes oral speech.

By this age your child has probably learned to read and write.

So penmanship turns to composition and reading becomes literature. Phonics is now spelling.

Step 2. Isolate the Language Arts Components Needed for Middle and High School Teens.

To help clarify this even further, here are the language art subjects for middle and high school grades.

  • Literature which is reading and could include literary analysis
  • Grammar
  • Spelling (if still needed)
  • Vocabulary
  • Composition

These subjects are the ones that most language arts all-in-one programs cover.

Next, now that you know the subjects that fall under the language arts umbrella, look at some of these homeschool language arts curriculum for middle and high school kids.

Step 3. Choose the EXACT Components Your Teen Needs OR Choose an All-in-One Curriculum.

Before you choose language arts, pay attention to the details to see if it’s an all-in-one program which covers most of the subjects for language arts OR if it’s just one component.

I have organized the elements for you so you can quickly see the choices for your child.

Grammar Homeschool Curriculum For Teens

Too, some of the resources can be used as a guidebook to assist your teen in his writing.

The first one I’m diving into is grammar. Grammar is the rules of a language.

Your teen has learned some of the rules naturally, so some of these resources can be used as a reference.

Other resources can be used as separate curriculum to shore up any weakness

Look at this list of homeschool grammar curriculum.

Although I feel grammar is best covered in conjunction with writing so a teen sees the value, there are some teens who need grammar in isolation.

Before looking next at the composition options, keep a few key points in mind. If a teen is struggling with penmanship remember that he can type his essays.

More Homeschooling in Middle School Resources

Try to not make composition always about penmanship. Yes, it’s about doing neat work, but that is for the final draft.

Composition is about learning how to compose his thoughts. So if you have a teen struggling in both penmanship and composition, focus on one or the other until he gets more practice.

Go gentle in what you require of him if he is struggling.

Composition Homeschool Curriculum For Teens

Now, look at some of the composition choices.

Literature Homeschool Curriculum For Teens

You would think it would be easier to choose an all in one program which covered a bit of most of the components of language arts. It may or may not be.

The problem at this level is that most providers are assuming that your teen has had a fair amount of each component of language arts.

If you’ve switched homeschool approaches or resources, like most of us have, then you want to be sure you’re clear on what is the focus of the all-in-one language arts curriculum.

For example, it’s been my experience that curriculum may focus more on composition, while another one covers more literary analysis.

While yet another resource may focus heavily on grammar.

All-In-One Language Arts Homeschool Curriculum for Teens

So the important point I’m making is look over the scope and sequence so that you make a good fit for your teen.

Next, look at the options for all-in-one language arts programs.

Step 4. Combine Many Components of Language Arts for Lasting Benefits.

Finally, the most important benefit of teaching language arts to our teens is so that it sticks with them. Understanding the mechanics of the English languages connects our teens to great minds of the past.

In addition, teaching valuable thinking skills is an important part of communication whether verbal or written.

For language arts to have lasting benefit and to teach thinking skills, combining the components of language arts is a superior way to teach.

When a teen works with a piece of literature, he focuses on grammar, writing, vocabulary, and spelling to name a few.

We want our teens to have a solid foundation for language arts whether he chooses a career track or college track.

More Homeschool Middle and High School Language Arts

15 Old-Fashioned Useful Skills Homeschoolers Love To Teach

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

Here are 15 old-fashioned useful skills homeschoolers love to teach. Also, look at my page The Dynamics of How to Homeschool Easily and Smarter.

Whether you didn’t learn these skills in school or you’re determined to give your children the best education you’ll love these useful skills to teach.

Besides, teaching only academics and not life skills is a huge flaw in the educational world. We don’t want to repeat that same nonsense thinking.

15 Old-Fashioned Useful Skills Homeschoolers Love To Teach

So we choose to intentionally teach what other educators view as vintage or old-fashioned because we know some obsolete skills prepare today’s kids for adulthood.

Look at these 15 skills, academic or otherwise which homeschoolers still love to teach.

Old-Fashioned Skills for Today’s Kids

1. Cursive writing.

Unless a child has a special need, most homeschooling parents know that learning to write and cursive writing are valuable skills.

Beyond the fact that most early documents were hand-written, cursive writing supports hand-eye coordination and can reduce letter reversals.

Look at some of my tips below about how I teach writing.

