5 Homeschool Curriculum Choices I Would Never Use
Homeschooling is becoming increasingly popular as parents look for more control over their children’s education. With so many curriculum choices available, it can be difficult to decide which one is best for your family. While there are many great options, there are also some that I would never use. Here are five homeschool curriculum choices I would never use.
1. Abeka
Abeka is a popular Christian-based homeschool curriculum that is used by many families. While I appreciate the religious aspect of the curriculum, I find that it is too rigid and structured for my family. The curriculum is very focused on memorization and rote learning, which I believe can be detrimental to a child’s learning. Additionally, the curriculum is very expensive and can be difficult to customize to fit the needs of your family.
2. Saxon Math
Saxon Math is another popular homeschool curriculum choice. While I appreciate the focus on problem-solving and critical thinking, I find that the curriculum is too repetitive and can be boring for students. Additionally, the curriculum is very expensive and can be difficult to customize to fit the needs of your family.
3. K12
K12 is an online homeschool curriculum that is used by many families. While I appreciate the convenience of the online format, I find that the curriculum is too rigid and structured for my family. Additionally, the curriculum is very expensive and can be difficult to customize to fit the needs of your family.
4. Time4Learning
Time4Learning is an online homeschool curriculum that is used by many families. While I appreciate the convenience of the online format, I find that the curriculum is too rigid and structured for my family. Additionally, the curriculum is very expensive and can be difficult to customize to fit the needs of your family.
5. A Beka Book
A Beka Book is a popular Christian-based homeschool curriculum that is used by many families. While I appreciate the religious aspect of the curriculum, I find that it is too rigid and structured for my family. The curriculum is very focused on memorization and rote learning, which I believe can be detrimental to a child’s learning. Additionally, the curriculum is very expensive and can be difficult to customize to fit the needs of your family.
Homeschooling is a great way to give your children the education they deserve. With so many curriculum choices available, it can be difficult to decide which one is best for your family. While there are many great options, there are also some that I would never use. The five homeschool curriculum choices I would never use are Abeka, Saxon Math, K12, Time4Learning, and A Beka Book.
FAQs
What are the benefits of homeschooling?
The benefits of homeschooling include more control over your child’s education, more flexibility in scheduling, and the ability to customize the curriculum to fit your child’s needs.
What are some of the drawbacks of homeschooling?
Some of the drawbacks of homeschooling include the cost of curriculum, the lack of socialization opportunities, and the time commitment required to homeschool.
What are some good homeschool curriculum choices?
Some good homeschool curriculum choices include Oak Meadow, Sonlight, and Teaching Textbooks.
We are a UK non religious family and we home educate. My daughter uses G&tb maths and this is her 2nd yr. She loves it and is doing great. We love the fact it is wishy-washy religious as we just skip those bits.
I do most of Abeka and it is a lot but so far in 6st grade, no problem. I may be the odd ball here🤪 I am doing Generations for history and Apologia for science for her 7th grade year. I guess different strokes for different folks and it greatly depends on each kid. I still enjoy watching everyone's opinions and still am a loyal watcher😉Many of these moms gave me the courage to homeschool in the first place. ❤
I am not a fan of TGAB and switched my kids off it, but then found that for one of my kids it actually worked better than Beast Academy and IEW so we're back to it for language arts and math for her. My 4 year old also uses it when he wants to do lessons. The new earlier years are excellent imo but the later years were not ideal. Way too much practise work for a kid who grasps concepts quickly and I could imagine for a child having trouble it'd be overwhelming. Definitely not got a lot in it re integrating God into topics, but I like that given how different an LDS ("Mormon") view point is to a Christian's (Ex-LDS Christian here)
Love your honesty!
We use TGTB and it's working for now😊 (We also supplement and change a few things around).
That's the beauty of homeschool. You use what works for your family ❤
Your videos have been such a blessing to my family, I'm constantly sharing them with others😘
Keep up the great work!
We started with Abeka; It was crushing my little girls spirit.
Thanks for this video, I’m enjoying your channel!
