During all my years of homeschooling, the question I think I’ve been asked the most is what curriculum do I use? I’ve been asked a lot of questions. I remember one lady asking me if my kids were allowed to wear pajamas all day, or if I made them get dressed each morning. She was getting ready to start homeschooling her son and apparently he liked the idea of not getting dressed, but she was totally against it.
If you’re now wandering, I can tell you we do get dressed nearly everyday. We also brush our teeth, make our bed, etc…. I say nearly, because there are certainly occasions when one or more of us rock the day in our bed clothes, like during a snowstorm for example, or mama just forgets that the shirt she’s wearing is the one she slept in, or our 3 year old is convinced that his fleece spiderman pants are not pajamas and he insist on wearing them out.
Ok, back to the question at hand. What curriculum do I use? That is a loaded question. I’ll tell you why. I, like many people, don’t use just one curriculum. There are many I like and have found useful in our pursuits of learning. Below I will share my top three favorites. Keep in mind that just because they’ve been a help to us, they may not work for you in your situation and that’s okay.
What Have I Used
I sometimes teach certain topics or subjects without formal curriculums. I enjoy hands on teaching methods and also very much enjoy creating my own workbooks/lesson plans. One of the beautiful things about homeschooling is the fact that you are free to craft a one of kind education to each individual child that works best for him/her. Don’t get me wrong though, I am like a kid in a candy store when I get a new catalog in the mail or go browsing around a sale at a convention.
I’ve utilized many curriculums throughout our homeschool journey. However, compared to how much is available out there, I’ve used very little. When I was first starting out, nearly 17-18 years ago there were no where near as many resources as there are today and the choices continue to grow. It can be a bit overwhelming with so many options.
I don’t consider myself an expert on curriculums, but I can tell you my experience with some of what I’ve used. Instead of going over everything I’ve used, I will simply share with you my top 3 resources I’ve liked and still utilize today to some extent or another. I will also share what I like about them.
Abeka Book
When my first child got to be about 4 years old I looked for some quality books to help teach her the basics (reading, writing, arithmetic and of course art!). Our oldest is now 20 years old, so this was some time ago. Somehow I had heard about Abeka Book, it was honestly one of the only curriculums that I knew of.
Well, almost 2 decades later, I am still using a good deal of their material, even after trying other resources to varying degrees. I especially like the language and math for elementary children and their history curriculum is great for all grades. Our oldest child completed Abeka’s entire History program and is now a History Major in College. I will say however, that I seldom use all of their teacher’s curriculums, though I’m sure they are of great quality and may help many. I teach without most of it, it just works best for me and my teaching style. Here’s what I like about Abeka Book in no particular order:
Why I like it:
- Comprehensive lessons that flow seamlessly with all subjects within each grade level
- High quality materials with colorful and engaging images
- Christian values and Bible scriptures permiate the curriculum from Pre-K through 12th.
- Often gives kids an academic advantage, often surpassing peers who use less challenging material
*Below are some links with examples to look at:
Abeka Book Grade 1 Arithmetic child kit (Amazon) Abeka Book Grade 1 Letters and Sounds (Amazon) Abeka Book “My America and My World” History Grade 1 (Amazon) Abeka Book “Handbook for Reading” 1st and 2nd Grade (Amazon) Abeka Book “American Government” High School (Amazon)
*You can also shop at Christianbook or go straight to their website abeka.com
Apologia Sciences
I love science! It’s really my favorite subject to teach, though I do like many others. Almost a decade ago I started using Apologia Science curriculums to teach the sciences. I found the material to be really helpful for teaching a variety of ages ( which I do).
They have everything from Zoology, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Health Anatamy, Botany, and more! We’ve done nearly all of them and now I’m doing some of them again with new students. Recently they came out with a math curriculum as well. I have not tried that however, so I can not review that here. Below are some reasons I like it.
Why I like it:
- Great quality material. Full color illustrations with good paper quality.
- Many of their subjects offer notebooking journals (workbooks) that can be bought for both lower and higher level students. This allows kids to do the same activities/questions etc… but on their own level of learning. This is very helpful for teaching kids of different ages.
- All material is taught from a Christian perspective and points to the Creator throughout the lessons.
- Lots of engaging and high quality content throughout.
- Allows flexibility in teaching, with lots of suggested activities, experiments and loads of extras also available on their website.
- Clear lesson plans for high school level classes also helps more independent learners stay on track and know what is expected.
* Some Examples: Teaching Textbooks
Abeka Book mathematics is a great math curriculum and all of my children have greatly benefited from using it through grade school. We also, however have used Teaching Textbooks for many years now for about 6th grade and up. It was made by two Harvard graduates and is a very well put together curriculum that can be done online or offline using one of their apps. Though we don’t use a lot of computer curriculums, there are several reasons I like this one and continue to use it for some of our kiddos.
Why I like it:
- Clearly explained lessons that give a lot of real world examples to help kids understand many mathematical concepts better
- Full control of a teachers account makes keeping track of your kids grades and progress easy
- The curriculum itself is easy to use. I have found it makes math less stressful for those that may struggle with it, and at the same time allows for more independent work for those that are strong in it.
- Compared to some math programs, Teaching Textbooks is often more affordable.
- Excellent customer service
Final Thoughts
There are a lot of resources in the form of various curriculums I’ve utilized over the years that have been very helpful, we just don’t use them every semester. There are so many good quality materials today to choose from that you can get overwhelmed for sure. Something can be good, but just not work for your season. What works for one child’s style of learning may not work for another as well. I could list the names of a lot of good materials and I may share more later on in other posts, but one of my goals here is to not overwhelm you.
The important thing when it comes to materials is that they should work for you, not you work for them. What I mean is, don’t be controlled by curriculums. Stay flexible. You’re a teacher not a robot. Live a life of learning with your kids. Have fun and don’t be afraid to set aside workbooks for a day when lifelearning leads you elsewhere.
Remember that resources are like tools in your tool bag, pull them out when they are useful and needed to get a job done. Only keep what works and be on the lookout for new tools that you can add. However, never forget that your greatest tools are a love for learning that breeds curiosity and a great imagination.
Happy Teaching!
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Looking for a Creative Writing Curriculum? I have been using this with a couple of my kids and quite like it so far.
