The 10 BEST Curriculum I’ve used in My Homeschool!

Over my years in Homeschooling, I have learned what works and what doesn’t work. I’m still learning every day and every school year. I am excited to share with you my favorite curriculums from my homeschooling journey. So far, these are the ‘top dogs.’ These are workable, enjoyable, and excellent choices for any homeschooling family out there. I hope you enjoy learning about them.

What is Curriculum?

Curriculum is the “Meat & Potatoes” of your homeschool. What you choose to teach your children is the best freedom and greatest responsibility you have! This can reach outside the realm of arithmetic and language to belief systems and world view. What a great privilege we have as homeschoolers to choose what we teach to our kids.

Since this is such a big part of your homeschool, you may find it also the most intimidating. I hope my list of 10 BEST Curriculum can help get you started. There are many choices out there. No single curriculum is the ‘right’ choice, but it may very well be the BEST one for you and your child.

Why is Curriculum difficult?

• We want to find the BEST for our kids.
• There are SO many to choose from!
• The cost can add up considerably.
• We can’t answer the “what ifs” in the beginning of the year

Curriculum can be difficult because we put a lot of pressure on ourselves. Curriculum can be one of those particularly scary pressures. I hope this list of reminders can take the pressure off a bit.

Please remember the following:

• There is no perfect curriculum out there: Perfect for you, perfect for your child. It’s not out there, so don’t go looking for it.
• There are SO many to choose from! Use a process of elimination and take your time exploring.
• Since the cost can add up, look for used books any time you can! Borrow the books from a homeschooling community, a local library, or a friend. Also remember this is a great investment for your children. It’s worth the price you may pay.
• You can always pivot and find another way. Even in a curriculum, you can adjust the schedule or the task list. Make the curriculum work best for you! If it’s not working at all, you can try another one! It’s okay to make changes. Don’t be afraid to pivot.

My List of 10 BEST Curriculum

1. Jesus Storybook Bible

The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones. This has been my favorite bedtime story, Bible lesson story, and Bible reading to do with my children. Over the years we have read again and again from this book. The illustrations are colorful and inventive. The weaving of the collective story of ALL of Scripture is wonderful! This book is a MUST in your home. You will not be disappointed. My favorite quote that appears many times throughout the book goes like this: “You see, no matter what, in spite of everything, God would love his children – with a Never Stopping, Never Giving Up, Unbreaking, Always and Forever Love.”

Check out this curriculum on Amazon!

Never Stopping, Never Giving Up, Unbreaking, Always and Forever Love.”

Sally Lloyd-Jones, The Jesus Storybook Bible

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2. Math Facts That Stick

Math Facts That Stick is a series by Kate Snow and includes four books:

• Addition Facts that Stick
• Subtraction Facts That Stick
• Multiplication Facts That Stick
• Division Facts That Stick

The curriculum teaches the Math concepts one family at a time. So far, we have only used the Addition and Multiplication books, and we have really enjoyed them. In the Addition Facts That Stick, each Addition family is introduced with a row of 10 squares and counters to fill the squares. The student is learning to think of addition facts around the concept of ten and five. After the concept is explained, a game is played to reinforce the family. The needed game pieces can easily be found around the house (deck of cards, dice, etc.), and the game boards are pre-made and provided. The learning ends with a worksheet. This method is short and simple. We’ve enjoyed taking one math fact at a time, using the games to enjoy learning the facts.

Check out this curriculum on Amazon!

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3. Story of the World

Story of the World by Susan Wise Bauer has been my favorite History curriculum in our homeschool. The title says it all. This is a beautiful “Story” of the world’s incredible history. My kids have enjoyed these read-alouds and the worksheets that go along with them. There are 4 volumes that cover the Earliest Nomads through the Modern Age.

• Volume 1: Ancient Times, From the Earliest Nomads to the Last Roman Emperor
• Volume 2: The Middle Ages, From the Fall of Rome to the Rise of the Renaissance
• Volume 3: Early Modern Times, From Elizabeth the First to the Forty-Niners
• Volume 4: The Modern Age, From Victoria’s Empire to the End of the USSR

In addition to each story book, Susan Bauer has created an excellent Activity Book to go along with the reading. In the Activity Book, every chapter has one or two correlating pages that can be copied and given to your kids while you are reading. These pages are a combination of either a map, a color page, worksheet, or game page.

