Is My Homeschool the Best Homeschool Curriculum for Your Family
An honest guide to choosing the best Australian homeschool curriculum for your child and family.
Choosing a homeschool curriculum can be difficult. There are many good options available, but the best homeschool curriculum is not necessarily the one with the most subjects, resources or features. It is the one that suits your child, your family and the way you want to homeschool. My Homeschool works very well for many families, but it won’t be the right choice for everyone. This guide explains what My Homeschool is like in practice, who it tends to suit, where you may need to make adjustments, and when another style of curriculum may be a better choice.
Start Here
What Kind of Curriculum Is My Homeschool?
My Homeschool is an Australian homeschool curriculum inspired by the educational philosophy of Charlotte Mason. Our lessons are literature-rich and use quality books, often called living books, rather than relying heavily on textbooks, worksheets or computer-based activities. Children learn through reading, listening, discussion, narration, writing, notebooks, nature study and other meaningful activities. The curriculum is also designed to be practical for parents. Lessons and schedules are already planned, and education plans and reporting tools are provided to help with homeschool registration and record keeping. My Homeschool is:
- Australian
- Charlotte Mason inspired
- literature-rich
- mostly offline and screen-light
- open-and-go
- flexible
- parent-led
- written from a Christian worldview
- designed to support parents with homeschool planning and registration documentation
Is My Homeschool Good for First-Time Homeschoolers?
Usually, yes.
Many of the families who contact us have never homeschooled before. Often they are worried about what they need to teach, how to organise their week and whether they will meet their state’s homeschool registration requirements.
My Homeschool does much of the curriculum planning for you. Lessons are organised, resources are selected and schedules are provided. We also include education plans, scope and sequence information and reporting tools.
You don’t need to begin homeschooling by designing an entire education from scratch.
However, you are still responsible for your homeschool. You will need to become familiar with the curriculum, adapt it where necessary for your child, keep appropriate records and meet the requirements of your state or territory.
We make the planning easier, but we don’t replace the parent.
Will It Suit My Child?
Will It Suit a Child Leaving School Because of Anxiety or School Refusal?
We regularly hear from parents whose children have become overwhelmed by school. Some are experiencing anxiety or school refusal. Others are simply exhausted by the demands and pace of a conventional school environment.
Homeschooling gives these families the opportunity to approach education differently.
My Homeschool uses relatively short lessons, quality books and a flexible weekly schedule. There is no need to recreate a six-hour school day at home. In fact in many cases academics can be completed in a few hours. Families can slow down, take breaks, shorten lessons and gradually establish a rhythm that works for their child.
For a child who has been under considerable pressure, this flexibility can be valuable.
However, a curriculum cannot resolve anxiety or school refusal on its own. Some children will need considerable time, support and adjustment. You may decide to do less initially or concentrate on a few core areas while family life settles.
The curriculum is there to serve your family. Your family does not have to serve the curriculum.
Is My Homeschool Suitable for Children With ADHD or Autism?
It can be, but it depends on the individual child.
Families frequently ask us whether My Homeschool will suit a child with ADHD, autism or other additional learning needs.
There are aspects of our approach that many families find helpful. Lessons are generally short, there is less dependence on worksheets and screens, and parents can adjust the pace, workload and daily routine. Children can take movement breaks, spend longer on something that interests them or stop when they have reached their limit for the day.
The curriculum also follows a predictable weekly schedule, so children can become familiar with the rhythm of their lessons and know what to expect. For children who benefit from routine and consistency, this can make the homeschool day easier to manage. At the same time, parents still have the flexibility to shorten, move or adapt lessons when needed.
Our use of stories and engaging books can also work well for children who struggle to stay interested in conventional textbooks.
However, My Homeschool is not a specialist special-needs curriculum.
A diagnosis alone cannot tell us whether the curriculum will suit a particular child. Reading ability, writing ability, attention, sensory needs, interests and the amount of parent support available all need to be considered.
