Did you know a large majority of homeschoolers who change curriculum do so mid-year? If something is not working for you, do not torture yourself or your kids with it. Part of the joy of home education is that we can customize it. If something needs tweaking, we have the freedom to adjust. Even mid-year.
Switching curriculum can feel anxiety-provoking. We already know how to homeschool, and needing to make a change can make us second-guess ourselves. It does not need to. Not all materials follow the same scope and sequence, and not all curriculum covers the same things for the same ages. If you are ready to take the leap, this guide will help you do it with confidence.
Signs It May Be Time to Switch
If you are finding yourself in any of these situations, a change may be worth considering:
- Your children dread school
- Arguments occur over lessons
- There are tears, and there should not be tears
- You do not enjoy teaching the materials
- Prep work is taking too much time
- A learning difference or special need has been identified
- A major life change has shifted your schedule
- The kids are bored
- School feels stressful
- Lessons are too challenging
- Lessons are too easy
- Lessons do not make sense
- It does not fit your child's learning style
- You keep browsing other options online
- Something new caught your attention and you cannot stop thinking about it
- You just do not like it, and no other reason is needed
How to Decide What to Switch To
If you know a switch is needed but have not fallen in love with something else yet, here is a simple process:
- List the reasons why you want to switch. Write down all the concerns, frustrations, and problems with your current materials. No guilt, no judgment, just get it out of your head and onto paper.
- See if you can modify first. If lessons are too easy, can you skip ahead? If the kids are bored but you love the material, can you shorten lesson time? If it does not fit your child's learning style, can you make a few simple adjustments? If not, it is time to look at alternatives.
- List what you liked and what you want next. Use those phrases to search online and generate discussions in your favorite homeschool forum or Facebook group. Having clear keywords makes the search much more productive.
- Pull the plug. Sell your old materials and move on. No guilt over not finishing. This is exactly why we homeschool, for freedom and flexibility.
What to Do When the New Materials Arrive
Your bright, shiny new curriculum is here. Where do you start? It can feel tempting to start from the very beginning or to flip to the middle and guess. With ShillerLearning, you do not have to guess at all.
Each ShillerLearning kit includes built-in assessments called Review Tests. These are not stressful blue-book exams, they are multisensory, engaging, and fun. We hear from parents regularly that their children actually look forward to assessment sections.
How to Find Your Starting Point: Step by Step
- Grab a pencil for your student and something to write notes on.
- Open to the first Review Test in Book 1 of your kit. You will go through it first to see what needs to be covered, then again after finishing the section to assess competency and closure. Have the answer guide ready.
- Read the brief opening script that explains what the assessment is.
- Begin the assessment. Each question tells you which lesson number covers that subject. If your child cannot answer a question, note the lesson number. If they know all the answers in the first Review Test, move on to the next one and keep going until you find the right starting point. (If you find you have purchased the wrong kit, give us a call and we will swap you out for the right one.)
- Begin at the first lesson your child needed to cover. It is always fine for students to work through any lesson they want to, even if the Review Test did not flag it as needed.
- Enjoy the peace, joy, and ease of an open-and-go curriculum that covers all learning styles.
Related Reading
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