If you are new to home schooling, or even if you’ve been doing this for a while, understanding the language used around home schooling choices can be pretty confusing. Today we are going to untangle some of these ideas and see how they fit together, so you can have the type of home education experience that fits your family and your goals! First lets define some terms.

Educational Philosophy

An educational philosophy is like a compass. It describes your goal and how to get there. Charlotte Mason, Montessori, Classical Education, Waldorf, Unit Studies, Eclectic, and Unschooling are some of the philosophies of education that are popular among home educators.

https://simplycharlottemason.com/what-is-the-charlotte-mason-method/: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options. https://amshq.org/About-Montessori: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options. https://www.thehomeschoolmom.com/homeschooling-styles/waldorf-homeschooling/: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options. https://campfirecurriculums.com/unitstudy/: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options. https://www.prodigygame.com/main-en/blog/unschooling/: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options. https://fearlesshomeschool.com/eclectic-homeschooling/: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options.

Educational Methods

Educational methods are like the map that will guide your way from where you start, to where you want to be educationally. Textbooks, narrations, worksheets, note-booking, game based learning, and delayed formal lessons are examples of methods used in home education.

https://thecurriculumstore.com/: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options. https://www.homeschooldiner.com/guide/workbooks_worktexts.html: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options. https://juiceboxhomeschool.com/notebooking-in-homeschool/: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options. https://themulberryjournal.com/activities/mathematics/ultimate-guide-gameschooling: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options. https://www.prairiedusttrail.com/delayed-academics.html: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options.

Curriculum Choices

Here’s where it gets fun! Once you know what your goals are for educating your family (philosophy), and you have an idea how you would like to move toward those goals,(methods) its time to get to the nuts and bolts, the daily application through curriculum. Curriculum is the vehicle that will move you from your starting point to your goals.

Choosing a curriculum is very important because if you choose the wrong one it won’t take you where you want it to go– your compass and map will be pointing the wrong direction and you will likely end up in Riverside when you wanted to go to San Diego (true story)!

Here are some of my favorite curriculum shops:

https://simplycharlottemason.com/: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options. https://timberdoodle.com/: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options. https://www.bfbooks.com/: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options. https://www.commonsensepress.com/: Educational Philosophy, Educational Methods, Curriculum Choices, and Finding a Path for Your Family Amid All the Options.

Putting in a Good Words for Eclectic Home Schooling and Adjusting As you Go

Some families choose to educate their children using a variety of methods and goals drawn from various educational philosophies. This can be a wonderful option! With any of these options its hard to go too far wrong as long as you are thinking through your choices and evaluating how its going as you move along, and are willing to adjust as needed. Just remember your curriculum vehicle has a steering wheel, you can change direction as needed.

Weeding Out Imposters

To find a curriculum that aligns with your educational philosophy you will need to do a little critical thinking. If a curriculum says it is “Montessori Inspired” that does not necessarily mean it aligns with Montessori philosophy, but maybe it just borrows some Montessori methods, which may be OK, or not. Look a little deeper before you buy. You can choose if it fits for your family or not.

You will need to look through the table of contents and the assignments to see if it aligns with your own ideas of how you want to spend your educational time. Is the math curriculum a spiral or master based format? It can make a difference so its good to know before you buy.

Final Word

When I started home educating my kids 30 something years ago, my philosophy of education was so, so different than it is now. I wanted to re-create a classroom experience for my kids, mostly because that’s all I knew. They had little 5yo size desks and pencil sharpeners, and a schedule and behavior charts and I wanted them to master right away all the material I taught.

Since then I have realized that my real goals aren’t test scores or college admission, but rather being able to think critically about a variety of subjects, being able to solve real life problems in practical ways, having a moral and spiritual foundation that helps them deal with real life problems small and large, and having strong character and perseverance when facing challenges, and to know Jesus as the loving caring Friend and King that I know, among other things.

Give yourself room to learn and grow. I’ve learned at least as much as my kids on this home schooling journey. As your understanding changes, so will your choices. Enjoy the Journey!

What questions do you have about philosophies, methods or curriculum choices? Ask in the comments!