Homeschool Curriculum Hands-On Options // BEST Picks [2023]

In a world where traditional education often follows a one-size-fits-all approach, homeschooling emerges as a wonderful tapestry of personalized learning experiences. As homeschooling gains momentum, so does the quest for educational methods that ignite curiosity, nurture creativity, and cultivate a genuine love for learning. Enter the realm of hands-on homeschool curriculum programs—an educational landscape where textbooks are just one chapter of the story.

I hope you enjoy reading this blog post. If you want to do my course on how to homeschool, click here.

In this article, we’ll go on a journey through a diverse palette of curriculum options that invite students to roll up their sleeves and dive into interactive experiences.

We’ll cover lots of programs, including these:

Let’s take a closer look below.

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All About Learning

All About Learning is a hands on, learn to read program that only takes twenty minutes per day. The secular program includes tiles, fun activities, and multisensory instruction to keep kids engaged in their learning.

The lessons are mastery-based, so you concentrate on one lesson at a time until it’s mastered. Plus, only one concept is taught at a time so kids don’t get overwhelmed with information.

All About Learning is based on the Orton Gillingham method for teaching children how to read and spell.

The hands-on homeschool curriculum has a generous refund policy that allows you to use the program for one year. If you decide it’s not for you, ship it back to them, and they’ll refund your money.

All About Learning divides reading and spelling into two different curricula. All About Reading will teach your kids to read and includes five different levels including pre-reading, level one, level two, level three, and level four. Level four teaches the last 15 phonograms including ough, si, and ph.

Children should complete All About Reading level 1 before beginning All About Spelling.

This homeschool hands-on curriculum has seven levels.

The final level includes English words that derive from other languages along with tips on how to spell the more difficult words in the English language.

Check out All About Learning here.

Right Start Mathematics

Right Start Mathematics is a secular hands-on math curriculum that aims to give kids a solid understanding, mastery, and love of mathematics.

The homeschool curriculum for hands-on learning includes the Cotter Abacus and games to help children visualize the concepts they’re learning, master the facts, and stay engaged with their education.

The goal is to minimize children’s counting to find the answers. Instead, they use the Cotter Abacus to visualize groups and manipulate the numbers to understand mathematical concepts and find the answers.

Kids also use overlapping place value cards to help them understand how our number system works.

Flash cards are not included in this hands-on curriculum for homeschool. Instead, games are used to help kids master the facts.

The curriculum also encourages teachers and children to use the right vocabulary from the beginning, such as equation rather than number sentence. Using the correct vocabulary allows children to gain a deeper understanding of the concepts.

Learn more about Right Start Mathematics here.

Apologia

Apologia is a hands-on Christian homeschool curriculum that offers courses in mathematics, the Bible, literature, social studies, and worldview. They are best known for the hands-on science homeschool curriculum that provides children with many experiments.

The award-winning curriculum provider offers families the choice between completing the textbooks at home, self-paced online courses, and live classes.

Apologia is also considered to have one of the best hands-on science homeschool curricula available for families.

The curriculum is written in a conversational manner to keep kids engaged with the material. Also, plenty of hands-on activities are included that help children understand the concepts being taught.

Apologia is written from a Biblical worldview by experts in the fields to provide your children with the best resources to help them succeed.

The program is also written to allow children with different learning styles to succeed. Materials are provided for auditory, visual, tactile, interactive, self-paced, and social learners.

Check out Apologia here.

Generations Homeschool Curriculum

The Generations curriculum is a Bible-based standout choice for families searching for a hands-on learning approach.

By seamlessly infusing hands-on activities into every subject, Generations creates an interactive educational experience that goes beyond traditional methods.

With an emphasis on experiential learning, this curriculum encourages students to participate and engage with their studies actively, fostering a deeper comprehension of concepts.

Real-world applications further solidify their understanding, making learning relevant and enjoyable.

Generations excel in providing dynamic and adaptable learning encounters, catering to various learning styles and paces.

The curriculum’s affordability, ranging from $150 to $250, makes it an attractive option for families seeking an immersive and budget-friendly homeschooling solution.

Check out Generations hands-on homeschool curriculum here.

Green Craft Kids – Educational Subscription Boxes

The best hands-on homeschool curriculum is one that gets kids engaged with their learning.

Green Craft Kids offers educational subscription boxes that arrive every month filled with four to six science and art projects that will fascinate your children while sparking a life-long love of learning.

You will find two options available from Green Craft Kids. The first is a plan for younger children between the ages of three and five. The second plan provides projects for older children from five to ten and over.

Each project will help kids use their creativity while they learn about the world around them. The boxes include everything you need to complete the nature-based STEAM activities. STEAM is an acronym for science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics.

All of the projects are screen-free, hands-on activities that will fascinate your children while providing hours of educational exploration and fun.

Learn more about Green Craft Kids Educational Subscription Boxes here.

BJU Press

BJU Press is one of the best homeschool curricula for hands-on learners. I use this with my son, and it has lots of manipulatives.

The Christian curriculum allows your child to study government, history, economics, and other subjects from the framework of God’s redemptive plan. The courses make sure that your child receives a strong foundation in a Biblical worldview and learns critical thinking skills.

Your children will also have many multisensory activities to aid learning and understanding of the concepts being taught.

In addition, BJU Press provides the option for either online learning or parent-led so you can choose the format that best fits your family’s lifestyle.

Learn more about BJU Press here.

Horizons

Horizons is a very teacher-led and hands-on curriculum. This allows it to be started earlier than LifePac. The hands-on learning homeschool curriculum is a workbook-style program that’s filled with hands-on activities.

A preschool curriculum for three-year-olds is available that will help your child with their cognitive development. The hands-on bible curriculum for the homeschool introduces kids to forty Bible stories.