We strongly recommend looking at the lesson samples rather than choosing a grade simply according to your child’s age.
What If My Child Is a Reluctant Writer?
My Homeschool can be a good fit for children who are discouraged by large amounts of written work.
Our approach to writing focuses on quality rather than volume. We would rather see a child write one well-crafted sentence than struggle through ten poorly formed sentences simply for the sake of completing more work.
Our English program uses a structured approach to literacy and writing. We explicitly work on how sentences are formed and gradually build the skills children need to express their ideas clearly.
Many lessons are first explored orally through conversation and narration. Children talk about what they have read, explain ideas in their own words and develop confidence expressing themselves before they are expected to put those ideas into writing. Over time, this oral narration gradually develops into written narration.
We also use copywork, particularly in the younger years. Copywork gives children a well-written model to work from, so they can concentrate on handwriting, spelling, punctuation and sentence structure without also having to decide what to write. Wherever possible, the passages are knowledge-rich and connected to what the child is learning.
This can be particularly helpful for a reluctant writer because it reduces the number of things they have to manage at once. They can practise the physical and technical skills of writing with a strong model, while oral narration gives them another way to develop and communicate their ideas.
As children mature, we gradually increase expectations. Copywork, dictation, sentence work, oral narration and written narration work together to build confident, capable writers.
However, My Homeschool is not a no-writing curriculum.
Children will be expected to develop their writing skills. The difference is that we don’t believe more writing automatically produces better writers. We aim to build those skills deliberately and progressively, with an emphasis on well-formed sentences, clear ideas and good models rather than simply requiring children to fill pages.
What If My Child Hates Reading?
It depends on why your child dislikes reading.
Some children dislike reading because it is still difficult and tiring. Others can read well but haven’t yet discovered books they enjoy. These are quite different situations.
My Homeschool is a book-rich curriculum, but particularly in the primary years, that does not mean your child is expected to read everything independently.
For beginning readers, most curriculum reading up to Grade 4 is done by the parent. Our classic novels are also intended to be shared as family read-alouds. Children can listen, discuss what they have heard and give oral narrations, allowing them to engage with rich language, interesting ideas and a broad range of knowledge even while their own reading skills are still developing.
Some parents continue to support older reluctant readers in this way too. They may read more difficult material aloud and ask for a narration afterwards, or use audiobooks for some books to lighten the reading load while their child’s independent reading develops.
At the same time, we are still working deliberately towards reading independence. Our early literacy program uses a phonics-based approach, with explicit work on word building, reading, vocabulary and language skills.
If your child can read but simply hasn’t enjoyed reading very much, the choice of books can make a difference. We use engaging narrative-style lesson books, living books, historical fiction, quality picture books and classic literature rather than relying only on conventional textbooks. We also provide a My Homeschool booklist with alternative book choices, so parents have some flexibility to swap a book when another choice would suit their child better.
Reading is at the heart of a My Homeschool education. Inspired by Charlotte Mason’s philosophy, we see reading as much more than completing a book or practising a literacy skill. Good books introduce children to great ideas, rich language, fascinating knowledge and inspiring authors.
We know there is plenty competing for a child’s attention today, but a good book, once discovered and enjoyed, can become a family treasure. We hope children will gradually discover for themselves the pleasure of a wonderful story, the excitement of a new idea and ultimately the joy and thrill of reading.
That doesn’t mean every child will become an enthusiastic reader immediately. Our aim is to support children while reading is difficult, continue giving them access to rich ideas through read-alouds and audiobooks, and gradually help them become capable, independent readers.
If your child has dyslexia or a significant reading difficulty, the curriculum can still provide the wider education and reading material, but we recommend seeking individualised specialist support for their specific reading needs.
If you are looking for a curriculum that requires very little reading at all, My Homeschool is probably not the right fit. Books are one of the foundations of how we learn.
What If My Child Is Working Above or Below Their Grade Level?
