This post is for everyone who is finding themselves suddenly and unexpectedly homeschooling due to the vaccine mandates in B.C.
Facebook groups to ask questions, or buy/sell curriclum:
Chilliwack & Area Home Learners
BC Homeschoolers and Online Learners
BC Homeschoolers Section 12/13 Registered Option
Greater Vancouver Homeschoolers
In B.C. you have two options when it comes to homeschooling. You can register or enroll.
1. Registering means: you are on your own to come up with an education plan for your child. You can choose any curriculum you want. You are not required to fulfill ministry outcomes. This is the path I would recommend unless you have a student in grade 10-12 who is in the process of getting their Dogwood Diploma. NONE of the outcomes, credits, work, etc. in Kindergarten through grade 9 count towards the BC High School Dogwood Diploma. Only grade 10-12 work counts towards the high school diploma. You can easily register from Kindergarten through Grade 9 and then switch to Enrolling for Grade 10. This is what we have done, and there are a lot of perks to doing it this way. I would highly recommend it. The BC curiculum for Kindergarten to grade 9 has a lot of redundant busywork and reporting to a teacher weekly is time consuming and stressful for most parents. Especially if you have multiple kids in school. Wouldn't you rather spend that time doing something productive and beneficial? Also if you start enrolling in grade 10 you can use prior work that you did as a registered student to get extra credit right off the bat. It's one of the only ways I know of to "skip ahead" if you have a student who wants to do that at some point.
Any school in BC is legally required to offer the registeration option. You can do this with an online or local school. They are all required to do it, though some don’t realize it. There are 1-2 pages of paperwork to fill out and sign to make it official. It’s basically just to prove BC residency and to have it on file that the student is receiving some kind of educational plan. Some schools even give you a little bit of money with it, as they are given a small administration fee from the government to do the paperwork for you - some schools will pass on this money to the parents. As of right now, the only school still giving parents money is Pacific Spirit school. They are also the most organized and simple when it comes to applying - highly recommend.
You can register at any time of the year, there is no cut off. You need to have a student either registered or enrolled by the end of September of each school year but you can switch to registering from enrolled at any point.
2. Enrolling means: You are an online student part of the BC school system. You must check off outcomes and report to a teacher weekly. These reports are usually email based but there are also virtual and in person meetings. You may be given suggested assignments and have some flexibility with curriculum, but some schools don't offer any flexibility. This pathway is similar to what many people experienced when they were suddenly doing virtual schooling during the first lockdown, though virtual classes are not required with this option.
The most flexible enrollment homeschools in B.C are eStreams and Pathways. Both are Christian schools. The most flexible secular schools are often considered to be Ebus or Self Design. TLA also has a good reputation. TLA and Heritage are both Chrisitan schools and can be good for special needs options, they are both bigger schools with bigger special needs budgets. Depending on what kind of special needs you are dealing with though, it may be better to go with a school like eStreams or Pathways instead. Special needs funding is constantly being cut and can be difficult/time consuming to acquire. With a school like eStreams or Pathways you can get the flexibility you need without jumping through extra hoops.
As of this year most students receive approx. $650 in funding (depending on the school) for being enrolled. This is to be used on things like consumable curriculum, some schools let you use it for things like music lessons. Very often if you use it on non-consumable items (like a microscope for example) you will be required to return those to the school as they remain school property. If you want to enroll you have to enquire early. There are often waiting lists and current students have priority. Enrollment usually opens in late February or early March.
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If you decide you want to homeschool long term, these are my favourite resources for homeschooling in general. If you are only planning on homeschooling temporarily for less than 1-3 years, then these resources are skippable! Skip down to "favourite curriculum" below.
Eclectic Homeschooling: What kind of Homeschooler are you? Quiz
To address that age old "But what about socialization?" question: "Hold On To Your Kids: Why Parents Need to Matter More Than Peers" by Dr. Gordon Neufeld
Homeschooling the Early Years - your 3-8 yr old child
How to Raise an Amazing Child the Montessori Way
"For the Children's Sake" - the WHY behind why homeschooling is wise choice, and the most family friendly way to go about it.
