After Covid-19 started a lot of parents have chosen to homeschool their children instead of sending them to school. However, homeschool can be very expensive especially if you don’t know what curriculums will work for you and your child.
Homeschooling has been around for decades now, just think about it it’s really how schooling started.
In this article, I will share with you my review of the most affordable homeschooling programs for you. But first, let’s define what homeschooling is.
What is homeschooling?
Homeschooling is when parents, caregivers, grandma or someone in your family, online or tutor decide to remove your children from the school system and teach them at home.
Many parents choose to homeschool due to their religious beliefs, dissatisfaction with the school system, not being able to afford private school, a child not progressing with or needs more attention than what’s given in the school system.
How can I start homeschooling on a low budget?
The first thing to realize is that it’s completely possible to homeschool on a low budget. If you are a single parent, have a one-income family, or have multiple school-aged children you might have a limited budget for homeschooling.
One of the bigger expenses of homeschooling is the homeschool curriculum. In this article, we will look at the best online homeschooling programs to help you compare them and decide which one will suit your situation the best.
Best Affordable Homeschooling Programs
1. K12
K12 Online School is a platform that provides all the educational materials you will need for your children to get a school education.
The K12 Online Public School costs nothing in most states. There are various other options, including private school options.
However, for the purpose of this article, we are focusing on free/ affordable homeschool programs for homeschoolers who are on a budget.
Also, note that you can buy K12 School courses to use for your homeschooling. In this case, you can make monthly payments or a lump sum payment at a reduced cost.
With K12 you can have a state-approved and accredited teacher to teach your children, but this will add considerably to the cost.
What grades can I teach with this curriculum?
K12 offers a comprehensive online homeschool curriculum for preschoolers through high school.
The curriculum provides a solid grounding in math and language arts, and also subjects like science, history, art, music, and world languages. There is also an impressive range of electives.
2. Time4Learning.com
Time4Learning it’s an affordable homeschool curriculum that offers for Pre-K to 12th grade. Students have access to their whole year’s materials 24/7, so the use of the curriculum is completely flexible.
The online system grades and tracks a student’s progress. Parents can use the Parent Administration page to access progress reports. As a homeschooling family, we really love this curriculum because of the flexibility that provides to us.
This online homeschool program allows students to go through the work independently, so they can work at their own pace.
The curriculum features multimedia lessons that students enjoy and that help them to learn new concepts in a relaxed environment.
How much does Time4learning cost?
For Pre-K – 8th grade the monthly cost is $19.95 for the first student and $14.95 per month for every additional student.
The cost for high school students is $30.00 per month.
Related post: How Much Does it Cost to Hire a Homeschool Teacher?
3. Khan Academy
Khan Academy is a world-famous online learning resource for all ages from kindergarten through college.
Khan Academy has as its mission “to provide a free, world-class education to anyone, anywhere.”
The comprehensive curriculum includes videos, practice exercises that can be accessed through a personalized learning dashboard. Students are empowered to study at their own pace.
All school subjects are available, including math, science, computing, history, art history, and economics. Khan Academy also offers test preparation (SAT, Praxis, LSAT) content.
Students are not graded when they complete an exercise. Instead, they are prompted to repeat the exercise until the desired proficiency is reached, after which they are allowed to proceed. The units include quizzes and there are tests at the end of every unit.
For kids younger than age 7, there is Khan Kids, a free educational app that teaches through games.
Keep in mind that Khan Academy is not a school as such and your children can’t graduate from Khan Academy or receive transcripts from Khan Academy.
You can use the Khan Academy portal and curriculum for your child’s education, but you might have to contact a local hybrid school when your child needs a transcript to apply to colleges and universities.
4. ABCmouse
ABCmouse is an online program and app-based learning program designed for kids aged 2-8. It is an award-winning learning program that helps young kids with pre-K, kindergarten, and early elementary school programs.
The ABCmouse learning program guides young learners to read and do math, art, music, and much more. Learning activities include songs, puzzles, games, and art.
