Our Eclectic 9th Grade Homeschool Curriculum Plans

“Buddy” is starting his Freshman year this week. I cannot believe how quickly time has flown by.

We are excited and a little anxious as we embark on this new adventure. We have been a bit more “relaxed” in the past then we will be during our high school years.

In the past, we always studied the usual subjects, but also did quite a bit of student-inspired learning. We didn’t do student-led or unschooling, but definitely with a little nod in that direction. If Buddy was interested in something in particular, we would often change things up to include his special interest as much as possible. We will probably do that just a little even in high school, but try to fit it into what we are “supposed” to be studying. I don’t want to squash his love for learning.

I plan to use the “sticky note strategy” or something really similar (explained here) when something we are studying doesn’t fit into whatever we are currently doing.

I still remember talking to a homeschool friend several years ago and telling her that I wasn’t sure what to call our style of homeschooling. She said that we were, “Christian, eclectic, child-inspired, relaxed, homeschoolers with a focus on living books.” Yes! That describes us.

The only thing that has changed over the years is that we really got into documentaries and video lessons this last year. Buddy absolutely loves Crash Course, Hip Hughes History  (some of his have a bad word, so might want to pre-screen), Mister Canton, and anything by Brian Unger.

So, here is what we are planning for Buddy’s 9th grade year:

World History

• Exploring World History by Notgrass
• History of the World Mega Conference DVD set
• Crash Course World History Videos: here and here
• Drive Thru History: Ancient History DVD Series
• Other documentaries or videos