One thing I love about homeschooling is that no two homeschools have to look the same. 

Every family has its own culture. A family has unique values, rhythms, interests, challenges, and a vision for the childhood they are cultivating. The curriculum that works beautifully for one family may feel completely wrong for another, and that doesn’t mean either family is doing it incorrectly. Choosing curriculum isn’t simply about finding the most popular or highly recommended option; it’s about knowing your children, understanding the season your family is in, and choosing resources that support the life you’re building together.

Our curriculum choices reflect what matters most in our home: strong relationships, rich books, meaningful conversations, time outdoors, creativity, and leaving ample margin for curiosity and real life. It also reflects the practical realities of teaching multiple ages, working from home, and raising four children with different strengths and needs. This post is a nitty-gritty look at what each of my children will be using this year and why. I’m sharing it not as a formula, but a peek inside the thoughtful, ever-evolving process of building a homeschool that fits our particular family.

With that said, here are my homeschool curriculum choices for the upcoming school year, homeschooling four children in 1st, 3rd, 6th, and 8th grade.

In this blog post:

• Our homeschool style: Learning styles and parent involvement
• Our homeschool schedule and daily rhythm
• 2026-2027 homeschool curriculum choices: Classes, Bible, Morning Time, and read-alouds
• 2026-2027 homeschool curriculum choices for 1st, 3rd, 6th, and 8th grade
• Our 2026-2027 extracurricular activities 

Our homeschool style: Learning styles and parent involvement

Family-style learning 

As you may know, in our homeschool we do not emphasize grade levels. This is because we do much of our curriculum “family-style.” Family-style learning means we use the same curricula for my children at different ages, tailoring the material to their levels. This way, my children learn together, despite being at various ages. While my children also have work they do independently that is tailored to their levels, the majority of our curricula can be tailored to use with all of my children, together, or in small groups, like the older children or the younger children. This style of learning helps us streamline our lessons, and over the years I have seen it draw my children closer together as they do lessons together. 

Respectful learning

Rather than forcing my children into specific grade levels, I allow my children to progress at their own pace. Sometimes this means they are above “grade level” according to curriculum labels or state standards. Sometimes this means they are “behind.” My goal as a homeschooling parent is simple – to see my children continually grow in understanding, skills, and the desire to learn. I want them to enjoy their education, while also being challenged at just the right level. 

Charlotte Mason-style

While I do not subscribe to one specific method of education, I do lean toward Charlotte Mason principles. I value learning through living books, life experiences, and educating the whole child (not only the mind). We also utilize narration as a cornerstone of our education.

My husband’s involvement in our homeschool

My husband, Matt, and I both work part-time from home and share responsibilities of our home and homeschool. While I oversee the majority of the homeschooling, Matt leads the children in Bible lessons over breakfast and oversees my oldest son’s math lessons. He is also familiar with the rest of my children’s independent school work and will help them in those assignments on days I am working. 

This year, he is also assigning books for the older children to read and will be discussing the books with them one afternoon a week. He has plans to choose books and do lessons on personal finance, entrepreneurship, civics, economics, morality, American history, and politics.

Our homeschool schedule and daily rhythm

Here is the schedule we are using for our homeschool days that we are at home for a full day. This year, all of my children are enrolled in homeschool clubs that are covering many subjects like history, science, and Spanish. These clubs are in the afternoons twice a week. Fridays we join our homeschool community group where we play in nature, hike, and catch up with friends.

• 7:15 – 8 a.m. – Bible lessons over breakfast
• 8 – 8:30 a.m. – Morning Responsibilities 
• 8:30 a.m. – Mama Morning Meeting (with two older children)
• 9 – 10 a.m. Morning Time
• 10 – 11 a.m. – Lesson Block 1: 1st and 3rd Grade lessons with me, 6th and 8th Grade independent work
• 11 – 11:30 a.m. – Outside Break
• 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. –  Lesson Block 2: 1st and 3rd independent work, 6th and 8th Grade lessons with me
• 12:30 – 1 p.m. –  Lunch
• 1-2 6th and 8th Grade finish if needed
• 2 – 5 p.m. –  Playtime, outside time, errands, extracurriculars (1x a week),  Older siblings lesson with Dad (philosophy, theology, personal finance, etc.)
• 5 – 7 p.m. –  Dinner and night chores
• 7 – 8 p.m. – Family time
• 8 p.m. – Bedtime routines 

Our 2026-2027 homeschool curriculum choices: Classes, Bible, Morning Time, and read-alouds

These are our curriculum choices for my family, the curriculum we are using for family-style learning and each child’s individual lessons.

