This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Homeschool+. I was compensated for my time, but this is an honest review and all opinions are my own.
Learning online is a popular choice for many homeschool families. With so many options available, it’s important to use a program that works for my family. I recently discovered Homeschool+ online learning program. For busy or overwhelmed moms, this program offers a boatload of benefits!
What Is Homeschool+ Online Learning Program?
Homeschool+ is an all-in-one online learning program from Age of Learning (also the creators of ABCmouse and Adventure Academy). It’s designed for children ages 4-8, or PreK-2nd grade. The program offers three unique parts:
- My Math Academy
- My Reading Academy
- Arts, Sciences, and General Knowledge.
My Math Academy
This program is an adaptive learning program. When my daughter first started, the program provided activities to assess her level of knowledge of math. It’s all completed through game-based learning, so she was unaware of being assessed. After the assessment, the program provides lessons and activities that are customized to meet her needs.
My Reading Academy
This program is also an adaptive learning program. The program assessed my daughter’s level of familiarity with letters and words through various activities. It progresses accordingly, based on what she does and doesn’t know. The program is designed to take your child to full reading comprehension.
Arts, Sciences, and General Knowledge
This part of the program includes 12 separate courses that include:
- Science Experiments & Demonstrations
- Animals & Habitats I & II
- Systems of the Human Body
- Think Like a Scientist
- Grammar & Writing
- Community Citizenship I & II
- Cultures & Places to Explore
- Maps & Landmarks
- Art: Colors & Shapes
- First Spanish Words
Each course contains 15-20 lessons and also has a printable offline lesson plan to accompany the online lesson. This is a fantastic feature! Not only does it allow her to complete work offline, but it provides additional learning that I can direct as the parent.
Why Homeschool+ Offline Lesson Plans Are Helpful
Offline lesson plans are a key part of the Homeschool+ online learning program that I really like. As a busy mom homeschooling three kids, ready-made homeschool plans are a gift. (Less time planning=more time for self-care!)
Other than needing to gather a few resources, all the work is done for you! Here are a few other benefits:
1-A Break From the Computer
I want to limit the amount of time my student is looking at screens each day. Also, kids need to get up and move to expend their boundless energy, right? The offline lesson plans allow her to continue learning without being at the computer.
2-Hands-On Learning Opportunities
Young children love learning creatively through various types of activities. Some of the hands-on learning we’re using through the offline lesson plans include art projects, science experiments, and discussion.
One lesson we enjoyed was part of the Science Experiments & Demonstrations course. She was learning about reaction times, signals to our brains, and transmission of those signals to our arms and legs. We conducted our experiment with a ruler to measure her reaction time. We had a good deal of laughs, and her older brother even joined in on the fun.
3-Direct Parent Involvement
You can do as little or as much of the offline lesson plan as you want, however, Homeschool+ does recommend using the lesson plans to enhance learning. There are modifications given for students who are beginning learners, or more advanced learners.
I find that the plans help me feel more aware of the topics my daughter is discovering. I’m also more of a participant in her learning, which can sometimes be a challenge when a student is learning through online teaching.
The Benefits of Homeschool+ Online Learning Program
Homeschool+ Is Fun And Engaging
My daughter enjoys Homeschool+ because the activities for learning are varied and interesting: games, puzzles, stories, videos, art activities, and more. I was impressed by the variety of modalities used to keep things fresh and fun.
The various characters, teachers, or guides that appear throughout the courses are diverse, friendly, cheerful, and engaging. The music is upbeat and happy.
The math and reading portions allow students to earn prizes after completing lessons. There’s even a little dance party after the day’s math lesson. My daughter loves these aspects because it celebrates her accomplishments each day.
Homeschool+ is Customizable
With Homeschool+ reading and math, lesson time is adjustable in five-minute increments. This allowed me to change the recommended time for my 1st grader from 20 minutes to 15 minutes. However, if I feel she needs more time in the future, I can change it for just that day, or permanently.
The online lesson planner also lets me customize her lessons. While math and reading are established for each day and adapt to each child, there is flexibility to move any of the other courses around. For example, my daughter loves Cultures and Places to Explore. I can assign that course more than once a week if I prefer.
If a lesson doesn’t work for your student you can remove it. You can also add more lessons to any day. There’s no need to worry about missing a lesson either. We had several days of sickness when we didn’t have school, but no lessons were missed. The program automatically moves them for me.
Homeschool+ Allows You To Track Your Child’s Progress
I don’t know any parent who doesn’t want to see how their child’s learning is progressing. The feature I like most in the progress tracker is the Lesson Details. You can view the details of lessons for My Math Academy, My Reading Academy, and Art, Sciences, and General Knowledge separately.
I value seeing the title of the activity, a brief description of what was learned, and whether it was a video, book, art activity, etc. Within math and reading, I can see what she knows, what’s in progress, and what needs extra support. Finally, I can even view the actual activity she completed right there in the lesson planner!
Homeschool+ Is Simple to Start Using
I’m busy and don’t want to spend a long time (or too much brain power) learning how a program works. Video tutorials helped explain the program, and setting up the program was super easy.
After entering my child’s name and month and year of birth, a default schedule was automatically suggested. My Math Academy and My Reading Academy are recommended Monday through Friday. Here I was able to customize the time.
Then, the remaining courses are divided up through the week. A sample schedule from two weekdays looks like this:
Monday
- My Reading Academy
- My Math Academy
- Animals and Habitats II
- Grammar and Writing
Tuesday
- My Reading Academy
- My Math Academy
- Systems of the Human Body
- Maps and Landmarks
What My First Grader Says About Homeschool+
My daughter truly enjoys using Homeschool+. Some days she even asks to start school without my suggestion! When I asked what she likes most about Homeschool+, here’s what made the list:
- Earning prizes in math
- Dance party upon completion of math and reading lessons
- Cultures and Places to Explore course
- Art projects
- Puzzle activities
- Patty Paints character
- Professor Hester from Think Like a Scientist
- All of the stories
- Community helpers lessons
How We Use Homeschool+ Online Learning Program
Typically, I log my daughter into the program each day, allowing her to choose what courses and lessons to complete first. She works at the dining room table, while I make breakfast and clean up. I’m able to supervise her and am available for help, but am also free to tend to the puppy or assist her older brothers.
There are frequent pauses for puppy time, snacks, or Morning Time, an important part of our homeschool. We still have time for read-alouds, picture books, special holiday art projects, or even baking together. I believe learning doesn’t just happen at the table. This program allows time for table learning and life learning.
Should I try Homeschool+ Online Learning Program?
As a busy mom, this program allows me to know my daughter is learning AND enjoying it, even if I’m not doing all the teaching myself.. As homeschoolers, we like flexibility, too. Because it’s online, there’s the freedom to take it with you wherever you go.
If you’re concerned the program might not meet all the learning requirements for your state, all the topics covered are available for parents. Should anything be missing for your student, this could easily be covered with a book from the library.
Ultimately, sometimes we’re in life seasons that leave us drained and overwhelmed. With an all-in-one online program like Homeschool+, you don’t need to spend hours piecing together a curriculum or creating lesson plans. No deciding at the last minute what you’re going to learn with your child today.
Does that sound like a relief already?
Be sure to visit Homeschool+ to get all the details of this delightful program.
If fun and engaging online learning that offers flexibility for your homeschool life (without the overwhelm and stress) sounds amazing, give Homeschool+ Online Learning Program a try!