As the summer sun begins to wane, it’s time once again for me to make homeschool curriculum choices! I’m excited to share with you what I’ve carefully handpicked for the upcoming school year. Whether you’re a seasoned homeschooler or just starting out, I hope a peek into my curriculum selections for this year will prove helpful on your own homeschool journey.

Let’s dive in!

How I Choose Our Curriculum

I love reading posts about what other moms use in their homeschools for different grades. Especially when I’m homeschooling that same grade. Many times, I’ll discover a curriculum I didn’t know existed, or something that works well with my budget. 

However, I am careful to also remember that what works in their homeschool may not work in mine. Thus, I never just blindly order that product without doing my own research first.

As you read through these choices, you may find something you haven’t heard of before or considered using, but I encourage you to review it through blog reviews, product samples, or watching a flip-through on YouTube. 

Currently, I haven’t completed any blog review posts for the curriculum choices I’ve made this year with the exception of CTCMath and the Generous Family Homeschool Curriculum Kit (which we’re using during our Morning Time, but I’ll make a separate post about that).

If I do create future reviews for any of this curriculum, I will be sure to update this post. Now, onto the curriculum choices!

Homeschool Curriculum for 2nd, 8th, and 10th Grade

2nd Grade Homeschool Curriculum Choices

Handwriting

• Handwriting Without Tears: I’ve used this curriculum for all my kids. My 2nd grader (and last child to be homeschooled! 😭) will complete Printing Power this year. I like the simplicity and ease of use. We do 1-2 pages a day; just a simple 5 or 10 minutes is sufficient.

Social studies, language arts, applied math, science, life skills

• Five in a Row Vol 2 (FIAR): This year, I’m deviating from what I’ve done previously with my two sons, and have decided to use this for 2nd grade instead of Ambleside Online (AO).

I still love many things about AO, but I also love FIAR and using picture books to cover these curriculum areas. It was a difficult decision for me, however, I want to cherish our time together in the best way possible, and I felt that FIAR would be the best direction for her this year.

Math

• Five in a Row: FIAR does suggest one lesson a week in applied math, which includes math concepts using manipulatives or games, pretend play, etc.

• Math Lessons for a Living Education: For our daily math work I will be using Math Lessons for a Living Education (MLFLE) Grade 2. I used MLFLE with my older sons as well, and I love that the lessons are short and sweet in a Charlotte Mason-inspired way. 

My older two are using CTCMath again this year, and because a CTCMath membership gives access to all the grades, my 2nd grader will use CTCMath periodically. However, I wanted to have a workbook on hand so we can do math whenever we need to.

As her older brothers are using our two computers quite a bit for their school work, it can be hard to find a window of time for her to use a computer, too.

Science

• Five in a Row: This curriculum provides science lesson ideas with each accompanying picture book. Occasionally, I’ll hunt out other science books that correspond with that week’s particular science topic, or topics that she expresses interest in. 

My favorite places to look for science books are the Living Science Booklists at Simply Charlotte Mason and Let’s Read and Find Out Science books.

• Burgess Bird Book: We started reading this last year, and I’ll continue reading a chapter a week while she colors the bird coloring sheet to go with it. She’s making her own bird notebook, and I want her to have that keepsake. We also take one day a week for nature sketching. 

Art/Music

It’s a bit of a hodgepodge of things for art and music, and I’ll use these items as needed.

• Five in a Row: Again, this curriculum includes a suggested art lesson with each picture book, so I’ll use those if it’s a good fit.

• Draw Write Now and Step-by-step Drawing: Animals: These two books my daughter can use on her own, typically while I’m in the shower, going for a run, or making lunch, etc. I love having these on hand! 

• Art for Kids Hub: Because I’m all about simple and easy homeschool art ideas, we will also use Art for Kids Hub. Why do I include this for art? The instructor in these videos is fun and cheerful, and usually draws alongside his kids. There are many different choices of what you can draw, and it’s a nice change of pace to draw along with a video.

