How to Homeschool High School with Frugal Curriculum --

Summary:  Are you looking for just one more resource for your high schooler?  Sharing our favorites, why we liked them, with a focus on frugal options.  #homeschoolhighschool #homeschoolhighschoolcurriculum  We may use affiliate links to products that we use or would have used in our homeschool.  Please see our disclosure policy.

Homeschooling has been such a big part of my life.  We are so glad that we homeschooled all the way.  Of course it had it's ups and downs.  But we found it to be rich in benefits for our daughter and for our family.  Especially during the teen years.

The hard part about homeschooling when it comes to the teen years, is that there are so many choice in homeschool high school curriculum...Especially now, with new publishers coming on the scene.

It can be easy to get overwhelmed with the many options out there.  Especially if you are on a budget like we were.

Over the years, we have come to know the homeschooling market pretty well.  We did find a number of frugal options that we love.

Sharing today, our favorites for high school, plus some from our friends, also other veteran homeschool moms, too.  

I hope that this list will help you find what you are looking for.  And I wish you a great year with your high schooler at home.

Note - I mention Switched-On-Schoolhouse a lot in the article below.  We loved it, for many reasons, not the least of which was that it was frugal.  It cost us only around $70.00 for each one year long course.  And we did not find any need to supplement it at all.  

I invite you to read on to hear about many more frugal homeschool high school curriculum options, not just for core courses.  There are many for fun electives as well.

Our Frugal Homeschool High School Curriculum Choices

Do you have a college bound teen?

I have gathered together all my best tips for high school and college and put it into my new book, Homeschooling High School with College in Mind, 2nd Edition. 

It gives you everything that you need to plan your high school homeschool for your college bound teen.  Plus how to help them get into the college of their choice.

Amazon for only $11.99

Paperback is on Amazon 

This book is an easy-to-read guide to college for homeschoolers, recently updated with 7 NEW chapters, including:

- My own homeschoolers guide to the Common Application

- How to write the Counselor Recommendation Letter

- Where to find college scholarships

- SAT/ACT Prep

- How to make your own homemade courses

-  Included are also 12 homeschool high school planning printables to make your record-keeping easier.

This book does not tell you how to homeschool high school.  Instead it gives you guidance for doing it your way!  

Keep your nurturing homeschool style and showcase their accomplishments to the colleges!

Recommended by: Lessa Scherrer, Certified College Counselor

                               from College Inside Track

"Betsy has a wealth of understanding and knowledge to share with the parents of college bound homeschoolers.  She provides support, encouragement and step-by-step advice on all aspects of the homeschool high school and college application process. This book is a must-read for parents considering homeschooling high school and for parents in the thick of the application process."

And help for record keeping!  With my exclusive high school and college planning printables.

For more information, click here - Amazon.  And don't worry about forgetting things!

Thanks for stopping by BJ's Homeschool,

Betsy

Betsy is mom to her now college grad, whom she homeschooled through high school.  She blogs at BJ's Homeschool, and wrote -Homeschooling High School with College in Mind, 2nd Edition,   She offers homeschool help through messages at BJ's Consulting,  and has had some of her articles picked up by the Huffington Post.

Want to stay in touch?

Subscribe, Pinterest, Facebook 

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 Just encouragement for your homeschool
 in your inbox.

Copyright @ BJ's Homeschool 2019

BJ's Homeschool Disclosure Policy

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Affiliate Program, which is an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means where by we can earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliate sites.

We also share other homeschooling resources and curriculum that we used in our homeschool, or would have used in it over the years, as we found it to be of high quality and helpful for educating children or teens at home.

I am not a certified educator.  I do not offer educational assessments.  I also am not a certified college counselor.  I share educational and college prep and admissions information, based on my own experience as a homeschool mom.

I want to be an encouragement to you, the homeschool mama, doing the most important job in the world, raising our next generation. Our kids.

Frugal Homeschool High School Social Psychology Elective

. Affiliate links are sometimes used on my blog, for resources that we have used or would use in our homeschool.  Please see my disclosure policy.