The Well Trained Mind - Susan Wise Bauer is considered by many to be the queen of homeschooling. This book is a great resource though I found it overwhelming as a beginner, I do recommend it anyways because I always find some great resources in it even though we have never followed the progarm as outlined.
Cathy Duffy Reviews - very detailed reviews of most curriclum out there.
Honey for a Child's Heart - book lists
More Charlotte Mason Education by Catherine Levison
Know and Tell : The Art of Narration by Karen Glass
The Living Page - keeping Notebooks with Charlotte Mason
Misdiagnosis: Dual Diagnosis of Gifted Children and Adults (maybe it's not ADHD or Autism?)
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Favourite curriculum:
For a low stress approach to gaining a strong foundation in elementary I recommend going the registered option and then focusing on the "3 R's: Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic - Math. The rest of the subjects are more of a garnish and can be covered in fun ways with read aloud books and hands on manipulatives.
My favourite online planner: homeschoolplanet.com (this planner saves my life every day!!! Well worth it!)
The most difficult curriculum to choose is usually math. I'll start there.
It's normal to cycle through different curricula as a homeschool parent. Ask anyone who has been there, and they will tell you that. It's very rare to pick the right thing right off the bat and stick with it for years. The nice thing is, you can choose things that work the best for both you and your child.
When it comes to math curriculum, there are two main approaches: Conceptual and Sequential. Conceptual will cover less topics but dive deep with them and focuses heavily on mental math (example: Singapore Math). This is also similar to "Common Core" math which you may have heard of. It can be impressive but not as practical, because... students in high school can use calculators, so those types of mental math skills are not as important. Most of the conceptual curriculum also only covers a few grade levels. For example Singapore Math covers grade 1 through 6, and Beast Academy is grade 3-6. So neither of them are good long term options.
Sequential is more like what most of us grew up learning. It covers a wide variety of topics, and reviews prior topics consistently to help with retention. While both methods have pros and cons, I find that unless you have an extremely mathy child who can't get enough math - then sequential is the way to go. It's more practical for real life, and it's also better preparation for advanced science courses. I find kids really need consistent practice with basic math facts to succeed and be prepared to do well in high school courses. There are no shortcuts to get there.
I find that the "conceptual" aspects of math come naturally and you don't really need to supplement or teach it in a curriculum. If you want to supplement with conceptual math anyways, I would recommend the Singpore Math Extra Practice books on their own. Do not get the Singapore Kindergarten books, they are nothing like the elementary ones.
All the following math recommendations are from the Sequential math approach.
MATH
pros - very easy to implement, written to the student, independent - even young students as young as Kindergarten can do this on their own, inexpensive. Workbook format, nice for students who have trouble writing as they usually only write the answers.
cons - not grade level. It's about 1.5 - 2 years ahead of BC standards, so it can be hard to figure out if you are are on track. Not a big issue in the early years - you will probably just find yourself ahead. No hands on manipulatives, but you can add your own. Covers Kindergarten through grade 8, for after grade 8 you'll have to transition to something else like Saxon which is similar.
pros - time tested as one of the top math curricula. Very thorough, spiral approach where concepts are constantly reviewed and mastered. Hands on manipulatives are available for Kindergarten through grade 3. This is a great option if you want to homeschool long term as Saxon goes all the way through the end of high school. Many different kinds of video lessons are available from different publishers to match the Saxon textbooks. My favourite is Dr. Shormann. Nicole the Math Lady is a popular option for the elementary levels.
cons - time consuming (can skip questions to make it faster), can be a bit "dry" for the early years. Expensive. Involves more writing as students have to write both the questions and answers from the textbook starting at level 5/4 (which is equivalent to BC grade 6). It is slightly less advanced than CLE, but is also 1-2 years ahead of BC standards.
