Home School Curriculum DNA:
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| The DNA of the Role of Academics |
Textbook-based curriculum and classical home schooling methods both tend to place a high value on academics. and Bob Jones and A Beka are common examples of textbook-based home school curriculum publishers. Academics is what you would call a “core value” in their DNA. This value expresses itself by there being a good number of tests and quizzes and academic-style evaluations in there materials. An example of a writing curriculum that fits well with this view is Institute for Excellence in Writing.
Other methods, however, though they may value academics, don’t place academics at the core of what they do. This may be a bit of an overstatement, but read on to see what I mean. For instance, if you read much on the Brave Writer writing curriculum website, you see that Julie Bogart puts the relationship of the parent and child at the core of the learning experience. In this approach, success in academics – at least in writing -- flows from a healthy relationship where there is a lot of communication going on. This isn’t to say that classical home schoolers don’t value relationships. But there is a definite difference in how it plays out in the approach to academics.
So, if you have a growing feeling in your heart that you want academics to be only part of a well-rounded education, maybe you should pass on that great classical home school curriculum that all your friends are recommending. The Institute for Excellence in Writing is assuredly a home school curriculum that works for many people, but if your core values line up more with the Brave Writer philosophy than the classical style, don’t try to do both.
On the other hand, if you are really feeling a need to focus on some strong academic building blocks that you can define and measure, if you want to see some measurable progress and apply certain rules and steps to your child’s development at this point, classical home school curriculum, and materials like Institute for Excellence in Writing, would probably be a great fit for you. Having something too unstructured would probably frustrate you.
| The DNA of What’s Out There to Learn? |
Another very significant part of a home school curriculum’s DNA relates to how does it view what is out there to learn. Some people, and thus curricula, hope to pass on some set knowledge, certain ideas about life, history, faith, or ways of viewing the world. Textbooks are thus a very helpful tool to convey concisely this world view or that flow of history or events. I am not here to say this type of teaching is wrong or right, but just to observe that this is a valid approach that many people want. Textbooks such as Bob Jones orserve these needs very well since they help articulate clearly these already-set beliefs about the world.
A home school curriculum with a different DNA to its approach is one where there is less of a set doctrine and more of a sense of discovery. For families who value this way of discussing and learning together, textbooks can seem too dogmatic. They may arrive at the same conclusions, mind you, but they might not appreciate the way it would be presented in a cut and dried manner in a textbook. For these people, and home school curriculums that appeal to them, literature-based home school curriculums will give them much more of a chance to explore and come to the conclusions they feel most comfortable with. Sonlight Home School Curriculum is probably the best-known home school curriculum with this DNA.
| The DNA of Spiral or Mastery Approach? |
Is the home school curriculum based on a spiral method or mastery method? This is an especially appropriate question to ask for mathematics, science and grammar curriculums. With the spiral method, your child will return to the material in greater depth in years to come so the first time over the information is less for total understanding as it is for gaining familiarity. Two popular examples of this would be Analytical Grammar and Math-U-See.
Which do you prefer at this stage of your child’s education, given your child’s needs right now?
If you have read this far, congratulations – you are doing a very significant work in preparing to make excellent home school curriculum decisions. Good for you for taking even a few minutes to read through these issues, such as the role of academics, whether you want to communicate set beliefs or discover them together, and whether you want spiral or mastery learning. I would encourage you to take some time to ask yourself, what kind of DNA -- essential building blocks of learning -- do you want for your home school? Since both you and any home school curriculum come with a certain DNA, or assumptions about learning should happen, the time you spend now figuring out if yours match will be time well spent.
Rather than looking at more options of what is “out there” in the way of home schooling curriculum, take a few minutes to find out what is “in there,” how your your family is unique, and what you think about the underlying beliefs of education. Knowing the answers for your family will truly help bring joy and success to you and your child.
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