Are you looking for something different for your teen's high school elective this fall?  

We were lucky.  All of the colleges on my daughter's list let us choose what courses we wanted for her Social Studies requirements.  

So for our daughter, a course in psychology, sociology, and the like would count towards her college entrance requirements in social studies.

As my daughter was interested in psychology, she wanted to include that in her high school studies.  It not only gave her a social studies credit, but it also helped to build her an interesting college-attractive transcript.

If your college requires specific history courses and does not include psych as an option, no problem.  (Not all colleges give you that much leeway.)  It can add a lot to your teen's transcripts as an elective as well.

So my teen and I did an internet search, and we came up with a number of frugal options for her homeschool high school studies in psychology.  

Here are a few:

1.  Chegg Books offers Cognitive Psychology 

This book covers the basics of cognitive psychology, including neuroscience, attention, perception, memory, language, decision making and more.  This book is offered for rent for $35.99.

2.  Psychology and You, Student Version

This book sells for around $26.00 and is a comprehensive high school level introduction to psychology.  It is written in a style that talks to students using examples and language relevant to their lives.  

That includes a focus on everyday issues and concerns, with historical facts and mention of unusual events, too.

3.  Introduction to Psychology

This college level course is priced at $85.00 for the new version, but has used book prices as well.  It is a good thorough introduction to psychology.  The new 6th edition includes CD-ROM resources, too.  That includes interactive learning activities.

4.  AP Psychology Cognition and Language

There is a review of this AP course here at Lesson Planet   It offers a lesson plan for teaching Cognitive Psych to high schoolers.  

Hands-on activities, memory exercises and research come together to teach your high schooler about the brain.

We did not go the dual credit route as I wanted my daughter to be able to stay at the high school level in her studies, to let her be a teen for awhile.  

And do college courses in college.  

But many families are looking for dual credit, and doing a course like this, then doing an AP Psychology test can be just the ticket for them.

5.  Introduction to Psychology from a Christian Perspective

 Introduction to Psychology
Christian Perspective

What I liked about this psychology course was that it was written not only by homeschoolers, but for homeschoolers.  We found it to be different from the other options we discussed above.  

While still providing good solid content in the principles of psychology for homeschoolers, it avoided the kind of wordy, serious text focus that often turns off high schoolers to the subject.

We found this course to be interesting and meaningful, yet not dry at all.  My teen liked the short lessons with many individualized activities to choose from.  

And I liked that it was written by a practicing coach and counselor, Vicki Tillman, MA, from 7 Sisters Homeschool and it sold for around $40.00 for the complete course. Very frugal.

Vicki has more info on how to use their Christian based course here: An Authoritative Guide to Psychology Study

I also liked that it included a test bank with an answer key.  And the best part about it was that it led to many fulfilling dinner conversations! 

For more information on this course, I invite you to click Introduction to Psychology Course Description, by my friend, Vicki.

Benefits of Adding Psychology to your Homeschool

If your college requires specific history courses and does not include psych as an option, no problem.  (Not all colleges give you that much leeway.)  

It can add a lot to your teen's transcripts as an elective as well.

Plus learning more about how our minds work and how the personality is developed could only help our daughter in her college and later in the world of work. too.  

In fact, being able to work well with others is now very high on the list of what employers are looking for, in their prospective applicants.

Whatever you and your teen decide to do for psychology or other interesting high school social studies credits or high school electives, we at BJ's Homeschool, hope that it helps to add the fun into your teen's high school years at home.  

Homeschooling High School with College in Mind
 2nd Edition 

FREE TO READ WITH PRIME!

Create your own unique and nurturing high school program for your teen and showcase their accomplishments to the colleges. 

There are 12 downloadable high school homeschool planning printables plus a transcript form for you to just fill in.

The kind of transcript form that the colleges are used to seeing.