2 Finance

3 Accounting

4 Budgeting

5 Money Management

6 Writing a Check

Yes they are all very different skill sets.

Although they are connected learning to budget and run a household is different than money management.

Money management is not only a skill used in personal life but can be applied to a business.

You want your children to have as many as they can get while living with you.

Today’s kids learn early how to use a debit or credit card without knowing what is a budget or knowing ways to rein in their spending.

Subjects Not Taught in Public School

Distinguishing between a need versus a want is an extremely valuable skill to teach kids.

Not teaching a kid about finances while in middle or high school or even earlier may set him up for much debt later in life.

Too, many places of business still use paper checks.

Teaching our kids both how to write out a check and how to make a bank deposit in person are necessary skills for adulting.

Next, look at these books about money and look at Whatever Happened To Penny Candy?: A Fast, Clear, and Fun Explanation of the Economics You Need for Success in Your Career, Business, and Investments.

8 Rad Money Resources to Teach Money For All Ages

Grab some of these money resources to teach your children about how to save and budget money.

Not Your Parents' Money Book: Making, Saving, and Spending Your Own Money

For the first time, financial guru and TODAY Show regular Jean Chatzky brings her expertise to a young audience. Chatzky provides her unique, savvy perspective on money with advice and insight on managing finances, even on a small scale. This book will reach kids before bad spending habits can get out of control. With answers and ideas from real kids, this grounded approach to spending and saving will be a welcome change for kids who are inundated by a consumer driven culture. This book talks about money through the ages, how money is actually made and spent, and the best ways for tweens to earn and save money.

The Toothpaste Millionaire

Sixth-grader Rufus Mayflower is betting that he can make a whole gallon of toothpaste for the same price as one tube from the store.
There’s just one problem, he has to solve real-life mathematical
equations first! With help from his good friend Kate Mackinstrey, can
these two entrepreneurs keep up with the high demand for their popular product? Beloved children’s author Jean Merrill introduces readers to the ins and outs of a budding business, from costs to profits, in this exciting tale about perseverance, ingenuity, and underdogs.

Learning Resources Money Bags Coin Value Game

  • MONEY GAME FOR KIDS: Players collect, count, and exchange money all the way to the finish line
  • MONEY SKILLS: Learn valuable money skills through fun game play
  • PLAY MONEY: Includes game board with spinner, 100 plastic coins, play bills, markers, and dice

Smart Money Smart Kids - Raising the Next Generation to Win with Money

In Smart Money Smart Kids, financial expert and best-selling author Dave Ramsey and his daughter Rachel Cruze equip parents to teach their children how to win with money. Starting with the basics like working, spending, saving, and giving, and moving into more challenging issues like avoiding debt for life, paying cash for college, and battling discontentment, Dave and Rachel present a no-nonsense, common-sense approach for changing your family tree.

I Want More Pizza: Real World Money Skills For High School, College, And Beyond

The perfect gift! Give the gift of financial literacy to your teen - they will thank you for a lifetime. You are not alone; it is often difficult to reach young adults on the topic of money management, but look no further. I Want More Pizza finally has teenagers excited about personal finance and is giving them the confidence that they can succeed. This resource is being used in classrooms around the nation as young adults enjoy the pizza model for learning about money management. Now available for the first time for you to bring into your home, give your young adult the gift of financial literacy and they will thank you for a lifetime. Primary topics discussed include saving, spending, prioritization, goal setting, compound growth, investing, debt, credit cards, student loans, mental blocks, and taking real world action.I am sure you have heard a few of these: "I don't need it", "I'm too young", "I need to spend my money on _____ ", and the list goes on. The pizza model for learning personal finance breaks down those barriers because, well, everyone loves pizza! Just because money management is extremely important doesn't mean that it has to be extremely complex. I Want More Pizza leaves them in complete control to find the plan that works for your young adult - it's their choice. If they don't enjoy math or don't like to plan, no problem, we've got them covered as well. And it's only ~100 pages, which young adults love given their busy social calendars. Money doesn't have to be stressful. Finally reach your young adult and help them become financially literate for a lifetime. After all, there is a lot of pizza in life to enjoy!

Managing Your Money (Usborne Life Skills)

This down-to-earth guide is filled with practical advice on everything from how to budget and be a smart shopper to student loans, mortgages and insurance. An essential book for equipping young people with the skills they need to manage their money now and in the future. Includes links to websites with more tips and advice.