• Music lessons: My daughter has wanted to take piano lessons for a while, and I just haven’t made it happen. I can play piano and teach her myself, so we’ll try that route first using the Piano Adventures series.

We’ll see how it goes with her taking piano instruction from her mom! The biggest challenge will be establishing a set time to do this, and helping her set aside time for practice. This is an experiment in the works, to say the least!

8th Grade Homeschool Curriculum Choices

History

• Uncle Sam and You: Honestly, I’m primarily using this curriculum because it was given to me. A free curriculum is the best! I’ve heard good things about Notgrass, though, so I’m excited to give it a try.

I usually combine the history for all my kids as I’m a big fan of combing subjects when possible. Last year we did so using Beautiful Feet Books Ancient History. Since my high schooler is studying economics and government this year, they can be somewhat on the same page. We’ll then combine history again next year, too.

Math

• CTCMath: We first started using this program for 9th grade (Algebra!) and 7th grade. Because I love it, and the kids are happy with it, we’re continuing it for this school year. If you’ve never considered using an online math program, you can read more about the perks in the post 5 Reasons to Try An Online Math Curriculum.

Language Arts

• Learning Language Arts Through Literature (gray book): I’ve never used this program before, but have read many good things about it. Last year we used separate writing and grammar programs. 

I don’t feel like Easy Grammar Plus worked well for my 8th grader. I’m hoping this switch will be a good fit. I also like that it takes a Charlotte Mason approach to learning language arts.

• Teaching Writing With Picture Books (Our Westward Journey): I’m intrigued with trying this out! I adore picture books, so the possibility of continuing to use them sounds fantastic. I’ve been reading Cindy’s numerous blog posts about how to use picture books to teach various writing skills. She even has a Masterclass about it! If possible, I’ll update you in the future about how this goes!

Spelling

• All About Spelling (AAS): We will finish up Level 5, which we started last year. We’ve used this for several years, and his spelling has greatly improved. I attribute it to the approach this program uses, and his continued reading of great books. This summer he finished the Lord of the Rings Trilogy!

Science

• Everything You Need to Ace Science in One Big Fat Notebook: This is not a traditional science text, and most people might use it in a supplemental way. However, it hits on key topics for middle school science. To make the most of his learning, I will have him notebook what he’s learned in each chapter. We will discuss concepts using the quizzes at the end of each chapter as well. I just plan to borrow this from the local library to save money.

In addition to the above, I plan to have him read a few great science reads including Ordinary Genius: The Story of Albert Einstein and The Mystery of the Periodic Table. 

Geography

• Seterra: We’ll continue using the free, online version of Seterra for geography. 

Art/Music

• Exploring Art Media: I’ll have my 8th grader progress through this book at his own pace, selecting projects of interest. He did tell me he wants to study more about drawing people and animals, so we’ll look for those projects first, and perhaps investigate other books during the year.

• Music Lessons: As with my daughter, my 13-year-old also wants to learn piano and/or guitar. I’m still not sure if I’ll outsource piano or not, but I definitely don’t play guitar! He tried using a self-teach method for guitar a few years ago, and while it was an okay experience, I know he’ll learn more from formal instruction.

Foreign Language

• Getting Started with Spanish: My son started this last year, and will continue spending about 15 minutes per day with the book. Lessons are straightforward and slowly build upon one another. We also used this program for Latin. We really like it!

• Duolingo: We’ve been using Duolingo for several years now, and will continue this year, spending about 15-20 minutes per day with this free, online learning platform. They also have a great podcast in Spanish that I listen to from time to time!

10th Grade Homeschool Curriculum Choices

I can’t believe the child I first started homeschooling will be in 10th grade this year! 😥 Every year, the homeschool curriculum choices tend to pave the way for what I will use with the younger ones. I told him he’s my homeschool guinea pig of sorts! 