Thanks for stopping by BJ's Homeschool,

Betsy

Betsy is mom to her now college grad, whom she homeschooled through high school.  She blogs at BJ's Homeschool, about the early years, high school, 
college, gifted/2e and wrote -Homeschooling High School with College in Mind, 2nd Edition.   She offers homeschool help through messages at BJ's Consulting,  and has had some of her articles picked up by the Huffington Post.

Want to stay in touch?

Subscribe, Pinterest, Facebook 

No spam ever.  
Just encouragement for your homeschool in your inbox.

Copyright Revised 2023

All Rights Reserved

Homeschool High School English - Make Your Course YOUR OWN ----

High School Homeschool English does not have to follow a traditional pattern or require the cost of a complicated English course.  Here's how we made our own. This post may included affiliate links to products that we love and have used or would use in our own homeschool.  Please see my disclosure policy.

Do you have a teen who doesn't want to do the traditional high school English course?  

Why not make one yourself, using the books that they want to read.  

Most colleges tend to look for literature and composition in an applicant's high school English courses, but don't specify what type of literature to include.  

That gives us homeschoolers lots of leeway. The best part about it was that my daughter loved her homemade course!  

And it helped her develop a love for reading. Our homemade English course was accepted by each of the colleges that our daughter had on her list. 

To read more and to reach our favorite frugal resources for lit guides, etc, please just click here:  How to Make Your OWN FRUGAL English Course.

Do you want a step by step guide to the Common Application for homeschoolers?  It is the top feature in my new book!

I have gathered together all my best tips for high school and college and put it into my new book, Homeschooling High School with College in Mind, 2nd Edition. 

Amazon 

This book is an easy-to-read guide to high school,  including:

• My own homeschoolers guide to the Common Application
• How to write the Counselor Recommendation Letter
• Where to find college scholarships
• SAT/ACT Prep
• How to make your own homemade courses
• Included are also 12 homeschool high school planning printables to make your record-keeping easier.

This book does not tell you how to homeschool high school.  Instead it gives you guide to give you the details so that you can focus on your teen's needs. 

And help for record keeping!  With my exclusive high school and college planning printables.

For more information, click here - Frugal College Prep for Homeschoolers or to buy it here - on Amazon  

Thanks for stopping by BJ's Homeschool,

Betsy

Betsy is mom to her now college grad, whom she homeschooled through high school.  She blogs at BJ's Homeschool, about the early years, highschool, 
college, gifted/2e and wrote -Homeschooling High School with College in Mind, 2nd Edition,   She offers homeschool help through messages at BJ's Consulting,  and has had some of her articles picked up by the Huffington Post.

Want to stay in touch?

Subscribe, Pinterest, Facebook 


No spam ever. 
 Just encouragement for your homeschool
 in your inbox.

Big Back to Homeschool High School GIVEAWAY -- Ended (Worth $319.00)

Summary: This is a giveaway of homeschool high school curriculum and resources worth a total of $319.00. Enter to win --Online high school courses, and others in fine arts, science, world history and more!  Plus 1/2 hour of free college counseling is included. GIVEAWAY ENDED This post may included affiliate links to products that we love and have used or would love to use in our  own homeschool.  Please see my disclosure policy.


Welcome to our Homeschool High School Giveaway! 

I got together 7 quality homeschool high school resources and curriculum for this giveaway. I hope that something from this list will add something special to your homeschool. It was so fun to put this together for you!  I hope that you will enter and I hope that you will win!

Homeschool High School -100 Resources for your Teen

Summary:  If you are looking for something new for your high schooler which is frugal, and well done, feel free to check out this list of our favorite homeschool high school resources. 
homeschoolhighschoolcurriculum #homeschoolhighschool This post may included affiliate links to products that we love and have used or would use in our own homeschool.  Please see my disclosure policy.


Are you looking for something new for your high schooler this year?  Or something that would help motivate them and even inspire them?

High school at home has so many advantages for our teens.

But at the same time, it can be a struggle to find just the right resource for them.  And with the price of curriculum, it can be more than taxing to the budget. It can seem impossible at times.

