Elementary Homeschool Curriculum Picks for the Large Family

Large family homeschooling curriculum ideas for the elementary years from a mom of 10. These are actual products we have been using in our homeschool!

This year I have 2 children in elementary school, ages 8 and 10. We call them the “little girls.”

Morning Time for Elementary Ages in a Large Family

To learn more about how we do Morning Time READ >> Morning Time with Multiple Ages

If you are unfamiliar with the concept of Morning Time, let me begin by explaining that Morning Time can be ANYTHING you want it to be. You can use the time to do something simple like Bible and a Read Aloud (Read >> Making Morning Time Easy) or buy a full-blown Charlotte Mason Morning Time curriculum like Morning Virtues from Gentle + Classical.

NOTE: All of my elementary aged kiddos have their own individual school work and are required to sit through all of Morning Time, participating at their own level.

In our homeschool, we start with Bible (more on this in a moment). After Bible, we do History and Geography lessons from Tapestry of Grace, with lots of extras mixed in from Music in Our Homeschool and You ARE An Artist and a new-to-us art program I’ll tell you about in a moment!

To learn more about how we use Tapestry of Grace, visit THIS PAGE:

NOTE: To use TOG the way we do, you will need Integrated Tapestry of Grace.

Rather than get into the details in this post of how we put all of this together, I have a post where I share exactly what our Morning Time currently looks like, so you can get an idea of how I incorporate all of these curricula!

READ >> What Our Homeschool Morning Time Currently Looks Like

However, I will share each of these components one by one below:

Bible Study for Elementary Age Homeschoolers

A couple of years ago, we did GrapeVine Bible Lessons (that link goes to my review). It is really good for this age so I wanted to make sure I mentioned it here!

Last year, we read through The Child’s Story Bible because we were studying Year 1 of Tapestry of Grace that begins with Creation and goes through the Resurrection. I mention it here because it really sets the stage for all other Bible study and I really love homeschooling with this book!

Already this year, we have bounced around using a few different things, and have finally landed on Training Hearts, Teaching Minds by Starr Meade.

The children bring their Bibles to Morning Time and I read 2-3 of the devotionals (they are very short!) and assign the Bible verses for them to read aloud. We often take the time discuss the concepts further, so they are really understanding what we are reading.

History for the Large Family Homeschool

I have always preferred to do History as a group and in chronological order. Thanks to Tapestry of Grace, this has been possible for many, many years because it teaches history chronologically to all ages at their own level. I have tried other curricula over the years, and nothing compares to TOG for a robust education!

You can see it in action if you read my Large Family Homeschool Life posts!

Homeschool Elementary Science

We are back to doing Science as an individual subject in our homeschool rather than a collective as we did for a time last year. My 8 year old is reading from the Christian Liberty Nature Readers:

And the 10 year old is doing Zoology I from Apologia.

To read more about how we use Apologia in the elementary grades, see this post:

Fine Arts for Elementary Homeschoolers

I really like to supplement Morning Time lessons with Music in Our Homeschool! These music-based lessons are so wonderful and so easy to use. Everything is online and works well with a variety of ages. And there are so many topics to choose from!

They also have classes that follow chronological history, so this year, we will be using the Music Appreciation that goes along with the Middle Ages:

We will also end up doing the Shakespeare class as well (my older kids LOVED this class when we did it last time!)

Read my review here:

These 2 classes are really just the tip of the iceberg! Take a look at the website and start dreaming up ways to incorporate music into YOUR homeschool! So easy!

Art for Elementary Ages

Once or twice a month, we do art projects during Morning Time as a family. I usually do this toward the end of Morning Time and usually on a Thursday (the last day of the week we homeschool since we do a 4 Day a Week Homeschool Schedule).

My philosophy on art in homeschooling is that it needs to be:

1. Simple with few supplies.
2. Integrates with what we are already learning.
3. Something I can do with the entire family.

Many of our art lessons come from You ARE An Artist chalk art lessons. Chalk is a very forgiving medium and everyone can participate.

READ >> You ARE An Artist Clubhouse Review

But, this year, several of my children asked if they could do some watercolor and I wanted to work on my watercolor skills as well, and I had the perfect class for it! Back in 2020 during COVID, I had grandiose plans to learn to watercolor in all my spare time, but didn’t get very far. I purchased the lifetime Watercolor School membership to Lily & Thistle and bought the supplies and that was as far as I got.