I’m curious if you’re familiar with Rightstart Math, which is what I’m using for a second year now. I know it’s also a bit different than the way math is usually taught in the US. Have you noticed kids having an issue transitioning out of Rightstart?
What about Saxon math?
I'm team Abeka for Arithmetic only. I could never do it all. It's so much work! This year we tried another math curriculum and we'll be going back to Abeka for next year school year. TGTB has an appeal because it's open and go and they offer Lang. Arts and Math as a free download. I'm currently phasing out using TGTB simply because it isn't serving our family anymore. I can see holes in my oldest's language arts education. We'll be using IEW from now on.
I don’t understand why people use curriculum to teach their faith. For that use the Bible. The Christian families that have no other option than to send their kids to Public school are not expecting their curriculum to teach about their faith, they teach that at home with the Bible.
Personally I would never count on a LA curriculum or Math curriculum to teach our Christian faith. I do use TGTB for academics only, definitely not to teach about faith. It just isn’t there for that imo. However, it does awesome in teaching what it says it does which is LA, Math ,and science. Although I do prefer EIW for writing instruction. 😊
Do you think supplementing would help when it comes to MathUSee?
I agree with this video. I tried the Good and the Beautiful because of all the hype and was totally not into it. Neither were my kids. I find it weird when curriculum tells parents what to say, like word for word. Just not my style and I agree with watered down.
We had very good experiences with T4L (limited to math) and my husband used Ace in school and absorbed it like a sponge. I've taught Abeka and I guess I understand why it's so popular in schools. It's so, well, standardized! Lol! You don't need to actually plan anything. What I think all of these have in common is they really only fit into more unique situations, like families who are fine with the 100% computer learning of T4L, or when parent and child share a penchant for details and linear thought, so Abeka seems to work fine. Or, a child who is really, sincerely motivated to learn will find Ace very rewarding. But none of that describes most homeschool families. Good list and good feedback!
Good and beautiful does not work for my family.
Your hair is absolutely beautiful on you! LOVE that length!
Agree with all you said add Life Pac
We use MUS. But we also live in a state where testing is not required, so I'm happy using it at our pace for me kids to master different math topics. I thought you did a great job explaining why you don't use these curriculums. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Any thoughts on Monarch all in one for first time homeschooling 5th grade?
My older daughter loves the Abeka earth science but my younger child would hate it! Too much info! My older daughter thrives on too much info lol
Sis, I know this is off-topic however I want you to watch Shust Home Devos #17. It is about their journey with their son Michael who has Downs Syndrome.
I just don't like the way you talk about TGTB.
Agree 100%. I've tried and researched so many things. I have commitment issues as well 😂 Didn't love TGTB and Math U See wouldn't work. I prefer spiral.. especially with ADHD children. I also believe in personalizing curriculums per my children's individual learning styles. I also realized that with 5 children, we are not a "fluff" kind of family.
I'm a little surprised to see MUS on your list since it is so popular in the ADHD groups. I had definitely heard before that standardized testing can be an issue since the skills are taught in a different order (but that wasn't our personal experience).
So interesting that I’m pretty sure we use mostly different curriculum from what you use but I agree with your comments on the ones you would never use. Can’t wait to see your next video about what you do like.
I'm with you on all these! We started with Abeka when I began homeschooling and holy moly is that workbook overload. Also, not a fan of the spiral math approach that it follows as well as TGATB. I found it too confusing in chaotic for all of our brains to bounce around and explain so many concepts in one day.
I have finally found our groove in eclectic homeschooling lol.
I use AO and truth quest combination for History and Bible core.
I combine Charlotte Mason arithmetic with Ray's arithmetic.
For reading we swap out McGuffy's with chapter readers, like Mr Popper's penguins.
For a writing we do copywork or I just have my daughter write her own stories which she loves.
And finally we do Latin but we usually spread one year out over two 🙂
Science consists of just going outside and getting dirty!
I don't care for Abeka.
If it helps anyone, I don't have curriculum, but I am a History professor and put all my lectures on my channel as a free resource to help homeschooling families. I did this because I have always been impressed with my students who were homeschooled. I have a lot of content on Western Civ, the History of the Middle East. Jewish history.