Some Curriculum Starting Points

After spending the day at a curriculum fair, I have come to the conclusion that there is no perfect curriculum available today.  There are some amazing ones on the market – some of them even come with a script so that you don’t have to think about what you are teaching – but because every child is different and every year is different then none of the curriculums will ever be perfect.

Sonlight is a nice package with lots of reading, which is one of the fundamental learning activities my husband and I want the kids to use daily.  There is a LOT of books in each program, which might be a problem for those of us with little (or no) storage space.

Alpha Omega has some pretty layouts, and its programs cover every subject under the sun.  The subjects are set up in five day periods, but it seems easy enough to adjust them if you dance to the beat of a different drummer.  It is a Christian based curriculum and the company offers print and computer based programs.

Abeka is another large, Christian based curriculum company.  It is labor intensive, so probably not the best route for the freeschooler or unschooler.  It is widely used in the Church schools and some private schools in our area.

These are just three of the major curriculum companies that were represented at the fair.  What I found was that, for the most part, the curriculum is the same.  Some of the books were colored.  Some of the books came in hard back.  Some of the books came with teacher’s manuals.  Most of what I read was similar to what I have been doing with the kids all along – only using the internet and the library for my source work.

Do you have a favorite curriculum?  Is there something that you just couldn’t live without?  Share some of your favorite items with those of us who are curriculum challenged.