History

• Exploring Government and Exploring Economics: These books from Notgrass are what I finally landed on to achieve his .5 credit in government and .5 credit in economics. I didn’t want anything that was bone dry and dull. I like the options for extra student packs that include quizzes and a review of the materials. I also like the suggestion of good living books that can accompany the material and use original source documents to expand learning. Hopefully, I can review these for you afterward!

Math

• CTCMath: Again, we used this program last year for Algebra. I think it does a great job teaching math for me. Just a perk of using an online math program. 

Language Arts

• Movies as Literature: I saw this product a few years ago, and it just sounded so fun that I decided we had to give it a try. As the title suggests, movies are used to teach literature concepts. Writing assignments are incorporated as well. Because there are essentially “extension” activities, it can be used as an Honors English course.

• Easy Grammar Plus: A basic, simple grammar book that worked well for my 10th grader last year, so we’ll continue to use it. 

• SAT Practice: Khan Academy offers official SAT practice, so I plan to spend a bit of time delving into this fun stuff (haha)!

Foreign Language

• Universal Language Acquisition Tool (ULAT): We started this program Freshman year and will continue this year. ULAT takes a bit of a different approach to learning language. However, we tried the first 15 lessons for free, then decided to purchase the one-year plan. You can use it with multiple students.

Although the creator of ULAT recommends just oral and visual learning for Spanish initially, I think it’s valuable to see things in writing too. 

So, in addition to making his own vocabulary cards based on what he was learning with ULAT Spanish, we also use Easy Spanish Reader, Complete Spanish Step-by-Step, and 501 Spanish verbs. I think they round out his Spanish studies well.

Science

• Homeschool Chemistry 101: Of all the homeschool curriculum choices for 2023-2024, this was the one that distressed me the most! I know Chemistry can be a difficult subject.

Because my son will not be entering a career requiring a strong foundation in science, I decided to go with a less aggressive program. Homeschool Chemistry 101 seems to fit the bill.

I found How to Teach Out-of-The-Box Homeschool High School Chemistry to be a super helpful article to help me create our own Chemistry class. 

If you’re looking for something non-traditional and aren’t concerned with the math aspect, I will say I was so intrigued by Guest Hollow’s Chemistry in the Kitchen! Just a look at the reading list alone gave me some fantastic resources and ideas. 

If possible, I would love to throw in a couple of the books from that list this year to keep things interesting and practical. How sad that high school chemistry was simply a class I HAD to complete for my college prep track. No connections were made to how chemistry plays a role in our everyday lives. I don’t want to lose that piece for my kids!

• Carbon Chemistry: I plan to use this in addition to Homeschool Chemistry 101, and will have Everything You Need to Ace Chemistry in One Big Fat Notebook as a supplement if necessary (again, just borrowing it from the library to help our curriculum budget!)

Fine Arts

• Intro to Graphic Design: I’ll put this course together from scratch. I’ve ordered a few books from the library, and we’ll see where it goes. This will be a .5 credit class, and next semester will be another .5 credits in art or music. 

Still Planning Your Homeschool Curriculum?

If you’re still in planning mode, be sure to get these curriculum planning pages. You can print one for each student, and jot down curriculum ideas, notes, and other resources you plan to use for the school year. Additionally, there is a curriculum comparison worksheet to help you compare prices of your curriculum choices across various vendors to make sure you’re finding the lowest price!

Conclusion

There you have it! Our homeschool curriculum choices for the 2023-2024 school year. As we gear up for another year, I’m excited for our future learning adventures. I believe these carefully chosen curricula cover what we need to learn while respecting how my kids learn best.

Homeschooling is an ever-changing journey, and flexibility is key. While these curriculum choices form the backbone of our plan, I will be open to adjusting and tailoring them as needed during the year. 

I hope my sharing this information with you is helpful for your own planning. Here’s to a happy and successful school year!

How about you? Have you made your curriculum choices for next school year yet? Let me know in the comments!