SAXON MATH with DIVE Lectures by Dr. Shormann / Shormann Math
pros - online video lectures make teaching concepts MUCH easier! Dr. Shormann math also includes automatic online grading. Quiz and Test prep set up in such a way to make success inevitable. Very easy to use. Very thorough. Incremental approach with built in review. In my opinion this is the best option for grade 7 and up. Dr. Shormann math also includes ACT and SAT prep for students who want to write the SAT exam or go to college in the USA eventually. Students can also write the SAT instead of getting a high school diploma for college entrance (each college has different requirements but this can be an option).
cons - young earth creationist evangelical viewpoints, if that's an issue. It only comes up now and then. We're not young earth creationist and don't find it to be an issue. He does include theology and mathematical history early on but that is only in one main lesson.
pros: the most easy and efficient to use, expect major progress quickly. This is by far the best curiculum for early math. It is almost completely hands on! No workbooks or textbooks.
cons: can be expensive, not very structured, big initial learning curve as it's very different from standard curriculum. Only for kindergarten - grade 5/6, so you'll have to transition to something else later.
PHONICS
All About Reading - a full program.
pros: uses Orton-Gillingham method for Dyslexia, full colour, fun activities, less sight words in beginning. I would highly recommend getting the APP to use with it, and not bothering with the little magnetic letter tiles.
cons: expensive, not enough practice for some kids - might need to add a supplemental resource to it.
Ordinary Parents Guide to teaching Reading
pros: very easy and efficient to use, less sight words in beginning. Very inexpensive.
cons: not enough practice to be a complete program, would need to use something else like All About Reading with it.
pros: totally free! Great for practice. Great for struggling readers who need to gain confidence.
cons: not a complete program
pros: great for kids who love workbooks, can be done mostly independently. Great for extra practice alongside a full reading program. "Get Set for the Code" workbooks are the best option for beginners.
cons: the illustrations are hard to decipher for some kids, they are dated and can be frustrating for very logical kids.
Note: if you've been doing any research into homeschooling or phonics curriculum you may have come across a book called "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons". Do not be fooled by this title. It has a reputation of being the MOST resold book in the homeschool universe. It does not work for most people long term. There is nothing "easy" about teaching most kids to read. It is often a time consuming process that takes a lot of time, patience, consistency, and commitment. The above resources I listed are the best I've found after trying out many different things.
SPELLING
All About Spelling - hands down. Just the best. The levels are NOT grade level, just go at a consistent pace with whatever works for your child. Level 1 starts at about a grade 2 level. There are placement tests on the website. I would highly recommend getting the APP to use with it, and not bothering with the little magnetic letter tiles.
Spelling Workout Workbooks - for extra practice, if your child needs it. Can be done independently. These are grade level.
Squeebles Spelling Test App - AWESOME app for quick progress and extra practice on tricky words. You can add in custom words including your own voice recording.
READ ALOUDS
Reading out loud is the most important thing to build a child's IQ. It's been proven by science. You can continue to read out loud every year, kids are never too old for it!
Check out the Mensa Reading in Excellence program and book lists.
Other favourite book lists:
Sonlight (Bookshark, same thing but secular) - these books are my favourite for pre-K, K and grade 1. I would go one grade level below.
Build Your Library - K to 12 secular literature based curriclum based on Charlotte Mason methods
Ambleside Online - K to 12 Christian literature based curriculum based on Charlotte Mason methods
LITERATURE
Memoria Press book studies - these are pretty advanced, I recommend going down 1-2 grade levels. These cover Grade 1 to Grade 12. They can be purchased from Classicaleducationbooks.ca (if you order a teacher guide, they send you the PDF version of the tests and quizzes for free - so that's handy). Can also be purchased from Christianbook.com
Novel Units Book Studies - these are my favourite, you only need the student book. It contains the answers. The teacher book is for classroom use. The activities include vocabulary, comprehension, pre and post reading activities, quizes and a test at the end.
Great Works Instructional Guides - similar to the Novel Units studies, these have a few more open ended project ideas and are available as PDF downloads which is handy if pressed for time.
GRAMMAR
Elementary: First Language Lessons for the Well Trained Mind by Jessie Wise. Student workbooks are available as PDF's.
Middle school/ High school: Grammar for the Well Trained Mind by Susan Wise Bauer
Micheal Clay Thompson Grammar (especially for gifted kids, or for anyone who really struggles with how to see grammar - very visual) These can be purchased as ebooks from iTunes. Teachers guides are not necessary if you get the leveled guides. They have some interactive features which are interesting. Beautiful and artistic, these are incredibly engaging.
Montessori Grammar Manipulatives - google printable montessori grammar, or shop at Pinkmontessori.com
WRITING
Writing With Ease by Susan Wise Bauer - some people quit too early with this one. It is advanced, not for grade 1 or 2. Try starting it in upper elementary.
