How to Choose a Fit Homeschool Curriculum
Picking a homeschool program comes with various considerations for your learner and your family.
It can be overwhelming to take align learning styles, covered subjects, necessary planning, and preparation of materials for the thousands of homeschool curricula offered.
By organizing the selection process, the decision can be made with ease and thorough examination. Let’s start!
This guide will help you prepare for learning at home, checking each area and ensuring you’ll confidently cover them all.
You know your child best. Keep his or her unique traits, interests, and preferred ways of navigating new ideas in mind first when considering a program.
When selecting a curriculum or learning program, first think about and consider:
Your learner’s needs and wants in education
You and your family's educational philosophy
Lesson duration and method of delivery
Individual Learning Needs
Our individual way of receiving and retaining information is unique to each of us.
Consider the same of your learner.
Many programs offer online lessons and assessments, accessible from a computer or tablet.
Others provide tangible workbooks and materials for in-person, hands-on learning.
Similarly, each program is structured differently in the way of presenting new learning and arranging activities and projects that follow.
Most of these factors contribute to the success of your learner, making their alignment important in order for homeschooling to be a low-stress success.
Homeschool is a Family Affair
Not only are the needs of your learner at the top of the list of areas to consider, but learning at home makes every member of the family a key piece of the puzzle.
Keep in mind the ways your family may need to adjust when homeschooling:
Allowing flexibility with learning at home and settling into new routines
Dedicating time for activities family, without program materials
The time necessary for completing learning and the varying environments needed for each structure effect your normal routines too.
Homeschooling is constantly happening, meaning you and your learner will be spending a lot of time with the program you choose while building familiarity.
Know No Decision is Permanent
Once you select a program or formal curriculum, you aren’t legally bound to it.
Woo hoo!
Don’t be afraid to lean on your formal structure as an outline or guide and pull from it like a toolbox.
There are even families who choose to create unit studies as their children’s interests change, and homeschool according to their own plans!
For our family, this has been amazing and incredibly fun.
I will be completely transparent in saying that this route is a busy one.
I can always find ideas online, but to plan each topic every week is not as laid back as following a pre-planned schedule, as a ready-made curriculum offers.
You will settle in to the perfect plan for you and your learners, so don’t shy away from switching things up if they aren’t working!