12 Ways for a Homeschooled Teen to Earn Money - A Budding Entrepreneur?

Long before they are of age to start working, kids want their own money. And whether they count bricks at a construction site as a kid like my entrepreneur husband did or just want some spending money, kids are looking for creative ways to earn their own bucks.

Economics for Beginners

Nobody has everything they need, all the time – so how can we make do with what we have? Economics is all about understanding the choices we make to solve this problem. With bright, infographics pictures, this informative book describes why markets are so important, how businesses work out what to sell, and how governments choose how to run a country. Includes Usborne Quicklinks to specially selected websites for more information.

And look at my post 12 Ways for a Homeschooled Teen to Earn Money – A Budding Entrepreneur.

7. How to do taxes.

My kids started working while in high school and although they didn’t make enough to have to prepare a tax return, we still helped them prepare one.

When a child is living on his own he’ll have a basic understanding of tax deadlines and taxes.

He manages adult responsibilities way better than if you had never introduced basic tax how-tos.

8. How to cook from scratch.

The pandemic of 2020 is a perfect example of how life can throw a huge curve.

Because we want our kids self-sufficient, teaching them to cook from scratch like baking basic bread or from what is on hand saves money, teaches independence, and can be healthier.

Look below at a few ways I incorporated this into our learning day:

9. How to fill out a job application and how to do a job interview.

When I helped my first teen fill out a job application, it was hilarious.

School Doesn’t Prepare Us for Life

Although he knew what it was from the exploring career opportunities course in high school, preparing one was quite different.

To this day, he still thanks me and his dad for helping him to look at his set of skills both strengths and weakness realistically.

However, nothing compared to seeing him get ready for his first job interview.

He was pretty comfortable looking to apply for a job that required a dress jacket.

Just a word of advice, be sure your teen knows how employees are expected to dress after you go over your dos and don’ts for a first-time job interview.

10. Learn to read a map.

I love GPS too, but if you’ve ever hiked or walked in a remote area your cell phone is not really a good bet.

Besides learning about scale and distances, a map can teach local geography and can teach us what is around us.

No cell phone service needed.

Things No Longer Taught in School

Maps are engaging and foster a love of learning about places along the way instead of just getting to a point like a gps.

We can use both in our everyday and not let a generation grow up equipped without engaging with a map.

11. Diagramming a sentence.

To understand how words need to be arranged in a sentence to make their thoughts clearer, kids need many ways to learn word arrangement.

When kids have to break down or diagram each part of a sentence it leaves no room for ambiguity. This teaching technique still helps many students.

12. Auto upkeep.

Whether the tires need air or not, when and how to change the oil, and basic upkeep to maintain your safety and the life of a vehicle are important skills to know.

13. Home Economic skills.

I know home economics courses are now called some fancy name like Family And Consumer Sciences.

That is another post for me, but kids need to know how to read recipes, count food portions, food storage, food prep ideas and how to eat healthy.

And while we can teach these skills separately, it’s much easier to teach them while on the job.

Assigning your kids the responsibility to make a grocery list or a meal for the family works.

I started with easy meal ideas for my kids to make for the family and as they grew, so did the cooking skills.

Benefits of Life Skills

In addition, teaching a kid basic sewing can be a lost skill.

Back in the day learning basic sewing skills was a must because all clothes were hand-made. Learning how to sew on a button is still a valuable skill.

14. Latin.

Latin used to be taught at in a lot of public schools.

Today, not all homeschoolers teach Latin, but a lot do.

We see the value of teaching our kids the roots of modern-day language and how to analyze root meanings.

15 Old-Fashioned Useful Skills Homeschoolers Love To Teach

The deductive reasoning used while learning Latin helped my kids to know how to critically think.

15. High School Shop Classes.

Classes like woodworking, metal, and drafting classes seem to be dwindling.

Those types of hand skills are being lost. Electricians, plumbers, and carpenters are valuable skills needed in our community.

Also, these classes were taught in high school so that a teen had time to pursue passions and some of the classes were segues to a higher degree.

These skills are not outdated in our home, but they are skills which propel our kids to the future. A future where our kids are truly prepared for whatever comes their way.

Old Fashioned But Timeless Skills

How can a kid learn about the human body without preparing a meal?

And how can a kid value how fast human history changes unless he can read the thoughts of the founding father in their handwriting  – cursive?

