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When to Switch Homeschool Curriculum

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You have spent weeks or maybe months planning your homeschool year. Everything seems set and you know this will be the best year, ever. However, it isn’t. You are struggling and that shiny new curriculum is no longer exciting. You pictured these amazing days with everyone eager to dive in and learn. Instead, everyone is unhappy, including you. What are you supposed to do? Here’s a quick guide on when to switch homeschool curriculum.

Why isn’t this Curriculum Working for Us?

You are probably thinking that it is just you. Why can’t you get it to work? Your favorite blogger, Instagram influencer, and best friend have been raving about this book or program. You read up on the program carefully and even watched video reviews.

Before you go blaming yourself and feeling inadequate, take a step back from the situation. There are millions of homeschoolers worldwide, tens of thousands of books, resources, and programs. If one size fit all, there would not be such a huge market. Every family is unique, moreover, every child is unique. Juts because “everyone” is using it, doesn’t mean it will work for your family. Also, the truth is, everyone isn’t using it because there are so many options to choose from.

When to Switch Homeschool Curriculum

If you are struggling more than making progress it could be time for a change. Curriculum and resources are meant to be tools. Sometimes it takes some trial and error to find the best fit. Here are some signs that it’s time to look at switching:

  • You dread homeschooling each morning
  • The kids are resisting doing work or reading lessons
  • Lessons are not sinking in
  • You feel completely regretful or disappointed in your curriculum choice
  • Your homeschool is falling behind no matter what you do
  • You are questioning your ability to homeschool
  • Lessons are taking much longer than they should
  • Everyone is frustrated
  • You can’t see why so many people recommended this resource or curriculum

Why Switch Homeschool Curriculum

Homeschool curriculum is expensive and education isn’t always easy. Shouldn’t you just tough it out and at least get your money’s worth? The answer is likely no. When a resource is not working, it can ruin an entire homeschool year. Everyone gets frustrated, even the lessons you usually enjoy become overwhelming, and you just want to quit. Successful homeschooling requires there to be some peace and harmony in the home. This isn’t to say every lesson will be your favorite, but fighting a battle uphill everyday isn’t healthy for anyone.

It’s true that most schools take a one size fits all approach. However, is that the best way to educate? Embrace the beauty of being in control of your own school and do what works best for you and your family. Children learn more when they are engaged and confident. So, if you would rather have a root canal than teach one more lesson in that math book, that’s when to switch homeschool curriculum.

Where to Find New Homeschool Curriculum Resources

Now that you have decided to switch homeschool curriculum, you are probably wondering how to pick a better one. First, figure out exactly what isn’t working. Is it the format, workload, or learning style? Is there just one aspect of the curriculum that is making everyone dread it? Replacing just part of your curriculum choice can be an easy and economical way to improve your situation. Here are some tips on where to look and how to find the right resource:

  • Read reviews, lots of reviews. Visit blogs and independent reviewers, plus check out the reviews on Amazon or other booksellers.
  • Ask around to see what people are using. See if a friend has the replacement curriculum you are considering. Seeing resources first hand is always better than just picking them out from a catalog.
  • Determine your children’s learning styles and find a curriculum designed for that style.
  • Check out sites like Teacher Pay Teachers where you can find inexpensive curriculum options that are immediately available.
  • Shop used book sales.
  • See if sample are available online to try before you buy.

What to Do with Unused Homeschool Books

Now that you have found a new curriculum, what about the old one? Likely, you would like to recoup some of your investment. The cost of curriculum is usually the main deterrent to switching. However, there are numerous places to sell or swap curriculum. You will not make back every penny, but it will help offset the cost of new supplies. Check out online swap/sell groups on Facebook or look for a local bookstore. Also, consider selling on Ebay or similar platforms. Click here for 10 Places to Sell Your Used Homeschool Books

Homeschool Curriculum by Teaching Style

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Choosing a homeschool curriculum is one of the biggest decisions for homeschool families. There are many different homeschooling styles and even more homeschool curriculum providers. So, how do you know which homeschool syle and curriculum is best for your family?

Hands-On Homeschooling Curriculum from The Crafty Classroom

Choosing the best program for your goals and family learning style is the best way to ensure success. Here is a simple guide to homeschool curriculum by style to help you find the perfect one for you!

Charlotte Mason Homeschool Curriculum

Focuses on living books, nature study, and narration for assessment.

  • The Gentle Feast: A complete curriculum that is family focused.
  • Ambleside Online : A free, complete curriculum plan for all grade levels based on living books.
  • Beautiful Feet: Learn through reading rich stories.
  • Five in a Row: Weekly unit studies in social studies, art, applied math, language arts, and science based on excellent children’s literature.
  • Blossom and Root Nature based, secular, complete curriculum.
  • Heart of Dakota Christ-centered, literature-based program, and resource publisher.
  • Sonlight Complete, Christian, homeschool curriculum that is literature based.
  • The Good and the Beautiful Ecumenical, Charlotte Mason style, complete curriculum at a very affordable price.
  • Queen Homeschool Christian, complete curriculum that focuses on habit training and character building.
  • Masterbooks: Charlotte Mason inspired, biblical world view, complete curriculum that is designed for families.
HUGE Directory of Free & Low Cost Distance Learning Programs

Traditional Homeschooling Curriculum

Homeschool curriculum options based on traditional school model of textbooks and workbooks.

  • Switched on Schoolhouse: A complete, Christian, online-based education that is interactive and multimedia-based.
  • Abeka: A traditional curriculum created for brick and mortar Christian schools. Homeschool version includes scripted lessons for parents.
  • Lifepac: A unit based curriculum designed for mastery by professional educators.
  • Bob Jones University: Complete, biblical worldview curriculum with textbook, online, and DVD video course options.
  • Christian Light: Complete, comprehensive, and accredited program that is workbook based.
  • Christian Liberty Press: A complete curriculum that offers, accredited, comprehensive, and individual course options.
  • Rod and Staff: Traditional, Mennonite curriculum that focuses on mastery of core subjects.
  • Critical Thinking Company: A secular complete curriculum designed to build critical thinking, logic, and mental focus.
  • Calvert: A secular, accredited, online academy for all grades.
  • Bookshark: Literature based, secular program that is based on a 4 day school week.
Free Homeschool Portfolio

Classical Homeschooling Curriculum

Rooted in classical education with an emphasis on language studies, history, and literature.

