Before, you might not have been able to teach your child at home. Even so, there are many high-quality, interactive homeschool programs that you can use on your tablet, smartphone, or computer. For high school students who need help with the SAT, for toddlers who need to learn, or for elementary-aged kids who don’t want to fall behind in their studies, we’ve put together a list of the better online homeschool programs out there today. These picks are interactive, easy to use, and cost-effective.
ABCmouse.com
It costs about $10 a month to sign your child up for a subscription to ABCmouse.com, which is the most budget-friendly educational choice you can make for your child. ABCmouse.com’s Step-By-Step Learning Path is available on a tablet, smartphone, or computer for kids ages 2 to 8. It can also be used on a computer or TV. This award-winning curriculum has 850 lessons spread across 10 levels and covers everything from letter recognition and phonics to reading full-length books. It also covers math, science, social studies, and even art (including drawing and painting).
As a supplement to a homeschool curriculum and as a complete system, ABCmouse.com is a good choice for both. It has music, read-aloud stories, puzzles, educational games, and more. ABCmouse.com is also a game, which means your kids can play it like a video game, with a ticket system that gives them points for finishing levels.
As they get better at a certain skill, they’ll get “tickets” that they can use to buy “virtual treats,” like fish for the classroom aquarium. Built-in rewards let your kids move at their own pace and make learning more fun and interesting.
K12.com
K12.com is a one-stop shop for online learners and their families because it is comprehensive and easy to use. K12’s online homeschool options include free, virtual public schools for students in grades K-12 taught by teachers who are certified by the state. Kids can go to three different private schools that charge fees. There are also many options for summer school, intensives, and one-on-one classes for kids who have special interests or want to brush up on a certain subject.
In this case, you might not be looking for a full-time home homeschool program. A free library of literacy tools and over 21,000 eBooks called K12 Digital Literacy Solutions can help your child improve their learning skills. You can also sign your teenagers up for one of K12’s free camps that focus on high-interest areas like coding or marketing.
K12’s STRIDE program gives kids in grades K-8 the chance to learn about games for free. If you don’t feel comfortable homeschooling your child in certain subject areas, K12’s state-certified teachers can help with math, world languages, English, science, or social studies in real-time.
Time4Learning
There is a complete, subscription-based online homeschool curriculum called Time4Learning. It costs about $20 a month for PreK-8 students and about $30 a month for high school students. For each extra child, it costs about $15 a month. When your kids are learning from home, this is one of the best programs to keep them in a more traditional setting, even if they’re not at school.
Your child’s curriculum will have hundreds (and sometimes thousands) of animated lessons, activities, quizzes, worksheets, and full-length tests, all tailored to their grade level and your state’s learning standards. They will all be based on their grade and your state’s standards. Time4Learning is different from other resources on this list because it has online and offline, printable checklists, and other hands-on activities. Time4Learning also has a lot of tools and guides that can help you plan lessons and keep track of your kids’ progress.
Connections Academy
A full-fledged online school is better than teaching your child yourself. Connections Academy is a good choice for elementary, middle, and high school kids. At this free, online public school, your kids will be taught by teachers who have been certified by your state. Even textbooks and other educational materials are given away free of charge.
The name “Connections Academy” refers to the fact that it could be one of the best homeschool programs for your family if you want to build a community of parents, students, and teachers. The online school wants you to help your kids learn by becoming Learning Coaches.
Online live sessions with teachers and classmates and extracurriculars like online clubs and activities allow kids to build meaningful relationships with their peers and make new friends. Many of the perks of going to a brick-and-mortar school are still available at Connections Academy. This means that your kids don’t have to miss out on things like career counseling, one-on-one guidance counseling, standardized test prep, and college prep advice.
Khan Academy
Award-winning Khan Academy is a non-profit that gives free educational resources to students, parents, teachers, and homeschoolers. It first gained international attention because of its high-quality, free SAT preparation materials. The site used to be called “Khan Academy,” but it has since grown to include lessons for kids and teens of any age.
Your child’s grade level and the type of test they’re preparing for, or the specific skills they need to work on, can be chosen. Then send them off to earn “mastery points” as they progress. Practice quizzes and unit tests help you keep track of your kids’ progress. Videos show how to do things quickly.
This resource is important because it’s free and how much content there is. Khan Academy has a lot of different kinds of materials for adults and high school students that many other online learning programs don’t have.
In addition to computer programming and animation, the virtual academy teaches personal finance, art history entrepreneurship; college admissions; and English as a second language. This makes it one of the best homeschool programs on the web.
Conclusion
If you want to homeschool but don’t know where to start, K12.com is the place to go for help and opportunities. You can select how much or how small you learn online. If you don’t know where to start, a more focused program like Time4Learning might be better for you. Parents who are tense about their children getting to know each other will like the community-based approach of Connections Academy. Teens who want to get ready for college can take advanced classes through edX.