Then there is now a staggering amount of homeschool high school curriculum to look at. It can be overwhelming, especially for those of us who are newish to homeschooling. Or even for those of us who have done it for awhile.

Over the years of homeschooling our 2e teen, we came to know the homeschool curriculum market and developed our favorites within that. That is why I put together this list of our favorite homeschool high school curricula and resources.

Are you looking for English or social studies curricula?  Or something for science?  A course on  career exploration?  How about something for financial literacy?  Or SAT prep?

I hope that you have fun browsing around on this list!  I organized my list into 14 categories of frugal resources, many of which we enjoyed using in our homeschool.

Just click on 100 Best Resources for Homeschooling High School for lots of ideas to choose from.

100 Best Resources for Homeschooling High School

This list here also includes tips for putting together your homeschool, and also lots of information on applying to college as well, if that is where your teen is headed.

----------------------------------

Do you want a step by step guide to the Common Application for homeschoolers?  It is the top feature in my new book!

I have gathered together all my best tips for high school and college and put it into my new book, Homeschooling High School with College in Mind, 2nd Edition. 

It gives you everything that you need to plan your high school homeschool for your college bound teen.  Plus how to help them get into the college of their choice.

Amazon for only $11.99

Paperback is on Amazon for only $11.99

This book is an easy-to-read guide to college for homeschoolers, recently updated with 7 NEW chapters, including:

- My own homeschoolers guide to the Common Application

- How to write the Counselor Recommendation Letter

- Where to find college scholarships

- SAT/ACT Prep

- How to make your own homemade courses

-  Included are also 12 homeschool high school planning printables to make your record-keeping easier.

10 easy to do steps to homeschool high school with college in mind. And it really is NOT that hard!!  

This book does not tell you how to homeschool high school.  Instead it gives you guidance for doing it your way!  

And help for record keeping!  With my exclusive high school and college planning printables.

For more information, click here - Frugal College Prep for Homeschoolers or to buy it here - my book on Amazon for only $11.99.  

And don't worry about forgetting things!

Thanks for stopping by BJ's Homeschool,

Betsy

Betsy is mom to her now college grad, whom she homeschooled through high school.  She blogs at BJ's Homeschool, about the early years, highschool, 
college, gifted/2e and wrote -Homeschooling High School with College in Mind, 2nd Edition,   She offers homeschool help through messages at BJ's Consulting,  and has had some of her articles picked up by the Huffington Post.

Want to stay in touch?

Subscribe, Pinterest, Facebook 

No spam ever. 
 Just encouragement for your homeschool
 in your inbox.

Copyright @ BJ's Homeschool 2019

Frugal Homeschool Writing Curriculum for Middle School

This article shows how we used frugal homeschool middle school writing curriculum in our homeschool.  There may be affiliate links to products we used or would use in our homeschool, and please see my disclosure policy here.



Are you looking for homeschool curriculum resources for middle school writing?  Or are you needing something new that might get your young middle schoolers writing?

Or when you give your student a book report to do, do they have difficulty getting started?

Our 2e young middle schooler did.  She loved writing when she was younger.  At that time, she did a lot of journal writing where my child enjoyed writing about her day, or her latest adventure.

 But when she got to be a middle schooler, she was reluctant to write in her journal.  She was not inspired and needed some inspiration and structure to get her writing.  

Does that sound like your middle schooler, too?

Spectrum Middle School Writing 

There are a lot of homeschool writing curriculum out there, that one can chose from.  

Like Brave Writer, IEW, Write Shop, and more.  

Most of these alternatives are somewhat costly and also, in my opinion, somewhat complicated to use.

We wanted something that both inspired my daughter to write, and at the same time, taught her the basics of writing, paragraph writing, easy essay writing, etc.

When we found Spectrum Writing - Grade 6, we were pleased.  This homeschool middle school curriculum did both of those things, and was also easy to teach!  And also affordable and really quite frugal.

