The BEST 1st Grade Homeschool Curriculum

The main focus of our 1st grade language arts curriculum was strengthening reading skills. The primary workbook we used was Horizons Phonics & Reading – Grade 1. Horizons has a very strong phonics and reading program. We used the same program for Kindergarten and it continues through 3rd grade. I did end up buying the teacher’s edition and did not feel like I needed it as the year progressed. The student workbook does not contain an answer key, but the answers should be straightforward for the most part.

For reading practice and to assist with fluidity, we also used these sight word flash cards. We would practice a few words per day until the card was mastered. By the end of the year, we completed all three sets! I really think that using sight words along with phonics practice is essential for developing readers.

As an introduction to basic grammar, we also used Evan-Moor Daily Language Review (Grade 1) as a warm-up each day. The second half of the year, we added Evan-Moor Language Fundamentals (Grade 1). While I highly recommend Horizons for phonics, it is lacking when it comes to grammar. Many families choose not to add grammar studies until 2nd or 3rd grade, but if you are using Horizons and want to supplement with something, these Evan-Moor workbooks are a great fit.

Other 1st Grade Phonics and Language Arts Homeschool Curriculums that we considered include:

– Abeka Phonics and Reading Grade 1 – Letters and Sounds
– Explode the Code 1

Daily read-aloud stories (where I read a chapter a day or more if we were really into the book) were probably my favorite part of the homeschool day. This was usually completed right before break time and was a good transition for the remaining subjects. Typically, we pop popcorn and sit outside on the swing (if it was nice outside), and really make this time something we all look forward to.

You can find a list of some of the 1st Grade Read Aloud Chapter Books that we covered here. These books are a lot of fun and would be most enjoyed by children between the ages of 6 and 9 years old.

It’s important to note that not all kids are capable (or willing) to sit through a long chapter, even if they are interested in the book. This can especially be true when you are schooling several age ranges. If you have a child that doesn’t want to simply sit and listen, that is ok. The best way to combat this is to give them something to do with their hands while you are reading. It could be a coloring sheet, play dough, lacing cards, building blocks, etc. Just because they are doing something in addition to the story does not mean that they are not listening.

Having the students read aloud was also an important aspect of our language arts curriculum. In Kindergarten, the primary books we read were from the BOB Books collection. If your child is brand new to reading or it has not “clicked” yet, I would start with BOB Books and go from there. Once we completed all of the BOB Books, we moved on to easy picture books and 1st grade early chapter books. 

Below are book titles that were on our regular rotation for 1st grade readers. Did you know that it is ok for a child to read the same book multiple times? While reading a variety of books will help with advancing vocabularies, reading the same book over and over can help with word recognition and improved fluidity.

The Big Blue Book of Beginner Readers by P.D. Eastman includes 6 classic beginner books: The Best Nest, Are You My Mother?, Put Me in the Zoo, Go Dog Go!, A Fly Went By, and It’s Not Easy Being a Bunny.

Elephant & Piggie Collection by Mo Willems – We just adore Elephant & Piggie. The repetition of words is helpful for new readers and even parents will get a kick out of this charming and hilarious duo. Do yourself a favor and purchase one of the Elephant & Piggie Biggie! Books to get the most bang for your buck. The original Biggie book contains five stories including Today I Will Fly!, Watch Me Throw the Ball!, Can I Play Too?, Let’s Go For a Drive!, and I Really Like Slop!.

Pete the Cat by Kimberly and James Dean are the wildly popular stories that follow the grooviest cat around and his animal friends. Pete the Cat is offered in picture book format (which are great for reading aloud), but they are also available as a part of the My First I Can Read! Collection.

For spelling this year, I used the free spelling lists from k12reader.com. Each day, the words were copied three times and on Friday, we had a spelling test. This approach worked well for my traditional learner, but in hindsight, I wish we would’ve tried something different. In 2nd grade, we used the Evan-Moor Building Spelling Skills. I really like that it uses a phonics approach with lots of activities to learn each week’s word list.

Parents should note that the Evan-Moor spelling workbooks are what I would call a gentle approach to spelling. If spelling is not your child’s strong-suit and you want to give these workbooks a try, I would stick with the appropriate grade level. However, if you have a stronger speller, you will definitely want to select the next grade up.

Popular 1st Grade Spelling Homeschool Curriculums you might want to consider include:

– All About Spelling Level 1
– Spelling You See B: Jack and Jill

In both Kindergarten and 1st grade, we do not do a formal writing program. Instead, I purchased a Primary Wide-Ruled Composition Notebook with Picture Space for creative writing. Sometimes a topic was provided and other times, I would have them come up with their own topic to write about.

If you are new to homeschooling, picking a solid math program will help you in the long run. While some subjects are easy to change from year to year, math is a core subject, so it is important to find what works for your student as soon as possible. With that said, if your current math curriculum isn’t working, I would encourage you to try something new until you find a good fit.

When choosing a homeschool math curriculum, you will need to decide if you would like a traditional math program or one that follows common core standards. If you are not keen on teaching math, there are also many online options available.

