How Do You Pick a Curriculum? (Honestly, We Don't Pick Just One)

"What curriculum do you use?"

It's the question we get asked more than almost any other — in the pickup line, at church, from the well-meaning aunt at Thanksgiving who homeschooled back when there were maybe four curriculum choices total. And every time, I open my mouth to answer and realize there isn't a short version.

The honest truth is we don't use one curriculum. Some weeks we barely use a curriculum at all. We move between a few different approaches, and which one you'd catch us doing on any given Tuesday depends entirely on the week we're having.

Some weeks, life is the lesson. Somebody reads the seed packet out loud before we plant. Somebody else figures out change at the farm stand. A rabbit-trail conversation about the stars turns into a real hour of astronomy nobody planned for. No workbook required, and I've stopped apologizing for it — some of the deepest learning that happens under our roof happens on the weeks we let go of the plan entirely.

Other weeks, we go piece by piece. We don't own one boxed curriculum that dictates every subject for every kid. Math might come from one place, reading from somewhere else entirely, and nothing has to come from the same publisher to work well together in our home.

And each of our boys gets his own mix, because what works for one doesn't automatically work for the next, and what works for him isn't what the third one needs either. One does better with something highly structured for math and totally open for everything else. We looked into a lot of the big, all-in-one programs before landing here, and it wasn't that we tried them and they failed us — it's that between how unpredictable our schedule is and what we're genuinely comfortable with as parents, we could tell early on that locking all three boys into one program wasn't going to fit our house.

Why we bounce between all of it comes down to one thing: our schedule isn't the same two weeks in a row. Some weeks are quiet and structured at the kitchen table. Other weeks get eaten by appointments, seasons, or just the unpredictable rhythm of raising three boys. Rather than force our family to keep pace with a curriculum, we let the curriculum bend to fit our life. That's not a lack of a plan. That is the plan.

But here's what we want to be honest about, because this isn't a post trying to talk you into doing it our way: a flexible, piece-by-piece approach is genuinely impossible for a lot of families, and that's not a flaw in those families — it's just a different set of needs. If you're working outside the home, or you're in a season that needs predictability more than flexibility, or you and your kids simply do better with something already laid out for you, a full, structured curriculum isn't a consolation prize. For a lot of homes, it's the thing that actually makes homeschooling sustainable.

There's a real, respected list of options in that camp. Abeka and BJU Press, for families who want traditional textbooks and a full day already mapped out. Sonlight, for families who'd rather read great books together than fill out worksheets. My Father's World, which ties Bible, history, and literature together across ages so multiple kids can learn side by side. Memoria Press and Veritas Press, if a classical, Latin-and-logic education is what you're after. The Good and the Beautiful, which has become a favorite for families who want structure without losing the beauty of it. None of that is "more homeschool" than what we do at our kitchen table. They're just different tools, built for different families.

So however you end up doing this — one of the big names, our scattered mix, or something in between — we put together a free 7-question quiz to help you actually think it through instead of guess your way through it. It'll tell you whether life-led learning, a piece-by-piece mix, or a full structured curriculum (and which kind) sounds like the best fit for your family this season.

Take the Quiz

You're not failing if your curriculum doesn't look like anyone else's, ours included. You're doing exactly what you were called to do — teaching the kids in front of you, the way that actually works for them and for you.