  • Classical Conversations: Program developed specifically for homeschool families that offers a classical education through communities around the world.
  • Learning Adventures: Hands-on, literature based curriculum with 180 days worth of lessons.
  • My Father’s World: A combination of Charlotte Mason, classical education, and unit studies that is hands on with Christian worldview.
  • Classical Academic Press: Creative and classical curriculum for all grades that includes complete, online, and self paced DVD course.
  • Memoria Press: Christian worldview complete curriculum based on the Great Books, and liberal arts studies with online options.
  • Tapestry of Grace: Hands-on, classical curriculum that is complete and flexible for Christian families.
Free Unit Studies from The Crafty Classroom

Unit Study Homeschool Curriculum

Learning that teaches multiple subjects through a single topic or theme.

  • Gather ‘Round: Charlotte Mason friendly, curriculum for families that is based on thematic weekly unit studies in nine subjects.
  • Konos: Hands-on, unit studies that are designed for grades kindergarten through eighth grade to learn together.
  • Magic Forest Academy: Secular, nature based, weekly unit studies that cover 52 weeks and are divided by season.
  • Moving Beyond the Page: Complete, secular, unit based curriculum for gifted students.
  • Our Star Spangled Story: A unit study based history program that is simplified into a textbook.
  • Trail Guide to Learning: A Christian, complete curriculum centered on a series of unit studies that focuses on critical thinking skills.
  • Unit Studies by Amanda Bennett: A wide array of unit studies that focus on topics in science, history, geography, and other topics.
  • Winter Promise: Charlotte Mason and classical education based unit studies in themed or subject based categories.
  • Techie Homeschool Mom: Digital based unit studies on a variety of topics.
FREE First Day of Homeschool Photo Signs

Kindergarten Assessment Checklist

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Kindergarten is an important step in childhood and education. It marks the beginning of formal education. However, what should kindergarten students know? How can you know if your child learned enough during kindergarten. These are common questions for homeschool parents. So, we break down the how, why, and when to perform kindergarten assessments in your homeschool.

Why Do a Kindergarten Assessment?

What comes to mind when you hear the word assessment? You are probably conjuring up visions of final exams or standardized tests. However, there are many types of assessments. Kindergarten assessment is used to demonstrate progress. They are not like standardized tests. These are easy, and fun activities that your child can complete to demonstrate mastery. More importantly, you can easily see where your child needs some help. Both sides of an assessment are essential for a good education.

When to Do a Kindergarten Assessment

There are several ways to do this. The answer is do what works for your homeschool and child. Testing is a stressful topic, but tests do not have to be stressful. Remember to look at this as a measure of progress not a pass/fail situation. Saving assessments can be helpful, because they allow you to look back, compare, and see the progress made. No matter how you plan to use a kindergarten evaluation, be sure to do it when you are your child are feeling refreshed, rested, and not hungry! Here are a few options for your homeschool:

  • Give the same test at the beginning and end of the year to measure progress and growth.
  • Use as an end of year evaluation to drive curriculum choices for next year.
  • “Pre-test” a soon to be kindergartner so you know where he stands before starting school work.
  • Administer the same evaluation mid-year and end of year. Use the mid-year test to tweak the second half of the year. That way you are sure to hit the areas that need more attention.

What Subjects should Kindergartener know?

The sky is the limit in homeschooling, however that doesn’t mean you need to test your child in every subject! Early education assessments focus on math, reading and writing. These core subjects are the basis of all future learning. So, you may be learning about science, history, and music, too, but stick with the core subjects for your evaluation.

Beginning Sounds
Segmenting to Read
All About Me

Language Arts Topics to Assess

The language arts comprise reading, writing, listening, and speaking. In kindergarten, we focus on reading and writing. Writing does not just mean writing stories. It is primarily handwriting and letter formation at this point. Reading includes sight words, sounds, and letter recognition. Here are the main topics to assess for your child:

  • Letter recognition
  • Initial consonant sounds
  • Short vowel sounds
  • Long vowel sounds
  • Sight words
  • Rhyming words
  • Consonant sounds
  • Syllables
  • Segmenting/spelling three letter words
  • Short creative writing
  • Basic information—name, phone number, address
  • Completing a sentence
  • Writing capital and lowercase letters
Shape Recognition
Counting to 100
Addition Worksheets

Math Topics to Assess

Like language arts, it is important to focus on the basics. Ensure that your child has mastered the foundations. Make the assessment fun and simple to understand. Here are some basic topics to cover in your evaluation:

  • Number work recognition
  • Numeral recognition
  • Shape recognition
  • Measurement
  • Counting
  • Numbers to 100
  • Basic addition
  • Basic subtraction

However and whenever you administer these assessments, keep in mind that all children develop at different rates. This is especially true in the early years. Make sure your child knows that you are focusing on what she does know, not on what she still needs to learn!

Would you like a FREE guide to assess your child for Kindergarten? Our free kindergarten assessment tests will help you determine any gaps in your child’s education, plus, it’s a great tool to show growth over the year!

These kindergarten assessment printables are great for the beginning of the year and end of the year testing. If you find your student needs extra practice on any of these concepts check out our free worksheets, or try our Kindergarten Reading & Language Arts Program or our Complete 36-Week Interactive Math Curriculum.

How to Setup a Homeschool P.E. Program

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You have all your books and notebooks ready, but there may be one subject you completely overlooked. Physical Education is a key component of a well-rounded education. While all of us know what P. E. class is, it may be difficult to implement. What should I be teaching my children? How much time should be spent on P. E. class each week or day? Do I need to keep records for this class? So, we put together a guide on setting up a homeschool P. E. program.

What is P. E Class?