The second point to consider is whether you would prefer a program that is mastery or spiral. In a mastery program, the student will learn a new concept and practice that concept until it is fully mastered. In a spiral program, the student will learn a new concept, practice that concept, and then review other concepts learned. It’s considered a spiral program because the concepts come up over and over again throughout the year, building on each lesson.

In 1st grade, students will learn counting to 100 in many ways including skip counting, even and odd numbers, using tally marks, and word numbers. Addition and subtraction are introduced as well as time to the quarter hour, counting money, and measurements. Learning new shapes, rounding numbers, and graphing is also typically introduced in first grade.

We started with Horizons Math in Kindergarten with the anticipation of eventually switching over to Saxon math. When originally researching which math program to use, that seemed to be the consensus in a lot of homeschooling boards. However, we have found that Horizons Math has been a wonderful fit for our family and I can say that we have no intention of switching any time soon.

The Horizons math program goes from Kindergarten through 8th grade and is a spiral program. It is important that you begin the program at the correct level. The Horizons website has a placement test that can help you gauge the right level for your student.

Before I jump into what we used for history and social studies, I just want to state that (in my opinion) these subjects are not necessary in 1st grade. Yes, it is never too early to introduce students to history, but it is second to reading and math. If you are already feeling overwhelmed with those two subjects, there is absolutely no reason to add anything else.

With that said, we did complete Sonlight’s Exploring American History program during our 1st grade homeschooling year.

If you have homeschooled for awhile or have spent any amount of time Googling “what is the BEST homeschooling curriculum,” you’ve likely come across Sonlight. Sonlight is a literature-based homeschool curriculum program that covers History, Language Arts, Bible Studies, and Science. The Sonlight Exploring American History program was originally listed as a Kindergarten program that could also be used in 1st grade. It has since changed and is now listed as grade range 1st through 3rd.

After completing the program, I think this was a good move on behalf of Sonlight. The books were too advanced for Kindergarten and honestly, might even be too much for a first grader. For the History portion, you will need the instructor’s guide, Heroes and Happenings Volumes 1 and 2, and a few various books that you can purchase online or borrow from your local library. The full program includes daily lessons for Bible, History & Geography, and Read-Alouds (Language Arts). Additionally, you may choose to purchase on-grade readers.

Sonlight is a fantastic homeschooling curriculum program. Their teacher’s guides are organized and well thought-out with an easy daily layout. If you are looking for an all-in-one history/language arts curriculum, I would definitely give them a shot. Although expensive, it is possible to find a lot of the books and even the teacher’s guides secondhand.

For another social studies / geography option, you might enjoy our FREE Around the World unit study. Ideal for children ages 6 – 9, the Around the World unit study covers all 7 continents and 16 different countries and cultures. The countries included are the United States, Canada, Mexico, Peru, Colombia, Brazil, France, Italy, Norway, Morocco, Kenya, South Africa, China, Japan, India, and Australia.

For our 1st grade homeschool science curriculum, we turned again to Sonlight. We completed the Science A course covering light and sound waves, biological features, space systems, and engineering design. Similar to Sonlight’s history program, the teacher’s guide was easy to follow and use. Along with the required books, we also purchased the Discover & Do Science Supplies Kit.

Will we continue using the Sonlight science and history curriculum for 2rd grade?

No, we won’t. One thing that I learned from Sonlight was how much I enjoyed creating our curriculums. It is time consuming, but very rewarding. Although I don’t plan to do it for language arts or math, I do plan on creating our science, social studies, and history curriculums in upcoming years.

Some states require physical education as part of the homeschooling curriculum. Our state is one of them. PE can come in many different forms. We combined physical activity with learning about health and nutrition for our program. If your child is active in sports, the days with practice or games could easily be considered physical education for that day. Taking a walk around the park, bicycling in the neighborhood, jumping rope in the backyard are also easy to do activities that could count as PE.

On rainy days, we turn to YouTube. Here are a few of the more popular online workouts for kids:

• PopSugar Fitness Family Fun Cardio Workout (13:08)
• Kids Workout 1 Beginners by Moe Jones Fitness (16:01)
• Kids Workouts by The Body Coach TV Joe Wicks
• Cosmic Kids Yoga
• Little Sports

Extracurriculars can really add a lot of excitement to your homeschooling day. While I always try to throw in a dash of manners, character building, or healthy living into the mix, I also like to work in some things that I know my child will enjoy.

This year for extracurricular subjects, we mostly worked through a few craft kits and science projects (from the Sonlight DIscover & Do kit above).

The Kid Made Modern Arts and Crafts Supply Library is one of my favorite all-in-one kits for creative projects.

Below is what our 1st grade homeschool schedule looks like during a normal day. While I have included times in the schedule below, our day is very flexible. The goal was to cover the bulk of the tablework on Monday through Thursday so we could use Friday as a flex day, usually for extracurricular stuff or field trips. At a minimum, we try to go on one field trip a month.

Monday – Thursday
9:00am – Spelling
9:10am – Bible / Memory Verse
9:15am – Phonics / Sight Words Flash Cards
9:35am – Reading
9:50am – Math / Addition or Subtraction Flash Cards
10:10am – Read Aloud Stories
10:30am – BREAK
10:50am – Creative Writing
11:00am – History (M/W) / Science (T/TH)
11:30am – Extracurricular
12:00pm – LUNCH