With My Homeschool, you can choose the grade that best matches your child’s ability rather than simply their age.
This is an area that often causes confusion for parents, particularly when a child has recently left school. In many school settings, children continue moving through the grades with their age group even when their skills in areas such as reading, writing or maths are not yet at that level. Parents can therefore feel that their child must continue with the same numbered grade at home.
My Homeschool doesn’t work that way.
For most subjects, the grade number is much less important than parents often think. A child can learn about history, science, geography, literature, art and nature at many different ages. What matters is whether they have the reading and writing skills needed to access the lessons.
That is why we particularly recommend using English ability to guide grade placement.
If you’d like a better sense of which grade will suit your child, start with the prospectus and lesson samples. Look closely at the English samples and ask whether the reading, comprehension and writing expectations seem manageable. The other subjects at that grade generally assume a similar level of literacy, so once you find the right fit for English, the rest of the curriculum will usually fall into place.
Literacy and numeracy are the areas where ability level matters most.
From Grade 3 onwards, My Homeschool does not provide a complete maths program, so families can choose a separate maths level that matches their child’s actual numeracy ability. A child might therefore use one My Homeschool grade for English and the wider curriculum while working at a completely different level in maths.
There is also no need to rush a child through a level simply to get them back to their age-based grade.
Our curriculum builds skills sequentially across the grades and uses a spiral approach, so important skills and ideas are revisited and developed over time. If your child needs longer to master something, you can slow down, revisit it and provide additional practice before moving on.
Likewise, if your child is working ahead, you can choose a higher level when their skills indicate they are ready for it.
The goal in homeschooling isn’t to keep a child attached to a particular grade number. It is to give them work they can access, while continuing to develop their literacy and numeracy skills from where they actually are.
What If My Child Is Ahead in Science, History or Geography?
Parents sometimes tell us that their child is working several grades ahead in subjects such as Science, History or Geography.
In the primary years, we don’t generally think about these subjects in quite the same way as English and Maths.
Literacy and numeracy are strongly skills-based and sequential. A child needs certain foundational skills before they can successfully move on to more complex work. This is why your child’s actual ability in English and Maths matters when choosing an appropriate level.
Subjects such as Science, History and Geography are different. While there are skills involved in studying these subjects, much of our focus in the primary years is on building a broad and rich foundation of knowledge.
A child who already knows a great deal about dinosaurs, space or the human body isn’t necessarily ready for a higher grade of Science. They may simply have considerable knowledge in those particular areas. There are still many other areas of science for them to encounter.
The same applies to History and Geography.
Our Charlotte Mason inspired curriculum is deliberately knowledge-rich, and we don’t restrict children’s learning to the topics normally assigned to their particular school grade. For example, our primary students encounter World History, even though much of this content sits outside what is typically covered in the Australian Curriculum during the primary years.
We want children to gradually build a wide store of knowledge about the natural world, people, places, cultures, history, literature and ideas.
This also means that comparing a My Homeschool grade directly with what a child was studying in the same grade at school can be difficult. We are not simply reproducing the school curriculum at home. The subjects may be organised differently, taught through different books and approached in a different sequence.
So if your child is particularly knowledgeable about Science, History or Geography, that is wonderful, but it doesn’t necessarily mean they need to move up a grade.
When choosing a My Homeschool level, we recommend paying much more attention to whether the English reading and writing expectations are appropriate. Once you find the right literacy level, the knowledge-rich subjects can continue to broaden and deepen your child’s understanding from there.
Will It Work for Our Family?
Can I Use My Homeschool With Several Children?
Yes. My Homeschool can work very well for families homeschooling multiple ages.
Homeschooling as a family is fun but it doesn’t mean that all children need to be learning the same content at the same time. In practice, we find it works better to combine where it makes sense and teach separately where ability matters.
Our weekly schedules can follow a similar rhythm across the grades, so children are generally doing similar types of subjects at similar times. This helps families establish a predictable routine without trying to run several completely different children’s schedules.