A P. E. class is sometimes also called a gym. It is where students learn about sports, physical fitness, and healthy living. Traditionally, bodybuilding and competitive sports have been the cornerstones of gym class. The purpose is to teach healthy lifestyle habits. These include exercise, healthy eating, and physical activity. So, students get into the habit of regular workouts, sports, and physical exertion. This will set them up for a lifetime of healthy living.

What is the Difference between Physical Education and Physical Activity?

Physcial activity is anything that gets your body moving. Playing with the dog, going for a walk, playing on a swing set. These actvities get your body moving and your heart pumping. However, Physical Education is a curriculum. So, it is an intentional activity. P. E. class should meet regularly, include instruction and lessons, plus have benchmarks that students need to obtain. Physical activty is obviously part of physical education, however just being active is not the same as a true P. E. program.

How often Should We Have Phys. Ed. Class in Our Homeschool?

Children need at least one hours of physical activity per week. However, physical education should meet at leat 150 mins per week for elementary aged children. This can be broken into 50 minute sessions three (3) times per week, or 30 minute sessions five (5) times per week. In fact, you can come up with a schedule that fits your family best as long as it is a regular part of your homeschool schedule.

What Types of Activities Should We do for Homeschool Physical Education?

The best thing about homeschooling is that there are limitless opportunities. Therefore, homeschool P. E. can look very different from one family to another. It can be tailored to your family’s interests and abilities. Here are some ideas for activities and exercises for you homeschool program.

Activities:

  • Dancing
  • Mountain Biking
  • Hiking
  • Gymnastics
  • Obstacle Courses
  • Running
  • Horseback Riding
  • Ice Skating
  • Karate or other Martial Arts
  • Golf

Exercises:

  • Jumping Jacks
  • Running in place
  • Stretching
  • Push-ups
  • Sit-ups
  • Lunges
  • Stationary equiment: rowing machine, stationary bike, treadmill, etc.
  • Exercise videos or games
  • Weight training (with proper supervision)

What about Sports?

Organized sports are fun and engaging. If you child plays on a local team or at a gym, that time can be counted toward P. E. class. Just make sure it includes instruction or coaching. However, sports can be a part of your physical education at home, too. Here are some sports that require minimal equipment, space, and people to play:

  • Tennis
  • Soccer (one-on-one or two-on-two, you can use any landmarks as the goals)
  • Basketball
  • Volleyball or Badmitton (both can be played with smaller teams)

How do I grade Physical Education for Homeschool?

First, be sure to check your state requirements. Every state is different, this is just a general guide. Next, track progress for each student and set benchmarks. Time how quickly an activity can be completed. Record how many of a specific exercise the child can do. Track this throughout the year to show progress and growth. This information can also be included in your yearly portfolio. Using a tracking system helps students see how much they have improved, and helps them to set goals.

Helpful Homeschool P.E. Tips:

  1. YMCA and PAL (Police Athletic League) both offer gym classes. These could be organized sports, general gym, or open court opportunities/pick-up games. Check out what your local organization has to offer, both also offer scholarships for families in need.
  2. Game systems, like Wii, have interactive exercise programs that include goal setting and activity tracking.
  3. The more the merrier, see if there is a local co-op that offers physical education or sports. Consider meeting other families at the park each week for a group class or free playtime.
  4. Make P. E. class fun! Like anything homeschool, you are in control. Build a program that is perfect for your family.
  5. Include information on healthy living and eating. Discuss eating habits and set goals as a family to live a healthier lifestyle.
  6. Check out the President’s Challenge for extra motivation, instructional videos, and other resources.
  7. Use programs such as “Couch to 5k” to build up endurance and get the whole family moving. Grab my student packet for physical activity tracking!
  8. Search Youtube for free exercise video programs for all ages and abilities.

How to Fail at Homeschooling….

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Homeschooling your children is a monumental task. If you ask, most homeschool moms would tell you that their biggest fear is failing! Everyone wants to get it right and do the best for their children. However, sometimes trying hard not to fail at homeschooling is the surest way to fail! Here are seven ways to fail at homeschooling and what to do instead.

Making Homeschool Your Number #1 Priority

This would seem like a positive move. Making homeschooling your top priority will make you work harder and focus on success which will guarantee you do not fail, right? Wrong! Your homeschool is important but it cannot come before all the truly important people in your life. Your husband, your children, and God should always be your primary focus. When homeschooling ranks above everyone and everything else, you will be missing out on the special opportunities to enjoy your family and will quickly burn out. You need clear priorities that place homeschool in its proper place, as something you do not your sole reason for being.

Tips for Success:

Homeschooling is important and can become consuming. However, it should never take the place of your focus on your family and faith. After all, those are probably the reasons you started homeschooling in the first place. You will have more success if homeschooling is a family priority that does not get in the way of living your life.

Great Expectations

You start your homeschool journey or the new year with high hopes. You are going to make this the best homeschool ever. Your children will love every activity and excel in every subject. You will show the world how superior the homeschool model is! Failure is not an option. With homeschooling, you children will be perfect. They will enter college at 15 and earn full scholarships to the most elite programs. Your homeschool room with be the envy of every social media maven and you will still cook nutritious, three course dinners every night before spending hours in front of the fire while Suzy plays Schubert on the piano and Johnny recites Plato from memory. Ah, you will not only not fail, you will be perfect! Nothing is perfect though, and hoisting high expectations for perfection on your children will squash their desire to learn, as well as their creativity.

Tips for Success:

Goals and standards are good, but they need to remain in check. Perfection doesn’t equal success. If you don’t want to fail, accept that learning requires failure sometimes. Your children will not do everything perfectly. That is part of learning. Instead, be realistic. Kids will be kids. Let them explore and make messes. Give your children room to grow at their own pace. Enjoy the journey instead of rushing for the goal. Failing sometimes is actually the best way to succeed!

Too Many Extracurricular Activities

What about socialization? Homeschool kids need socialization. If they spend too much time at home they will be social failures. They need time with other children and rigorous activities. So, signing up for every extracurricular under the sun makes sense. You don’t want to raise socially awkward children. However, running to all the activities causes homeschool failure. Parents and children get tired and worn out. Family life suffers. Getting school work done gets stressful because of time constraints. Instead of giving kids a happy social experience, you create misery.

