Sharing our plan for 4th grade homeschool curriculum! Please keep in mind that I’m NOT a pro at this. We’re figuring it out as we go and it’s our first full year of homeschool after finishing most of last year homeschooling. More about why we decided to homeschool in this post. If you need expert advice, check out my friend Brittany’s blog!
Hi friends! How are you? I hope that you’re having an amazing day so far. We’re officially in back-to-school mode over here. Liv started last week (8th grade! I can’t even believe it) and we’re resuming homeschool today.
For today’s post, I wanted to share a bit more about our plan for this year and the curriculum we’re doing if you’re curious about homeschooling.
I think it’s worth mentioning here that homeschool is not as daunting as I thought it would be, especially when we were first considering it. We all want the absolute best for our kids, and I was really worried about failing her. Now that we’re in the homeschool world, I can tell you that she’s thriving. She’s learning so much, and we’re able to customize her plan based on her interest and levels. We’re also able to progress more quickly, which keeps her interested.
Our 4th grade homeschool curriculum
Here’s what we’re planning on doing this year, but it can always be changed or adjusted as needed.
Math (30 minutes)
We’re continuing with Saxon Math and Nicole the Math Lady because P loves her and she does an incredible job teaching the Saxon lessons. Her software also takes care of grading, so P will just input her answers into the platform and receive a grade for each assignment. It’s engaging and concise — we love it.
Reading (30 minutes)
I want to keep reading enjoyable, so she picked a book that we’ll read together and discuss as we move along. We’re starting with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.
Writing + grammar (30 minutes)
For grammar, we’re still using Masterbooks, which is a faith-based curriculum. It includes picture study, memorization, punctuation, spelling, vocabulary, observation, poems, psalms, letters, and practical application through creative writing.
For writing, we’re doing the Fables, Myths and Fairy Tales writing lessons from IEW. It focuses on their Structure and Style method. Right now, she’s working on reading fables, making key outlines, and narration (being able to retell the story using her notes).
I ordered the 4th grade books last semester and when she finishes these, we’ll head into the 5th grade books.
We’re also working on one research paper each quarter, based on an interest. Her first one is going to be about bullfighting after our trip to the Bullfighting Museum in Sevilla.
Social studies (30 minutes)
I’ve ordered a couple of history books to work through, and also a lap book on how to draw the United States. She’s excited to start with that first and label each state, capital, the rivers, etc.
Science (Fridays only)
I’m still working on science plans. Last year, the homeschool thing happened pretty abruptly, so we just did one science project each week on Fridays. I’ll probably keep Friday as science day but was thinking about ordering some monthly kits. If you have any science kit subscription recs, please send them my way!
Last year, we did things like dissecting owl pellets, making an egg drop, and constructing a roller coaster.
Art/fun/PE/extra (A couple of times during the week)
We have a couple of extra fun things this year, including farm school, which is one day each week. It’s only for two hours and she’ll be able to ride horses, help with the animals, and create art on the farm. She also has one of day of homeschool parkour classes. Between those two things and her club basketball practices, she still gets the opportunity to be around other kids and play on a weekly basis, and I’m grateful for that.
Homework:
We started using Khan Academy after a couple of good friends recommended it and have been pretty impressed so far. When you homeschool, there’s really no need for homework, but I wanted P to stay in the groove of having a *little* homework because the plan is for her to return to in-person school eventually. (I also feel like it makes sense since Liv has homework every day.)
For homework, she’s doing 20 minutes of Khan Academy Math and then 15-20 minutes of reading, grammar, or coding.
Some homeschool FAQs
How did you find a homeschool curriculum?
Brittany was so kind to spend a long time with me on the phone. She asked about P’s interests and shared ideas. She made homeschooling feel WAY less intimidating and I’m so grateful for her advice. She’s also homeschooled their kids their entire lives, which makes me hopeful in case P doesn’t go back to in-person school next week.
How long does it take to homeschool?
The most beautiful thing about homeschool is that it’s 1:1 focused attention, so you don’t need nearly as much time. SO much of in-person school is spent wrangling kids and trying to get them to listen and pay attention.
We’re able to finish everything we need to do for the day in about two hours, which leaves the rest of the day open. She can use this time to persue things she’s interesting in (like art, crocheting, or practicing the piano), or we can enjoy a little field trip or outing.
How can you work from home and homeschool?
This is the part that I’m still trying to navigate. I batch most of my content during the weekend so that I can focus on the kids and house stuff as much as possible during the week. I also started scheduling client calls and podcast interviews when the Pilot is home, because when he’s not on a trip, he’s teacher Dad and can take over the homeschool duties.
I just feel like I’m moving at 1000mph because solo parenting takes full focus/attention/energy/effort, and then when he’s home, I crush myself workwise trying to catch up on everything. Just need to get the hang of this schedule and find my groove.
Ok friends: what are your kiddos up to this year? Homeschool mamas: any advice as we head into our first full year??
Hope you have an amazing day and I’ll see you soon!
xo
Gina
