Choosing a Curriculum
This was a daunting task because there are a plethora of curriculums out there for homeschooling. When I started to dive in I found that the majority of curriculums were Christian based. I wanted secular, or non-religious materials. I was also looking for materials that would work for both 2nd grade and 5th grade. I found it was hard to pick one complete curriculum that covered everything so I decided to choose different materials for each subject. I looked into websites that I had used when I was teaching, read countless Facebook posts from homeschool groups and did lots of research on various blog posts in order to come up with my final choices. In no particular order this is what I’m using this year.
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Math- IXL workbook/ online program
- Cost- Workbook: $15.29, online: $119/ year
- Website: ixl.com
- Pros:
- The workbook goes along with the online program.
- It is easy to assign lessons.
- Students earn rewards along the way.
- There are videos that go along with most lessons.
- The skills are broken down by grade or topic.
- If a student gets an answer wrong, an explanation is given.
- There are also games available for each grade level.
- Cons:
- The assignments can get a bit frustrating if they keep getting questions wrong.
Science-Mystery Science
- Cost- $99/ year
- Website-mysteryscience.com
- Pros:
- Lessons are easy to follow and set-up.
- There are videos for all lessons.
- Students watch and follow along with the videos.
- Experiments are explained in the videos step-by-step.
- Most experiments have materials that are easy to find around the house.
- Lessons are organized by grade level or age.
- Great discussion questions and wrap-up.
- Cons:
- none
Social Studies- Tuttle Twins
- Cost- $118.88 for 2 history textbooks
- website- www.tuttletwins.com
- Pros:
- Teaches history in a story-based style with the main characters being a brother and sister.
- Covers historical events that happened during 1215 to 1791.
- Comes with printable activities and videos.
- Activities contain writing, science, and/or math.
- Cons:
- Some activities don’t provide a great deal of value.
- Other: I also purchased their book series that includes 14 books that cover topics like the law, business, and the golden rule.
Reading, L.A., Writing, Phonics* *I use a variety of materials to cover these subjects.
- Language Arts & Writing
- Website: nightzookeeper.com
- Cost- $89/ year
- Pros:
- Students can be very creative by designing their own animals for the zoo.
- When designing a new animal, the “zookeeper” asks questions about the animal to create a descriptive paragraph.
- Covers vocabulary, writing strategies, and language arts topics like synonyms, etc.
- Other programs: ixl.com ($46.99/year), Epic! (getepic.com)
- Phonics (for my daughter only): Evan-Moor: Grade 2 Daily Phonics workbook
- Website: nightzookeeper.com
Other materials/ websites:
- Typing- typing.com, free website
- Math flashcards- Think Tank Scholar: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, purchased on Amazon
- Teacher Pay Teachers and Pinterest
Good for you,Stef. I trust all will go well.