How can a child not be saddled with debt and stress the rest of his life unless we teach him now how to save and when to spend?

Look at some of these other reads:

We don’t have to make a choice between academics or old-fashioned practical skills a child should know. We want them both!

Hugs and love ya,

A to Z List: Middle and High School Homeschool Electives

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

There are so many great options for middle and high school homeschool electives for teens that it can be hard to narrow down the choices. Also, look at my page homeschool middle school and how to homeschool high school page for more fun tips.

Sometimes we need a little nudge to remember that the freedom of homeschooling opens doors for opportunities for our kids beyond the traditional elective options.

This A to Z list of middle and high school best homeschool electives should give you a headstart in helping your teen decide what he would like to pursue.

I try to think out of the box when choosing electives.

Too, remember each teen has a very different personality. You know that, so don’t homeschool middle and high school in fear meaning take a boring and predictable path for electives.

A to Z List: Middle and High School Homeschool Electives

Although they can be, these are not the core subjects. This is the time to explore a teen’s passion no matter how odd  it may seem.

A to Z List: Middle and High School Homeschool Electives

There is no other time in a teen’s life that he will have freedom to explore even the mundane.

I know your anxious about your teen’s next journey as he enters adulthood, but let him delve into his passions and likes here. Just like you didn’t push when they were younger, don’t do it it here either.

Also, something else I learned after my first high school teen is to start earlier.

For example, by feeding one of my son’s passion for writing in the middle and high school years he has continued on with his love of writing past graduation.

High school electives can begin in middle school; it gives your child a head start in time to pursue his strengths.

Look at some of these out of the box ideas.

In addition, I’ve listed some of my lapbooks and unit study ideas. I aim toward middle grades and up for most of my unit studies and lapbook; I try to create them for multiple ages.

A

Acting
Animation
App creation/coding
Archaeology
Anatomy. My Human Body Lapbook and Unit Study post has more great ideas.
Archery
Accounting
Architecture
Agriculture
Aromatherapy
Design and Art
Art History. Art History for Kids has some more ideas on creating a study.
Astronomy. Look at my Astronomy Lapbook and Unit Study for more ideas.
Auto maintenance/mechanics

Look at tips I share on my YouTube Channel, How to Homeschool EZ

B

Baking
Ballet
Birding
Bible Study
Blogging
Bee Keeping. You’ll find a Bee Lapbook and Unit Study here on my page.
Book club
Blacksmithing

Also, your kids will love Literary Adventures which are self-paced language arts courses.

Budgeting
Business management

Also, don’t think you have to learn all these things on your own. Look at some these fantastic middle and high school courses to explore which are already laid out.

Look at some of these courses from learn music in our homeschool.

C

CPR
Cake decorating. Hobby Lobby used to give cake classes by private individuals. Check out Wilton to see locations.
Car care
Career exploration
Cosmetology
Cartoon Drawing
Creative Writing. Also we loved Writing Rockstar units for middle school.


Carpentry
Child Development
Construction
Costume Design
Choir
Classical music
Coding
Computer building, programming, or science


Cooking skills
Criminal Justice
Crew
Crochet
Cross fit
Culinary Study

D

Dance
Debate
Dog training
Digital Marketing
Drama
Drivers Ed counts as a half-credit with some schools.

Of course, if you can decide the credits for your teen you can make this any course you want to. You can include safety in a vehicle, safety on water, or just a Safety 101 course.

E

Early childhood development
Electric dance music/digital music
Engineering
Economics
Entomology
Energy
Ethnic culture
Ethnobotany
Etiquette
Exploring different careers

Homeschooling in Middle School Resources

F

Fashion design
Fencing
Fishing
Floral design
First Aid. Many of the trainings for health related paths are certificate programs for persons of any age.
Film Making
Foreign languages
Forensic science. CSI: Web Adventures has some fun games and a free educator guide.
Furniture stripping, repairing, etc.

A to Z List: Middle and High School Homeschool Electives

G

Gaming development/design
Gardening
Geocaching
Geography. Local, physical, or world geography are great topics to delve deeper into by teens.

One easy resource for us we liked was Runkle Geography. Look at my post here Geography, Country Studies & Timelines.
Geology
Genetics. There are many free sites to search about ancestry and genes.
Golf
Guitar
Gymnastics

More Homeschool High School Teen Elective Resources

H

Herbology
Hiking
Home design/interior design
Homemaking
Homeopathic medicine
Horticulture
Human development
Hydroponics

Studying my boys love of history, I was able to sneak in literature and history while delving into the medieval time period with Beautiful Feet Books.