She also includes a detailed section for each chapter that includes narration exercises, suggested activities, and lists of additional literature and reference books to read on the topic. These books can be easily ordered at your local library. My kids loved getting a new collection of books on various historical topics. Her list is excellent. She also includes page numbers for older students to read further in The Kingfisher Illustrated History of the World, The Kingfisher History Encyclopedia, The Usborne Book of World History, or The Usborne Internet-Linked Encyclopedia of World History.

We enjoyed so many aspects of this curriculum that I’m not sure which was our favorite; the story, the coloring sheets to fill in while listening, or the variety of library books we would order for each chapter! Story-telling is one of the best ways to learn, and Susan Bauer brings history to life in her lovely writing.

Check out this curriculum on Amazon!

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4. Abeka Kindergarten Phonics

In the homeschooling community, I’ve sensed a real love/hate feeling when it comes to Abeka. Abeka has a vast collection of curriculum for all ages from 3 years old up through 12th grade! They’re pop-up book previews and conference booths are quite impressive.

I have greatly enjoyed the step-by-step Phonics program that Abeka offers in Kindergarten. My youngest is now going through Lesson 17 of the Phonics, and he has progressively learned the sound of each vowel and began the consonant, Tt. Each day builds on the last. The teacher’s guide gives instruction of exactly what to say as you explain each element.

The Kindergarten curriculum comes packaged with Phonics, Writing, Numbers, and Reading. By the second semester, your child begins reading from a cute set of readers and feels so successful through the process. Teaching your child to read is one of the most daunting aspects as you enter homeschooling. Can I really teach my child to read? The answer is, yes! Yes, you can!

Check out this Curriculum on Amazon!

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5. Fix It! Grammar

Out of all of the Grammar programs we have experienced together from K5-9th grade, Fix It! Grammar takes the prize as the BEST! Both of my kids get excited to do their grammar page for the day! Yes, excited over grammar. Crazy, I know.

I think what makes this book exciting is the story element. Each day, your child looks at a new sentence of a continuing story. They are searching for elements of grammar and editing the text. It’s very much like a puzzle with a part of the story continued after each clue! In level one, they begin the book by editing capitalization and punctuation, and searching for parts of speech; nouns and pronouns. As the book progresses, they add to their search: prepositional phrases, subject-verb combinations, and more parts of speech; conjunctions, adjectives, and adverbs. After book one, there are five more levels (reaching to the high school years). Each level is more challenging and continues upon the last, adding more elements of grammar; clauses, sentence openers, interjections, comma rules, and more!

After the child is finished solving the puzzle, they then copy the edited sentence in the lines provided on each page. This culminates at the end of the book into a beautiful story! There is even a bolded term in each sentence for vocabulary practice. This curriculum thought of it all and packaged it in a creative and enjoyable way. Check out the story titles:

• Fix It! Grammar: Nose Tree, Level 1
• Fix It! Grammar: Town Mouse and Country Mouse, Level 2
• Fix It! Grammar: Robin Hood, Level 3
• Fix It! Grammar: Mowgli and Shere Khan, Level 4
• Fix It! Grammar: Frog Prince, Level 5
• Fix It! Grammar: Little Mermaid, Level 6

Check out this curriculum on Amazon!

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6. DIVE Into Math & Science

If you happen to have a kid that loves Math & Science like I have, then DIVE is an excellent curriculum choice for him or her. As my oldest (the one who loves Science & Math) came into his middle school years, I began to look ahead at his path to high school. In my searching about Saxon Math (which I personally enjoyed in my high school years), I came upon DIVE.

Dr. David Shormann, Ph.D. teaches both Math & Science from a Biblical perspective. His videos of instruction are easy to follow, and the steps to complete the exercises are laid out clearly in the Teacher’s Guide. He even offers training courses for CLEP/SAT Prep. His courses can be considered AP courses if you follow the syllabus to accommodate the more challenging steps to upgrade to the higher level learning.

My oldest has grown in his independence as he acclimated to Dr. Shormann’s courses on DIVE. The online portal for Science includes definition cards for study in Quizlet, reading pages, lesson video, weekly quiz, and lab video as well as printable notes and lab pages. The student studies progressively through the content and takes a quarterly exam. Dr. Shormann gives excellent advice on how to best prepare for these exams and encourages a full week of review and study.

The online portal for Algebra & Geometry includes a daily video, math facts sheet, 20 daily problems to complete, a weekly quiz, and quarterly exams as well. He encourages students to process the math curriculum in a ‘timed method’ instead of a ‘completion method.’ The timed method involved studying math for 45-60 minutes each day, stopping when the time is up, and picking up the next day where you left off. This method is so helpful and puts the student at ease in their study of the concepts. Understanding through diligent practice is the goal for your child.

