Three years of Homeschool Co-op Curriculum – in one place

Welcome!

Five years ago, I started volunteering as a homeschool co-op teacher. Of course, the first thing I did was to search Google to see if any existing co-op curriculum existed. Even after a thorough search, I couldn’t find what I wanted.

I wanted something flexible. Like many co-ops, the kids coming in had a variety of skill levels; whatever I used, I needed it to work for everyone.
I wanted a site with everything in one place. Most of us who teach in a homeschool co-op are busy moms ourselves. We would rather not spend hours on Pinterest or searching the web for ideas.
I wanted it to be free or mostly free. Teachers Pay Teachers has lots of ideas and printables, but who wants to pay for every worksheet they print out? So many times, I would go to a site with the hope of a free worksheet, only to find out I had to sign up for something or pay money for it.

I also loved the idea of it being literature-based. I’ve loved the Five in a Row curriculum by Jane Lambert, and many of the books used are from the FIAR curriculum, though the assignments are my own, specifically written for a co-op. If someone was using the FIAR curriculum at home, this would only complement these lessons, not overlap. I also love the flexibility of learning from a book. Of course, every co-op and the kids in it are a little bit different – so it needed to be flexible.

I couldn’t find anything like this (or even close) online. I created my own curriculum for a couple of years but was too disorganized and kept losing pieces of it. Then, three years ago, I started recording the curriculum (and saving it to this site) as I prepared for my weekly class.

I am a Christian – through and through and this is reflected in some of the lessons. The curriculum is not exclusively Christian, but at least a few lessons that have strong themes about God. Years two and three include scripture copywork and optional Bible memorization.

A summary of each year is below. More details can be found by clicking on the links below.

Learning the ABC’s through Literature (Year 1 / K-1st)

Recommended for Kindergarten / 1st, could be used for pre-K.

25 weeks of Kindergarten/ first-grade curriculum, with a book/letter of the week printable and craft ideas to go along with each letter. For more information, click below:

Learning the ABC’s through Literature – the 1st year – A FIAR (Five in a Row) Based Kindergarten Co-op Class

Learning Snippets of History through Literature (Year 2 – 1st-3rd)

Recommended for 1st-3rd, could be used for 4th

25 Weeks of USA history as told through classic literature, as well as a little bit of world history. Pioneer life, Appalachian and mountain life, the Civil War/slavery, immigration, Christian persecution, World War II and the Revolutionary War are all among the historical themes introduced through classic children’s literature. Each week includes one book, one copy work verse, lesson plans, and discussion topics/questions. Several lessons include recommended classroom activities and games. Some books share a similar topic and are done together for longer themes. For more details, or to see the full booklist, click below:

Learning through Literature for Homeschool Coops – the 2nd Year – More FIAR – Inspired Literature-Based Lesson Plans

Learning the USA through Literature (Year 3 – 2nd-4th)

Recommended for 2nd – 4th grade.

25 lessons exploring the United States of America, region by region. Each region (Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, West, Southwest) includes at least 2 books that are read aloud in class and explore the region and history of the region. Class time includes regular review of the 50 states, regular mini writing assignments, weekly in-class copywork, and time to share their assignments or other show & tell / oral presentation opportunities. It also can be printed as a downloadable 80-page PDF printable journal for each student, containing 2 copywork sheets for each book, weekly writing assignments, weekly geography assignments, as well as some other small projects and presentation ideas. Two books take place outside of the USA and are included for a continent review.

For more information, or to see the books included with this year, click below:

Learning the USA through Literature – the 3rd year

Bible Memory & Character Study (ages 6-10)

Maybe you just want a Bible supplement for your co-op class? While years 2 and 3 include verses for optional memorization, this curriculum (listed below), would work great if you’d like to do a stand-alone memory work in your co-op or Sunday school. Use it by itself as a 10-15 minute supplement, or download the free character lesson plans at Write the Word on my Heart website and turn it into a full lesson. Find out how it works at https://writethewordonmyheart.com, view free lesson plans, and download a free two-week sample.