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It’s hard to believe I’m choosing 8th grade homeschool curriculum already! 8th grade is a big year! The last year of middle school means high school is right around the corner. Yikes! But I don’t have to worry about that right now.
This year we’re committing more time to our homeschool group. My daughter will take three core subjects with other middle school/high school kids, and I will teach her two subjects at home. We’re simplifying by reducing the number of subjects, but the work load still looks intimidating.
Here are the details of our 8th grade homeschool curriculum.
8th Grade Homeschool Curriculum by Subject
Reading
My daughter will be reading a lot this school year. For both her history class and literature/writing class she has a required reading list. In her Ancient history class she’ll be reading from several history sources each week. For literature, she’ll read Beowolf, Julius Caesar, The Odyssey, and The Oedipus Cycle (affiliate links).
The literature teacher encouraged the students to get familiar with the texts over the summer. Doing some pre-reading will hopefully help them with the content. They could listen to audio books, have a parent or sibling read to them, or read the books themselves.
Independent Reading
Reading came alive for my daughter this summer. She brought books with her everywhere we went. I don’t want her enthusiasm for reading to dwindle because she has required reading that may take up most of her free time. Cutting back on social media and screen time will hopefully be all it takes to make sure she has time to read for pure enjoyment.
As a way to encourage her to pick up some classics, I’m providing her with a list of 20 recommendations that I hand picked. A few of the books I haven’t read, but I’ll get to them this year during my bedtime reading. If you’d like a copy of the list, please sign up for our newsletter.
Writing
A focus of writing class at our homeschool group will be learning how to plan and write an organized, well-scripted essay. The students will learn how to analyze the ancient texts they read and discuss elements like theme, characterization, and plot. Quarterly projects will be assigned that tie together history, writing, and art.
Foreign Language
My daughter is joining Latin class again after a two-year break. I really wanted her to finish Latin strong, so being in a class with an instructor is critical. There’s only so much she can learn through a DVD.
She’s taking Fourth Form Latin which is the last course in the systematic grammar approach from Memoria Press. She’ll learn relative and interrogative pronouns, defective verbs, participles, infinitives and their use, gerunds and gerundives, deponent verbs, irregular verbs, indefinite pronouns, purpose clauses, sequence of tenses. (I have no idea what some of these are myself). A big part of the class will be devoted to developing translation skills.
In addition to the Fourth Form Latin work, my daughter will prepare for the National Latin Exam. She’ll be tested on vocabulary and grammar, as well as mythology, culture, history, and geography.
Math
Dimensions Math was a new curriculum for us last year. For six years we used Primary Mathematics by Singapore Math. We switched to Dimensions Math, also published by the same company.
Maybe my math skills are rusty, but I found it difficult to teach some of the lessons in the 7th grade curriculum. However, it didn’t scare me off. In fact, I thought it was worth the struggle. The lessons are challenging in a good way. The problems are broken into categories: basic practice, further practice, math at work, and brain works. The questions get progressively harder as you work through the sections.
For kids who find math a struggle, doing just the “basic practice” and “further practice” may be all they can handle. They still will learn math skills and how to solve problems.
“Math at work” helps kids see how math is practical in real life. For my daughter, “math at work” was like turning on the lightbulb.
The “brain works” section is for kids who want to take math to the next level. Solving a problem that seems impossible can really stretch their math reasoning and application skills. It sure stretched mine!
You can make Dimensions Math work for your child by choosing the problems that meet his/her individual needs and interests. However, if your child struggles with math, this curriculum may not be a good fit.
History
History is another course my daughter will take at our homeschool group. Ancient history will be taught using resources listed in Tapestry of Grace. The students will be studying Babylon, Egypt, Israel, India, China, and the Americas. This is a christian curriculum so the Bible will be one of the primary resources to learn about the cultures that surrounded Israel. In addition to weekly history readings, there will be history and church history lectures, map work, class discussions, special projects, quizzes, and tests.
Science
For 8th grade science we’re using Earth Science & Astronomy for the Logic Stage by Elemental Science. The structure of the lessons are easy to follow. You can tailor the curriculum to fit a two-day or five-day schedule.
Each lesson begins with an experiment, followed by reading assignments from science encyclopedias, sketch work, vocabulary, and memory work. I like that the experiments are simple to put together. Many of the materials you need are found around the house.
Astronomy is taught in three units: space, our solar system, and astronomers and their tools. Earth science is taught in three units as well: our planet, geology, and weather. Julia’s dad minored in astronomy in college, and in my opinion, he qualifies as an amateur geologist and meteorologist. He won’t be able to keep himself from helping out with science this year!
Music
My daughter will be playing clarinet in our local public middle school band again this year. She’ll also audition for the Mid Maine Youth Orchestra and the District Music Festival. Last year she got into both, so I’m assuming she’ll get in again this year. She’s already been practicing her pieces.
I’ll also encourage her to take advantage of any musical opportunities that come up over the year. This summer, we had the privilege of playing flute/clarinet duets during an art walk in our town. There’s already been talk of a holiday marketplace event that we may be asked to join. Getting the chance to play for others is what hours of practicing is all about!
Physical Education
Once again, cross country and track will be the organized sports that my daughter participates in at the middle school. She’ll also swim in her free time during the winter.
Conclusion
This year, choosing eighth grade curriculum was easy for me. I’m only responsible for teaching science and math, and I chose to continue with curriculum I’m familiar with. If you’re looking for quality math and science resources, I encourage you to check out Dimensions Math and Elemental Science for more information.
Homeschool Curriculum by Grade Level
Your Turn
What 8th grade curriculum do you recommend? Are you trying anything new this year that you’re excited about?
