I am currently in a situation that seems unique (or even unbelievable) to some people. I am homeschooling three children while caring for an infant. I don’t consider myself to be unique or a supermom or anything like that. I’m just a Catholic mom that wanted her children to get a good Catholic education. My children were enrolled in a very good traditional Catholic school but unfortunately it was a bit of a haul to get there. I knew that the last thing I would want to do on a cold winter day was take my infant out of a warm cozy house to make the drive to school. I learned quite a bit and since the baby is happily playing I was hoping to take some time to share some of what I've learned.
Curriculum
I knew that I did not have the time to dedicate to writing and researching my own curriculum. I also wasn’t sure how I would juggle developing curricula and caring for a newborn so I opted to use a pre-packaged curriculum. I wanted a Catholic education so that narrowed my search to a few companies. I have used with success two Catholic curricula : Seton one of the most popular homeschool programs and Kolbe Academy which utilizes a Classical approach.
Seton and Kolbe give you daily teaching guidelines, tests and syllabi for each course. In both programs, you are given the option of advancing your child to the next level in a given subject or holding them back if they need more time and instruction. Seton and Kolbe also have the option of enrolling your child or purchasing class materials for individual courses. They also provide counselors to answer any questions you might have.
We also supplement using materials from CHC (Catholic Heritage Curriculum.) My kids enjoy their spelling and handwriting series. They have a beautiful third grade Behold and See Science book that my daughter is enjoying this year.
Which curriculum is for you? That really depends on your family. I suggest looking at the offerings for the grade levels your family needs. Seton has been developing their own books for a while. Their books are really nice to look at with clear directions and topic headings. To see sample pages you can go their website. Kolbe Academy uses some older Catholic education books for some of their subjects. My kids just read me a story from their Catholic National Reader book that had me on the edge of my seat. I even learned a new word. The CNR books are a far cry from the reading text books that are being churned out today. The following is a chart comparison for the fourth grade (I can't figure out how to make my chart lines appear. Drop me a message if you can help me figure it out.)
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| Grade 4 | Seton | Kolbe | Notes |
| Religion | 1. Religion 4 for Young Catholics 2. Child’s Bible History 3. St. Joseph Catechism #1 | 1. Jesus Our Guide 2. St. Joseph Catechism #1 | Both have books that include wonderful art work. |
| English | English 4 for Young Catholics | Voyages in English 4 | VIE is a reprint of the 1962 editions. Challenging but great quality. |
| Reading | 1. Reading 4 for Young Catholics-Comprehension/Thinking Skills 2. Faith & Freedom Readers | Catholic National Reader 4 | CNR originally published in 1895. Challenging but great quality. Faith & Freedom Readers include fun stories but are not as challenging as CNR. |
| Literature | 2 Historical Novels for Book Reports | Literature program includes lesson plans for 41 novels and saint books | |
| Math | Math 4 for Young Catholics or Saxon 5/4 | Saxon 5/4 | |
| History | Catholic Faith Comes to the New World | Famous Men of Greece or Founders of Freedom | |
| Science | Science 4 for Young Catholics | Harcourt Science 3/4 | |