In addition, a hands-on kindergarten homeschool curriculum gives children lessons in phonics, math, reading, and health.

The third-grade grade set contains hands-on lessons in reading and phonics, math, spelling and vocabulary, penmanship, and health.

Check out Horizons here.

Notgrass History

Notgrass history is a hands-on history homeschool curriculum with a young Earth Christian view. It provides a history curriculum for children of all ages that’s easy to use.

Kids will enjoy the primary documents, colorful photographs, and creative activities that bring history alive. In addition, the materials will help you train your children to honor God.

Notgrass History provides material at the elementary stage for kids between the first and the fourth grades. The two years of history focus on American history and geography.

The middle school history curriculum From Adam to Us is a world history course aimed at children between the fifth and the eighth grades.

The high school curriculum provides courses in American history, world geography, world history, U.S. Government, and economics.

Learn more about Notgrass History here.

Oak Meadow

Oak Meadow is a secular homeschool curriculum that emphasizes hands-on and nature based learning. The curriculum does offer an accredited distance-learning option.

During the elementary years, children learn about the world through active exploration. The flexible style allows families to tailor their child’s education to the child’s specific needs.

In middle school, kids explore the relations of the world along with human accomplishments and conflicts.

High school students put their knowledge and skills to work as they focus on making a difference in the world around them.

Learn more about Oak Meadow here.

My Father’s World

My Father’s World is a Christian hands-on homeschool curriculum based on both Charlotte Mason and classical education.

The eclectic program is crafty and well-suited to families who enjoy hands-on projects.

The affordable program integrates the Bible into all subjects.

My Father’s World encourages and promotes using crafts and hands-on projects to help kids remember what they’ve learned.

In addition, the curriculum uses a plethora of living books and classical literature.

Kids are grouped into like ages so homeschool parents do not need to juggle a multitude of curricula to educate their children.

My Father’s World also designed the lessons to be completed in the mornings, leaving the afternoons free for field trips, shopping, and other activities.

Learn more about My Father’s World here.

Sonlight

Sonlight is a Christian literature curriculum with plenty of hands-on learning opportunities for children.

The curriculum believes in giving kids lots of good books to read at an easy reading level. This allows children who are reluctant readers to feel successful at reading. Many kids have become avid readers of this program.

Sonlight provides everything you need to complete the curriculum, including the planning. All you need to do is open the teacher’s manual, grab your books, and begin learning.

Sonlight also provides hands-on learning projects for kids, science experiments, and other opportunities for multisensory learning.

Check out Sonlight here or a review here.

Calvert Education

Calvert Education is a secular accredited online academy that will provide an individualized learning plan for your children.

The program includes hands-on learning, videos, learning games, and animation to give kids an engaging and rigorous education.

The comprehensive curriculum includes lessons in history and geography, language arts, math, and science. Plus, families have the option of choosing between 75 electives to add more depth to their children’s education.

Calvert offers courses for children between kindergarten and high school.

High school students in the eleventh and twelfth grades can also earn dual credits. This means some specific classes will give the students both high school credits and college credits.

Blossom and Root

Blossom and Root is a creative, nature-based secular curriculum. The hands-on curriculum combines both Charlotte Mason’s method with Waldorf philosophy, creating a gentle education.

The program currently has two preschool volumes available, along with volumes for kindergarten through the sixth grade.

Both Blossom and Root and Oak Meadow are creative secular curricula that are based, at least in part, on the Waldorf method.

Oak Meadow is an accredited program with curricula that range from preschool through high school. Blossom and Root is not accredited and the curricula only includes material through the sixth grade.

In addition, Oak Meadow is based entirely on Waldorf while Blossom and Root folds elements of the Charlotte Mason method into it’s materials.

Learn more about Blossom and Root here.

Real Science-4-Kids

Real Science-4-Kids is an excellent hands-on science homeschool curriculum that aims to provide a quality science education for all children.

The program offers two options for families to choose between. The options are to study five disciplines of science within one year or to focus on one discipline for an entire year. In addition, there is the possibility of using easy readers with your youngest children to study science.

Unlike Apologia, Real Science-4-Kids is secular.

Apologia offers a detailed journal with the science curricula that not only gives children a place to record their experiments but also teaches kids how to take notes.

Real Science-4-Kids Focus series provides children with a lab notebook as well as a student text and teacher’s manual.

The Building Block series includes a student textbook, teacher’s manual, laboratory notebook, study notebook, lesson plans, and more.

Learn more about Real Science-4-Kids here.

Learn to Homeschool!

Interested in homeschooling but not sure where to start?

There are two valuable resources to explore, one at no cost and another with a $67 fundamentals course.

The $67 Course

If you want to elevate your homeschooling experience, consider enrolling in Rebecca Devitt’s online Homeschool Parenting Program.

This comprehensive course provides essential strategies and techniques to ensure homeschooling success.

To discover more about the HPP, visit this link, and to enroll, click here.

The Free YouTube Channel

Join the How to Homeschool YouTube channel for an engaging glimpse into the homeschooling world and valuable tips on educating your children at home.

It offers a fun and exciting perspective on homeschooling. Explore the channel here, and remember to hit that SUBSCRIBE button to stay updated.

If you’re not sure where to start, start with the following playlists:

You’ll love it and find it helpful and entertaining! Discover the channel here.

The Bottom Line

In the world of homeschooling, hands-on curriculum programs light up the path to unforgettable learning experiences. They empower students to become active participants in their education, igniting a lifelong passion for discovery. As we conclude our exploration of these dynamic approaches, remember that the beauty of homeschooling lies in the hands-on adventures that spark curiosity and creativity. Whatever hands-on homeschool curriculum you choose, you’re crafting a unique educational journey, guiding young minds toward a future bright with possibilities. Embrace the adventure!