Many subjects can also be enjoyed together. Families can share classic read-alouds, poetry, art and music appreciation, nature study, projects and field trips.
History and Science can often be combined in the early years, when children are still learning largely through books read aloud by a parent. As children become confident readers, we generally encourage them to work more independently through their own courses.
English and Maths are different. These are sequential, skills-based subjects and generally need to be taught at the child’s appropriate ability level.
Courses can also be reused for younger children in the same family, which can make My Homeschool more economical when homeschooling several children.
The basic principle is simple: learn together where you can, work at individual levels where you need to, and encourage increasing independence as children grow.
For more practical advice, you can read our guide to homeschooling multiple ages.
Is My Homeschool Budget-Friendly?
For many families, particularly those with several children, it can be a very economical way to homeschool.
My Homeschool courses are not ongoing subscriptions.
Once you have purchased a course:
- there is no subscription fee to keep working through it
- there is no deadline for completing it
- you can work at your family’s own pace
- the course can be reused for other children in your family
You retain access to your purchased curriculum while you remain an active member.
An active member is someone who has logged into the My Homeschool learning platform within the previous 12 months.
This means there is no pressure to complete a course within a semester or school year. If life gets interrupted, your child needs more time, or you simply prefer a slower pace, you can take longer.
You can read more on how much homeschooling costs here.
How Much Parent Involvement Is Required?
My Homeschool is parent-led.
The curriculum is designed to reduce the amount of time you spend planning and preparing lessons, but it is not designed to remove you from your child’s education.
There is an important difference between open-and-go and fully independent.
Open-and-go means we have done much of the preparation for you. We have organised the lessons, chosen resources and provided schedules and guidance.
It does not mean that a child is expected to educate themselves.
You will need to read instructions, oversee lessons, listen to narrations, discuss books and ideas, help when your child is struggling and review their work.
As children become older, they can naturally take increasing responsibility for their own learning. Some older students will work quite independently through parts of the program.
But parents remain involved.
If you are looking for a program where your child logs onto a computer each morning, receives instruction from online teachers and has their work automatically marked or graded, My Homeschool is probably not the right type of curriculum for your family.
Can I Use My Homeschool If I Work?
Possibly. It depends on how much time and flexibility you have.
One of the benefits of an open-and-go curriculum is that much of the preparation has already been done. You don’t need to spend your evenings creating lesson plans or searching for resources for the following day.
Lessons are also generally shorter than conventional classroom lessons, and homeschooling does not need to fill six hours every day.
This can make My Homeschool manageable for parents who work part-time, work from home or have flexible working arrangements.
However, you still need time to be involved in your child’s education.
Many families juggle part time work and fulltime homeschooling. However, if your work situation requires your child to complete their entire education independently with very little adult involvement, an online program designed specifically for independent learning may be a better fit.
Is My Homeschool All Online or Does It Involve a Lot of Screen Time?
No. My Homeschool is accessed online, but most of your child’s learning happens offline.
Parents access the curriculum, schedules and resources through our online learning platform. However, this is primarily how we deliver and organise the curriculum. It doesn’t mean your child will spend their homeschool day sitting at a computer completing online lessons.
Most learning happens through books, reading, conversation, writing, notebooks, nature study and practical activities.
Digital access does not mean digital learning.
If you purchase the digital curriculum, you should expect to print materials for your child to use. You can print these yourself as you need them, or choose our professionally printed and bound book options. The printed option can save considerable time and, depending on the cost of ink, paper and your printer, may also be more economical than printing everything at home.
The amount of screen time will also depend on the additional resources you choose.
For example, from Grade 3 we don’t provide a complete Maths program. Many of our families take advantage of the My Homeschool member discount for Maths Online. This is an online Maths program, so naturally it will add some screen time to the homeschool day. Families who prefer to minimise screens can choose a printed Maths program instead.