Tips for Success:

Extracurricular activities are good. They just need balance. Socialization happens everywhere. Homeschool children do not need to be at activities every day. Focus on a few activities that your child really want to do. Pick ones that fit your schedule, budget, and family values.

Not Addressing Learning Needs

Taking a one size fits all approach is a sure way to fail. You choose the top rated curriculum. You know, the one “everyone” at co-op is raving about! This is what will make your homeschool successful. Your child struggles with the work. It isn’t working for him, and you don’t understand why. You keep at it. He just needs to try harder. Failure is not an option. But instead of progress, you both get more frustrated.

Tips for Success:

The beauty of homeschooling is that it is personal and individual education. Trying to force a square peg into a round hole will never work. Every child has learning needs and a unique learning style. If a program isn’t working, the problem is probably the program. When you find resources that fit your child’s learning needs, your homeschool will thrive.

Self Defeating Attitude

There are two sure fire ways to fail at homeschooling. The first is to believe that you will fail. The second is comparing yourself to others. Comparison is the thief of joy. There is no one right way to homeschool. When you set yourself up as not being good enough, you set yourself up to fail. It’s easy to think that someone else, especially someone you only know through social media or blogs, is doing a better job that you. Everyone has struggles and everyone experiences homeschooling failures sometimes.

Tips for Success:

Instead of feeling like you don’t measure up, look at what is going well. Work on building the homeschool that works best for your family. No one has it all together, all the time. You can do this, believe in yourself!

Expecting School at Home

Most homeschool parents went to traditional brick and mortar schools. They know how school works, so they model homeschooling on their experience at traditional school. However, homeschooling is not school at home. Schools are designed like a factory, they are setup for production and testable results. There are rigid standards and strict schedules. Alternatively, homeschooling is an education model, with more flexibility. If you are trying to replicate school at home, it will increase your chances of failure.

Tips for Success:

Homeschooling should be about education at home. It is a lifestyle, not a school choice. Develop a love of learning in your home. Focus on the experience, not checking off boxes to keep up with public schools. You chose to homeschool because you wanted to escape public school education. Dare to be different and educate your children as a family, not a school. There is a fine balance between pushing for childhood development, hitting suggested milestones, and the standards of educational growth while allowing self-led learning, engagement, and natural discovery. Finding that balance for your own homeschool will lead to a successful outcome.

Free Homeschool Student Portfolio

Simple homeschool planning resources you will actually use!  These resources will help you meet state homeschooling requirements as well as add a little organization to your homeschool goals for the year. Inside you’ll find the following resources:

  • Colorful Cover Sheet
  • Student Profile Sheet
  • Monthly Tracking Log
  • Weekly Tracking Log
  • Daily Attendance Sheet
  • Quiz & Test Scores
  • Field Trips Log
  • Physical Education Log
  • Volunteer Hours Log

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Free Homeschool Portfolio

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Homschool Planner

Print our Free Student Portfolio!

Homeschool record keeping is an important part of a successful homeschool. There are many systems for record keeping available. One of the most popular and flexible systems is a portfolio. This quick start guide will show you how to easily build a portfolio successfully for each of your children. Here are our favorite tips and tricks for keeping a homeschool portfolio.

What is a Homeschool Portfolio?

Our Student Portfolio is a Limited Time Subscriber Freebie Available Here

A portfolio is a means of record keeping and assessment. It demonstrates what has been learned by a child in a specific area of study or over a particular time period. The portfolio is more than just a collection of grades or transcripts. Portfolios show a student’s ability and experiences. It is a living collection that grows and changes over time

Portfolios eliminate the stress of completing an end of year assessment. Instead of expecting students to demonstrate everything they have learned in a large test, portfolios allow them to show how their learning has progressed. It also allows for creativity and personalization, something that can never happen on a paper and pencil test.

Why are Portfolios Important?

Portfolios are important for many reasons. Some states require families to maintain homeschool portfolios. Other states give the option of creating a portfolio or taking a standardized test. The portfolio is a concise way to show everything that was accomplished over the year. Knowing your state homeschool laws should be the first step in planning a portfolio. Check out Understanding Your Homeschool Requirements by State to learn more about what your state requires.

In addition to state homeschool requirements, there are other reasons to keep portfolios. Some homeschool charter schools require student portfolios. Also, portfolios are a perfect option for high school. Since portfolios are highly personalized, they are a perfect choice for demonstrating high school credit earned. Even if you are not required to keep a portfolio, it is a very useful record keeping system.

What are the Daily Logistics of Maintaining a Portfolio?

The portfolio is a yearly assessment but has to be maintained daily. The single binder portfolio is the most popular, and required by some states. Other options include an accordion file portfolio and digital portfolio. It is important to make daily maintenance simple. Keep one binder for each subject. Also have a binder for additional logs and sheets. (see below) Each day add completed work to the subject binder. Also. record grades, attendance, etc in appropriate logs. Keep all binders in a central location. (Students can help maintain binders, too!). At the end of the year, you can pull what you need from these binders. That will make year-end assessments quick and easy to complete.

What Should Be Included?

Every portfolio is unique. There are as many different styles as families who keep them! Always include whatever is required by your state. You can then get creative with the rest. Remember that less is more! A portfolio is a snapshot of the homeschool year. It should not include EVERYTHING! Include just enough to meet state requirements and demonstrate growth. Here is a sample list of what to include:

  • Colorful Cover Sheet: This should include the title “Homeschool Portfolio” and space to write Student’s Name and School Year
  • Student Profile Sheet: This contains all pertinent information about the student. It will include strengths, weaknesses, course of study, and other personal details.
  • Monthly Tracking Log: The log sheet shows how many days each subject has met. There is a log for each month of the school year. The page is a grid with subjects across top, room for 31 Days on left side, and totals on bottom
  • Weekly Tracking Log: Similar to the monthly tracking log but it breaks the records into weeks. This is set up with subjects on left side, days on top, and totals on right.
  • Quiz & Test Scores: This is a record of all quiz and test grades received for each subject.
  • Field Trips Log: Include where you went, the date, and what was learned.
  • Exemplary Examples of Work: Show off student progress. Include a collection of the best work from the year in various subjects.
  • All State Requirements: Make sure that all requirements are met and included.
  • Physical Education Log: Keep a log of what activities/sports were counted as physical education and time spent on each.
  • Extra Curricular Log: This is a place to record what is done outside the classroom. Include clubs, activities, and performances. Be sure to also note any special awards or recognitions earned.
  • Volunteer Hours Log: Volunteering is real work learning. It is also a requirement for graduation in some states. Record all volunteer activities, dates, and how long was spent on each event.

