Choosing Your Curriculum

Insyaallah after you have found your bearings and set your intention on why you are starting off on this homeschooling journey, you can then proceed towards the adventure of curriculum hunting. Basically your choices would generally be from: 1. The National Curriculum 2. A faith-based curriculum 3. A pedagogical-based curriculum 4. A non-sectarian/non-pedagogical-based curriculum 5. An eclectic curriculum National Curriculum For some of us, we are not able to steer far from choice No 1. due to national or state requirements. In Singapore however, as children only sit for PSLE in primary six, there is some leeway for the younger children. Luckily now, most national/school curriculum are available online and we don't have to go around searching for them. They usually however cover skills or understanding goals for each school year and this can be unnerving for most of us who are not teachers, but take your time when you are starting out and just be steadfast about it. Don't hesitate to ask those in the industry-teachers or tutors- who would be more than willing to share with you their knowledge and experience. While you may find the National Curriculum cut and dry and at odds with you trying to homeschool the child, how you achieve those curriculum goals are up to you and you actually have the flexibility and freedom to decide on how you would go about educating your child whilst meeting national/state requirements. Also keep up to date with changes in the curriculum that might affect your child from the media and those in the system. Your education ministry would also advice on what your child would be tested on when the time comes and if there are any pre-exams exams your child needs to take to familiarise himself with things. Faith-based Curriculum While there are many Christian-based curriculum available, I am not aware of similar options for Muslims apart from fellow homeschoolers who have decided to share what they have done with their own children online. For this I mean a curriculum that covers various subjects like Math, Language Arts and Science and not just Islam. One way I have dealt with this is to give an Islamic perspective of subjects especially with regards to the Sciences where possible. A study of light can easily turn into something spiritual and invoke wonders on Allah's creation with some planning and foresight. Pedagogical-based Curriculum Pedagogical-based curriculums are those that hold a particular belief of how we learn and how we should approach learning such as Montessori, Waldorf and Classical schooling. This requires some background reading and research by parents beyond curriculum content to understand the philosophy and methodology that is to be carried out and some methods can be require more preparation on the part of the educator, the environment and the materials more than others. This is the most challenging of the five as you need to have some depth into the pedagogy. However, if you really believe this is the best for your child, get help through mailing lists, forums and groups where you can discuss your concerns with others. There are also sites that feature the literature of the various pedagogies and some even provide training and professional advice. You can find many on Montessori and Waldorf online discussion groups and resources online. Non-faith/non-pedagogical Curriculum Or you may call this mainstream curriculum, if you'd like. This covers the National Curriculum which in most countries are secular and do not adhere to a particular pedagogy and includes curriculum produced by commercial publishers like Marshall Cavendish and online sites like K12. One helpful resource from this line of curriculum are the level-by-level 'What your child should learn at 'X' Grade'books where you can find the areas you are supposed to cover in every school year which is, I find, an easier read than National Curriculums which tend to try to cover a very wide range of areas. Again, do not dismiss this for not having a 'spiritual' side because you can play the role of providing that angle whilst using a regular curriculum. This method is also usually best for parents who do not have as much time to devote to homeschool due to other commitments like work, or have younger or special needs children who demand a lot of attention from them. You have ready-to-use materials you and your child can work on straightaway and I always believe a day spent learning something is better than a day wasted because you don't feel prepared. Eclectic I think there comes a time in every homeschoolers' experience where we become eclectic as we become more confident and aware of the various options available to us and how we can better learn with our children using different ways that can appeal to them. This is also good when you need to switch modes at different times of the year. You may want to do a pedagogical-based method at the start of the year and then move to more unschooling during summer (where you go into the scurry of planning and resource-making) or do a more traditional approach during the period before the exams. It's up to YOU! I also believe that as we all learn differently, having an eclectic approach can appeal to our different intelligences. Do an experiment, watch the youtube video explaining it and write down the essay behind the theory at the end. You might find you and your child covering more areas than you thought possible. There is however a risk of being overwhelmed by the different methods and channels you can choose from.No worries, just limit yourself and stick to it.