So My Homeschool is not technology-free, nor do we prescribe a particular amount of screen time. But if you want your child’s education to centre around books, writing, conversation and real-world learning rather than online lessons, My Homeschool is likely to be a good fit.
We Want a Book-Based, Paper-Based Homeschool. Is My Homeschool a Good Fit?
Yes. If you prefer books and paper-based learning over spending most of the homeschool day on a computer, My Homeschool is likely to be a good fit.
My Homeschool includes our own lesson books, but these are written in an engaging, narrative style rather than like conventional textbooks. We want children to encounter knowledge through interesting writing, stories and ideas rather than simply working through facts and questions.
We also use carefully selected living books alongside our lesson books. These may include historical fiction, classic literature and quality picture books that help bring a subject to life.
Many of the books we recommend can be borrowed from the library or purchased for your home collection. Where possible, we encourage families to use the real book. However, we also provide online read-alouds for many of the picture books we use. If a book is only needed for one short lesson, an online read-aloud can be a convenient and cost-effective alternative to purchasing another book.
We also use some video content, particularly in subjects such as Science and History, when a video can explain or demonstrate something particularly well.
So My Homeschool isn’t completely screen-free, nor is every lesson taught through a separate living book. It is better described as a book-rich, predominantly paper-based curriculum that uses technology selectively when it adds value.
Parents access the curriculum and schedules through our online learning platform. If you purchase the digital curriculum, you should expect to print materials for your child to use. Alternatively, we offer professionally printed and bound book options, which save the time involved in printing and organising the curriculum yourself and may also save money depending on your home printing costs.
Your choice of additional programs will also affect screen time. For example, from Grade 3 we don’t provide a complete Maths program. Families who take advantage of our member discount for Maths Online will naturally use a screen for Maths, while families wanting a more paper-based approach can choose a printed Maths program instead.
Overall, if you want a homeschool built around good books, interesting ideas, conversation, writing and paper-based learning, while still being willing to use an online read-aloud or video when it is useful, My Homeschool is likely to suit your family.
Christian Worldview
Is My Homeschool a Christian Curriculum?
My Homeschool is written from a Christian worldview.
Christian perspectives and values are woven throughout the curriculum. However, the majority of our content is non-religious or neutral. We base our education on the principles set out by Charlotte Mason who was a Christian educator.
We do not include compulsory Bible studies or devotions. Our lessons focus primarily on the core curriculum areas such as English, Mathematics, Science, History, Geography, Civics, Economics and the Arts.
Christian themes and viewpoints do appear throughout the program. For example, students may encounter biblical history when it is relevant to world history, occasional references to God as Creator in nature studies, and literature and resources that reflect traditional Christian values and perspectives.
The curriculum therefore reflects a Christian educational philosophy rather than being a Bible curriculum.
You can read more about us here.
Can Non-Christian Families Use My Homeschool?
Yes. Many do.
Families do not need to be Christian to use My Homeschool, and much of the curriculum is suitable regardless of a family’s religious beliefs. We base our education philosophy on the ideas of Charlotte Mason and her method is used by many secular home educators.
However, we believe it is important to be transparent about our worldview.
If you are comfortable encountering occasional Christian references and traditional Christian perspectives, you may find that the curriculum still works very well for your family.
If you are specifically looking for a strictly secular curriculum with no Christian references, My Homeschool is unlikely to be the right choice.
Registration & What My Homeschool Is — and Isn't
Does My Homeschool Help With Homeschool Registration?
Yes. Supporting parents with the planning and documentation involved in registration is an important part of our curriculum.
Our programs include education plans, scope and sequence information, reporting tools and other resources that can help Australian families show what they intend to teach and how they will record their child’s learning.
This can be particularly helpful for first-time homeschoolers who find the registration process daunting. We also hear from experienced homeschool families who tell us that having this planning and documentation already organised makes their re-registration much easier.