Subscriber Freebie!!

Our Student Portfolio is a Limited Time Subscriber Freebie Available Here

All you have to do is claim your free download by confirming your subscriber email address. If you’d like to join our subscriber list, we would LOVE to have you! It’s free to join and all the details are here:

Also…..Dont’ Miss our FREE Homeschool Planning Pack

Simple homeschool planning resources you will actually use!  Less is more when it comes to organizing and planning out your homeschool year.  These resources will help you set goals, keep track of curriculum decisions and orders, and teach your student to keep an independent weekly calendar.

  • Homeschool Goals
  • Homeschool Curriculum Planning
  • Independent Student Calendar

Can You Afford to Homeschool?

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Homeschooling, like anything with kids, can be very expensive! You may be hyperventilating when you search for curriculum options. This can lead many prospective homeschoolers to quit before they begin. They feel like they could never afford homeschooling. Homeschooling does not have to be expensive!With a little planning, it is very doable. Before diving into purchasing curriculum, learn how to budget like a ninja for homeschooling. Here’s a four step plan for you to make an annual plan that works.

Take an Inventory of Income and Expenses

The key to making anything affordable is knowing how much you have to spend. Knowing how much you have coming in and going out is vital. If you already keep a budget, great! Look over it and decide how much you can allocate to homeschooling.

If you don’t have a written budget, or your budget is tight, dig a little deeper. Take some time to look over your expenses. What other expenses need to be covered? Is there anything that can be cut or modified to make more room for homeschool resources? You may want to get a budget tracking app, such as MINT, to help with tracking expenses. After a few months, you will have a better idea of where your money is going.

Decide What You Can Afford

Now that you have analyzed your expenses, it’s time to build your budget. How much can you afford to spend? How much money and how much time. Time probably wasn’t what you were thinking. Saving money takes time! Yes, there are ways to homeschool for almost nothing but, everything has a cost. If you are choosing to create everything yourself to save money, you need to find a way to budget more time. There’s no such thing as completely free. Buying a boxed curriculum is expensive, but you will not have to create lesson plans, activities, etc.

On the other hand, you can save hundreds of dollars by building your own curriculum. You will need to budget time to gather all the materials, write out lesson plans, make up tests, and so on. Homeschooling can be affordable, just be realistic when budgeting your time and money.

Create Goals for Each Student

Homeschooling can also get expensive when you don’t have a goal. It is easy to get swept up in the amazing curriculum options. It is important to know what you need and truly want your children to learn. What subjects are required? Is there anything else that you want to add? Be careful not to add too much. One or two additional subjects is plenty. Remember this is about budgeting time and money. If you buy more curriculum than you can use, you are wasting money.

Try our FREE Homeschool Goals Worksheet!

Look at your goals and make a list of exactly what you need for each child. Are there any special tools you will need( such as a microscope or laptop?) See how many resources you already have or can borrow. Now it’s time to divide your overall budget between your children according to their needs.

Do Your Homework

Research is an important part of being prepared. Know what you want and research the options BEFORE attending any type of curriculum sale or homeschool conference. This will help you stay focused and make an informed decision. Look into how the curriculum works and what learning styles it serves. Read over reviews for potential curriculum choices. Know how much the curriculum choices cost and what they go for used. Having a short list of ideas will keep you from getting overwhelmed with the options. Also, an informed consumer makes better decisions. Your research will keep you on budget and help you avoid buying something you don’t really want. Remember sales representatives can be very convincing. Of course, they all sell the “best” resources around.

Try our Free Simple Homeschool Planning Pack

How to Conquer the Clutter in the Classroom

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Are the papers starting to get out of control in your homeschool or classroom? Have you accumulated a ton of curriculum over the years and it’s overwhelming? It’s time for a clean space — here’s how to conquer the clutter in the classroom.

It’s easy to allow your homeschool space or classroom to get messy. But, there’s a solution for all of it — declutter! It’s time to get your organization skills sharpened along with those fresh, new pencils. Here are 5 quick tips on getting your room tidy and neat before the school year ends. Less mess, less stress!

1. Write a quick list of homeschool curriculum

First, you need to know what you have before making decisions on what homeschool curriculum to keep or toss. Once the list is finalize, mark the curriculum that you need to keep for the next 2 years. Now that you have a comprehensive list of unnecessary homeschool materials, take them through a triage process. It’s very simple — reuse, recycle, or remove!

2. Removing unwanted homeschool curriculum

It’s now time to get rid of the paper pile up! You want a clean classroom, don’t you? You’ve loved on this curriculum for many years, and it worked for your homeschool child or classroom. Yet, it’s ready to go to a new home. I know, it’s tough. You have fond memories and know how valuable it is, so let someone else enjoy it too.

Here are some questions to consider:

  • Will I use this in the next 2 years? If yes, it’s a keeper! Put it in the keep pile for organizing later.
    • But, can I reduce the double copies, ripped pages, or broken materials to make it more manageable?
    • Can it be stored digitally and/or displayed on a tablet?
  • If I won’t be using it in the next two years, it’s time to give it away, sell, or store it digitally. Below you’ll find ways to sell or donate your used homeschool books, manuals, worksheets, and materials.

Remember, storing too many items takes up time and space, which ultimately takes up precious time from other important obligations. Plus, if you are getting a paycheck, it reduces your pay.  Yes, you heard that right! If you are taking time to store unneeded items, you’re making less money based on the hours it takes to store them. If you’re a homeschool teacher, your wasting time without your family or doing something you love.

