You know what my daughter would really love? A blue unicorn. I actually think it would be pretty awesome myself. Of course, it would have to live on nothing but marshmallows and only poop rainbows because I do not need one more responsibility in my life. Unfortunately, blue unicorns do not exist. Even if I painted a horse blue and glued a horn to its head, it wouldn’t eat marshmallows, and it would make a mess of my yard. I’m sure you can tell where I’m going with this. The perfect curriculum? It’s just like a blue unicorn. It doesn’t exist. Sorry if you feel I click-baited you. (I kind of did.) Nothing gets a homeschool mom reading faster than the promise of that ever elusive perfect curriculum. I myself treat homeschool catalogs like the Sears Wishbook when I was a kid. I gleefully dog ear pages and circle things I want. If I’m not careful, I can turn into a curriculum junkie. Here’s a little trade secret, however, from a former school teacher. Are you ready? Get close, because I have to whisper this one: Teachers don’t really use the curriculum. It’s like teachers are Captain Barbosa in The Pirates of the Caribbean. The curriculum is not so much rules as they are guidelines. Get it? You know, like the pirate’s code? Anyway . . . Instead of searching for the perfect curriculum, search for the right materials for your particular child. With that in mind, here are my tips for choosing curriculum: #1 Don’t Do an All-In-One I know it’s tempting to just pay a lump sum and get every subject in a grade-leveled box for each kid. I highly caution against this. For one, I’ve rarely met a homeschool kid who is in the same level in every subject, yet that’s how the boxed stuff is packaged. Second, I have never seen one curriculum company who can knock it out of the park in every single subject. They may have a great, engaging math curriculum, but their phonics is confusing. They may have fantastic living books for history, but provide nothing but dull readers for literature. And if the curriculum is bad over all? You’re stuck with it. In. Every. Single. Subject. Not to mention, most boxed curriculums are extremely traditional and workbook focused. Your child can get bored fast. #2 Expensive Doesn’t Mean Best I have never paid more than $50 for a phonics curriculum. That’s probably surprising because most phonics programs out there cost over a hundred dollars. Some cost hundreds. I promise you, it isn’t necessary to pay that much. You can teach your child to read for far, far less. Explode the Code, Phonics Pathways, Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, First Start Reading, Delightful Reading, and The Ordinary Parent’s Guide to Teaching Reading are all inexpensive options for phonics. There are probably others as well. The point is, just because it costs a lot, doesn’t mean it’s great or will work for your child. #3 Just Because it Worked for Them Doesn’t Mean it Will Work for You Now I have a homeschool mom secret to whisper: I hate Saxon math. We don’t use it. This feels sacrilegious almost because it seems like every other homeschool family in the world uses Saxon. But guess what? Those families aren’t teaching my kids. If you try something and hate it, or you look at it and can just tell your kids will hate it, don’t use it. So what if everyone else loves it? They’re not the ones who have to use it with their kids every day. #4 Just Because it Worked for One Kid, Doesn’t Mean it Will Work for the Others Believe me, as much as possible, I use the same curriculum with all three of my kids. But sometimes a certain style of learning just isn’t the right fit for a particular child. For example, each of my three kids uses a different spelling curriculum. I’ll actually make an entire separate post about that later. For now, just know that sometimes you might have to make adjustments for each child in your family. #5 Don’t Be Distracted by the Bells and Whistles It may sound like a great idea to spend the entire year re-enacting Gettysburg, making a hoop skirt, and learning to pitch a teepee like the Kiowa tribe, but before you swipe your credit card, think about it realistically. Will you really have the time for all those activities? How expensive will the material be for that hoop skirt? Do you have a big enough yard for teepees and Civil War battles? Hands-on activities are fine, but make sure there’s something there to fill in the gaps on the days you don’t feel like cooking over an open fire wearing fifteen petticoats. #6 Don’t Purchase Literature Curriculum No textbook is wasted as much as a literature textbook. Your child will be better off reading books. There are so many wonderful children’s novels at your local library. This is one subject you should be able to do for free. I’ve done a separate post on how we do literature in our home school, and all you need is a book. However, if you want to do activities along with a book like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or Charlotte’s Web, there are plenty for free online. My kids made their own "Charlotte's Web," and we just used yarn we already had: #7 Don’t Be Afraid to Switch Gears
Is a curriculum just not working for your child? Are they not retaining the concepts? Is the material too dry? Don’t be afraid to toss it, even in the middle of the year. However . . . #8 Don’t Be a Curriculum Junkie Even though you shouldn’t stick with a curriculum that isn’t working, you don’t want to change constantly, either. Especially in math where concepts build upon each other, your child could get confused if you don’t stick with one curriculum long enough. Also, if you’ve changed curriculum in one subject three or more times, I suggest taking a long look at other factors before you change again. Could your child have a learning difference? Is your schedule too chaotic? Children thrive in routine, so be sure you aren’t unsettling them by constantly chasing the next great homeschool product. So that’s it! No blue unicorn, but gathering materials for your homeschool doesn’t have to be difficult. And never forget - the curriculum is just a guideline.
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AuthorHi, I'm Melanie! I'm a homeschooling mom of three kids ages 13, 11, and 9. I have a BS in English Secondary Education from Asbury University plus 30 hours of gifted certification course work. I've taught in just about every situation you can imagine. Public school, private, homeschool hybrid, and private tutoring. The most important thing I've learned? One on one, individualized instruction can't be beat. Archives
July 2022
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