I

Information technology

J

Java script
Jewelry making
Journalism

K

Knitting

L

Logic

High School Elective Ideas

M

Marine biology
Mechanics
Meteorology
Myths
Midwifery
Mineralogy
Music/Musical Instruments

N

Nature studies. There are 26 Nature Studies here on my page with lapbooks.
Naturopathy
Nursing/Art of Caregiving

O

Oceanography
Ornithology

P

Painting
Parkour
Philosophy
Photography
Physical education
Physical fitness
Piano
Plumbing
Psychology
Public speaking

Q

Quilting

R

Robotics

S

Sailing
Scrapbooking
Sewing
Social media influence
Survival skills
Swim team

T

Technology
Theater
Trail and woodland management or design

U

US Politics

V

Venturing (scouts)
Video production
Videography
Violin

W

Weaving
Web design
Welding
Wildlife management
Wood burning
Wood working
Writing

X

Xenology

Y

Yearbook
Yoga
Youth leadership

Z

Zoology

I hope this A to Z list of high school electives helps you brainstorm some options for your teen. Has your teen tried any of these high school electives yet? Are there any others you’d add to the list? 

I think you’ll love these other tips for when planning middle and high school:

Hugs and love ya,

There are so many great options for middle and high school homeschool electives for teens that it can be hard to narrow down the choices. You’ll love this BIG A to Z List of Homeschool Electives. CLICK HERE!!!
There are so many great options for middle and high school homeschool electives for teens that it can be hard to narrow down the choices. You’ll love this BIG A to Z List of Homeschool Electives. CLICK HERE!!!

Modern U.S. and World History High School Literature

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

Let’s face it! Whether you’ve homeschooled your kids from the beginning or started part way through, choosing high school literature can be intimidating. Until I started using Beautiful Feet Books a few years back, I made the high school years unnecessarily stressful. You want the peace of mind knowing you prepared your teen well by using great books whether he chooses a career or college track.

So using modern U.S. and world history literature by Beautiful Feet Books not only filled a general literature credit Tiny needs, but also allowed us to meet a modern world history credit.

I stalked the mailman waiting for these books. I was given this product for free and I was compensated for my time. However, paid for my time does not mean paid off or that a company will receive a glowing review. I don’t roll that way. ALL opinions are my own and for sure I will always tell you what is on my mind. When I do accept a product it’s because I’m giddy to tell you about it. Read my full disclosure here. Now on to the fun stuff!

How to Narrow Down Your High School Literature Scope

Understanding that you have to have goals or reasons other than needing literature in high school makes it easier to narrow down your choices for literature and curriculum providers.

That may be an obvious statement, but there are many factors that you want to consider when choosing a program for your junior or senior teen.

Let's face it! Whether you've homeschooled your kids from the beginning or started part way through, choosing high school literature can be intimidating. You want the peace of mind knowing you prepared your teen well by using great books whether he chooses a career or college track. You’ll love these high school literature books along with the literary analysis. CLICK HERE to read about this curriculum!

I have several reasons for using and believing in Beautiful Feet Books:

  • foremost is our love for literature-based history to avoid a boring and blah approach to history,
  • thought-provoking books which may conflict with our world view or tug at my teen’s emotions are part of my job in preparing him for adulthood,
  • the role of the teacher is valued, respected, and encouraged with this curriculum to shape the teen’s understanding,
  • as the supervising teacher, I need to be the one to decide when and how we will deal with sensitive adult themes,
  • all of my sons need to be exposed to literature which may be covered in higher education,
  • a passion for history of any time period is awakened and appreciated through the use of living books, and
  • although non-fiction is important for a framework of facts, advanced literary criticism happens when a teen selects from excellent fiction literature to analyze.

My reasons may or may not include classic books, but they always include good books or living literature.

Too, having the opportunity to cover modern world history was not something I even thought about covering with my first high school graduate.

Sticking to the commonly held belief that high school teens need to have an emphasis on American history or U.S. government, I over emphasized those time periods with my first graduate.

Of course, hindsight gives you perfect vision. So I knew with my second and now third high school teen that I could tailor and tweak to suit their needs because Beautiful Feet Books  is flexible when it comes to covering history.

