The lack of good private schools and the poor quality of the public schools in eastern New Mexico makes homeschooling the only option for many families.
One of the most difficult parts about homeschooling is picking out which curriculum to use. For a lot of homeschooling families, math curriculums are particularly hard to pick out. While choosing curricula for subjects such as literature and history can be guided by the interests of the children and the educator, very few children express an intense passion or even an interest in multiplication. Further complicating matters, in many states homeschooled children are expected to pass standardized tests at the end of each year.
In order to pass these tests, the homeschooled children are expected to know the curricula of the public schools for their grade level. In order to pass these exams, the student’s curriculum will have to cover all of the curricula of the public school system. Therefore, for many homeschooling families, it is vital to pick a math curriculum that covers the basic skills specified by the state. Fortunately, many reputable programs will state which states’ curricula their programs cover. Try to pick out a few options that cover the basic skills for your state.
Next, review each curriculum for its suitability for your students. Start by looking at the average lesson length and the number of skills covered in each lesson. Some curricula will break lessons down into 15 to 20 minute lessons which each cover one skill. Other curricula choose to group several skills together in large lessons which can range from half an hour to several hours. Students with short attention spans and/or no particular interest in math may do better with the first type of curricula, while students who are interested in science and math may prefer the second curricula.
Also, be sure to look at the type of activities provided. Some curricula will offer short exercise geared towards teaching students via rote memorization of math facts. Others will offer discovery projects designed to let the student figure these rules out for him or herself. The best curricula will offer both types of activities, allowing the teacher to quickly teach and/or review skills that students don’t show much interest in, but also give the teacher the freedom to go in depth on subjects that do interest students.
Finally, look at the review activities provided. In the weeks before the standardized testing, homeschool students will rely on the curricula package for their review. Ideally, a good curriculum will offer periodic review materials so that students do not have to cram for these standardized tests.