Check out this curriculum at Diveintomath.com.

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7. A Reason For Handwriting

Out of the many handwriting curriculum available, I found A Reason For Handwriting is the best! These workbooks take one verse of Scripture per week and divide the copy work over 5 days. The first three days are spent copying words from the verse, day four is tracing the entire verse, and day five is writing the verse in your own hand on a beautiful color sheet. These are provided in the back of the book, and they include various pictures, holidays, and themes. The color sheet can be shared with a friend or mailed as a letter to family. Weaving scripture into your daily writing is my favorite aspect of this curriculum.

The first levels begin in print, and Level T transitions the student from print to cursive. These pages became an enjoyable and simple part of our homeschool day. My kids really enjoyed day 5 and would ask to make more sheets for more friends! After all, in our homeschools, the ultimate goal is to grow a love for learning. A Reason For Handwriting does as its name states; it gives a reason for the daily exercise of penmanship. These workbooks not only encourage a love for writing, but also encourage a love for Scripture. Win. Win.

Check out this curriculum on Amazon!

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8. Slow And Steady, Get Me Ready

Do you ever wish your child came with a manual or handbook? I have joked with moms many times about the fact that our babies just don’t come with an instruction booklet, though I wish they did! When my first baby came along, I read a few key books that gave me some guidance, but ultimately you learn how to understand your little one by hands-on-the-job experience.

Slow and Steady, Get Me Ready, written by June Oberlander is a great guide of developmental learning for your child from Birth through age 5. Her format is one lesson per week. These are basic activities that can be done with your child and with items already in your home. I found these simple lessons to be a roadmap as I prepared my little one for Kindergarten.

At the end of the book, she includes a checklist of developmental milestones for each year. This is a handy reference. These small moments of intentional guidance will go a long way in our child’s life. Our children don’t come with instruction booklets, but we can learn to understand our little ones, help our little ones, and inspire our little ones to learn and grow.

Check out this curriculum on Amazon!

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9. Noeo Science

Noeo Science is a curriculum published by Logos Press and designed with busy homeschooling moms in mind. This curriculum provides a book list for children to read books and learn Science in an interesting and discovery-based way. No more textbooks needed here!

The Teacher’s guide gives weekly lesson plans for the school year. The lesson plan includes a chart listing what pages to read each day, and what topics to write about in your notebook. If you love notebooking, this science curriculum will excite you! Not only is this method fantastic, the book selection is excellent.

The flexibility and broad coverage of age groups included is very accommodating to families. Books are divided into three scientific topics: Biology, Chemistry, and Physics. From there, each topic is divided into three age groups: Grades 1-3, Grades 4-6, and Grade 7-8. The guide is simple, thorough, and ready to go. Just what a busy homeschooling mom needs! Simple guide for science? Sign me up!

Check out this curriculum at noeoscience.com!

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10. The Local Library

Your local library is one the BEST resources for your homeschool.

• You have access to 1000’s of books to incorporate in your daily rotation.
• You can sample books before you decide to buy for your own library at home.
• You can access documentaries, biographical videos, audio books, ebooks, and so much more!

Where we live, our library is part of a greater cooperative that shares books between other libraries. This ability to order a book and have it transferred to your local town is fantastic! If you’ve never requested an inter-library loan book, go and try it. It opens the door to so many possibilities; and it’s FREE!

Check out my local library’s webpage and try out our Prairie Cat Search. (The search engine is very picky, so searching by author may be helpful if nothing is found). Then, be sure to look up your own library’s webpage and see what they offer!

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The BEST Curriculum Summarized

There you have it! I hope you enjoyed reading about my top 10 favorites in the world of Curriculum. There is so much to consider when you think about which curriculums to choose. As a help, I narrowed down my top 10 into the following four categories:

• Best Time Saver AND Budget Option
• Best Overall
• Best for Newbies
• Best for Littles

Frequently Asked Questions about Curriculum

The last thing you need to know about the BEST Curriculum

Curriculum is a very intentional choice for you and your children. Take the time to look into which books you choose, for these books can shape and influence the hearts of your kids. The beauty in homeschool is the opportunity to help shape and influence them as you study the curriculum together. Take those opportunities seriously. Engage in the studies with your children. You will be so blessed in the process!

What are some of your BEST curriculum choices? I would love to hear about what you’re learning in your homeschool. Please comment below and share your top curriculum choices with me. Thank you for reading!

Keep Walking Friend,

Christina