Most of the middle school and high school curriculum includes two history eras. I never appreciated this fact until I switched from a strictly classical approach to a more eclectic approach with an emphasis on unit studies.

At first notion, this dual history period approach may seem hodgepodge. However it’s quite the opposite for a true historian. And there are two main reasons.

1.  Past history and today’s current events always have multiple world powers and key players in action at the same time. 
While it’s true that an in-depth study of any civilization would make a fascinating study, my goal for high school is for my sons to have a framework of key events in a time period.

2. Being able to pull back and look at events happening in the world at the same time helped my teens to make a meaningful connection to what they’re learning.

Juniors and seniors especially have the maturity now to see that one area of history is part of a much larger piece of the history puzzle. Being able to pull back and see the broad strokes of history like the events in the U.S. and world history simultaneously works well for both a history lover and history hater.

For my history lovers, it gives them additional topics for rabbit trails. For my one history hater, (yes I can’t believe I had a child that came from me that wasn’t wild about history) he got an overview of key events without overwhelming him about details which didn’t interest him.

That is exactly why I love the way Beautiful Feet Books designs their courses. All of the benefits of teaching it to adjust to each of my teens likes and dislikes along with my need for minimal teacher prep makes it a superior high school literature program.

The Nitty-Gritty of Modern U.S. and World History Literature

I know you want the nitty-gritty like I do. Look at what this level includes and the details:

  • it’s designed for Junior and Senior levels of high school,
  • it covers American and modern world history from the 1850s into the 2000s,
  • you can award one American history or modern world history credit and one general literature credit,
  • it’s a one year study, but we go a bit longer because we school into the summer and we like to spread it out,
  • it is Christian-based, but as with all of their literature and questions, it’s easier than some other providers to tweak to what I want my sons to know,
  • these beautiful books: Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Rifles for Watie, The Red Badge of Courage, Virginia’s General, Up From Slavery, Around the World in Eighty Days, A History of the Twentieth Century, The Jungle, All Quiet on the Western Front, The Yanks are Coming, Stalin: Russia’s Man of Steel, No Promises in the Wind, To Kill a Mockingbird, Hitler, Churchill, The Hiding Place, Night, Unbroken, Victory in the Pacific, Hiroshima, Lost Names, America and Vietnam: The Elephant and the Tiger, Red Scarf Girl and The Kite Runner, 
  • and it has a general literary analysis study. My goal was to be sure that Tiny had a general grasp on literary concepts. We used another language arts resource to enhance this one. Although literary analysis is very important to me at this age, it can be fun. For us that means learning it from books we love.

My emphasis on literary analysis leads me into another valued part of this curriculum which deserves the spotlight and it’s the Study Guide or teacher’s guide.

Modern U.S. and World History Literature Study Guide

I hesitate to call it just the teacher’s guide because at this age your teen needs to be independently delving into the Study Guide. Of course, it’s a teacher guide too.

Because the Study Guide is jam-packed full of teaching tidbits, supplements, and background information, you’ll want to take your time understanding how it’s set up.

The Study Guide is divided into five history periods:

  • Part I. Antebellum and the Civil War
  • Part II. Reconstruction, the Industrial Revolution, and the Turn of the Century
  • Part III. The First World War, the Depression, and Segregation
  • Part IV. Building Towards War, the Second World War, and the Atomic Age
  • Part V. The Struggle for Freedom in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries

To help your student hone his ideology and principles there are themes in each section.  Some of them are:

  • A Study in Freedom and Responsibility,
  • A Study in Conviction and Triumph,
  • A Study in Fortitude and Forgiveness,
  • A Study in Ambition and Courage,
  • and a Study in Conscience and Fairness.

In addition to the extensive notes in the Study Guide with background information, points in each lesson guided us on each discussion.

After reading the books like Stalin: Russia’s Man of Steel or Virginia’s General: Robert E. Lee and the Civil War it made for some great discussions about topics like freedom and prejudice. I loved having the themes to guide my teen to comprehend the theme in each book which is a part he has struggled with in the past.

Because my high school kid worked on his own on part of this, I have to rely heavily on the Study Guide for the answers, questions, and some of the background information. Although it’s not easy to flip back and forth between time periods and books, you can easily with the way this is laid out.