However, purchasing My Homeschool does not automatically register your child. Homeschool registration is an independent process, and you will still need to follow the application requirements for your state or territory.
Parents remain responsible for submitting their application, understanding their local requirements and adapting the education plan to suit their individual child where necessary.
For international families outside Australia, registration and home education requirements vary considerably. You are welcome to use My Homeschool internationally, but you will need to check the requirements that apply where you live.
I'm Looking for a School or Distance Education Provider. Is My Homeschool the Same Thing?
No. My Homeschool is a curriculum provider, not a school or distance education provider.
This is an important distinction. If you are looking for a school to enrol your child in, provide teachers, deliver classes, mark work and take responsibility for your child’s education, My Homeschool is probably not what you are looking for.
There is no enrolment process with us. You simply purchase the course that suits your child and access the curriculum through our online learning platform.
We provide the curriculum, lessons, weekly schedules, resources and planning tools, but you remain your child’s teacher. You oversee lessons, mark and assess their work and keep the records required for your homeschool registration.
You are not accountable to My Homeschool and you don’t send your child’s work to us for marking. We do not provide online classes, accreditation or academic transcripts.
Our weekly schedules provide structure, but they are flexible. You decide when and how your child completes the lessons and can adapt the program to suit your family.
We also provide education plans, reporting tools and templates to make the planning and documentation involved in homeschooling easier, but parents remain responsible for meeting their own state or territory registration requirements.
My Homeschool is a good fit if you want support and structure while remaining in charge of your child’s education.
If you want a school to take responsibility for teaching, assessment, accreditation and academic records, a school or distance education provider will be a better fit.
Our aim is not to replace the parent as educator, but to give parents the curriculum and resources they need to do that job well.
So, Is My Homeschool A Good Fit For Your Family?
At A Glance Overview
| Your family situation | Likely fit |
|---|---|
| We are completely new to homeschooling | Good fit |
| My child is leaving school because of anxiety or overwhelm | Often a good fit, with flexibility and adaptation |
| My child has ADHD | Can be a good fit, depending on the child |
| My child is autistic | Can be a good fit, depending on individual needs |
| My child is a reluctant writer | Often a good fit |
| My child is advanced | Can work well with appropriate placement and extension |
| My child is working below their school grade | Flexible placement can help |
| We homeschool several children | Good fit |
| We want a curriculum we can reuse with siblings | Strong fit |
| We are looking for an economical long-term option | Strong fit |
| I am a busy or working parent | Possible, but parent involvement is still required |
| We want less screen time | Strong fit |
| We don't want to print everything ourselves | Printed book options are available |
| We love books and literature | Strong fit |
| We are a Christian family | Strong fit |
| We are not Christian but are comfortable with some Christian content | Often a good fit |
| We want completely secular content | Probably not a good fit |
| We need help preparing homeschool registration documentation | Good fit |
| We want fully independent online learning | Probably not a good fit |
| We want online teachers and live classes | Not a good fit |
Families Can Thrive With My Homeschool
My Homeschool tends to work best for families who want to be actively involved in their children’s education but don’t want to spend hours creating their own curriculum.
It suits families who value books, ideas, conversation and meaningful learning over screens, automated lessons and piles of worksheets.
It can provide structure for parents who are new to homeschooling while still giving experienced homeschoolers the flexibility to adapt lessons to their children.
It can work particularly well for families who want a gentler rhythm, families homeschooling several children, and parents looking for a curriculum they can purchase once and reuse rather than continually paying subscriptions.
It also suits families who are comfortable with a Christian educational philosophy, whether or not they personally identify as Christian.
But it isn’t designed to replace the parent.
If what you really need is an online teacher, automated marking, live classes or a completely independent program, there are other homeschool options that will probably serve your family better.
The best place to start is not by asking, “Is this a good curriculum?”
Ask instead:
“Does this look like a good way for our family to learn?”
That is ultimately the question that matters.
