BookShark Homeschool Curriculum

Read any good books lately?

Of course you have! You use BookShark, and it’s full of fantastic fiction, inspiring biographies, and page-turning non-fiction.

We want to hear about your kids’ favorite books. So to inspire them to share, we’re holding a 6-week book chat contest. One student will win each week! It’s a great way to get your kids talking about books, and you’ll love the prize we have in store for the weekly winners.

It can be challenging to parent and homeschool a little wiggle worm. Are you homeschooling a child who struggles with ADD, ADHD, SPD, anxiety, or other special needs? If so, here are ten tips that can help!

Every parent knows that children thrive on routines, but routines are especially important for children who struggle to maintain attention and focus. Trying your best to adhere to a predictable routine can be extremely helpful.

New year but nothing's really changed? If you're still gritting your teeth through remote learning with your public school, it's not too late to shift to homeschooling with BookShark. You can salvage your school year no matter the month of the year.

Here's what BookShark mom Charlotte M. R. says about her decision to pull her kids from public school mid-year: "I pulled my 5th and 7th grader in October and my 12th grader in November."

Have you ever wondered what is a homeschool co-op and whether you should be a part of one? Co-op means co-operative. At its most simple function, a co-op is a partnership between families, working together to educate their children.

While all co-ops share this same basic goal, no two co-ops are exactly alike. These three examples of specific homeschool co-ops, give you a sense for how broadly the term can be applied.

When my children were born, I knew I wanted to homeschool them. To me, homeschooling meant me, at home, teaching them with books and hands-on projects. Of course, time changes things, and our perspectives grow. Six years later, a lot of the education my children receive does not come directly from me, and it doesn’t happen in our home. My definition of homeschooling has transitioned into something broader than I originally envisioned.

Time management is an area we all want to our kids to master. For that matter, most of us moms need improvement in this area as well! I have a high schooler this year. More than ever, I’m seeing how important time management is for him.

I’ve been gradually stepping back so he can develop his own tactics and learn to take responsibility for his use of time. But because he’s under my roof, I feel I have a responsibility to guide him where I can—making suggestions, dropping hints, and subtly reminding.

Many homeschoolers prefer a four-day school week to the traditional Monday through Friday routine. In years past, I have followed this shorter school schedule that BookShark uses, having four full days of school from about 9 a.m.to 1 p.m. and taking Fridays off from normal lesson plans.

I found that the fifth day offered a treasure trove of time and space for fun with my kids.

We all know that it’s important to lead an active lifestyle, regardless of your age. There are dozens of known benefits to regular exercise: better sleep, muscle strength, lower anxiety levels, positive self-esteem, clearer complexion, enhanced mood, improved focus, and a stronger immune system, just to name a few.

Not only do adults benefit from exercise; our children and teens do too.