Also, recycle any of those papers, including duplicate copies, you longer need. Just think of it this way — your messy papers just may be transformed into thoughtful greeting cards to brighten someone’s day!

3. Remove the Broken Writing Utensils

Yes, we could come up with a hundred projects on how to recycle those broken crayons. But, if the ‘Recycle Old Crayons in the CrockPot’ is not on your school calendar this year, toss them! Plus, get rid of any pencils or pens that don’t work, are short, run out of ink, or just not useful anymore.

Now it’s time for some homeschool organization! Gather all of those colored pencils, markers, pens, and pencils you are keeping. You’ll find all you need to know below under Permanent Storage Solutions.

4. Resell Your Teaching Curriculum and Homeschool Resources

Make some extra money by reselling your previous purchases or inherited items. You’d be shocked at how much you can make by free advertising online using Craigslist, Facebook or a small percentage on eBay.  

For free advertising, just search for “Craigslist + Location” and you’ll find a section ‘For Sale’. Facebook is also an easy way to make a little money from used homeschool materials. Click on Marketplace on the left hand tool bar, then select the ‘+Add something’ button on the left.

5. Permanent Storage Solutions

Now that the clutter is finding a new home, let’s discuss your homeschool curriculum and materials you want to store. Classroom organization is key to a stress free space.

There are many permanent storage solutions, and there’s not a perfect solution for everyone. But, here is what I’ve seen worked best digitally and physically.

Digital Storage Solutions

Google is a great way to store digital homeschool curriculum and printables. All you have to do is create a Gmail account, and you have 15G of free electronic space. Create folders based on grade then subject. It will make your job a lot easier when you’re looking for homeschool curriculum!

Another great tip is to name your digital files by product and brand. If you ever lose a file, you can always search for it by name.

Physical Storage Solutions

There are many homeschool hacks and classroom organizing tools available, but here are my frugal favorites:

What organizing tips do you have to help clean out the classroom clutter? Whether you are a homeschool mom or classroom teacher, we all deal with messes whether its paper, pencils, or programs. It’s time to get organized for a happy, stress free school day!

September Fine Motor Activity Pack

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Fine motor skills are important for children to build during the early years. Provide your kiddos with lots of hands-on activities, games, and manipulatives they can use to work those small motor muscles.  These small motor movements will help children with their coordination as well as develop the necessary strength and control they will need for handwriting down the road.

Recently, I’ve begun to create a set of Fine Motor Activity Books for students.  Each pack is filled with thematic activities and workbook pages that will encourage fine motor movements throughout the month.  Here is a little peek inside our new Fine Motor Activity pack for September:

Thematic Mazes and Worksheet prompts:

Tracing pages and Geoboard pictures to make:

Thematic Play dough activity mats:

Pin & Poke Pictures:

Dab & Dot Mystery Pictures and more!

 

September Fine Motor Activity Book

Homeschool Dollar Deals

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Do you have a student that is learning to read?  Finding the best reading resources online can be hard.  While I love Pinterest and the ability to search out FREE products, sometimes it’s helpful just to pick up a small pack of worksheets to target a specific skill.

That is one of the reasons why we are offering small worksheet packs on EdZone.  These packs are pieced out from our most popular curriculum and can be used as a stand-alone resource to help your student reach a specific goal.

Best of all, these resources are priced much lower than a complete curriculum.  In fact, they are so low that we’ve created a Dollar Deals section on EdZone to make it easy for you to look through all of the products.  To prevent duplicate purchases, if a product is included in a larger curriculum it will be noted in the product description.

Shop Dollar Deals Here

Shop all EdZone Products Here

 

 

 

 

10 Places to SELL Your Used Homeschooling Curriculum

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What do you do with your used homeschooling curriculum after the semester is done? Each time you need to purchase new homeschooling curriculum, you also have old curriculum you need to get rid of. One of the best things you can do is to sell your used homeschooling curriculum, helping fund the next set you need to buy.

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Dollar Bin Homeschool Deals… Are They Really Worth It?

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These days, homeschooling on a budget means you look for every deal or discount you can. If something is free – you grab it. If something is a great deal – you stock up. So what about those dollar bin homeschool deals? You know – the little school supplies, notepads, and other trinkets you often find at the front of large megastores? Are they really worth it?…

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Thanksgiving Math & Literacy, Art, Science & More….

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Do you ever wish someone would just plan out your entire homeschool year for you….then maybe bundle it all up and email it to your inbox on Monday morning?
Yeah….me too.
Well, I don’t have an entire YEAR of curriculum to send you, but I do have something that will make your homeschool planning super easy this November.
SMART: Science, Math, Art, Reading & Take Home activities for Thanksgiving!  This helpful set is filled with a week’s worth of fun, educational math games, hands-on activities, science experiments, art projects, early readers, writing prompts and a Bible memory verse.  Everything you need to add a little holiday fun to your kindergarten classroom this year!
Thanksgiving Science: This set includes five simple science experiments and challenges.  Each thematic activity guides students through a fun, hands-on science exploration with very little prep-work.  Students work their way through the scientific method using the step-by-step science journals.  Each experiment includes a follow-up activity for added learning.
Thanksgiving Math: Each day students will play a fun game or activity then follow up their learning with a lesson sheet to show mastery. Games focus on learning to frame numbers to ten, basic addition, counting to 100, and counting by 10’s.
Thanksgiving ART: We include five stunning autumn art projects that are perfect for Thanksgiving.  Each project comes with a full photo tutorial, printable templates and easy to follow materials list.  Students work with oil pastels, paint, textures, blending and more.  
Thanksgiving Reading (and Writing): This set includes three early readers covering social studies and history.  Each story includes a carefully controlled word list and incorporates key vocabulary for extended learning.  Students are provided narrative and comparison writing prompts that are not only simple to follow, but would make wonderful educational keepsakes. 
Take Home/Review Work: T is for Take Home Review Sheets.  These sheets can be used as review work in the homeschool classroom or as homework in a standard classroom.  Each page features reading, writing, vocabulary, and scripture memorization activities. Character thinking points are available instead of Bible memory for those using this resource in a public school setting.
SMART: Science, Math, Art, Reading & Take Home activities for Thanksgiving!  This helpful set is filled with a week’s worth of fun, educational math games, hands-on activities, science experiments, art projects, early readers, writing prompts and a Bible memory verse.  Everything you need to add a little holiday fun to your kindergarten classroom this year!
 