The curriculum and learning activities were designed by experienced teachers and experts in education. There are more than 10,000 learning activities for children at all different levels.
Children learn step by step. As soon as they complete a lesson, they are guided to do the next one. Throughout the process, ABCmouse.com’s Tickets and Rewards System prompts them to keep going to the next lesson.
You can keep an eye on your child’s progress with the ABCmouse.com Progress Tracker.
How much it’s ABCmouse?
The app is free for 30 days, after that it’s $9.95 per month. Or if you get it during black Friday they have deals for as low as $15 per quarter.
5. Easy Peasy
Easy Peasy is a completely free homeschooling curriculum. It provides 180 days of homeschool lessons and assignments, which covers math, reading, writing, grammar, spelling, vocabulary, history, social studies, geography, science, Spanish, Bible studies, computer studies, and logic, as well as music and art. The curriculum is compiled using free online materials.
Easy Peasy offers a complete and free curriculum for homeschoolers from preschool through high school.
Parents who have used it found the program comprehensive enough so they don’t have to supplement the curriculum. If you are on a very tight homeschool budget the free version is great but if you have some money to spend you can purchase the Easypeacy homeschool materials as well.
For support and answers to any questions, you might have, there are more than 100 Easy Peasy Facebook pages that you can consult. All the materials free and online.
6. BJU Press
BJU Press offers online courses for all core subjects but with a Christian worldview. The curriculum is for Pre-K and Grade 1 – grade 12.
The teaching is done through textbooks and video courses presented by professional teachers.
BJU Press is not free, but offers affordable payment options and offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
7. Alpha Omega
Alpha Omega Monarch is an online homeschool curriculum for grades 3-12. The lessons are Bible-based in the five core subjects of math, language arts, science, Bible, history and geography, and includes many electives.
Over the course of many years, AOP has received many awards for its Christian homeschooling curriculum.
The Monarch online curriculum provides many learning options for all grade levels.
There are monthly payment options as well as an annual payment option. An individual subscription is $39.95 per month or $359.96 per year. A family subscription is $69.95 per month. The yearly payment is $699.95.
AOP also offers Life Pac, a Christian homeschool curriculum that is based on workbooks learning for Grades K -12. You can get the pricing for the Life Pac here https://www.aop.com/curriculum/shop-lifepac
8. Used Homeschool School Books
Used Homeschool Books is a huge selection of curriculum for grades K-12 that helps homeschooling families to save money by providing homeschool materials at an affordable price.
You can find quality used books and resources by well-known publishers like Abeka, Bob Jones, Saxon, Math U See, Apologia, and many more at hugely discounted prices. You can save 25 -75% off the retail price.
Of course, this is also the ideal place for you to sell your used books and curricula.
9. Pearson Homeschool
Savvas Learning Company, formerly known as Pearson, offers a core curriculum for all grade levels, preschool through Grade 12, as well as access to free homeschool resources. Savvas Learning Company is a global education company renowned for its award-winning learning educational materials.
It is promoted as a value-priced homeschool program. Savvas Learning Company offers a huge selection of materials and resources all priced separately.
10. All Free Printables
All Free Printables is a free resource with a huge choice of worksheets, calendars, word search sheets, and more to support your homeschool.
What are the most affordable homeschooling programs?
In terms of price, the most affordable homeschooling online programs are the ones that are free. A curriculum like that of the Khan Academy is both free and of a high standard.
The K12 Online Public School is also a good choice as it is completely free and offers accredited education.
Conclusion
For families on a budget, there are free homeschooling curricula available. If you choose one of the free options, it’s easy to change to another free option if what you have chosen doesn’t work for you.
Also, you can get online support through many of the homeschool Facebook groups available. You are bound to find answers to your questions there.
Don’t worry if you are not satisfied with an area of your chosen curriculum. You will find free alternative resources online, such as learning resources from the Khan Academy to supplement it.
