Take-a-Look Tuesday: Exploring Benefits of Multi-Age Curriculum {5 Days of Homeschool Encouragement}

If you have multiple children that you are homeschooling, you may find yourself going crazy creating schedules for everyone. Most families use customized curriculum for each student to make sure they get what they need for grade level work. While this is a great path and one that I've been taking for a few years, I have decided to try a different route this year. Even though my boys are 4 years apart (grades 3 and 7 this year), we are going to be using the SAME curriculum for both boys. Yes, we are going to be working with curriculum meant for multi-ages this year! I am hoping that this will actually make our days LESS stressed and flow much easier. Are you curious how this is going to work with an elementary student and middle school student? Read on my friend as I discuss the Benefits of Multi-age Curriculum in today's Take-A-Look Tuesday edition for the 5 Days of Homeschool Encouragement Blog Hop!


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So what is multi-age curriculum?

Multi-Age curriculum is the kind of curriculum designed to be a group study curriculum. You can use the SAME core curriculum to teach all your children at once--not three different history courses for example, and then have grade appropriate materials for their processing the knowledge they learned.

How is that a benefit?

Joint Science Lessons

Well, COST for one thing.
Think about the savings for purchasing just ONE curriculum that could be used by all or most of your children. That's a lot of $$ saved. Let me just give you my own family. We used Notgrass America the Beautiful for 6th grade history/geography for my oldest ($115), and then we used Beautiful Feet American History Primary level for my 2nd grader ($75). Both were studying the same time period. But they had totally separate curriculum which meant separate assignments, separate readings, and needed individual time from me for each one. If I consolidated them into one curriculum, they could have the same time period, same reading, same assignments but with grade appropriate activities. One price--two students!

Another benefit is TIME.
You can have all the children studying at the exact same time on the exact same stuff. No need to schedule Micah for his time studying Beautiful Feet Primary World History, Paige for her Notgrass Adam to Us World History, and then Sarah for her Story of the World History 4. Knowing you need to help each one on their own curriculum--something hard to do when they are in different levels working on different stuff. Or maybe you have six students and they all need history, but you can't afford the cost to have them all on separate stuff. By purchasing or finding a curriculum that works for a BROAD range of grades, you save yourself time. Not only can you be working with them all on the same stuff at the same time, but in essence they can HELP EACH OTHER, taking some of the burden from you!

A third benefit is taken from the last one...TEAMWORK!
This style of curriculum allows your children to work together. This enables them to help each other through assignments, working together for larger projects, older children reading to the younger children (and vice versa for reading practice!), and better open discussions! It's like having a "one room schoolhouse" in your living room!

My brother was in public school and one of the classes that he did the best in, was when they tried a new system where they combined grades 3-5 for a special trial homeroom. In essence they added this idea of group study to the public school classroom. He did so well in it! He loved the attention of the older students helping him with assignments, and having the older kids actually encouraged the younger ones to do better. It also encouraged the older ones to stay focused so the younger kids wouldn't "do better" than they did. The kids had certain subjects together, but then they had grade appropriate work as well. My mom was super skeptical at first, but then discovered it gave the class a lovely rhythm that provided wonderful results.

This is how multi-age curriculum is ideal!

Each recording information in their age appropriate workbooks

We've actually done group study/multi-age curriculum in our home before. One of our favorite curriculum for this is the Apologia Young Explorers science curriculum. There is one course, but then there are two separate workbooks for them--an early primary, and an older elementary level with grade appropriate activities in them. My boys were able to have class together, but still do comprehension activities where they would be for their ages. We did this in all of our unit studies/lapbooks as well. They enjoyed doing joint experiments and playing games on the topics.

This year, I am going to be adding even more to our routine! This year we will be doing combined science (Apologia), music appreciation (Memoria Press), geography (Beautiful Feet), writing (IEW), and history (The Good and the Beautiful). Yes, even though my boys are grades 3 and 7 this year--it is still possible! I am hopeful that this will give us a rhythm our routine desperately needs to stay focused all year long.

If you have more than one student, and think you'd like to "free up" some time during your school day, why don't you research more into subjects which can be taught as a multi-age?! You can potentially save money, time, and promote teamwork--all three very good benefits!

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I am happy to share that this week is a great week! It's the annual Back to School blog hop! This year, the theme is 5 Days of Homeschool Encouragement and I'm itching to share my posts with you! I have a very busy week, so if they don't show up in the morning, make sure you check back for them later in the day! And as always, you can follow me over on Facebook and never miss new post!
Want to visit some other bloggers participating this week?

Jennifer @ Dear Homeschooler
Joelle @ Homeschooling for His Glory
Karen @ Tots and Me...Growing Up Together
Kelly @ Hope in the Chaos
Kellyann @ Walking Home ...
Kimberley @ Vintage Blue Suitcase
Kristen @ A Mom's Quest to Teach
Kym @ Homeschool Coffee Break
Laura @ Four Little Penguins
Linda @ Apron Strings & other things

Do you have something that shares a peek into your own homeschooling adventure? Link up for us to see!

Hope to see you tomorrow!