Homeschool classes and clubs

This year, all four of my children will be attending local homeschool clubs, and we are so excited to add them to our weekly rhythm! One of my close friends hosts the clubs in her home, and the other students are some of my children’s closest friends. My older children are together in one level, while my younger two attend the younger level. The classes are small, hands-on, and interactive, offering so many experiences that are simply more fun in a group like collaborative projects, presentations, dress-up days, crafts, games, and lively discussions.

My older children will also read books and complete narrations and writing assignments at home that align with what they are learning in class. I love that these clubs will bring friendship, collaboration, and shared experiences into our homeschool year while still allowing us to maintain the flexibility and family-centered rhythm we value at home.

Some of the subjects they will study through the clubs include: Renaissance history, astronomy, mammals, art history, fiction to film (kids will read classic literature that are films and discuss how they have changed over time), and Spanish. The teachers are sourcing some curriculum from:

• The Good and the Beautiful Space Science (Astronomy) 
• The Good and the Beautiful Mammals
• Story of the World, Volume 2 
• La Clase Divertida (Spanish)

Homeschool Bible curriculum for 2026-2027

This year we will be continuing to use The Bible Recap (the workbooks by age and the book) along with an apologetics curriculum. We are planning to use The Case for Christ for Kids by Lee Strobel and Cold-Case Christianity for Kids: Investigate Jesus with a Real Detective by J. Warner Wallace.

Morning Time curriculum choices for 2026-2027 

Even though my children are in two different age groups, we still gather together for Morning Time to start most days. Sometimes we all join together, and other days I do Morning Time with the younger two only.

Here are some resources I like to use during this time:

• Morning Time Bundle – Both my 6- and 7-year-old children will use the classic version.
• Treehouse Nature Study, using weeks from both Primary and Intermediate levels.
• Treehouse Book Studies, mostly with 1st and 3rd graders, though sometimes I will pull in the older kids depending on the nature theme or book choice. We are excited to dive deep and use these for science, history, animals, and more, for the younger two especially. 

Homeschool read-alouds and holiday studies for 2026-2027

Rotating read-alouds and holiday studies is such an important part of our homeschool. Here are the resources we will use as jumping off points for other learning throughout the year.

• Treehouse Book Studies – We will use Treehouse Book Studies and pull from both primary and intermediate lists. The younger children will listen and join in discussion and activities. The older children will complete writing assignments, book reports, research, and projects through the themes in the story. We may also have some book club meetups with the books with friends. 
• Treehouse Schoolhouse holiday unit studies – We also love to do unit studies each year that connect to the time of year, such as A Treasured Thanksgiving, A Connected Christmas, A Virtuous Valentine’s, and An Expectant Easter. We have done all of these before but I find that my children love to revisit them each year.

2026-2027 homeschool curriculum choices for 1st, 3rd, 6th, and 8th grade

These are the curriculum my children are using for their core subjects for each grade level. I like to consider the grade levels loosely, choosing curriculum that matches the learning level and styles for each child.

1st grade homeschool curriculum choices for 2026-2027

My daughter, Eliza, is entering the school year at age 6 1/2. This will be her first grade year. 

Phonics, spelling, and handwriting:

• Explode the Code 6 and 7 – Eliza will use the Explode the Code series to work on handwriting, spelling, and phonics. 
• Copywork, Mail Monday, and notebooking – Eliza will also practice spelling, handwriting, and language arts through copywork, Mail Monday, and notebooking, which we do as a family with a lot of our curriculum choices. She will also sometimes use Wonder of Nature Print Copywork.

Reading and language arts:

• First Language Lessons for the Well-Trained Mind, Level 3 – We will be doing this together with my 3rd grader. This includes poetry, narration, dictation, copywork, and a gentle intro to grammar.
• “Mom’s Library” – Eliza will read daily from a chapter book in “Mom’s Library”, which will be full of books on her reading level. I constantly add to this basket and switch out new books from our local library. She will also read a chapter in Pathway Readers. She is currently on More Busy Times and will progress throughout the year.

Math:

• Math with Confidence Grade 2 – We like the hands on aspect of games and activities and are excited for a new approach this year

Science:

• At home we will lean into science themes though Treehouse Nature Study and Treehouse Book Studies. She will also study astronomy, mammals, and more at our local homeschool class. 

History, geography, and languages:

Liza will complete these subjects through the homeschool class and clubs mentioned above, with a focus on Renaissance history.

3rd grade homeschool curriculum choices for 2026-2027

Huck will turn 8 at the end of summer and will be entering 3rd in the fall. Here are the curriculum choices we will use this year.

Phonics, spelling, and handwriting:

• Explode the Code 8 – Huck will use the Explode the Code series to work on handwriting, spelling, and phonics. 

• Copywork, Mail Monday, and notebooking – Huck will also practice spelling, handwriting, and language arts through copywork, Mail Monday, and notebooking, which we do as a family with a lot of our curriculum choices. He will also sometimes use the Wonder of Nature Print Copywork.

