Our Homeschool Curriculum
I’m a little late in posting this, but as the school year is coming to a close, I wanted to wrap things up by sharing what we used in 2017 and 2018. I’ll be sharing full reviews on individual items mentioned here, but for now, here is a quick summary!
Olivia – 1st Grade
The older kids used a lot of web-based curriculum options that don’t start until 3rd grade. Olivia’s 1st grade curriculum was pieced together with hard copy books as well as some digital learning resource. We relied heavily on Sonlight history and literature as well as a lot of overlap with things she learned alongside her older siblings!
- Horizons Math 1
- Explode the Code phonics mastery
- Beyond the Code reading comprehension and reasoning
- Write Through the Bible handwriting
- Sonlight Curriculum Historical Readers and Literature
- Community Soccer – Fall
- Art 101 – Fall
- IXL.com (math, language arts, science, social studies, Spanish)
Taylor – 4th Grade
We based most of Taylor’s curriculum around Monarch, which is a streaming web-based curriculum. We used several hard copy workbooks and readers that supplemented the computer based learning.
- Monarch Science
- Monarch History and Geography
- Monarch Language Arts
- Monarch Bible
- Teaching Textbooks Math
- Sonlight Curriculum Historical Readers and Literature
- Write Through the Bible Handwriting
- Explode the Code Phonics
- Just Write Creative Writing
- Word Play: Write Your Own Crazy Comics 1
- IXL.com (math, language arts, science, social studies, Spanish)
- Drum Lessons – Fall/Winter/Spring
- Community Soccer – Fall
- Art 101 – Fall
Carissa – 5th Grade
Carissa moved in with us near the 4th quarter of the school year. Because we had purchased the family membership for Monarch, we were able to get her started right away at her 5th grade level.
- Monarch Science
- Monarch History and Geography
- Monarch Language Arts
- Monarch Bible
- Teaching Textbooks Math
- Sonlight Curriculum Historical Readers and Literature
- Write Through the Bible Handwriting
- Just Write
- IXL.com (math, language arts, science, social studies, Spanish)
Natalie – 6th Grade
Natalie’s curriculum was also based mostly on Monarch. We use Teaching Textbooks math instead of Monarch math because it’s so good and we love it. We supplemented with hard copy workbooks and activities.
- Monarch Science
- Monarch History and Geography
- Monarch Language Arts
- Monarch Bible
- Teaching Textbooks Math
- Sonlight Curriculum Historical Readers and Literature
- Write Through the Bible Handwriting
- Wordsmith: Writing Excellence
- Word Play: Write Your Own Crazy Comics 2
- IXL.com (math, language arts, science, social studies, Spanish)
- Piano Lessons – Fall/Winter/Spring
- Art 101: Fall
Additional Learning Experiences
In addition to the things listed here, our family also took several trips and participated in service projects, read books and wrote reports on the things we learned. As homeschoolers, we’re always looking for ways to learn and enrich our knowledge of the world and other cultures! Here are just a few of the things we did this past year:
- Legoland Field Trip
- Sea Life Aquarium Field Trip
- Greenfield Village Field Trip
- Nankin Mills Field Trip
- Served food at homeless shelter in Detroit
- Collected food and household items for homeless families in Detroit
- Weekly church involvement and church hosted service projects
- Homeschool skate days at Riverside Arena
- Camping in Mackinaw City and Visit to Mackinac Island
- Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park
- Trip to New York City
- Studied the history of the Brooklyn Bridge and read books on crime in Brooklyn through the years
- Walked around Brooklyn and across the Brooklyn Bridge
- Trip to South Carolina
- Field Trip to Alligator Adventure, studied marine life and ocean conservancy
- Trip to California
- Studied the life of Walt Disney and wrote report on Disney
- Visited Disneyland in Anaheim and the Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco
- Saw the Golden Gate Bridge and other points of interest in San Francisco
- Visited Muir Woods National Park
- Trip to Hawaii
- Studied the history of first natives to the Hawaiian Islands and about Hawaiian culture, first Christian missionaries to Hawaii and their impact on Hawaiian way of life
- Learned about marine life and ocean conservancy
- Studied about Pear Harbor
- Learned how to make lei and helped make lei to place on graves at veterans cemetery
- Attended Memorial Day service at veterans cemetery
- Hiked to bamboo forest and Waimoku Falls at Haleakala National Park
