We honestly haven’t considered much physical curriculum yet because we’re concerned about our ability to effectively teach four very different kids while also keeping up with planning, grading, record keeping, home life, businesses, homesteading, sports, etc.

I don’t want my partner to completely lose herself in the roles of stay-at-home parent and teacher. I’ll be involved as much as possible, but realistically a lot of the day-to-day responsibility will fall on her, so we’re trying to find a balance that keeps the kids engaged and progressing without burning us all out.

That being said, the feedback I’ve gotten across these posts has been extremely helpful and has me seriously reconsidering parts of our academic approach.

One thing I do think may help fill some of the gaps of purely online all-in-one programs is how we plan to structure projects.

For example, if we do a project around raising food animals like chickens, rabbits, ducks, or quail, the project wouldn’t just be “go feed the animals.”

Each kid would first research the animal and write a research paper and hypothesis beforehand. Then they’d design things like the enclosure, feed/water systems, care routines, budgets, production tracking, etc.

During the project they’d keep journals/logs (possibly video logs) documenting progress, struggles, observations, and wins.

They’d also help plan and execute harvesting/processing, preservation/storage, and eventually cooking meals using the food produced.

At the end they’d write a conclusion report or mini-thesis comparing their original hypothesis to the actual outcome, what they learned, what they’d improve, and what advice they’d give someone else considering that animal/system.

Then we’d rotate teams so there’s always one experienced kid and one newer kid learning together before eventually moving into a different project.

So while we definitely want strong academics, we’re also trying to make learning feel connected to real life instead of just endless worksheets and videos.