Homeschooling Unit Studies

For instance, during our homeschool unit study on farms, we studied social studies by learning about different types of farms and how farms work, we studied science by learning about animals, we studied literature by reading James Herriot’s Treasury for Children, we took a field trip to a local farm, and we wrote and enacted a play using farm puppets.

Here are some pictures from our study of farms.

Because children follow their interests and learn within a context, they retain information better than they do when reading textbooks and memorizing information for tests.

Combining Multiple Ages

Homeschool unit studies can include the study of character traits, music, art, drama and clothing, and are great for combining multiple age groups into a single subject. Older children can read higher level books and work on more complex projects, and younger children can be read picture books and work on projects at their level.

This method is great for building research skills in high school students. It mimics the way we learn as adults, thus preparing teens for real life.

Challenges

Unit Studies require work on the part of the parent to plan, purchase and prepare materials. Since children are not tested, parents are responsible for assessing their child’s needs and progress. Although these programs incorporate all subjects, many parents find it necessary add on a traditional math or language arts curricula.

Unit Study Curriculum Providers

To save time on planning and preparation, many parents purchase pre-planned programs. Here are some popular providers of prepackaged homeschooling unit studies:

Amanda Bennett's Unit Studies
Five in a Row
KONOS
Cadron Creek Christian Curriculum
My Father's World
Sonlight Curriculum
Weaver
Winter Promise

Galloping the Globe and Learning Adventures are geography/history based unit studies.

Homeschool Share is a website that provides free unit studies for homeschoolers.

Here are some other websites that offer free homeschooling resources.

Here are some suggestions for designing your own homeschool unit study.

Lapbooking

Lapbooking takes the information learned in a unit study and combines it into a file folder, scrapbook or homemade book. Lapbooks are a fun, hands-on way to reinforce or review homeschool lessons. They also provide a record of school projects that can be easily stored.

Here is some information that will help you learn more about lapbooks, along with links to helpful lapbooking resources.