Interactive Math Notebook for Kindergarten

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As a homeschooling mother of four, I know all about the daily math struggles.  I am currently using THREE different math programs in my classroom because each curriculum lends itself to a particular child and grade level.  Of course, this is one of the many benefits of homeschooling….picking and choosing the curriculum that will aid in the development of individual skills.

Now, my youngest child just graduated Kindergarten this past year and one of the things that helped us build his Math skills was a daily learning folder. This folder became our go-to resource for covering key skills in a fun, engaging way.  Each morning before his math lesson, he would pull out his folder and we’d verbally review different parts.  This was very unscripted and simply intended at a warm-up activity.  I would ask things like, “Find the number 55 on the hundreds chart,” or “What shape has four equal sides?” and he would use his folder to help solve the problem.  Let me tell you that this folder WORKS!  He quickly began to internalize and commit many key math concepts to memory and it only took about 5 minutes each morning. This was such a successful setup for our family so we wanted to be sure to include it in our new Interactive Math Curriculum:

Preview our newest Homeschool Math Curriculum Here

Our Interactive Math Notebook  is Comprehensive:

Interactive Math covers 4-days/week over 36-weeks and is a complete kindergarten math program.  Prior to starting, students should have a good foundation in number recognition and number names.  Over the course of the curriculum, students will learn number patterns, ordinal numbers, number value, addition, subtraction, counting by 2’s, 5’s, and 10’s, place value, number bonds and more.

Practical Math: Each month students will focus on practical math concepts to develop necessary life-skills.  These topics include counting money, telling time, using a ruler, estimating, reading a calendar and more.

Review Weeks: Review weeks cycle every 5 weeks and provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate mastery of concepts learned during the previous 4 weeks.  Online math games targeting each concept are suggested for some extra fun practice while assessing student skill level.  For more details please see the sample pages above or the chart below.

Our Interactive Math Notebook is FUN!:

Daily Warm Up Folder: Each day your student will review their daily warm up folder prior to starting any new lessons. This folder serves as a simple way to work on key math skills in small time chunks over the entire year. While we have teaching suggestions available, this is intended to be quick, unscripted time for you to connect with your student to cover key concepts.

Daily Lesson Worksheet

For each daily lesson, students receive an instructional worksheet covering a new concept or skill.  Students follow simple instructions to complete the activity.  As the week progresses, students build upon each specific skill with new and engaging activities. Each daily lesson is reinforced with a hands-on activity that prints on the back side of the page.

Daily Hands-on Activities & Games

For each daily lesson, students complete a hands-on activity page or game to reinforce the new concept or skill.  We’ve taken great care to make sure these games require minimal prep work and use supplies that you are likely to have on hand.

 

Our Interactive Math Notebook is Organized & Ready to Go!

No more endless hours spent on Pinterest searching for fun, hands-on printables to keep your students engaged! Interactive Math includes everything you need to teach over the entire year and it prints out in the exact order you need it.  With over 250+ pages, this set covers the following weekly topics:

Our Interactive Math Notebook is Engaging:

Best of all….Our Interactive Math Notebook is Inexpensive:

Interactive Math Curriculum Notebook

$25.00

Free Simple Homeschool Planning Pack

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This set of simple homeschooling resources is intended to help you simplify your goal setting, curriculum shopping and daily schedule.  Today, we are offering this small collection FREE for all of our newsletter subscribers.

Print Simple Homeschool Planning Pack Here

Homeschool Goals:  Sometime before you start your curriculum planning we suggest sitting down and writing out your goals for each student.  This doesn’t have to be detailed, it can be as simple as, “Get through 5th grade math.”  However, there may be subjects that you have more detailed answers for, “Develop empathy and self control.”  Doing this for each student is a great way to customize their education.

 

Homeschool Curriculum:  Print one page for each student and use this sheet to keep track of what products, resources and classes you’ll be using during the year to cover each subject.  Take this sheet with you to homeschool conventions and curriculum sales so you can always update and keep organized.

 

Homeschool Schedule:  This sheet is intended to be an independent planner for your students.  Print and add in your daily subjects and a photo of your student.  Laminate or store in a page protector then provide your student with a dry erase marker to keep track of their daily tasks. Encourage students to mark off the boxes as they complete each task.

 

Print our Free Homeschool Planning Pack Here

Still looking for Homeschool Curriculum?

Shop our eStore Here

Summer Reading for Middle School

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Have you ever wanted to join a Summer Reading Program for homeschoolers?  There are many available options if you know where to look.  Here is a helpful list of resources you can use to encourage your homeschool children to stay busy reading over the Summer:

  • Local Library
  • Local Bookstores (Barnes and Noble, Boards, etc..)
  • Pizza Hut Reading Program
  • Scholastic Books
  • Chuck-E-Cheese

Personally, I like to incentivize my own children with our own Summer Reading Charts!  This is what my middle schoolers will be doing over the Summer:

Want to join us?

Print your Free Homeschool Summer Reading Chart Here

 

 

Paragraph Writing Prompts

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Today we have a handy set of writing freebies to share with you! This collection includes five different writing prompts, each with fill-in-the-blank paragraph frames for students to fill in.  Across the top is room to draw in sequenced pictures of the story.

 

 

My Birthday: Paragraph Writing Prompt

A free kindergarten paragraph frame for students to complete. Children write about their birthday and draw sequenced images to match.

Field Trip: Paragraph Writing Prompt

A free kindergarten paragraph frame for students to complete. Children write about a field trip and draw sequenced images to match.

