Homeschooling the Little (Growing) Women 2025-2026

The start of another school year has begun! This will be my 11th year of homeschooling. When I started, I really didn’t know how long I would do it for, but it’s been a really enjoyable journey. Last year our year began with all four homeschooling again, and it was sweet to have that time. This year looks different, with the oldest two at public school, leaving just two at home for school. It’s bittersweet watching the girls grow and head to school, but I also am excited for what this year will bring for them in school. My oldest is now a freshman in high school, and I can’t believe it! My second daughter is in 7th grade and is loving her first year in traditional school so far. At home, I have a 5th grader and a 3rd grader, plus a toddler to add some spice to our day.

Morning Enrichment:

Last year, as I was busy with a baby and writing my book, our morning enrichment subjects took a back seat. I really missed them and am excited to have them included again in our studies. This includes recitation (poems and verses), singing (folk songs and hymns), and picture study (where we study an artist by learning about and looking at their work). We also read a poem each day and occasionally listen to KidNuz for current events. For artists, my plan is to study Cezanne, Joshua Johnson, and Leonardo da Vinci. (We love to use restaurant menus, an idea we originally got from Elsie Iudicello @farmhouse_schoolhouse.)

Math:

For math this year, Lyla has moved to using an online program called Thinkwell. We used this program last year for Brielle after my friend Rachel shared about it with me, and we really loved it. Their earliest program is 6th grade, but Lyla is a year ahead in math, so she started on their 6th grade math this year. Violet will continue with Charlotte Mason Elementary Arithmetic, a program I love so much for the elementary years! All of my girls have become excellent at math with this program (and typically homeschoolers are known to struggle in math). Violet is in 3rd grader and is in book 4 this year.

Literature:

I love getting to read great literature with my girls. Last year we joined a book club that we are continuing this year. We read four books a year, and it’s a great way to get the girls more interested in the books as they can discuss it with their friends as well. This year for book club we are reading The Birchbark House, Black Beauty, Sounder, and The Wind in the Willow. I also plan to continue reading the Little House series to Lyla which we have slowly been reading for several years, and we plan to read The Witch of Blackbird Pond and Where the Mountain Meets the Moon. We will also read a Shakespeare story or two as well as some fables as we do every year.

Reading:

With reading, Lyla reads books of her own choosing on her own time (usually before bed), and Violet reads to me as she still develops her skills as a proficient reader.

Writing:

I decided to focus heavier on writing this year with Lyla. Even though I have an English degree, and I’m a writer as a profession, I feel that teaching writing has never been my strong point with the girls. This year we are using My Father’s World’s Writing Lessons to really focus on learning the craft of writing and to develop the skills of being a good writer. Violet is learning cursive this year with The Good and the Beautiful’s workbook. I am also adding spelling lessons into our curriculum as both girls could use help in spelling.

History:

I love teaching history! For years, I have heard about The Story of the World, but I’ve actually never taught ancient history to the girls other than a few picture books. I decided to check out The Story of the World finally, and we really love it. Alongside of it, we are learning some American history. I usually stick to one century a year, as Charlotte Mason did, but this year I’m going rogue and studying key points and people from several centuries. After 11 years of homeschooling, sometimes I just want to switch things up! Also, I feel much more confident now in teaching.

Science:

Last year, science got put to the wayside too much, and so this year I’m planning to bring it back as a core subject. We have a co-op of friends that we plan to use The Good and the Beautiful science units with. We will meet with them once a week to do this study. Aside from that, we are going to read picture books and chapter books about different science topics.

Bible/Religion:

For Bible and religion, we switch between reading the actual Bible, watching Bible stories on YouTube, reading stories of saints or religious stories, and reading biographies of people who have done good things for others.

Geography:

With geography, we are beginning by learning about our state’s history. From there, we plan to learn more about maps and location. We often watch YouTube videos about different places in the world and learn about places we plan to go.

Extracurriculars:

Last year, the girls took music lessons. I’m glad for all that they learned, but they all decided not to continue this year. They do plan to continue dance this year, Violet is continuing gymnastics, and they may try a few other sports too.

I always love planning and typing us these posts about our plans for the year. For the most part, we do follow these plans. But inevitably, things always shift some. Likely, we will find a couple of books that we don’t jive with, and we won’t read the whole thing. I will find a new book or realize I don’t have enough planned for the whole year, so we’ll add some books in. We’ll chase curiosity (as we already did when the girls wondered how paper came from trees after reading about it in Wishtree, so we watched some YouTube videos). I love that homeschooling includes plans and structures but also flexibility. I’m excited for this new year of learning and growing.