It is the curriculum. That is the make or break. It is simple to say teach math or reading but a robust and simple to follow curriculum is the make or break for any parent.
Mainly because these varying subjects have many smaller easy to miss elements that make an entire subject complete. There are good and bad forms of a curriculum too. Logic of English is a nightmarish reading and writing curriculum that is hard to follow. Elementary Grammar and Composition is quite easy to follow and this can be followed up with Harvey's Revised English Grammar or even the Institute of Excellence in Writing.
Logic of English teaches the exact material but the makers of it basically reinvented the wheel in a way that requires training in their program to even understand it. I, the working parent, can't pick up Logic of English when I do help and expect to make any headway. The others do not suffer this handicap.
Parents need a road map with all the streets labeled and precise instructions on how to get from point A to point B.
"What do I need to do today?"
"What is the plan for the week?"
Testing is also important so parents can gauge with some confidence where their children are succeeding or falling behind.
Go to the programs page and look at the reading, math, writing/language and social studies stuff and see if anything there speaks to you.
Everything is scripted. Books are MOSTLY on Amazon.
At lower levels, deeply tested. Highly effective.
At higher levels, higher cognitive rigor.
You can read more here. I am NOT affiliated, but the research is there, and it gives you what you need as a parent.
If you don't have the money to spend, I highly recommend Ray's arithmetic and McGuffey Readers, both of which can be found online for free, with answer keys. They're the old school books that we used to use in one-room schoolhouses. They won't have multiple choice tests attached to them, but your kids' ability to do the work is all you really need to see.
I don't know if this helps or if it just feels esoteric. I'm sorry if it's the latter. Clearly, I have a LOT of work to do. But I definitely appreciate everything you've said and will use it to hopefully help a lot of other parents find the right educational path for their families.
It is the curriculum. That is the make or break. It is simple to say teach math or reading but a robust and simple to follow curriculum is the make or break for any parent.
Mainly because these varying subjects have many smaller easy to miss elements that make an entire subject complete. There are good and bad forms of a curriculum too. Logic of English is a nightmarish reading and writing curriculum that is hard to follow. Elementary Grammar and Composition is quite easy to follow and this can be followed up with Harvey's Revised English Grammar or even the Institute of Excellence in Writing.
Logic of English teaches the exact material but the makers of it basically reinvented the wheel in a way that requires training in their program to even understand it. I, the working parent, can't pick up Logic of English when I do help and expect to make any headway. The others do not suffer this handicap.
Parents need a road map with all the streets labeled and precise instructions on how to get from point A to point B.
"What do I need to do today?" "What is the plan for the week?"
Testing is also important so parents can gauge with some confidence where their children are succeeding or falling behind.
Have you heard of Direct Instruction? Here's a link: https://www.nifdi.org/programs/di-at-home/teach-your-child.html
Go to the programs page and look at the reading, math, writing/language and social studies stuff and see if anything there speaks to you.
Everything is scripted. Books are MOSTLY on Amazon.
At lower levels, deeply tested. Highly effective.
At higher levels, higher cognitive rigor.
You can read more here. I am NOT affiliated, but the research is there, and it gives you what you need as a parent.
If you don't have the money to spend, I highly recommend Ray's arithmetic and McGuffey Readers, both of which can be found online for free, with answer keys. They're the old school books that we used to use in one-room schoolhouses. They won't have multiple choice tests attached to them, but your kids' ability to do the work is all you really need to see.
I don't know if this helps or if it just feels esoteric. I'm sorry if it's the latter. Clearly, I have a LOT of work to do. But I definitely appreciate everything you've said and will use it to hopefully help a lot of other parents find the right educational path for their families.