How to Homeschool Multiple Grades Together

When you have children of different ages and are at different learning levels, it can be hard to juggle all subjects. You can homeschool multiple grades together. You do not have to do every subject with each individual child. There are ways to cover subjects together but each child would approach the subject at his level. You may have already found yourself about to pull your hair out trying to cover every subject with each individual student.

Don’t worry. Take a deep breath and relax. You can make covering the required subjects easier and less stressful. Plus, you may even find that doing experiments and a few of the other subjects together as a family is a lot more fun. A huge benefit is that there usually is a lot less frustration from your children. You will still cover the same concepts and material matter, but take a different approach. Remember, homeschooling does not need to be boring. Add some excitement to it and have fun. Children learn faster and retain more of the information when they are having fun and are involved in the learning process.

Subjects You Can Combine Multiple Grades

When you have children of different ages, it is a struggle to fit in all the subjects at each child’s current level of understanding. That is why you will want to homeschool multiple grades together when you can. There are some subjects that work well as a combined group with a few adaptations. Younger children will do less than older children and not as in-depth.

These are just a few of the subjects you can combine:

• Science
• Art
• Physical Education
• History
• Religon (if you want it as part of your homeschool journey)
• Read-Alouds
• Foreign Languages
• Music

Adapt Subjects for Multiple Grades

Subjects you combine and cover material for multiple grades will need some adaptation. This is especially true when you have some in younger elementary and others in higher elementary. There are even some curriculums that come with two variations. An example of this is science. Some science curriculums come with one level for younger students in grades one to three and more in-depth information for grades four through six.

This will be something you will need to consider. Do you adapt the material yourself and expect less from younger students? They can do drawings and labeling, etc at their level. Older students can explain experiments and what they expected to happen versus what actually happened. The other option is to find a company that does the breakdown for you and offers materials for both younger and older students. Either way, you will save yourself time and frustration by covering one subject with multiple grades.

Unit Studies for Multiple Grades

Unit studies work great when combining multiple grades. You can purchase unit studies all set up for you or make them up yourself. They are usually cross-curriculum and can be done by all grades. Those in the younger grades again will draw or write only a few sentences. Older students can provide more content and also do more research as part of the study. Almost all unit studies will have a research component to them.

Include One-on-One Time

You will combine subjects and do a majority of that subject as a group, such as science experiments or a period in history. However, you will still want to spend some one-on-one time with each child, no matter what level he or she is at. This will allow you to check each student’s understanding of the subject concepts but without having to do separate curriculums for the same subject. It is a different mindset and you will get the hang of it. This will create a bond and even memories. Doing experiments and subjects as a family makes concepts easier to understand and brings everyone a little closer.

Keep Some Subjects Separate

There are some subjects, you will need to keep individual and work with each student separately. These are subjects that do not work well as a group unless there is only one grade difference and the ability level is about the same.

Subjects that should be kept as individual work include the following:

• Math
• Spelling/Phonics
• Independent Reading
• English/Writing

To go with this blog post, you may want to read:

• How to Choose Homeschool Curriculum that Fits
• How to Homeschool with an Energetic Toddler
• Schedules and Homeschooling Unique to Your Family