Also, some of the books my son read right away and wanted to delve deeper into those topics. World War II is one topic that my son knows well and never gets tired of talking about. Besides reading the books in the curriculum by Albert Marrin, one of our favorite history authors, the Study Guide has more recommended books and videos in the back to feed my son’s love for the Second World War.

Yet another reason I loved using this is that we needed more help in literary analysis. I’ve never been keen on assigning book reports although I know they have a practical purpose which is to train a child to write critically in the older grades.

Because I’ve never forced Tiny to do a formal book report, but have worked on reading a lot of good books I needed to be sure he has a good grasp on literary concepts.

There are six books highlighted to use for literary analysis:

  • Uncle Tom’s Cabin,
  • The Red Badge of Courage,
  • To Kill a Mockingbird,
  • Night,
  • Hiroshima,
  • and Lost Names: Scenes from a Korean Boyhood.

Learning literary analysis should be repeated like grammar and it’s best taught in context or while using examples from literature. As an example, earlier I mentioned ideologies listed in each section. The reason this was important is because even at this grade level students can still get confused between the plot of the story and its theme.

Exposing my sons to the basic elements of fiction like plot, setting, character, point of view, mood, and theme are the foundation of literary analysis, but I wanted to be sure we touched advanced concepts as well.

In addition, there are some literary concepts that can’t be recognized until your child is older.  Some figures of speech and poetry devices confuses my teen. So the books used gave him a good overall grasp of basic and advanced concepts.

It’s not necessary to break down every novel, but it’s important to choose a few to do. I try to be balanced when teaching literature analysis because I don’t want to suck the joy out of reading, but it’s important for our teens to become critical thinkers too.

Simply requiring my son to write down the term, define it, and explain it to me is a simple method, but it’s the same one I’ve used since I first taught him to read. Too, we wrote a few on index cards for review because just writing it down once didn’t mean he remembered it. Making a notebook like we have as we’ve used Beautiful Feet Books work best for us.

In addition to the literary concepts we focused on, we also chose a few of the essay topics. Essay writing was not my exact focus for him because we’ve done a lot of writing. When we wanted to, however, the Study Guide made it easy for us to choose writing topics.

The Study Guide is much more than an question and answer guide. It is the backbone at this level and it’s all-inclusive.

Our Experience with Modern U.S. and World History Literature by Beautiful Feet Books

Even at the high school level, there is no one-size-fits-all curriculum. As the parents, we still have to be involved when choosing the right curriculum for our teen.

This is my third high school teen to use Beautiful Feet Books because I love their literature and easy approach to teaching. I’ve never been disappointed with the high quality literature, guides, and help for the teacher. This level is no exception.

As the teacher, I don’t think you ever stop worrying if you’ve prepared you teen enough for whatever track you ultimately decide.  However, I do know that my first two sons are doing well in college after using Beautiful Feet Book. I know my third teen is equally well-prepared.

You’ll love reading these other posts for how I used

How to Purchase It.

►Product Name: Modern U.S. and World History pack
►Website: Beautiful Feet Books – BFBooks

 

Let's face it! Whether you've homeschooled your kids from the beginning or started part way through, choosing high school literature can be intimidating. You want the peace of mind knowing you prepared your teen well by using great books whether he chooses a career or college track. You’ll love these high school literature books along with the literary analysis. CLICK HERE to read about this curriculum!

 

Homeschooling High School: Curriculum, Credits, and Courses

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By the time you reach the high school years, you have some general ideas of how to plan them. Check out my how to homeschool high school page for awesome tips.

Today, in sharing homeschooling high school, I’m giving you a few detailed pointers for curriculum, credits, and courses to steer you in the right direction.

Homeschooling High School: Curriculum, Credits, and Courses

First, look at 3 things I wished I would’ve known before I started.

ONE/ In the beginning, it’s not necessary to plan all four years.

It’s just not necessary because a lot will change. Your teen will mature and may change the direction of his education or career as he approaches adulthood. Give him some wiggle room.

Have a plan so you can give your teen goals, but analyze each year. Having a framework of courses is much better.

HIGH SCHOOL CURRICULUM AND COURSES

I appreciated reading How to Homeschool 9th and 10th Grades: Simple Steps for Starting Strong to help me stay focused on the start of high school.

Home Learning Year by Year: How to Design a Homeschool Curriculum from Preschool Through High School was a book I read early on.

After reading it, I designed a framework and understood that the three Rs are the foundation of any well-laid out high school course.

