It
can be one of the harder decisions, once you've decided that you're
moving forward with homeschooling. Should you purchase a box
curriculum or should you try and put one together on your own?
First,
let me say that with so many homeschooling families there is a wealth
of information that you can gather from books and searches online.
Starting from scratch is actually not something you have to do
anymore for there are families doing just what you want to do who
have already started down the road in creating the resources or at
least cataloging them where you can find them with some ease.
So
I guess the choice may be between piecing things together to match
your family's needs, interests, and goals or finding a full boxed
curriculum that has already done this.
Here's
where having your goals, an idea about what homeschooling method
might work for your family and your children's learning styles can
make choosing a curriculum much easier. (Yes, all this work is
paying off!)
Curriculum
companies usually share their methodology and in looking at their
scope and sequence you can see what things are covered quickly.
Online sites are very attractive, so don't get too caught up into the
"look and feel" of the site. Find out who writes the
curriculum and what their world view is. (There are companies for
Christian and Secular World Views.)
Once
you identify a curriculum that meets your family's goals (or comes
close), consider purchasing that curriculum used. Many homeschooling
families sell their curriculum so they can purchase the next level
the following year. Due to this you can find many nearly new items
for sell at very reasonable prices. You can find these used
curriculum sales online throughout the year and in person in both the
Fall and Spring of a year.
Should
you want a more uniquely designed curriculum for your family, you can
start by searching homeschool blogs or asking other homeschoolers in
your network as to what they're doing/using. This is a great way to
get first hand information and feedback on potential curriculum
options and where to find resources. I belong to several groups
online and have found many awesome resources—some I'll be using
this year—along with detailed recommendations and examples of how
others have implemented them.
Using
your goals and children's interests as a guide, you can put together
a year's worth of learning based just on these. I'd suggest getting
to know your librarian and using her/him to find out just what free
and nearly free resources are available. You may be surprised at
just what you can find through the library system. Asking your
family members, friends, neighbors and others in your network for
connections and resources they may have access to that can benefit
your homeschooling year is advised as well. (This is a great way to
get others involved and supportive of what you're doing.)
Keeping
your eyes open for local events in your area, festivals, museums,
concerts, etc. can also give you ideas of ways to use what you have
around you to add to and supplement your homeschooling curriculum.
As
you can see, there is really no limit to what you can find to use in
homeschooling your family. Whether you ultimately decide to go with
a boxed curriculum, piece something together yourself (or with the
help of others) or do a combination of both, remember that you are
your child's teacher. Whenever something needs to be adjusted to
assist your child/ren in learning—do it.
Wishing
you well as you figure things out for your family!
(To
read previous steps click here.)
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