Reading and language arts:

• First Language Lessons for the Well-Trained Mind, Level 3 – This study includes poetry, narration, dictation, copywork, and gentle intro to grammar.

• “Mom’s Library”- Huck will read daily from a chapter book in “Mom’s Library”, which will be full of books on his reading level. I constantly add to this basket and switch out new books from our local library. He will also read a chapter in Pathway Readers. He is currently reading the book New Friends.

Math:

• Math with Confidence Grade 3 – We are switching it up and excited to add in games and activities and are excited for a new approach this year

History, geography, and languages:

Huck will complete these subjects through the homeschool class and clubs mentioned above, with a focus on Renaissance history.

6th grade homeschool curriculum choices for 2026-2027

These are the curriculum choices we will use for my 11-year-old daughter who is entering 6th grade this year.

Language Arts:

• Fix It! Grammar: Level 4 – We have used this curriculum for several years and I love it. Fix It! Grammar helps students develop strong grammar skills through daily editing practice and copywork. Each lesson presents a passage with embedded errors, allowing students to hunt for and correct mistakes while following a continuous storyline. Read more about the Fix It! Grammar here.
• Literature and narrations – Josie will have three reading assignments each school day. She will orally narrate each reading and complete one written narration each day from one of them. The books she will be reading will be a variety of history readings, literature, biographies, finance, and theology.
• Composition – I will draw from her readings, history lessons, and interests to assign writing assignments that coordinate with her other studies.  I am using the books Know and Tell: The Art of Narration and On Writing Well to guide me in this.

Math:

• Math with Confidence Grade 6 – We are switching to an approach with more hands-on lessons.

Science: 

Josie will primarily do science through the homeschool club where they are planning to study topics on astronomy and mammals. We will also explore science topics in our homeschool through Treehouse Nature Study and Treehouse Book Studies.

History, current events, and languages:

• Story of the World Volume 2 – We did this curriculum last year and loved it. Volume 2 starts with Celtic Britain after the fall of Rome and goes chronologically through the Age of Exploration. Read more about Story of the World here. 
• Current events – Josie will engage with current events through the platform World Watch News, 10 minute current event videos.
• Homeschool history clubs and classes – Josie will do Renaissance history and Renaissance art history in a group setting through homeschool clubs. She will also do a civics class. 
• Spanish lessons – This will be through the homeschool class mentioned above.

8th grade homeschool curriculum choices for 2026-2027

These are the curriculum choices we will use for my oldest son entering 8th grade this year.

Language Arts:

• Fix It! Grammar – We have used this curriculum for several years and I love it. Fix It! Grammar helps students develop strong grammar skills through daily editing practice and copywork. Each lesson presents a passage with embedded errors, allowing students to hunt for and correct mistakes while following a continuous storyline. Read more about the Fix It! Grammar here.
• Literature and narrations – Titus will also have three reading assignments each school day. He will orally narrate each reading and complete one written narration each day from one of them. He will read a variety of history readings, literature, biographies, finance, and theology.
• Composition – I will draw from his readings, history lessons, and interests to assign writing assignments that coordinate with his other studies.  I am using the books Know and Tell: The Art of Narration and On Writing Well to guide me in this.

Math:

• Dennison Pre-Algebra – We are excited to try out a new math program this year that is in a digital format.

Science: 

Titus will primarily do science through the homeschool club where they are planning to study topics on astronomy and mammals. We will also explore science topics in our homeschool through Treehouse Nature Study and Treehouse Book Studies.

History, current events, and languages:

• Story of the World Volume 2 – We did this curriculum last year and loved it. Volume 2 starts with Celtic Britain after the fall of Rome and goes chronologically through the Age of Exploration. Read more about Story of the World here. 
• Current events – Josie will engage with current events through the platform World Watch News, 10 minute current event videos.
• Homeschool history clubs and classes – Josie will do Renaissance history and Renaissance art history in a group setting through homeschool clubs. She will also do a civics class. 
• Spanish lessons – This will be through the homeschool class mentioned above.

Our 2026-2027 extracurricular activities 

We haven’t always included extracurricular activities in our family, but as my children have grown older, these activities have been a lot of fun to add in.

• Trail Life USA – Both of my sons do this program where they do outdoor adventures in a group setting that emphasizes character and leadership.
• American Heritage Girls – This is a Christ-centered leadership group both of my daughters participate in that includes outdoor skills and activities.
• Piano lessons – Both of my sons are still enjoying playing and practicing piano.
• Sewing class – My oldest daughter Josie is very creative and started doing sewing lessons this summer and will continue with her class in our local area.
• Art and Spanish – As mentioned above we participate in these groups through local homeschool clubs.
• Judo – My oldest son Titus does judo.

What curriculum are you using this year? Let me know your favorites in the comments below. Check out my curriculum choices from last year here.