But, this year we are going to use it as our homeschool art and I am so excited! Our plan is to start with Modern Watercolor Basics and then this Fall go to the Autumn Watercolor Bundle.

Independent Schoolwork

Once Morning Time is finished, I send everyone off to do their independent school work. At the elementary age, they still sometimes need my help, but for the most part, they are doing a lot of it on their own.

Individual work for this age includes Math, Handwriting, assigned Literature books (based on Tapestry of Grace). My youngest is also still doing Phonics, and both of the girls are doing Spelling. I also require all of my children to be learning the basics of Piano at this age.

Before I get into the specifics of their individual school work, I would highly recommend you get my ecourse Creating a Homeschool Schedule You Love! This ecourse will help you put your entire homeschool day on autopilot, including your children’s individual school subjects. GET IT HERE >>

Homeschool Math for Elementary Age

From Kindergarten through about 2nd grade, we use Horizons workbooks for our math.

Then, we move to Teaching Textbooks, which starts at 3rd grade. Teaching Textbooks is really great for a large family because it is so flexible!

READ >> Teaching Textbooks Large Family Review

Handwriting for Elementary Homeschoolers

For years now, we have used A Reason for Handwriting.

We like ARFH because the letters and words our children learn are put together to form Bible verses they write out to send to grandparents or post on the refrigerator. It gives handwriting meaning!

We start with A Reason for Handwriting K in Kindergarten and then work our way up through Cursive during the elementary years.

Spelling for Elementary Homeschoolers

Spelling is a tough one for me because it seems like it just isn’t a one size fits all kind of subject.

First of all, you have the kids who don’t need a spelling program at all. Yes, that’s right – I said NO spelling program. (READ WHY HERE)

Then, you have the kids who can use just about any spelling program, so your best bet is to find something that is simple for YOU as the homeschool mom to manage. In our homeschool, those kids use an app called Simplex Spelling (I bought the bundle, in case you are wondering).

And THEN, you have the kids who need help…lots of help…with their spelling. These are the children who will probably still need spell check as adults, but you are just wanting to get them spelling decently, and you are at a loss for how to do that! I hear ya!

The program I have been using for my elementary students who fall into this camp is Phonetic Zoo. Years ago, I listened to Andrew Pudewa of Institute for Excellence in Writing talk about Spelling and Brain. This program from IEW uses those concepts to teach your children to put letters in sequential order. It is super helpful for auditory learners, but great for any child struggling to learn how to spell.

READ >> The Best Spelling Curriculum for Struggling Auditory Learners

Phonics for Elementary Homeschoolers

For many years, we have used Phonics Museum to teach our kids to read. But, this one is a bit difficult because although we have taught all of our kids to read using this program since 2011, the company revamped it (not for the better, in my opinion) a couple of years ago. I only have 1 child left in Phonics, so I decided to find an old copy of the workbooks to buy for Miss Mercy and will finish out my homeschooling phonics years continuing with a program I knew and loved, rather than try to reinvent the reading wheel.

So, while I’d love to offer you a Phonics option we personally use that you can go right out and purchase, that’s just not the case. I’ve been at this a long time, so I guess that’s what happens when you are an “old” homeschooler!

NOTE: In the Preschool/Kindergarten Curriculum post, you’ll find a couple of other suggestions for Phonics that might be helpful!

More Elementary Curricula We Love

One other thing I’d like to mention here that we are not currently using, but have used in the past with great success are the products from The Peaceful Press. I cannot say enough good about this curriculum and how easy it is to use with a large family!

READ >> Review of The Peaceful Preschool
WATCH >> Review of The Peaceful Preschool

READ >> Review of The Precious People
WATCH >> Review of The Precious People

READ >> Review of The Playful Pioneers
WATCH >> Review of The Playful Pioneers

By the way, if you want to see all of this curricula in action, I write about them nearly every week in my Large Family Homeschool Life posts. READ THEM ALL HERE >>

Reading those posts will give you a taste of what all of this looks like in real time! Enjoy!

You can find all of our Homeschool Curriculum Choices HERE >>