Spectrum Writing Provides Structure

Spectrum Writing is an activity based workbook, that is designed for independently study. Here is a page from the book that helped get my daughter writing a personal narrative, ie a story about herself or her experiences.  

And it provided the structure, in it's project based lessons, that our child needed.

A chart to help write a personal narrative.

 My young teen could just open the book, choose a lesson and project to do, and just would rely on me for any questions that came up.

Of course we also celebrated her writing, including having her read her work out loud to the family afterwards. But it did not depend on a lot of 1 on 1 instruction from me.  And the projects inspired her and helped her to get writing and to enjoy writing again.

Spectrum Writing has an Answer Key

The other great feature of Spectrum Writing is that includes the answers to each activity in the book.  This can be a great help when you go to grade or give feedback on their work.

It also includes a Writers Handbook in the book.

For more information on Spectrum Writing - Grade 6, just click here - Middle School Writing - Resources from Spectrum Review 

 Middle School Writing - Resources from Spectrum Review 

Spectrum Writing offers curricula from Grade 1 through Grade 8.

Working in Spectrum Writing 6 inspired our daughter to get into story writing the next year, then nonfiction writing after that.

7 Sisters Middle School Essay Writing

Another of our favorites for middle school writing curriculum are the courses below, from 7 Sisters Homeschool.  Both of these courses also offer benefits just like those in Spectrum Writing, such as:

- They are frugal
- They provide helpful structure

7 Sisters Homeschool offers these two frugal courses:

Middle School Guide to Essay Writing

This course teaches basic essay writing format and includes a number of essay writing activities, including conpare/contrast essays and persuasive essays. I like their "no busy work" approach and that they also offer a guide for how to grade your young teen's work.  

Does your child like to write fantasy oriented stories?  

These are great for our young teens to do, too, as it helps them feel comfortable about putting letters on the page.  And it also teaches them literary analysis, by naturally learning that as they put together their story.

7 Sisters Middle School Creative Writing 

Middle School Short Story Guide - Fairy Tales

My daughter loved to write stories as middle schooler.  I wish I had known about this course then.  Middle School Short Story Guide makes it easy for your child to develop a plot, create characters and put together their story.  

It is a 5 week course, so could fit into your young teen's fall quarter easily.  For more information on exactly what is in this fun course, just click here.

7 Sisters High School Essay Writing

These homeschool moms also put together high school essay writing courses, which teach essay writing at all levels, 9th through 12th grade. 

Here's a link to one of them. 

Beginning High School Writing

The beauty of their courses is that they are not at all busy work related. They teach the writing skills your teen needs in a matter of fact matter. 

Just pick the one that fits your teen. Plus they are much more frugal that many of the other curriculum providers for writing courses.

For more information on 7 Sisters Homeschool mentioned above, and how to get a reluctant young teen writing, I invite you to click here - Middle School Essay Writing Help for Your Homeschool.

They also offer lots of high school English courses, too here.  I hope these ideas help you to inspire your middle schoolers to love writing.

---------------------------------

I have gathered together all my best tips for high school and college and put it into my new book, Homeschooling High School with College in Mind, 2nd Edition. 

Amazon 

This book does not tell you how to homeschool high school.  Instead it gives you guidance for doing it your way!  Recommended by: Lessa Scherrer, Certified College Counselor from College Inside Track.

And help for record keeping!  With my exclusive high school and college planning printables.  For more information, click here -Frugal College Prep for Homeschoolers .

Thanks for stopping by BJ's Homeschool,

Betsy

Betsy is mom to her now college grad, whom she homeschooled through high school.  She blogs at BJ's Homeschool, about the early years, highschool, 
college, gifted/2e and wrote -Homeschooling High School with College in Mind, 2nd Edition. 

Want to stay in touch?

Subscribe, Pinterest, Facebook 

No spam ever. 
 Just encouragement for your homeschool
 in your inbox.

Copyright @ BJ's Homeschool 2019