Favorite Relative: Paragraph Writing Prompt

A free kindergarten paragraph frame for students to complete. Children write about their favorite relative and draw sequenced images to match.

 

Park Trip: Paragraph Writing Prompt

A free kindergarten paragraph frame for students to complete. Children write about a trip to the park and draw sequenced images to match.

Animal: Paragraph Writing Prompt

A free kindergarten paragraph frame for students to complete. Children write about an animal and draw sequenced images to match.

 

Print Paragraph Writing Prompts Free from KindergartenMom.com

 

Looking for more?  Try our new How to Write a Paragraph Pack:

Scientific Method Charts for K-2

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Smart Start Science is a new and engaging series of Low-Prep, Hands-On experiments, and activities designed for K-2 students. This specific pack, “Scientific Method Anchor Charts” includes six posters displaying the parts of the scientific method. Both color and black and white are provided.

 

Scientific Method Posters
-Ask a Question “What is something you want to know?”
-Research “Find information about your question.”
-Hypothesis “Take your best guess to answer the question.”
-Test your Hypothesis “Experiment with and test your hypothesis.
-Analyze Results “Organize your data to see what it means.”
-Report “Share your data with other scientists.”

Black and White versions are provided as well.  These can be used as coloring pages, or printed onto colored paper for classroom displays.  These would be fantastic when printed smaller to make flashcards to small booklets for children to take home.

 

Smart Start Science: Scientific Method Anchor Charts

Shape of the Week Program

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Shape-of-the-Week covers 10 different shapes over a 10-week period.  Each week includes 4-days of activities and hands-on learning designed to keep little minds engaged.  This curriculum is print-&-go, meaning you can print it out, place it in a three-ring binder, and everything is presented in the order needed during the 10-week program.  Best of all this set coordinates with our Letter of the Week Alphabet Curriculum!

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  • Circles
  • Squares
  • Triangles
  • Ovals
  • Rectangles
  • Trapezoids
  • Diamonds (Optional Rhombus Alternative)
  • Hexagons
  • Hearts
  • Stars

 

Monday:

Shape Chart:  Introduce students to the shape of the week with a colorful chart that features the shape attributes. We suggest laminating these charts and hanging them in the classroom or on a morning board.

Shape Maze:  A fun shape maze for students to build small motor control and problem solving skills. Students learn about the shape’s symmetry and complete a dot-to-dot activity.

Tuesday:

Shape Trace:  Students practice tracing and drawing their shapes.  Encourage students to use different colors for each shape and to do their best to stay on the lines.  This is a great activity to build fine-motor skills.

Shape Playdough Mat:  A simple way to get students working with their hands. We recommend laminating the playdough mats so they can be used over and over again.  Students roll out the play dough and form it into the shape.

Wednesday

Shape Find:  Students practice visual discrimination skills as they hunt for shapes. Each picture features engaging graphics for children to seek and find their shapes hidden throughout the scene.

Shape Craftivity:  A fun cut and paste activity featuring the shape of the week.  These are super simple and very low-prep often only requiring construction paper and glue.  Students work on key scissor skills as they build scenes on their paper.

Thursday:

Draw a Shape:  This is a fun worksheet page for children to learn to draw different objects using this same shape.

Shape Dab-&-Dot: A fun hands-on on activity to build shapes.  Provide students with bingo daubers, stickers, small stamps, coins, or any other tactile manipulative to fill in their shape.

 

Shape Sort Game:  This weekly game can be printed and added to each week. Children choose an image and identify which shape is featured and place it onto the correct sorting mat.  This game can be played as multiplayer with each student choosing a shape mat and placing the cards upside down in the center.  Students take turns drawing a card and the first one to fill up their shape board wins.

There are so many fun activities for children in this set:

Shape of the Week Program

4 Days a Week for 10 Weeks

Coordinates with our Letter of the Week Program

Kindergarten Science Curriculum

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If there is one thing I’ve learned in my 9 years of homeschooling it’s that Science doesn’t have to be daunting….it really doesn’t!  That is why I’m thrilled to announce the release of a brand new series called, “Smart Start Science.”
Experiments for St. Patrick’s Day
Smart Start Science is a new and engaging series of Low-Prep, Hands-On experiments and activities designed for K-2 students. This specific pack, “Experiments for St. Patrick’s Day” includes five complete experiments and follow up activities that are sure to add a little color to your classroom.
St. Patrick’s Day Experiments:
-Cultivating Clovers (Plant & Life Cycle)
-Traveling Rainbow (Capilary Action & Color Mixing)
-How Much Gold Can One Boat Hold (Engineering & Data Graphing)
-Lucky Scoop (Prediction, Graphing and Data Analysis)
-Super Shiny Coins (Chemical Mixing & Reactions)
Experiment #1: Cultivating Clovers
Students plant their own pot of clovers, track growth and learn the plant life-cycle.
Experiment #2: The Traveling Rainbow
With this super simple experiment children learn about capillary action and color mixing.
Experiment #3
 Students build three different boats and put them to the test.
The boat that holds the most gold wins!
Experiment # 4: Super Shiny Gold
Leprechauns want their gold super shiny and this experiment will lead students through a test to see which chemicals will react together to make the perfect cleaning solution.
Experiment #5: Lucky Scoop
Students estimate and graph how many lucky marshmallows they find in their scoop!
Smart Start Science Curriculum Overview:

For each experiment you’ll be provided with the following teaching resources:

Experiment Overview & Steps:
This sheet features a full color photo example of the experiment, skills in focus, materials list and step by step instructions for completing the experiment.

Pre-Experiment Journal Page:
Students gather materials, form questions and develop a hypothesis.

Data & Conclusion Journal Page:
Students track their data or draw their procedure and write in their final conclusion.

Follow Up Activity:
Each experiment includes a unique activity to follow up the experiment. Many are hands-on, fun and relatable projects, games or handouts for students to try at home.

BONUS Appendix:
6 Full Color Charts outlining the Scientific Method
6 Black and White Coloring Pages of the Scientific Method

Experiments for St. Patrick’s Day
ENTER TO WIN!
We’re giving away 5 copies to 5 lucky winners!