10th Grade Homeschool Curriculum
Do you get the “Are you going to homeschool high school?” question a lot? It seems to be what everyone is concerned about. Honestly, for years I really didn’t know. We have always taken homeschool year by year. As we enter our 8th year and my daughter is starting 10th grade, I guess I can now answer “Yes. We will homeschool through high school.”
I have to say that homeschooling high school is way different for us than our previous years. We went from unit studies and interest led meanderings to keeping track of credits and more structured course work. Even with those changes, we’ve managed to keep school work interesting for my daughter.
She is a girl of many interests and talents. Homeschooling has allowed her to pursue those areas in ways she might not have had time for if she attended public school. Homeschooling also gives us the ability to able to tailor her courses to her interests.
For the past few years, we have allowed her to research and choose her own homeschool curricula. This allowed her to see what is available to her and to choose something for herself that she is excited about.
*This post contains affiliate links.
10th Grade High School Homeschool Curriculum
Biology – We have used many science resources and curricua throughout the years. For the last 3 years, my daughter has gravitated toward Apologia Science. She loves the conversational style of the text and the hands-on activities and experiments. This year, she’ll be not only using the Apologia Biology text and the notebooking journal, but trying the new Biology DVD. I’ve been following the creation of the new Apologia science DVDs and I am so excited to see them all put together.
Medieval History and Literature – Last fall, I wrote about how much my daughter loved Beautiful Feet Books. Their “history through literature” approach is perfect for my daughter who loves to read. For 9th grade, she studied ancient history with Beautiful Feet Books and this year she will be studying Medieval history. She has always had an interest in this part of history, but for some reason it is the time period that got skimmed over in our previous studies. So, she has been looking forward to starting this for a long time.
Geometry – My daughter has always enjoyed math. Up until high school, we used Singapore Math. She decided she wanted an online or computer-based course for high school. After looking at many different resources, she chose Teaching Textbooks for this year. She is excited to study geometry this year.
Career Exploration – The whole goal of high school is to get your student ready for the real world. When they graduate, they should be able to go to college or get a job. Making that choice is difficult. The Career Exploration Curriculum BUNDLE from 7 Sisters Homeschool is a great resource to get students thinking about the future and to help them choose a path that fits their interests and talents. (We used the Career Exploration questionnaire before started high school to give my daughter an idea of where she was going.)
First Robotics – Last year, my daughter joined a First Robotics team. First is a multi-national program for grades 9-12 that have just six weeks to build and program robots to perform challenges while competing against other teams. This is a year round commitment with a time frame for learning, a build season, a competition season, and community outreach element. She was on the Computer Aided Design team where she learned to use design software to design custom parts for the robot and create them using a 3D printer.
Zoo Volunteering – This will be my daughter’s 2 year volunteering at our local zoo. Her responsibilities include animal interpretation, small animal handling, assisting with educational programs, special events, and assisting zookeepers with animal care and enclosure cleaning. She has a deep love of animals and an interest in zoo operations, so this is a fabulous opportunity for her.
Keeping Track Of Grades And Credits
Keeping all the lessons, credits, grades, and volunteer hours seemed more than a little intimidating going in to this whole homeschooling high school thing. Thank goodness I was introduced to Homeschool Manager. This web-based program lets me keep track of assignments, grades, and volunteer hours. It can, also, create a transcript for me! Best of all, it is so easy to use!!! Homeschool Manager has been my sanity saver for homeschooling high school.
Homeschooling High School Help
Are you nervous at the thought of homeschooling high school? Are you having doubts about your ability to teach at that level? Are you concerned you will miss something important?
I think we’ve all been there at various stages of our homeschooling journey. In those times, I have been so thankful for my homeschool mentors. These women where homeschool veterans. They had been there, done that. They walked me through tough decisions and talked me off the ledge more than once.
Some of those mentors are the ladies at 7 Sisters Homeschool. I know several of the “sisters” personally and I truly value their advice and counsel. They have put together a fabulous resource for those of us who are a little skittish at the thought of homeschooling high school.
High School Homeschool: You Can Do It! is a 15 lesson online course with video and text that answers many of the questions homeschool parents have about homeschooling high school. This course is not only informational, but encouraging. It’s like your own homeschool mentor pouring their wisdom and experience into you!