Writing with Skill by Susan Wise Bauer - I would start this in grade 8 or 9, then one book each year thereafter (there are 3 books). This is great for college prep.
Micheal Clay Thompson Language Arts - especially Essay Voyage. These can be purchased as ebooks from iTunes. Teachers guides are not necessary if you get the leveled guides. They have some interactive features which are interesting. Beautiful and artistic, these are incredibly engaging.
We don’t do creative writing, but if you wanted to you can check out “The Creative Writer” series by Boris Fisman.
“Just Write” by EpS (at Christianbook.com” is a great set of workbooks to meet writing outcomes for kindergarten through grade 2/3. Easy!
SCIENCE
Kindergarten to grade 2: “Let’s read and find out science” series - LOVE these!
https://elementalscience.com/blogs/news/list-lets-read-and-find-out-books-for-science
DK kids "First" encyclopedias
Mystery Science - online video based, easy to implement, affordable, fun for elementary. Not time consuming and not frustrating. Real science!
Science Wiz kits - fun kits for elementary, can buy at Mastermind Toys or Amazon.
TOPS Science - "Radishes" is a fun month long curriculum based on botany for grade 5/6. Their hands on electricity unit is great for older elementary kids too. You can buy the books at different curriculum suppliers or PDF's from their website.
CPO Science - American textbooks, I bought used on Ebay. Recommended in the Well Trained Mind and I found these perfect for grade 6-8. More advanced than the BC curriculum. The teachers guides are necessary.
Novare Science - best for middle school and high school physics and chemistry. Best prep for college.
Memoria Press Biology - best for grade 11 biology, can do dual credit grade 10 and 11.
SOCIAL STUDIES
I recomend going registered so you can skip mostly redundant social studies outcomes until Grade 10 and do literature and project based history starting around grade 3 instead.
Fave history resources:
A Child's History of the World by Hillyer with workbook set by Calvert (around grade 3-6).
Story of the World - volume 1 is good but in my experience with doing it twice with two kids is that the retention is low. The activity guide has lots of fun activities to make history come alive. GREAT book lists in the activity guide. Would recommend for grade 3 and up. The audio book is worth it.
A Little History of the World by Gombrich
Genevieve Foster books - these are awesome read alouds. They also have a unique approach in showing what happened over the whole world during the lifetime of a famous historical character. Gives unique insight. For upper elementary or middle school level.
Ambleside History sequence
Oxford University Press series - middle school and high school, with workbooks and teacher guides.
Memoria Press history - geared to homeschoolers, independent
Human Odyssey by K12 - great for middle school, optional workbooks are classroom type assignments though.
Mystery of History - best for middle school and can be used in high school too, Volume 2 has a Christian approach to Middle Ages and muslim issues.
BIBLE
What's in the Bible? DVD's - these are a must have
CLE Bible workbooks - go down 1 or 2 grade levels. Grade 7 level is particularly good. Each year has different themes.
Memoria Press - church history for middle school and high school
Drive Thru History - video based for upper elementary and middle school. Learn about Bible lands on location etc.
ART
“Art Lab for kids” series by Susan Shwake
MaryAnn Kohl books for elementary
Janson's Story of Painting for middle school
Art history books by Hillyer for middle school or high school
Middle school and high school art project books:
“Paint Lab” by Deborah Forman
“Map Art Lab” by Jill Berry
“Drawing Lab” by Carla Sonheim
MUSIC
Music for Little Mozarts - age 6-8 piano
“A Child’s Introduction to the Orchestra”
Opal Wheeler composer biographies - upper elementary
Montessori equipment
GENERAL SHOPPING
Rainbow Resource - is the worlds biggest homeschool store. Expect to pay duty when shipping to Canada. Great place to read reviews and see what kind of options are out there, since they have basically everything.
Christianbook.com - huge selection and often the cheapest prices, expect shipping to take up to 30 days but no duty.
Learninghouse.ca - general Canadian homeschool curricula
Classical Education Books - Local Canadian shop for Classical curriculum, $10 flat rate shipping, they offer local store pick-up in Abbotsford.
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