Look where I share the nitty gritty of that here in my post Homeschool High School The Must Cover Subjects Part 1 and Homeschool High School The Must Cover Subjects Part 2.

Two/ Also, I wished I would have used middle school to help my first high school teen explore more subjects he wanted to.

With my second high school son, I was prepared to let him explore more elective type courses in middle school and getting some of the basic math out of the way.

Middle school gives a budding teen time to explore subjects he is interested in. Take advantage of this time to have some fun.

THREE/ Additionally, I didn’t learn until later was to explore more career options and not just focus on academics. After all, your kid is not attending college for life. It’s preparation for life and a career. (well hopefully).

Careers matter and high school is the time to explore careers.

Reading Career Exploration: for homeschool high school students and What Color Is Your Parachute? for Teens, Third Edition: Discover Yourself, Design Your Future, and Plan for Your Dream Job are two books that are real helpful for your teen.

EXPLORING HIGH SCHOOL COURSES

Something else I didn’t appreciate with my first high school teen is the power to be flexible with courses and course descriptions.

I couldn’t think past simply putting English, Math or Science on my first transcript.

Looking back, I know when preparing transcripts that you want to follow some traditional guidelines and keep general course names on the transcript. So those general descriptions were correct.

However, I need to describe the courses specifically.

Just to illustrate, I put Performing Arts on my first two boys’ transcript.

My older two boys took ballroom dancing, but Performing Arts is the general description to put on the transcript.

I had to come up with a description of ballroom dancing and I started by looking first at the website where my boys took lessons to give me an idea of how to word what they learned.

I put this:

This beginner course is an introduction to the fundamentals of basic dance. In each dance class, students will be expected to participate in warm-ups and learn the techniques of the Waltz and other traditional dances like the Mambo, Salsa and Swing. Along with learning choreography and dance history, this course culminates in a Spring concert performance.

It wasn’t bad for my first description, but like anything that is a first, it wasn’t exactly comprehensive or correct in a sense.

Since then, I learned that I needed to add my grading scale, what books we used, and how I was going to assign credit.

It’s harder to go back and add these things later, but not impossible.

The bottom line is to keep the course name on the transcript general and make your course descriptive detailed on a separate page to produce it if needed.

EASILY WRITING COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

Arranging wording to describe your teen course takes practice, but look at these places to help you.

  • An obvious place to is the website where you purchased the curriculum and I find the descriptions super helpful in my course descriptions.
  • In addition, also look at high school course names and descriptions on public school websites. I look for course descriptions similar to the courses that my sons will be doing. This usually gives me some wording
  • Another place I’ve found descriptions in a nutshell is on Amazon. Amazon is great for giving book descriptions and with a few tweaks of adding how I assign credits and grades, a book description can easily turn course description.
  • Too, when I didn’t feel like I got a good overview of a course because some descriptions lacked, I would glance at the table of contents to help me word the description of the course.

HIGH SCHOOL CREDIT CONUNDRUM

It can be overwhelming for even the most organized teen and parent when understanding credits, but I like to keep things simple.

It’s been my experience that some families assign a 30 minute class the equal of a 45 minute class because of the intensity of homeschooling and give the student one credit for a rigorous course like literature or math.

You decide how to gauge your credits and the work ethic of your student.

In addition, you decide to give credit if a curriculum is 70% or 80% complete. Some homeschoolers give credit if it’s 80% complete, others less.

Look at my detailed post here for Homeschool High School–How to Log Hours for High School. It gives a detailed explanation for credits.

Also, I have free forms and show you how to expand the use of a transcript here at my detailed post Homeschool High School Transcripts – Anything But Typical.

Homeschooling High School: Curriculum, Credits, and Courses

You and I know that there is no one right to plan high school. But breaking high school down into manageable chunks keeps the process from being overwhelming.

Begin with a framework of the three Rs in high school, fold in accurate course descriptions as you can, be flexible, keep reading about how to grade and assign credit.

Before you know it, you’ll be a pro for your child – which is what really matters.

You will also love my other tips I have for homeschooling high school below:

Homeschooling High School Curriculum, Credits, and Courses @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus. In sharing homeschooling high school, I'm giving you a few detailed pointers for curriculum, credits, and courses to steer you in the right direction. Click here to grab these super detailed helpful pointers!
Homeschooling High School Curriculum, Credits, and Courses @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

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